The former

castle A castle is a type of fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by military orders. Scholars debate the scope of the word ''castle'', but usually consider it to be the private fortified r ...

Navahrudak Novogrudok ( be, Навагрудак, Navahrudak; lt, Naugardukas; pl, Nowogródek; russian: Новогрудок, Novogrudok; yi, נאַוואַראַדאָק, Novhardok, Navaradok) is a town in the Grodno Region, Belarus. In the Middle A ...

Belarus Belarus,, , ; alternatively and formerly known as Byelorussia (from Russian ). officially the Republic of Belarus,; rus, Республика Беларусь, Respublika Belarus. is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by R ...

( be, Навагрудскі замак, lt, Naugarduko pilis, pl, Zamek w Nowogródku) was one of the key strongholds of the

Grand Duchy of Lithuania The Grand Duchy of Lithuania was a European state that existed from the 13th century to 1795, when the territory was partitioned among the Russian Empire, the Kingdom of Prussia, and the Habsburg Empire of Austria. The state was founded by Li ...

, cited by Maciej Stryjkowski as the location of

Mindaugas Mindaugas (german: Myndowen, la, Mindowe, orv, Мендог, be, Міндоўг, pl, Mendog, c. 1203–1263) is the first known Grand Duke of Lithuania and the only crowned King of Lithuania. Little is known of his origins, early life, or r ...

's coronation as

King of Lithuania The monarchy of Lithuania concerned the monarchical head of state of Lithuania, which was established as an absolute and hereditary monarchy. Throughout Lithuania's history there were three ducal dynasties that managed to stay in power—House ...

as well as his likely burial place.

Tomas Baranauskas Tomas Baranauskas (born 12 September 1973 in Kaunas) is a Lithuanian historian specializing in the history of medieval Lithuania. He is the author of the book ''The Formation of the Lithuanian State''. Baranauskas spent his youth in Žeimelis a ...

Место коронации Миндаугаса
On the opinion of Lithuanian historians ( T.Baranauskas etc.), there is no information that King Mindaugas lived or visited Navahrudak at all - it is Maciej Stryjkowski's XVI century written unargued conjecture in the interpretation of legends. Jūratė Mičiulienė. ''Ne Mindaugas sukūrė Lietuvą'' // Lietuvos žinios, 2007–11–12
As early as the 14th century, Navahrudak is known to have possessed a stone tower along the lines of

Tower of Kamyanyets The Tower of Kamyenyets, often called by the misnomer the White Tower ( be, Белая вежа, transliteration: ''Bielaya Vieža'' or ''Belaya Vezha''), is the main landmark of the town of Kamyenyets in Belarus. The name ''Bielaja Vieža'' (alte ...

. Other fortifications were of timber. The castle was stormed by the

Teutonic Knights The Order of Brothers of the German House of Saint Mary in Jerusalem, commonly known as the Teutonic Order, is a Catholic religious institution founded as a military society in Acre, Kingdom of Jerusalem. It was formed to aid Christians on ...

under Heinrich von Plötzke in 1314. Although the attack was not successful, the tower sustained substantial damage. During the reign of

Vytautas the Great Vytautas (c. 135027 October 1430), also known as Vytautas the Great ( Lithuanian: ', be, Вітаўт, ''Vitaŭt'', pl, Witold Kiejstutowicz, ''Witold Aleksander'' or ''Witold Wielki'' Ruthenian: ''Vitovt'', Latin: ''Alexander Vitoldus'', O ...

four new stone towers were added to the system of Navahrudak fortifications. In the 17th century the main castle boasted 7 towers, apart from those of the Lesser Castle. Navahrudak was one of the northernmost forts besieged by the Crimean Tatars in the 16th century. Navahrudak was twice occupied by Russian forces during the Russo-Polish War (1654–67). Further destruction was inflicted by the

Swedes Swedes ( sv, svenskar) are a North Germanic ethnic group native to the Nordic region, primarily their nation state of Sweden, who share a common ancestry, culture, history and language. They mostly inhabit Sweden and the other Nordic countr ...

who sacked Navahrudak as part of the

Great Northern War The Great Northern War (1700–1721) was a conflict in which a coalition led by the Tsardom of Russia successfully contested the supremacy of the Swedish Empire in Northern, Central and Eastern Europe. The initial leaders of the anti-Swedi ...

in 1706. Attempts to preserve the ruins from further decay were undertaken in the 1920s. The castle grounds at present provide the setting for medieval reenactment and

theatrical jousting Coined in the late 20th century by American stunt performer Kent Shelton, the term theatrical jousting refers to a form of live entertainment in which a medieval jousting tournament is recreated in conjunction with a scripted performance. Altern ...

. File:Novogrudok ruin.jpg, The ruins File:Navahradak - Rekanstrukcyja (Viktar Staščaniuk) 1.jpg, Modern reconstruction File:Navahradak - Rekanstrukcyja (Viktar Staščaniuk) 3.jpg, Modern reconstruction File:Navahradak - Ruiny zamka - Panarama.jpg, The ruins

References

{{Castles in Belarus Ruined castles in Belarus Gothic architecture in Belarus Buildings and structures in Grodno Region Tourist attractions in Grodno Region Navahrudak