Lubart Castle is the main symbol of the city of Lutsk, symbolizing the power of the Volyn Territory. This is one of the oldest and largest castles in Ukraine, which ranks first in the ranking of “7 Wonders of Ukraine”. It is famous for its interesting history, amazing architecture, amazing stamina, a huge collection of ancient bells, knightly tournaments and much more. And the fortress was honored to be depicted on a 200-hryvnia bill.
Lubart Castle: a story
Today it has three names: Lutsk (the most common), Upper (as there is another half destroyed in Lutsk - the Lower), and Lyubart.
The castle was founded by Rurik in the XI century. In the annals, it was first mentioned in 1075, when the fortress withstood the siege of the soldiers of Boleslav the Brave, which lasted 6 months. Initially, it was a relatively small wooden fortification. It was located on an island surrounded by swamps. Such an advantageous position gave the owners an advantage in battles with the invaders. In the period from 1340 to 1350, when Lyubart Gediminovich (son-in-law of the Galitsky-Volyn Prince Andrei II Yuryevich) ruled in the Volyn territories, the fortress was completely rebuilt into a brick one. New walls were erected around the old ones, which increased the area of construction. In addition, around the castle, the water level was increased by constructing a special dam. And to pass through the moat, a special drawbridge was made.
At the end of the XIV century, Prince Vitovt came to power, who made Lutsk the southern capital of the Principality of Lithuania. Under him, the city flourished and became a powerful political, religious and administrative center of Volyn, and the castle of Lubart received the shape that it has to this day. It was in the princely palace of the castle in 1429 that a congress of European monarchs took place. It addressed the issue of protecting Europe from the Ottoman invaders and other international issues. When Vitovt died, his brother Svidrigailo became the prince, during which perestroika was completely completed. That is why the Lutsk fortress is often called the castle of the three princes.
Siege Resistance
Amazingly, the Lubart castle in Lutsk is still in good condition to this day, despite the fact that it has withstood many sieges over its centuries-old history. After Boleslav the Brave, a wooden detinet in 1149 tried to capture Rostov-Suzdal and Kiev Prince Yuri Dolgoruky, and literally a year later Galician Prince Vladimir Vladimirovich intended to besiege the fortress. Five years later, his brother Yaroslav Vladimirovich came forward with the same goal. 100 years later, in 1255, the Golden Horde governor Kurems attacked the Lutsk castle of Luberth. He was not the last to try to destroy a wooden kid.
After the castle was rebuilt, Polish kings tried to conquer its stone walls: Kazimir in 1349 and Jagiello in 1431, as well as the Lithuanian prince Sigismund in 1436.
The tradition of protecting the castle from King Jagiello
When the Polish king tried to capture Volhynia and besiege Lubart Castle after fierce battles, the fortress was still able to withstand the onslaught and defend the independence of the region. According to legend, not only the reliability of the fortress helped the defenders win, but also their personal ingenuity. After a long and exhausting siege, when the ammunition was already over, the locals decided to catapult the rotting animal corpses to the Poles. Under the shelling of dead animals, the Poles nevertheless retreated.
Late use of the fortress
Lutsk castle of Lubart and its defenders were able to withstand even the invasion of the Mongol-Tatars. In 1569, when the Union of Ljubljana was concluded and the Commonwealth was formed, the castle became a royal residence. By the 17th century, the fortress began to lose its defense capabilities. By this time, the castle housed: courts, the residence of the bishop, the office, office buildings. On the territories of the Upper and Lower Castles there were Latin and Orthodox departments, which made it possible to gather the gentry of both faiths. And the Lutsk tribunal had power not only over Volynsky, but also over a number of other voivodships.
Since the middle of the XIX century, the complex began to decline at all. And in 1863, officials decided to take it apart and sell it as building material. The exit tower and the adjacent wall "went under the hammer" for 373 rubles. Fortunately, they did not manage to sell the fortress, because in 1864 the Kiev commission prohibited the demolition of the complex. But the Lower Castle was waiting for a more sad fate.
In 1870, a fire brigade settled in the castle and built a booth over the Lord’s Tower, with which control over the city was conducted. In 1918, a summer theater with a wooden pavilion and a foyer was built on the territory of the Castle. Here they showed the so-called "live pictures", which at that time were considered fashionable. So one of the first cinemas in Lutsk appeared.
Today, Lubart Castle, or Lutsk Castle, is a historical museum and a national monument.
Towers
The fortification has the shape of an irregular triangle, in each corner of which there are towers: Visiting, Vladycheva, Styrovaya. An exit tower is located on the west side, which is climbed to view the city from a bird's eye view. Elements of the tower reflect various historical facts. For example, on the main facade above the main entrance there are two arches. Previously, there were passages that could be reached from the drawbridge, which is located above the moat. Today, the arches are walled up, and instead of a bridge a regular entrance is built.
Inside the tower are two spiral staircases. The tower has several floors, each of them has an exposition of ancient engravings and paintings dedicated to this castle, as well as old maps of the Volyn Territory. On the top floor there is an exhibition of old toys, keys, bottles and other items. The Sovereign Tower also contains exhibits dedicated to the city and the stronghold.
Frontal place
In front of the exit tower in the courtyard are tools used for both siege and defense, as well as various devices that have been preserved since the Middle Ages. In the 16th century, there was a frontal place on this site, on which people were executed, as a rule, by chopping off the head.
Other buildings
On the territory of the fortress are: dungeons, the princely palace, the county treasury and the house of gentry courts. The Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist, which was the first Christian church in Lutsk, was also partially preserved. They say that it was here that Prince Lubart was buried.
Near the remains of the temple is an exposition of old tiles and bricks. Here you can see a brick of different sizes and times. On some copies there are even ancient inscriptions. In the courtyard you can see the remains of wooden buildings and old metal objects.
Lubart Castle is also famous for a large collection of ancient bells (the only one in Ukraine), a museum of the press and a collection of weapons.
Graffiti
Throughout the existence of the fortress, people have left many inscriptions on its outer side. In fact, all the walls between the towers are covered with different words. These are mainly people's names and dates. The oldest record on the wall dates from 1444. The inscriptions are characterized by a variety of fonts, scratching and calligraphy methods. Among them there are records of famous people, for example, the sisters Lesia Ukrainka, Olga Kosach, from 1891.
