Vitebsk castle is a famous complex of historical buildings. Despite the fact that only a few that survived after the numerous destruction of buildings survived, they are of great scientific and cultural value. The most famous castles are considered Lower and Upper, which appeared during the reign of Olgerd.
Castles of Vitebsk region: find
For a long period of time, scientists could not find evidence that the castle existed until a simple accident came to their aid. In the 1980s, archaeological excavations were carried out in Vitebsk. Scientists have been arguing for a long time about where to lay pits: some offered one site, while others suggested another. As a result, everything was done in different places, but to no avail. Schurf showed nothing. In frustration, scientists fell asleep, and in the morning they were pleasantly surprised. Due to heavy rain, the soil at the pit site collapsed, and it became clear what was left of the castle walls.
It is worth noting that in ancient times the city was called - "the keys of the Principality of Lithuania." This was due to the fact that Olgerd built more than one Vitebsk castle to protect the road to the capital of the state.
Castles of Olgerd
So, in the last century, after a thorough study of the historical center of the city, several defensive structures, known as Vitebsk Castle, were discovered. Vitebsk is an old city, its foundation is dated to the period of the reign of Yaroslav the Wise, when defensive fortresses were built on the lands of the Principality of Polotsk , including the settlement, which later grew into a large shopping center. He received the greatest prosperity during the reign of Prince Algerd, during the time of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. It is not in vain that a monument was erected on the main square of the city, because this brilliant ruler not only turned Vitebsk into a shopping center, which equal all of Eastern Europe, but also organized a worthy defense of the city. By the end of the first quarter of the fourteenth century, the construction of two main fortifications, the Upper and Lower Castles, was completed.
Upper castle
The main building in the entire system of medieval fortifications of the city is the Upper Vitebsk Castle. Vitebsk in ancient times was located on one of the banks of the Western Dvina, but it was important to keep the defense on both sides of the river. For this, in fact, the Upper Castle was built - it was located on the left bank. In order to achieve a more advantageous strategic advantage, it was built at the mouth of the Vitba River, which flowed into the Western Dvina. At first, the castle itself was protected from enemies only by earthen ramparts, built, according to archaeologists, in the middle of the twelfth century. At the same time, its height reached ten meters, and the width was forty. These earthworks strengthened layers of clay and a stockade of coniferous wood, so that these walls looked like full-fledged fortress walls. Over time, the shafts replaced the full-fledged wooden walls, and in the sixteenth century tetrahedral towers also appeared. The location of the three towers is known - Westovaya, Tankovaya and Khrapovitskaya. Between them there were also large gates designed to enter the city. These structures were also reinforced with brick walls. In the same sixteenth century, two octagonal towers were also built. Here, according to drawings by contemporaries and archaeological remains, there were platforms for milking cannons, and full arsenals.
Lower Castle in Vitebsk
The line of defense of the Lower Castle was almost twice as long as that of the Upper. Nevertheless, he almost closely adjoined to it, closing the circle of fortifications. In total, on the defense line of this castle, and it reached 1250 meters, there were eight large towers built in the seventeenth century. Three passage gates adjoined them.
The memory of the fortifications
With the destruction of the Commonwealth, many old castles also disappeared from the cityscape . Vitebsk lost its after Peter the Great reached the city. The destruction of the fortresses was a punishment for the relationship between the inhabitants and Karl XII, to whom the local population paid a ransom. And so the Vitebsk castle ceased to exist. The address of the museum, where you can find out in more detail about old castles and their features, is located on 13 Frunze Avenue.