Zbarazh Castle ( uk, Збаразький замок, pl, Zamek w Zbarażu) is a fortified defense stronghold in
Zbarazh
Zbarazh ( uk, Збараж, pl, Zbaraż, yi, זבאריזש, Zbarizh) is a city in Ternopil Raion of Ternopil Oblast (province) of western Ukraine. It is located in the historic region of Galicia. Zbarazh hosts the administration of Zbarazh urb ...
, built during the times of the
Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth
The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, formally known as the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, and, after 1791, as the Commonwealth of Poland, was a bi- confederal state, sometimes called a federation, of Poland and Lithuania ru ...
. It dominates the crests of the Zamkova Hills of
Ternopil Oblast
Ternopil Oblast ( uk, Тернопі́льська о́бласть, translit=Ternopilska oblast; also referred to as Ternopilshchyna, uk, Терно́пільщина, label=none, or Ternopillia, uk, Тернопілля, label=none) is an obl ...
in
Western Ukraine
Western Ukraine or West Ukraine ( uk, Західна Україна, Zakhidna Ukraina or , ) is the territory of Ukraine linked to the former Kingdom of Galicia–Volhynia, which was part of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, the Austria ...
next to the city's central plaza that was not in so distant past surrounded by marshland. The castle existence has been credited to last members of the Polish
Zbaraski family 200px, Korybut coat of arms
The House of Zbaraski was a princely family of Ruthenian origin in the Crown of the Kingdom of Poland domiciled in Volhynia (today Ukraine). The name is derived from the town of Zbarazh, the core of their dominions ...
;
Krzysztof and
Jerzy Zbaraski
Prince Jerzy Zbaraski ( pl, Jerzy Zbaraski, uk, Юрій Збаразький, b. 1574, d. 12 July 1631 in Kraków) was a Polish–Lithuanian szlachcic. Older brother of Krzysztof Zbaraski. Last of the Zbaraski family.
Jerzy was born in 1574. ...
.
Evidence of the
City of Zbarazh formation can be seen in the
Ruthenia fortress dating back to 1211 that was positioned somewhat away from current castle. Today this is a village of Zbarazky District located in the immediate proximity of Zbarazh itself and called
the Village of Stary Zbarazh. At that distant time the old castle and the province was ruled by
Gediminids
The House of Gediminid or simply the Gediminids ( lt, Gediminaičiai, sgs, Gedėmėnātē, be, Гедзімінавічы, pl, Giedyminowicze, uk, Гедиміновичі;) were a dynasty of monarchs in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania that reig ...
Landlords Zbarazky.
The castle is known for being the seat of the Ukrainian aristocratic
Wiśniowiecki family
The House of Wiśniowiecki ( uk, Вишневе́цькі, ''Vyshnevetski''; lt, Višnioveckiai}) was a Polish-Lithuanian princely family of Ruthenian-Lithuanian origin, notable in the history of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. They we ...
and its prominent members, most notably
Jeremi Wiśniowiecki
Prince Jeremi Wiśniowiecki ( uk, Ярема Вишневецький – Yarema Vyshnevetsky; 1612 – 20 August 1651) nicknamed ''Hammer on the Cossacks'' ( pl, Młot na Kozaków), was a notable member of the aristocracy of the Polish–Lith ...
.
Early Zbarazh Castle
The Zbarazky landlords erected a primeval wooden fortress in the town which nowadays is called Stary Zbaraż (Old Zbarazh), a quarter mile away from their own mansion. Soon after it was incinerated during a skirmish with the
tatars
The Tatars ()[Tatar]
in the Collins English Dictionary is an umbrella term for different . All the fortification's protectors, including Vasyl Nesvizky, the grandson of Theodore
Kaributas
Kaributas (''Koribut'', ''Korybut'', baptized ''Dmitry''; after 1350 – after 1404) was a son of Algirdas, Grand Duke of Lithuania, and reigned in Severian Novgorod until 1393.
Kaributas was born some time after 1350 (exact date is unknown) ...
, were killed on the burning battleground. Another castle was constructed in the same location using the same materials, and its end was enacted in the same deadly way. It was set on fire during a nomadic attack in the year of 1589 while Janusz Zbarski commanded the stronghold. Later in the beginning of the 17th century, his son decided to build a masonry structure in the new location receiving guidance from Western European architects.
The first blueprints were drafted by
Vincenzo Scamozzi
Vincenzo Scamozzi (2 September 1548 – 7 August 1616) was an Italian architect and a writer on architecture, active mainly in Vicenza and Republic of Venice area in the second half of the 16th century. He was perhaps the most important figure t ...
for
Krzysztof Zbaraski
Prince Krzysztof Zbaraski ( pl, Krzysztof Zbaraski, uk, Христофор Збаразький, 1580 – 6 March 1627) was a Polish–Lithuanian member of the gentry social class ('' szlachta''). During his life he was a Master of the Stab ...
, but the project did not gain approval: it would remain more a palace then a marshal bastion. Scamozzi had envision his creation at first and described it in the tractate named "The idea of universal architecture", which he later on partially embodied into stone in the city of Zbarazh. It appeared that this architect took "
Utopia
A utopia ( ) typically describes an imaginary community or society that possesses highly desirable or nearly perfect qualities for its members. It was coined by Sir Thomas More for his 1516 book '' Utopia'', describing a fictional island societ ...
" of
Thomas More
Sir Thomas More (7 February 1478 – 6 July 1535), venerated in the Catholic Church as Saint Thomas More, was an English lawyer, judge, social philosopher, author, statesman, and noted Renaissance humanist. He also served Henry VIII as Lord ...
too close to his heart. Therefore, the contender won a different project by Henryk van Peene, who was quite familiar with the landlords due to his previous work on Zbaraski's palace in
Kraków
Kraków (), or Cracow, is the second-largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in Lesser Poland Voivodeship, the city dates back to the seventh century. Kraków was the official capital of Poland until 1596 ...
.
New Zbarazh Castle
An escarped bulwark emerged from the mounds of dirt up to high, and a terrace for the castle troopers was laid out of wide. A rectangular courtyard inside had been plotted. Behind the walls arched chambers were constructed, that nowadays house specimens of arms and wooden sculptures of Pinzel's students. An entrenchment around bulwark was very wide, in some parts it is as much as . In the middle of the fortress, regarding rules of "palazzo in fortezza", was developed a palace in the architectural style of Renaissance with early Baroque elements.
First ruination of the new fortification was endeavored by cossacks in 1648. Polish sources reported their amount as much as 100,000 strong. But it would rather be an exaggeration. There was no business for such a ferocious army to siege a small castle. Nonetheless the landlords became determined increasing security of the military outpost. In the year of 1649 it was improved complying to a design of architect Dubois from Lorraine. During some period of time the stronghold was vacant, but later on its ownership was transferred to the
Wiśniowiecki family
The House of Wiśniowiecki ( uk, Вишневе́цькі, ''Vyshnevetski''; lt, Višnioveckiai}) was a Polish-Lithuanian princely family of Ruthenian-Lithuanian origin, notable in the history of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. They we ...
. In 1675, it was overcome and burned by Turks, and soon afterwards followed a restoration by Dimitry Wiśniowiecki. That was exactly a moment when castle was turned into a palace, losing its strategic military designation. Nevertheless, it did not stop Russian soldiers plundering a building in the years of 1707 to 1734.
Dmitry Wiśniowiecki having died in 1682, the architectural complex became a property of the
Potocki family. These were Joseph and later on Stanislav, Mayor of
Kyiv
Kyiv, also spelled Kiev, is the capital and most populous city of Ukraine. It is in north-central Ukraine along the Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2021, its population was 2,962,180, making Kyiv the seventh-most populous city in Europe.
Kyi ...
. Zbarazh remained under the control of the Potoki family until the middle of the 19th century.
The castle was taken by the
Cossacks in 1649 and the Turks in 1675. The
events of 1649 are dramatized by
Henryk Sienkiewicz in his novel ''
With Fire and Sword
''With Fire and Sword'' ( pl, Ogniem i mieczem, links=no) is a historical novel by the Polish author Henryk Sienkiewicz, published in 1884. It is the first volume of a series known to Poles as The Trilogy, followed by '' The Deluge'' (''Potop'' ...
''.
Ivan Bohun
Ivan Bohun ( ua, Іван Богун) (died 1664) was a Ukrainian Cossack colonel. Close associate and friend of Bohdan Khmelnytsky, he opposed both the pacts with Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth ( Treaty of Hadiach of 1658) and with Tsardom ...
was heavily wounded under the castle's walls.
Ivan Mazepa
Ivan Stepanovych Mazepa (also spelled Mazeppa; uk, Іван Степанович Мазепа, pl, Jan Mazepa Kołodyński; ) was a Ukrainian military, political, and civic leader who served as the Hetman of Zaporizhian Host in 1687–1708. ...
and
Peter I Peter I may refer to:
Religious hierarchs
* Saint Peter (c. 1 AD – c. 64–88 AD), a.k.a. Simon Peter, Simeon, or Simon, apostle of Jesus
* Pope Peter I of Alexandria (died 311), revered as a saint
* Peter I of Armenia (died 1058), Catholico ...
are known to have visited it in 1707.
Today's outlook
![61-224-0001 Zbarazh Castle RB](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/07/61-224-0001_Zbarazh_Castle_RB.jpg)
Ukrainian Independence having been announced, the castle was included into a registry of national historical architectural heritage in the year of 1994. The complex has a rectangular footprint, and surrounded on all sides by some marshland. This fortification demonstrated most advanced achievements of European marshal fortpost defense craft that included an escarped bulwarks, four bastions, and a moat encircling the building perimeter. Earlier, in the place of the palace, rectangular void was taken completely by the castles yard. The palace itself has two stories, being masonry built, with distinctive simplistic features of Renaissance era. The main entry way is emphasized by a balcony with a stone console. The outer corners of the palace are decorated with a field stone. Facades were risen in the Renaissance style as well. Gatehouse was aligned straightforward with the castle main entry. Pentagon bastions have been preserved partially. In everyone of them there are a tunnels connecting the castle yard and chambers.
An exposition
Exposition halls of the castle has been housing significant collection of arts and artifacts informing tourist and visitors of Zbarazh District history.
In 1980 the church, being itself an architectural heritage of the year 1755, accommodated District Museum of Natural History. It was founded as public entity by the Chief District Representative Department of Education Voityna Peter Denysovich. In the April 1982, it was transformed into government establishment and was serving to the needs of Ternopil Oblast's Museum of Natural History. First executive officer became Voityna Peter. In the year of 1989 Zbarazh District Museum of Natural History was headed by Matsipoora Annatoly Viktorovych. Due to a transferring the churches from the state control to respectful parishes supervision, the museum was moved into a gym that at that moment was situated in the castle
The art collection foundation at a time accumulated 4,277 items of primary fund and 1,401 items of auxiliary documents and artifacts. Major contributors to the cause were organization employees as Voityna P., Malevych A., Pohaudiy I., Matsipoora A., Mackarchuk N. The fund was enriched by materials of archeological excavations, ancient arms, paintings and sculpture artwork, numismatic collection, retro-clocks and furniture, old prints, pieces of worship, rugs and embroidery, items of everyday needs. In 1994, taking into account significant historical, architectural and creative importance of the castle legal act #78 on February 8, 1994, ruled inception of State Historic Cultural Preservation in the District of Zbarazh. For eight years of existence the fund became a part of architectural complex and filled in expositions in the halls of the museum. By a resolution of the Zbarazh board meeting on December 25, 2002, all the infrastructure and museum holding were given in service to the State Historic Architectural Preservation in the District of Zbarazh.
Using materials of art collection foundation were compiled primary expositions in the Zbarazh castle palace. These are archeological and ethnographic exhibits, as well as hall of sacred arts. State Historic Architectural Preservation expanded and enriched the museum tradition and complemented achievements of District Museum of Natural History. Every year exhibition was being enriched with items from state historic preservation fund, constant improving introductory tours is practiced, and control of excursions quality is being enacted as well. In accordance with the decree issued by the President on January 15, 2005 #35/2005 state preservation received a status of "Zamky Ternopolya" National Preservation. Nowadays the 17th century Zbarazh Castle is a center of "Zamky Ternopolya" preservation and a notable landmark of the district and the whole region. Today's museum collection consists of 50,000 items of exposition. All of them unveil a history of Zbarazh countryside in various epochs and development periods.
Zbarazh Castle exposition consist of eight distinctive exhibitions. There is an overall list of them by the area of interest:
* Country archeological discoveries,
*
Cucuteni-Trypillian culture,
* Ethnography,
* Arms,
* Wood carved sculptures of folk artist Volodymir Lipyichuk;
300px, Inside yard
* Deity sculptures;
* Retro furniture,
* Numismatics and notaphily,
* Sacred arts;
* Australia, New Zealand and Oceania chamber of Ivan Prashka, native of Zbarazh;
* Galicia and Volyn embroidery;
* Folk dress code;
* Ceramics of renowned master of Ukrainian arts
Taras Levkiv, native of Zbarazh country;
* Hall of Cossacks’ Fame;
* A torture chamber cellars;
* Countryside crafts;
* Hall of current project exhibits;
Most ancient history of Zbarazh countryside presented in archeology. All the artifacts collected on this particular subject constituted a presentation of Paleolithic Era, Bronze and Iron Age, Chernyakhov Culture, epoch of early Slavs and Kyivan Rus’. Most notable artifacts are shown off originating in Trypillian Culture found near the village of Bodaky, Zbarazh District.
Area of interest exhibits
Archeological excavations of
Cucuteni-Trypillian culture near the village of Bodaky executed by National Preservation together with Saint Petersburg Institute Material Culture Russian Academy of Science, Ukrainian scientists and archeologists. Results of the research have yielded enough material to assemble a traveling exposition of Zbarazh countryside for presentations abroad. To the date of writing this note, it visited
Varna
Varna may refer to:
Places Europe
*Varna, Bulgaria, a city in Bulgaria
**Varna Province
**Varna Municipality
** Gulf of Varna
**Lake Varna
**Varna Necropolis
*Vahrn, or Varna, a municipality in Italy
*Varniai, a city in Lithuania
* Varna (Šaba ...
,
Orléans
Orléans (;["Orleans"](_blank)
(US) and [Tours
Tours ( , ) is one of the largest cities in the region of Centre-Val de Loire, France. It is the prefecture of the department of Indre-et-Loire. The commune of Tours had 136,463 inhabitants as of 2018 while the population of the whole metro ...]
,
Granada.
The Battle of Zbarazh entered into annals of Ukrainian history as one of the most patriotic stages of Revolutionary War for Independence. In the 1649 Zbarazh became an arena of combat straggle between Polish military and Cossack squadrons spearheaded by
Bohdan Khmelnytsky. Precisely for this reason in the castle palace was created a Hall of Cossack's Fame. You would find there many busts of renowned warriors. Besides those sculptures, there is a portrait picture-show of Cossacks’ chieftains painted by Stanislav Kovalchuk Honored Artist of Ukraine .
Sacred Arts of Zbarazh countryside are represent three expositions. Castle palace three exposition halls house a collection of icons belonging to the period of 17th — first half of 20th century, that originate in Zbarazh District worship establishments. All the specimens of this assemblage were mindfully preserved by the employees. First category artist-instaurator of oil paintings Magynsky Vladimyr recovered most of them to the original state. Quite interesting is a property of parishes, that is situated in the halls of Sacred Arts securities. In particular, these are lithography and old prints, ritual and church service literature, ceremonial regalia of Christian worshiping.
Another feature deserving visitors’ attention is an exposition of
Ivan Prasko
Ivan Prasko, MBE (1 May 1914 – 28 January 2001) was the eparch of Australia, New Zealand and Oceania for the Ukrainian Catholic Church.
He was born in Zbarazh, Ternopil, Ukraine. He studied at the theological academy in Lviv and then in Rome ...
's personal belongings; archbishop Ukrainian Greek-Catholic Church of Australia, Oceania and New Zealand; born in the City of Zbarazh, he was a minister during 1950–1994 period of time; died in 2001, but his individual items were returned to his homeland with father Michael Bedry's help and were saved in the castle repositories.
![Zbarazh Ternopilska-castle-exhibition of wooden sculpture](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0a/Zbarazh_Ternopilska-castle-exhibition_of_wooden_sculpture.jpg)
In the separate exposition hall has been shown off sacred arts sculptures created by both Pensel's students as well as talented artist Antony Osinsky in the middle of 18th century. Their work material was a wood;
polychrome
Polychrome is the "practice of decorating architectural elements, sculpture, etc., in a variety of colors." The term is used to refer to certain styles of architecture, pottery or sculpture in multiple colors.
Ancient Egypt
Colossal statu ...
technique was taken advantage of, as well as
metal leaf
A metal leaf, also called composition leaf or schlagmetal, is a thin foil used for gilding and other forms of decoration. Metal leaves can come in many different shades. Some metal leaves may look like gold leaf but do not contain any real gold. ...
layering of gold and silver applied. At one point of time these sculptures decorated Saint Antony's temple, but now they have become a museum collection cynosure of the castle palace. The icons and sacred sculptures collection, that were chosen out of State Historic Preservation fund, notably represented Zbarazh Castle out on a show of "Saved Relics" at
Saint Sophia Cathedral in Kyiv
Saint Sophia Cathedral in Kyiv, Ukraine, is an architectural monument of Kyivan Rus. The former cathedral is one of the city's best known landmarks and the first heritage site in Ukraine to be inscribed on the World Heritage List along with the K ...
transpired during April-May 2000.
Ethnography and a way of live in Zbarazh countryside represented by three palace show halls. A rare collection of Galych and Volyn embroidery have been situated there. Runners and tablecloths fabricated in different techniques on homemade and factory canvases using geometrical, floral, and zoological ornamentations. Alongside in the exhibition halls there are specimens of sacred art embroidery and gender specific folk dress code of Zbarazh District in history.
A story of most popular country craftsmanship and its evolution tells us an exhibition containing articles of everyday living at the last guarder of 19th – beginning of 20th century. These are things produced with homemade canvas, figure loom rugs, earthenware and carpenter goods, wickerwork of straw, osier, and bast. Prominent feature of Zbarazh Castle is Ukrainian Honored Artist Vladimir V. Lipyichuk's sculpture collection. It constitutes more than forty authorial artifacts crafted out of lime-tree. Some items are represented by a plot of particular genre. Others are combined into duplets or triplets by common name or quotation. Lipyichuk's art work is an attempt to embody characters from well known and cherished writing of
Taras Shevchenko
Taras Hryhorovych Shevchenko ( uk, Тарас Григорович Шевченко , pronounced without the middle name; – ), also known as Kobzar Taras, or simply Kobzar (a kobzar is a bard in Ukrainian culture), was a Ukrainian poet, wr ...
,
Ivan Franko
Ivan Yakovych Franko (Ukrainian: Іван Якович Франко, pronounced ˈwɑn ˈjɑkowɪtʃ frɐnˈkɔ 27 August 1856 – 28 May 1916) was a Ukrainian poet, writer, social and literary critic, journalist, interpreter, economist, ...
,
Lesya Ukrainka. Fans of modern Ukrainian art also demonstrate acute interest to creations of Taras Levkiv, Honored Artist of Arts, native of the Village of Malla Beresovytsya of Zbarazh District.
Separate focus of attention require collection of arms that being housed in two castle exposition halls. It was assembled out of specimens from Stone Age era, Iron Age, epoch of early and late Middle Ages, as well as period of First World War.
A torture chamber
![Zbarazh Ternopilska-castle-museum of tortures-exhibition-2](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b2/Zbarazh_Ternopilska-castle-museum_of_tortures-exhibition-2.jpg)
There is a historical chamber
of torture opened in Zbarazh Castle recently. In the dark and humid cellars of the fortress next to the dungeon walls now has been installed ancient devices that used to inflict suffering. All the hellish instrument have been manufactured using original blueprints. The charts were looked for in old archives. All the equipment is in working conditions.
The subject of instrument of torture is a very peculiar topic. They were engaged mostly in the period of
Inquisition
The Inquisition was a group of institutions within the Catholic Church whose aim was to combat heresy, conducting trials of suspected heretics. Studies of the records have found that the overwhelming majority of sentences consisted of penances, ...
, that had been widely practiced on the territory of modern Spain, Italy, and Germany, and latter on with the spreading of
Catholicism
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
in Ukraine as well. There was a decision made to show off this equipment in the cellars of Zbarazh Castle. Between the items of exposition there is a chair of witch. There is only three hundreds years passed by since last time women sat in it for suspicion in practicing an enchantment craft. Chiefly these were most of the good looking females. The interest to this artifact is particular, but there was no one trying to sit in the seat itself though.
As of this moment in the chamber of torture there are up to ten devil's mechanisms, but the exposition has been promised to be enriched.
Gallery
File:Zbarazh Ternopilska-castle-casemate-guard board.jpg, Castle barracks board
File:F.a29.07.08r.553.JPG, The bastion and the bulwark
File:Збаразький замок 29.07.2008 - 531.jpg, Main building
File:Ternopol 285.jpg, The barracks
File:Zbaraz11.JPG, Sculpture works in the main building
File: Zbarazh Ternopilska-castle-tower&casemate-2.jpg, The gatehouse on the inner yard
File: F.a29.07.08r.538.JPG, The terrace
File: Zbaraz27.JPG, The exhibit of ancient armor and weapon
File:Zbaraz18.JPG, Sacred Arts Museum
File:Zbarazh_Ternopilska-castle_palace-interior-5.jpg, Interior room with the hetman portrait painting
See also
*
Siege of Zbarazh
The siege of Zbarazh ( pl, Zbaraż, uk, Збараж) was a 1649 battle of the Khmelnytsky Uprising. The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth forces held their positions besieged in the Zbarazh Castle until in the aftermath of Battle of Zboriv an ...
References
{{commons category, Zbarazh castle
Castles in Ukraine
Castles in Ternopil Oblast
Tourist attractions in Ternopil Oblast
Museums in Ternopil Oblast
History museums in Ukraine
Art museums and galleries in Ukraine
Prison museums in Europe
Castle
Wiśniowiecki family