The city of Lutsk has been the second capital of Volyn for centuries, which could not but leave a trace in its architectural appearance. The Castle of Prince Lubart is considered to be the architectural dominant of the whole ensemble of the historical and cultural reserve «Old Lutsk» — the ancient part of the city, which includes historical and architectural monuments.
Lutsk Castle is the best preserved architectural monument of Ukraine from the times of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. The stone castle was erected in the XIV century by the last ruler of the united Galicia-Volyn principality Lithuanian prince Lubart on the place of a wooden fortress built in 1000 on the hill above the river Styr by the Grand Duke of Kiev Vladimir.
In 1340, in place of the wooden fortification, which had withstood the sieges of the Polish king, Galician princes, Yuri Dolgoruky and the Horde Khan, Prince Lubart decided to build an even more reliable structure. The castle, built of stone, turned out to be so reliable that it is still the only witness to the former greatness of Volyn — after six centuries! To see this witness, tourists come to Lutsk not only from Ukraine, but also from many other countries. Lubart’s Castle is one of the oldest in Ukraine and even in Europe.
The castle erected by Prince Lubart in the European medieval feudal style is often called a masterpiece of fortification architecture. At first, three towers were erected on the hill above the town: the Entrance (Lubart’s) Tower on the western side, above the current entrance to which you can see the bricked-up ancient gate and entrance, the Styr Tower on the southeastern side, and the Vladyka Tower on the northern side. After the towers were connected by high walls, the castle became triangle-like in plan — this shape was explained by the landscape. The towers crowning the castle and giving it a romantic look, the crenellated attics were added in the XV-XVI centuries during the reign of Prince Svidrigailo, and the castle was renovated with bricks, which is how it has survived to this day.
The history of the castle, as befits the history of a princely residence, is interesting and connected with famous names of historical personalities.
In 1429 the Lutsk castle hosted a congress of monarchs of Europe. Sigismund — Holy Roman Emperor, Vasily II — Grand Duke of Moscow, Jagailo — Polish king, who two years later made an unsuccessful attempt to besiege the castle, ambassadors of the Byzantine Emperor, Crimean Khan and other famous personalities of his time feasted here.
There is a bloody legend connected with the castle. Prince Lubart imprisoned in the Styrov Tower the wayward beauty Oksana, who did not reciprocate him, the girl refused to marry the ruler. Then he ordered his soldiers to do whatever they wanted to her and kill her. It is said that the ghost of the brutally murdered girl was repeatedly seen in the castle, her soul will not rest until her ring, stolen by one of the murderers, is found.
Today Lubart’s Castle is of great interest to all fans of castle architecture, ancient buildings and mysteries of the past. The house built on the site of the destroyed palace of the feudal lord in the early XVIII century houses a local history museum. In the towers there is the only museum of ancient bells in the country, a museum of ceramics, an exposition of ancient books and weapons, and in the dungeons of the ancient cathedral of John the Theologian of the XII century, a building that has not survived to this day, the burials of Lutsk princes and bishops, including Prince Lubart.
A visit to this attraction of Lutsk will give unforgettable impressions to any guest of the city, it is impossible to convey this amazing atmosphere in words — its history to every visitor of the ancient castle of Lubart will be told by its very walls.