Lutsk Castle (;, ), also locally known as Liubart's Castle (, ''Замок Любарта'', ''Zamok Liubarta'') or Upper Castle (, ''Верхній замок'', ''Verkhnii zamok''), began its life in the mid-14th century as the fortified seat of

Gediminas Gediminas ( – December 1341) was Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1315 or 1316 until his death in 1341. He is considered the founder of Lithuania's capital Vilnius (see: Iron Wolf legend). During his reign, he brought under his rule lands from t ...

' son

Liubartas Liubartas or Demetrius of Liubar (died ) was a Lithuanian prince from the Gediminid dynasty. He was the prince of Volhynia, and from 1320, he ruled over Lutsk, Liubar and Zhytomyr. Liubartas was also the last ruler of the Kingdom of Galicia–Vo ...

(Lubart), the last ruler of united Galicia-Volhynia. It is the most prominent landmark of

Lutsk Lutsk (, ; see #Names and etymology, below for other names) is a city on the Styr River in northwestern Ukraine. It is the administrative center of Volyn Oblast and the administrative center of Lutsk Raion within the oblast. Lutsk has a populati ...

Ukraine Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the List of European countries by area, second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which Russia–Ukraine border, borders it to the east and northeast. Ukraine also borders Belarus to the nor ...

and as such appears on the 200 hryvnia bill. (Another city castle, called ''Lower Castle'', built by the

Czartoryski The House of Czartoryski (feminine form: Czartoryska, plural: Czartoryscy; ) is a Princely Houses of Poland, Polish princely family of Lithuanian-Ruthenians, Ruthenian origin, also known as the Familia (political party), Familia. The family, whic ...

family since the 14th century, is now a ruin).

History

The

Kievan Rus' Kievan Rus', also known as Kyivan Rus,. * was the first East Slavs, East Slavic state and later an amalgam of principalities in Eastern Europe from the late 9th to the mid-13th century.John Channon & Robert Hudson, ''Penguin Historical At ...

town of Luchesk had a wooden wall as early as 1075, when Boleslaus the Bold laid siege to it for six months. Yury Dolgoruky failed to take Lutsk after a six-weeks siege in 1149. In 1255, the walls of Lutsk were stormed by Khan

Jochi Jochi (; ), also spelled Jüchi, was a prince of the early Mongol Empire. His life was marked by controversy over the circumstances of his birth and culminated in his estrangement from his family. He was nevertheless a prominent Military of the ...

's grandson Kuremsa. The current castle, towering over the

Styr River The Styr (; ; ) is a right tributary of the Pripyat, with a length of . Its basin area is and located in the historical region of Volhynia. The Styr begins near Brody, Lviv Oblast, then flows into Rivne Oblast, Volyn Oblast, then into Bre ...

, was built mostly in the 1340s, although some parts of the earlier walls were used. It repelled sieges by numerous potentates, including Casimir the Great (1349), Jogaila (1431), and

Sigismund Kęstutaitis Sigismund Kęstutaitis (, ; 136520 March 1440) was Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1432 to 1440. Sigismund was his baptismal name, while his pagan Lithuanian birth name is unknown. He was the son of Grand Duke Kęstutis and his wife Birutė. Aft ...

(1436). In addition to the Lithuanian nobles gathered there with the Supreme Duke of Lithuania

Władysław II Jagiełło Jogaila (; 1 June 1434), later Władysław II Jagiełło (),Other names include (; ) (see also Names and titles of Władysław II Jagiełło) was Grand Duke of Lithuania beginning in 1377 and starting in 1386, becoming King of Poland as well. ...

and the Grand Duke Vytautas, the Congress was attended by the

Holy Roman Emperor The Holy Roman Emperor, originally and officially the Emperor of the Romans (disambiguation), Emperor of the Romans (; ) during the Middle Ages, and also known as the Roman-German Emperor since the early modern period (; ), was the ruler and h ...

Sigismund Sigismund (variants: Sigmund, Siegmund) is a German proper name, meaning "protection through victory", from Old High German ''sigu'' "victory" + ''munt'' "hand, protection". Tacitus latinises it ''Segimundus''. There appears to be an older form of ...

; the

Grand Prince of Moscow The Grand Prince of Moscow (), known as the Prince of Moscow until 1389, was the ruler of the Grand Principality of Moscow. The Moscow principality was initially established in the 13th century as an appanage within the Vladimir-Suzdal grand prin ...

Vasily II Vasily II Vasilyevich (; 10 March 141527 March 1462), nicknamed the Blind or the Dark (), was Grand Prince of Moscow from 1425 until his death in 1462. He succeeded his father, Vasily I, only to be challenged by his uncle Yuri of Zvenig ...

; and the

Voivode Voivode ( ), also spelled voivod, voievod or voevod and also known as vaivode ( ), voivoda, vojvoda, vaivada or wojewoda, is a title denoting a military leader or warlord in Central, Southeastern and Eastern Europe in use since the Early Mid ...

Dan II of Wallachia. During the long reign of Vytautas, Lutsk Castle was further fortified to guard against

artillery Artillery consists of ranged weapons that launch Ammunition, munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications during sieges, and l ...

and gunfire. The principal entrance, now bricked in, was from the west and adjoined a

bridge A bridge is a structure built to Span (engineering), span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or railway) without blocking the path underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, whi ...

over outer

moat A moat is a deep, broad ditch dug around a castle, fortification, building, or town, historically to provide it with a preliminary line of defence. Moats can be dry or filled with water. In some places, moats evolved into more extensive water d ...

. Three main towers, now named "Lubart", "

Švitrigaila Švitrigaila (before 1370 – 10 February 1452; sometimes spelled Svidrigiello) was the Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1430 to 1432. He spent most of his life in largely unsuccessful dynastic struggles against his cousins Vytautas and Sigismund K� ...

" (both after Lithuanian princes) and the "Bishop", were built up in the course of the 16th and 17th centuries. The walls of the castle formerly enclosed St. John's Cathedral, a palace of the grand dukes, and an episcopal palace. Of these buildings, only the Neoclassical palace of the bishops still stands. On 2 July 1941 1,160 Jews were murdered within the walls of the castle.Timothy Snyder: ''The Life and Death of Western Volhynian Jewry, 1921-1945.'' In: Ray Brandon, Wendy Lower: The Shoah in Ukraine. Indiana University Press, 2008, , , S. 92 There is no monument or marker for this tragedy in the castle. Lutsk castle 1916.jpg, View of the castle circa 1916 200-uah-2020-2.png, The castle tower on the reverse of 200 hryvnias banknote

References

* Памятники градостроительства и архитектуры Украинской ССР. Киев: Будивельник, 1983—1986. Том 2, с. 48.

External links

Walk around Lutsk Castle (video)
* {{Castles in Ukraine Castles in Ukraine Buildings and structures in Lutsk Gothic architecture in Ukraine Tourist attractions in Lutsk Castles of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania Holocaust locations in Ukraine