Castles and Fortresses of Ukraine

Travelling around Ukraine, in the north or south of it in particular, you will certainly come across an ancient castle, looking as if it was wearing a veil of bygone years, or a fortress, magnificent and inaccessible in its stateness. No matter if they are half-ruined or almost intact, they will make your heart beat quicker without fail and refresh your memory about knightly novels read long time ago. It was not only Ukrainians who built various strongholds here, but also foreign rulers, both peacefully minded and those who laid the grounds waste with fire and sword. There were the Lithuanians, Poles, Hungarians, Turks and others who built their earthworks, raised defense walls, and dug deep moats. So far there are about 60 castles and fortresses in Ukraine, damaged to a different degree: starting from the ruins up to those which impress the visitor with their appearance. The Kamyanets-Podilska Fortress and Khotynska Fortress, Genoese Fortress and ruins of mediaeval fortified towns in the Crimea, Bilhorod-Dnistrovska Fortress, Lutsk Castle and those in the Carpathian region will undoubtedly attract tourists.

Kamyanets-Podilsky Fortress

It is located in one of the oldest cities in Ukraine - Kamyanets-Podilsky. The fortress itself perches on a cape - of sorts, - formed by a nicely curving of the Smotrych River, the left tributary of the Dnister River. The whole ensemble of the fort structures had being erected in the course of many centuries, from 11th through 18th. The Old Fortress that occupies the rocky part (about 5 ha.) has a shape of a rectangle with 11 mighty towers and bastions rising upward on its sides. They were built by constructors of different ethnic origin: Ukrainians, Poles, Turks, and others who either inhabited Ukraine at different times or came into the land. A great many legends and secrets are connected with this stronghold at the Smotrych River. There has been uncovered part of an underground passage which allegedly chained together fortress of Kamyanets with one in the town of Khotyn, which is more than 20 km and was part of an underground communications network. Those underground manifolds still wait to be discovered by archaeologists.

The New East Tower (Black) which is situated at the fort entrance catches one's eye in the first place. There is a deep well dug through a 40-metre thick cliff inside the tower. Then, there is Karmalyuk Tower to the left of the entrance gate, the tallest one in the ensemble; here the national hero Ustym Karmalyuk was imprisoned three times and every time he managed to break his jail, although the escape was believed impossible. Many true and fantastic stories have been told about his reliefs.

After the Fortress site one should visit its museum that comprises about 90,000 exhibits. Kamyanets-Podilsky has been included into the list of 100 world monuments of architecture under the protection of UNESCO.

Every year, in September, the town hosts the Kozatsky Zabavy (Cossacks' Games) Festival, with tournaments of knights and competitions of Cossacks, musketeers and zolnierz (soldiers of the Polish army); concert shows, exhibitions and hosts of other kinds of entertainment. The fairy town and its fortress seem to have been created to attract tourists, romantics, sweethearts, - all those who enjoy the journey back to the times of knights.

Khotyn Fortress is situated in the town of Khotyn, not far from Kamyanets-Podilsky. The fortress occupies the picturesque slopes of the steep right bank of the Dnister River at the crossroads of several trading routes. For a long period of time the fortress was a stronghold of the Galician-Volynian Principality on the Dnister River, an important defensive location in the Dnister region. In the mid-13th century the wood fortifications were replaced by stone and in the 15th century they were completely rebuilt. At different times the fortress belonged to different owners: the Poles, Turks, Russians. Nowadays this magnificent structure looks impressive to the visitor's eye with its four mighty defensive towers connected by the tall white walls, embellished with ornaments of red bricks that resemble the design of Ukrainian traditional embroidery. The commandant's palace and the church with fragments of paintings of the 16th century have been preserved. Numerous materials and exhibits are collected in the Khotyn Ethnographic Museum, which is located in the church. Many pitched battles were fought under the fortress walls. One of the greatest battles was fought in September 1621, when unified Slavic units won a victory over the 150,000-strong Turkish army, considered unconquerable then. This victory brought liberation to Western Europe from Turkish domination. The Ukrainian Cossack Army of 40,000 fighters led by Hetman P.Sahaydachny played a decisive part in the defeat of the enemy. The mighty and incomparable fortress keeps many secrets and enigmas.

Genoese Fortress

This fortress is situated on a mountain 150 m high in the town of Sudak, Crimea. In old times this town was the biggest northern colony of the Italian republic Genoa and it stood in the middle of the Great Silk Road. The Italians owned the town for about two hundred years, starting from the 13th century. Before them there had been other dozens peoples that came to the place. The fortress of Sudak - Genoese Fortress - is a unique monument of architecture and history. Incidentally it is a really marvellous place. The fortress's southern coastal side is a precipice. It has two tiers of fortifications: the lower level consists of 6-8 m high and 2 m thick outer walls; the upper one served as citadel and includes Consul's Tower and other towers linked by the walls. There was a town in-between the tiers, streets with houses, public buildings, storages of food and weapon, churches and taverns. The town was always under vigilant guarding. The consul was not allowed to spend a night beyond the town walls. At sunset the gate was locked and the drawbridge was pulled up. Guards, among whom there were a trumpeter and drummer, were posting on the walls, and watchful patrols were strolling through the town all night long.

Today the town seems to show us scenes from the life of those old times. Tourists will hear legends of hoary age, learn about the glorious history of the place and mysteries that are still uncovered. The Sudak Fortress is considered to be unique in its own way in Europe, surpassing even famous castles of Rhine.

When you go to the golden beaches of the Crimean shores, don't miss the chance of visiting the unique ruins of towns, castles and fortresses of the Middle Ages in the western Crimea: Chufut-Kale, Eski-Kermen, Mangup and others that will leave fond memories without fail.

Bilhorod-Dnistrovska Fortress

It is situated in the town-port of Bilhorod-Dnistrovsky, in the Dnistrovsky estuary, 18 km from the Black Sea. The fortress was built in the 13th century by the master builder, Fedorko, on the ruins of the ancient Greek city of Tira. In 15th century the complex was further fortified with turrets which help form an independent citadel with courtyards in the Fortress's centre, preserved till the present day to impress the visitor with its mighty. This unique monument of mediaeval architecture comprises a small citadel surrounded by the walls with four turrets; 20 towers (there used to be 30 of them); two outside gates - Holovny (Main) and Ovidiopolsky (Ovidio-Polish) - and three internal gates. The white impressive walls 2-km long, 7 m high and 5 m thick were reliable defences for the fort. There were also deep, up to 23 m, and wide, up to 10 m, moats, on which locks were built to let the estuary water flow into the moats. On the territory of the largest and sturdiest defensive structure of its kind in Ukraine there are also Armenian and Greek Churches, Crypt Church of St John of Suchava and ruins of the ancient city Tira, the Scythian and Genoese settlements.

Lutsk Castle

Lutsk is one of the oldest cities in Ukraine. It is a regional centre on the Styr River. There are several theories to explain the origins of its name: according to one of them, the mane derives from the word 'luka,' meaning a bend in a river. The reference of the year 1085 in the chronicles gives the ground to state that by that time the city had had fortifications, and archaeological excavations prove that the citizens practiced crafts and trade back in the 10th century. The Lutsk Castle (13th-14th cent.) is a fortified structure with three towers: the Passage, or tower of Lyubart (Lyubart was the ruler of Lutsk (1340-80), the Styr, or the Tower of Svydryhaylo, and the Vladycha Tower. Its status of the last capital of Halytsko-Volynske Principality distinguishes this castle among the other castles of Ukraine. Since it belonged to different owners (Lithuania, Poland, Russia) at different times, it was considered to be the monument of old defensive structures in those countries too. In 1429 the Grand Duke Vitovt of Lithuania received here rulers of European countries. In 1987 a bell museum, the only museum of its kind in Ukraine, was organized in the premises of the Vladycha Tower, where you can also see the exposition of the castle arsenal. On the territory of Okolny Castle (the lower line of fortifications) there is only one tower survived out of eight - the Czartoriyski Princes Tower; there are also three monastery complexes: Brigittine Convent, Jesuit Church, and a unique example of residential architecture - Hulevych Building. Yet, the city undergrounds, which labyrinths are believed to connect the city with the neighboring villages, seem to keep many a secret. Thus, a many-storied prison complex with an isolated cell was discovered under the Roman Catholic Church of SS Peter and Paul. One can travel by those subterranean passes with a guide only. The Lutsk Castle is also known for the Sword of the Lutsk Castle Knights Tournament that attracts participants all around Ukraine and other countries in Europe.

Castles of the Lvivshchyna

After Lviv, the central part of which was proclaimed a historical-archaeological preserve and included into the UNESCO's list of 'World Cultural Heritage', one should visit the castles in Lviv region - monuments of architecture and history.

Castle at Olesko

It is a mighty fortification of the 14th-century Old Rus. Then, in the 15th-16th centuries it was a magnate's residence, and in the 17th century it was rebuilt in the style of the Italian Renaissance. The King Yan III Sobieski was born here in 1629, and when grown up, he lived here quite often and made a big collection of works of art. Nowadays the castle houses a museum and picture-gallery, where hundreds of unique works of painting, sculpture and applied arts of the 10th-19th are displayed. The castle is surrounded by a picturesque garden.

Castle at Pidgirtsi

This monument of late Renaissance is situated not far from Olesko. It belonged to Rzewuski magnates back in the 18th century. The castle complex comprises: the castle, surrounded by ramparts and moats, a Roman-Catholic Church, entrance gate and a marvellous park with old lime-trees.

Zolochevsky Castle

It was built in the 17th century as a citadel with bastions. In the 17th-18th cent. it belonged to the Sobieskis and Radzyvills. In the territory of the castle there stand two palaces: Velyky (Great), in late Renaissance style, and Kytaysky (Chinese).

Castle at Pomoryany

It stands not far from Zolochevsky Castle. It was built in the 16th century and considerably enlarged in the 17th century by the King Jan II. On the return way to Lviv one can see the ruins of the castle in Stare Silo (Old Village), defensive walls of which rise up to 16 m high and occupy the space of 2 ha. Once the Starosilsky Castle was one of the mightiest strongholds of western Ukraine. Tourists from all around the world come to the land of Lvivshchyna attracted by the charming atmosphere of Lviv and beauty and mightiness of the castles in the Lviv region.

Uzhgorod

The history of Uzhgorod, city and centre of the Zakarpattya (Thranscarpathia), dates back to the ancient times. The walls of a mediaeval fortress 10th-16th cent., built at the site of the Old Rus-Ukraine town of the Prince Laborets, are manifest prove of that. The Laborets's fortress had been 'the heart' of the Carpathian Principality. In the vicinity of the city, in the picturesque landscape, there lay the ruins of Nevytsky castle (13th century). There are many legends and secrets connected with its history.

Mukachevsky castle, or Palanok, in the town of Mukachevo, undoubtedly belongs to the treasures of Zakarpattya. It is situated on 68-metre high Zamkova (Castle) Mount and occupies the space of 14 thous. square m. No one knows the exact date of its foundation, yet the documents of the 11th century have the reference to it. The Polish Prince Fedir Koryatovych owned the fort from 1396 through 1414. He considerably enlarged the castle, made it stronger and turned it into his residence. At that time a deep well of 85 m was dug. Then the castle saw many owners replacing one another in the course of the 15th-17th centuries. They reconstructed it and reinforced and its walls every time warded off the attacks of the enemy.

The towns of Ostroh and Dubno in the land of Rovenshchyna attract numerous tourists. There, on the territory of historical-cultural preserves, one can see the restored remains of the Ostrozky Princes castles.

Lybid-Tourist Travel Agency invites you to visit unique and mysterious architectural landmarks of old times in Ukraine.
 

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