Medzhybizh Castle ( uk, Меджибі́зький замок, Medzhybiz'kyi zamok), built as a bulwark against Ottoman expansion in the 1540s, became one of the strongest fortresses of the Crown of the Kingdom of Poland in

Podolia Podolia or Podilia ( uk, Поділля, Podillia, ; russian: Подолье, Podolye; ro, Podolia; pl, Podole; german: Podolien; be, Падолле, Padollie; lt, Podolė), is a historic region in Eastern Europe, located in the west-central ...

. It is situated at the confluence of the Southern Bug and Buzhenka rivers, in the town of

Medzhybizh Medzhybizh, previously known as Mezhybozhe, population 1,731, (Census 2001) ( uk, Меджибіж, russian: Меджибож, Translit: ''Medzhibozh'', pl, Międzybóż, german: Medschybisch, yi, מעזשביזש, translit. ''Mezhbizh'') is ...

(Polish: ''Międzybuż''),

Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...

. Today the castle is part of the State Historical-Cultural Preserve. The first wooden fort was built around 1146Medzhybizh Castle
Zabytki. by the rulers of

Bolokhov Bolokhov ( cu, Болохов; pl, Bołochów; ro, Bolohov; russian: Болохов; uk, Болохов) was a city mentioned in the '' Kyivan'' and '' Galician–Volhynian'' chronicles, which gave the name to the , but that has not yet been f ...

. The fort probably survived the Mongol invasion, but was dismantled by

Daniel of Galicia Daniel of Galicia ( uk, Данило Романович (Галицький), Danylo Romanovych (Halytskyi); Old Ruthenian: Данило Романовичъ, ''Danylo Romanovyčъ''; pl, Daniel I Romanowicz Halicki; 1201 – 1264) was a King ...

in 1254 at the bidding of the

Golden Horde The Golden Horde, self-designated as Ulug Ulus, 'Great State' in Turkic, was originally a Mongol and later Turkicized khanate established in the 13th century and originating as the northwestern sector of the Mongol Empire. With the fragme ...

. The new fort was built by

Koriat Karijotas or Koriat (baptized ''Michal''; died between 1358 and 1363) was the Duke of Navahrudak ( lt, Naugardukas) and Vaŭkavysk ( lt, Valkaviskas), one of the sons of Gediminas, Grand Duke of Lithuania. According to Polish historian Jan Tęgows ...

's heirs after the Grand Duke of Lithuania had defeated the Golden Horde at the Battle of Blue Waters in 1362.

passed to the Polish Crown in 1432. The castle was confiscated from the House of Koriat and became the property of the Polish kings. About 1540 the castle was completely rebuilt by its new owner,

Mikołaj Sieniawski Mikołaj Sieniawski (c. 1489 – 1569) was a notable Polish magnate, military commander and a prominent politician of his times. He built stone Brzeżany Castle round which the modern town of Berezhany has developed. He is not to be confused ...

. The

Sieniawski family 200px, Adam Sieniawski 200px, Mikołaj Hieronim Sieniawski The Sieniawski family (plural: Sieniawscy, feminine form: Sieniawska) was a Polish szlachta family. They were magnates in the First Republic of Poland. Their properties were inherited ...

owned Medzhybizh (Polish: ''Międzyboż'') until its extinction in the early 18th century. The stronghold was reconquered from the

Turks Turk or Turks may refer to: Communities and ethnic groups * Turkic peoples, a collection of ethnic groups who speak Turkic languages * Turkish people, or the Turks, a Turkic ethnic group and nation * Turkish citizen, a citizen of the Republic ...

in 1699 and passed to the

Czartoryski family The House of Czartoryski (feminine form: Czartoryska, plural: Czartoryscy; lt, Čartoriskiai) is a Polish princely family of Lithuanian- Ruthenian origin, also known as the Familia. The family, which derived their kin from the Gediminids dyna ...

in 1731. The last rebuilding effort was undertaken by the Russian imperial authorities in the 19th century. Much restoration has been carried out on the fortress since 1968. Within the walls are a small-scale museum and a church from 1586. Since 2020, Medzhybizh Castle has been an associate member of the European Cultural Route o
FORTE CULTURA e.V.
In April 2022, at the annual international conference in Terezin, Medzhybizh Castle was granted the status of official stop on the European Cultural Route FORTE CULTURA. File:Medzhibozh Castle1 1900.jpg, Międzybuż on a 1900 postcard File:Medjiboj 1.jpg, The wall File:Medzhybizh Castle 8.jpg, One of the castle's four towers File:Палац (Меджибіж) DSC 1062.JPG, St.Nicholas Church File:Medzhybizh castle-3.JPG, A recently restored 16th-century church

References

External links

Official website
of the State Historical-Cultural Preserve "Medzhybizh"
Webcam Live
of the State Historical-Cultural Preserve "Medzhybizh" {{Coord, 49, 26, 11.76, N, 27, 25, 7.32, E, scale:30000, display=title Castles in Ukraine Forts in Ukraine Buildings and structures in Khmelnytskyi Oblast Tourist attractions in Khmelnytskyi Oblast