Kamenets Podolsk castle opening hours. The impregnable fortress of Kamenets-Podolsk. The fortress also enchants in the evening illumination

Kamenets Podolsky Castle belongs to the seven wonders of Ukraine along with such famous sights as the Kiev Pechersk Lavra. Its strategic location on the Smotrich River played an important role in the history of the country.

The castle is the largest building, towering over the landscape of the entire city. Situated on a cliff of a peninsula formed by a river ( ancient city was located in a loop of the Smotrich River), the castle was reliably protected on all sides and was of great strategic importance. Thanks to this, Kamenets became the capital of the region and the “extreme bastion of Christianity”; it was a desirable object for many countries. At first it was owned by Lithuania (under whose reign the castle was built), then Poland, the Ottoman Empire, Russia, the Soviet Union, and finally.

Although the foundation of the fortress dates back to ancient times, since this area was inhabited during the times of Kievan Rus, the name Kamenets Podolsky was first mentioned in 1374 in historical records. The stone castle was built by the Lithuanian princes Koriatovichi. Over the past thousand years, this fortress has undergone countless changes. In the middle of the 16th century, all wooden buildings were replaced with stone ones, and they acquired modern look, which has survived to this day.

In the 19th century, Kamenets-Podolsky lost its military significance and was used as a prison for criminals, political prisoners and debtors. In the 1920s and 1930s, the castle was converted into a cultural and historical monument and museum.

What to see

Today in Kamenets there are several preserved historical monuments: , such as the towers of Stefan Batory and the Window Gate, the Cathedral of St. Peter and Paul, as well as several examples of historical architecture located in the city center. Local markets clearly demonstrate the mixture of Ukrainian, Polish and Armenian culture that came together to create this city.

In 2007, the castle in Kamenets Podolsky was recognized as one of the seven wonders of Ukraine. Showcasing twelve large towers, strongly fortified walls, bridge across the river in Old city and a wealth of fantastic views and relics, this castle is the main attraction of the region for tourists and travelers.

On the other bank of the Dniester is located, which went down in history with the victory of the Ukrainian Cossacks over Ottoman Empire. To the south, in - the largest fortress and best example fortifications of the Middle Ages.

Kamenets-Podolsky Castle is open daily from 9.00 to 19.00, in winter until 18.00. The entrance is free.

When I first saw the photo of the Old Fortress, I couldn't believe my eyes. It was like fairy tales, fantasy, at best like abstract Far Countries. It was difficult to believe that this was located in Ukraine, less than a day’s travel from Moscow. However, a lot of time has passed since then; I visited Kamenets-Podolsky great amount and journalists, and travel bloggers, and ordinary tourists. Not to mention the fact that he lives in Kamenets kamienczanka , whose project “Castles and Temples of Ukraine” opened Western antiquities to a whole generation (including me).

In general, I won’t show or tell anything new here. But there are no things that EVERYONE knows, so this is forgivable.

In the top frame you can clearly see the structure of the fortress - it stands on a high rocky cape, and on the right this cape simply goes around Smotrich, and on the left is the arrow of Smotrich and a small river, which also formed a canyon. The fortress here was erected not by Lithuanians, not Poles, not Turks, and not even Ukrainians - but by Nature. On the right at the bottom of the canyon the Water Tower is clearly visible, on the left on the edge is the Papal, or Karmalyukova (15th century), in the middle is the cubic New Eastern (or Black, 1544), but the skyline of the fortress is dominated by three pointed towers: Tenchinskaya, Lyantskoronskaya and Rozhanka - the result of restoration “a la Carcassonne” (that is, spectacular, but not reliable).
The view of the fortress was taken from the Armenian Bastion above the City Gate, where for some reason few of the many tourists think of climbing:

As already mentioned, the Smotrich River makes an almost closed loop around the old city. The fortress covers the only lintel on which the Turkish Bridge rises (founded in the 15th century, but completely remodeled under the Turks). In general, this structure can be called a bridge very conditionally - after all, it does not cross the river, but was built ALONG it, between two sections of the meander.

The bridge is still actively used today, in combination with the Novoplavnosky Bridge it forms a transit road from west to east. They took advantage of this local residents- during the days of my arrival, the bridge was blocked twice by protesters against either a new tax for entrepreneurs or raising the retirement age. Well, not meeting the political movement in Ukraine is a bit like not presenting documents in Russia or not facing a minor divorce in Egypt. Although I feel sorry for the people - both the protesters and those who could not get through. They say they didn’t even want to let the ambulance through...

Having crossed the bridge, I found myself at the entrance (the door to the left of the Black Tower), but I was in no hurry to go inside (especially since the fortress is open until 6 pm), but moved along the walls. Lyantskoronskaya and Rozhanka dominate the road, with the “booth” of the Commandant’s Tower between them. Below is a belt of stone-earth fortifications. In the background are the ramparts of the New Fortress:

The route on the side of the cliff is fenced with a fence, but no one is stopping you from climbing over it. However, you have to be VERY careful - there is a sheer cliff below, and the tall grass completely hides its edge. However, I photographed the Water Tower up close:

The old fortress in a tree was built back in the 1360s by the Koriatovichs, and then it was completed and rebuilt many times, taking on its current form by the mid-16th century. In 1621, the construction of a New Fortress began nearby, already stone-earth, bastion type, perhaps the largest in Podolia:

Behind the curtains is Podzamchye, now an area of cottages. The fortress was planned, in my opinion, very competently. I have no idea how to overcome such a line of defense:

But the curtain was excavated, without soil - a skeleton. From here the Old Fortress looks unusual:

The central part is especially spectacular:

My favorite was the staircase to nowhere:

You can easily enter or climb into the casemates of the fortress. I just came in, I was already afraid to climb in:

But the most amazing thing is that although the Old Fortress, crowded with tourists, is a hundred meters away, there were no tourists here at all. Of course, they happen here too - but how many? One in 100? Out of 1000?

In the Old Fortress, the Day Tower is clearly visible - a cube above the baste, the oldest surviving part of the fortress. In general, views of the city (shown in the last part) and Old fortress with Nova are wonderful. Let's say three towers: Belaya, Tenchinskaya and Kolpak. Restorations from different eras are clearly visible - ugly (upon closer inspection) brick and picturesque shingle roofs:

Bastion on the southern wall. Below is the Karvasary district, which was mentioned in the last part, and the belfry of the wooden Church of the Exaltation of the Cross, in the background are the barracks of the Old Town.

That's where we'll go now. This is what the western side of the fortress looks like up close. A mossy wall (looks like it belongs to the 17th century), a gigantic basteia (that is, a bastion tower) - if I’m not mistaken, Night Tower. Pay attention to the crowd on the wall... and here only two local women were walking towards the stairs to Karvasary:

White Tower And New fortress:

In general, I really liked this place: the complete absence of tourists and excellent views of Karvasary through the windows. Kolpak and Papal Towers:

On Kolpak there are very beautiful key-shaped loopholes, intended for light artillery:

But the most interesting thing is that the “correct” road here is only from the side of the New Fortress, and from the entrance side in some places you will have to go along a narrow cornice - the path is not for school trips and not for civilian tourists “over forty”. We would have a painted sign hanging here like “Don’t walk on the walls! Fine 1000 rubles.” In Ukraine we don’t even have that. Whether it’s good or bad, depending on who you are. I like one option as a manifestation of order, the other because it does not interfere with ME PERSONALLY climbing where I want.

Now you can go inside the fortress. By Ukrainian standards it is very large (I would venture to guess - the largest in Western Ukraine), according to Russian - average. I did not find exact data about its perimeter, but by eye it was 500-700 meters. Moreover, the fortress is strongly elongated from west to east (as can be seen in the last part, in this frame), and its courtyard forms a real perspective:

Reverse view:

The only building on the territory of the fortress is the commandant's house from the early 19th century:

But there is a lot of interesting things in the towers and dungeons - fortunately, you can climb almost everywhere here, almost everything is open to tourists, but not everything is equipped:

For example, the Papal Tower is called Karmalyukova differently:

I have already talked about Ustim Karmalyuk, the leader of the peasant war of 1814-1835, which engulfed half of Podolia, but I will repeat it here. Karmalyuk began his journey in 1813, when he was drafted into the tsarist army, from which he deserted, but was soon captured. On the way to the penal battalion, located in the Crimea, Karmalyuk escaped a second time and disappeared, and in 1814 he was again revealed as the leader of a peasant uprising. In 1817 he was recaptured and sentenced to death penalty, which was replaced by exile to Siberia, but Karmalyuk managed to escape while still at Vyatka. Soon he was captured again in Podolia and imprisoned in the Kamenets fortress, from where he escaped, pretending (thanks to his knowledge of the Russian language and a stolen document) to be a soldier from Kostroma. Soon he was captured again and put on a chain in the fortress, and in 1824 he was exiled to Siberia - first to Tobolsk, then to Yalutorovsk. There he managed to escape twice. Stories of "arrest and escape" were repeated in 1828, 1830 and 1833. Karmalyuk began to be considered a werewolf and a sorcerer; in 1830-35, the uprising spread to all of Podolia, parts of Bessarabia and the Kiev region. However, unlike the Khmelnytsky region or the Pugachev region, the Karmalyuk region was more reminiscent of a guerrilla war with attacks on estates, garrisons and carts.
...The invincible Karmalyuk died in a very absurd way: he was shot by the nobleman Rutkovsky from Letichev in his house. According to legend, Karmalyuk visited his wife, and one day the nobleman lost his nerve. Having ambushed the ataman in the garden, Rutkovsky simply shot him, and with a silver bullet cast from a button.

In Kamenets, the chieftain was imprisoned in this very tower, and now his papier-mâché figure sits there:

Opposite is the Black Tower, which appears squat from the side of the fortress:

Why it is placed beyond the line of the walls can be understood by going up to its second floor:

There was a siege well here, the shaft of which runs through two floors:

You can also go to the lower floor. I was very pleased with the icon:

But especially rich in such places West Side fortress opposite the entrance:

This is what the already familiar bastea looks like from the inside. It seems that these are the ruins of the ancient Night Tower:

You can also climb the Rozhanka Tower, if you have enough strength and courage - under the very roof, consisting of two tiers - authentic and not so authentic:

From the windows good views to the city, the courtyard of the Old Fortress and the New Fortress. Here, for example, are the Day and Night Towers:

And here are Komendantskaya and Lyantskoronskaya with the roof of the commandant’s house:

Interesting views open up from the other wall - we’ve already been here:

The corridors under the walls and inside the walls (or, rather, battle galleries) are very picturesque. Reminds me computer games like Doom or Quake.

Monsters are also available:

Yes, and positive NPCs too. Immediately imagines a text floating before his eyes in the spirit of “Good traveler! Thank you for freeing us! Where are you going? In the Old Town, not far from Cathedral, there is a secret well, find it and...." and continue in the same spirit.

But here, for completing the quest, you will be given the promised 1000 coins (with a characteristic “zzzzink!”), with which you can buy yourself a pumped-up halberd:

And here is the transition to another map:

Through the grating at the end of the gallery passing through the northern wall, this view opens up - perhaps one of the most beautiful in Kamenets:

In the next part we will go down into the canyon. Finally, a small sketch:

PODOLIA and BUKOVINA-2010

Kamenets-Podolsky– one of the most popular cities in Ukraine for tourists.

We will tell you about the most famous and lesser-known sights of Kamenets-Podilskyi and its surroundings. We also offer to your attention a route thanks to which you can see the main “highlights” of the city in just 1 day!

Kamenets-Podolsk Fortress

old lock Kamenets-Podolsky– one of the most famous monuments of the Middle Ages in Ukraine.

Although the first mentions of the fortress are found in XIV century, it is believed that it existed in ancient Russian times. Judging by historical documents, at first the castle was made of wood, later it acquired its own stone appearance and has expanded significantly.

There are several other interesting objects on the territory of the fortress.

In the western part of the castle is located New castle, built to strengthen the defense of the fortress itself. Interestingly, the new fortress even had large area than the old one, but, unfortunately, now part of it is underground.

Castle Bridge, connecting the Old Fortress with the city, is a landmark of national importance. It is the oldest bridge in Ukraine, on the basis of which it is included in the country’s Book of Records. It is believed that the bridge was built by the Romans back in the 2nd century, although documentary evidence of the bridge’s existence dates back to 1494 year.

The bridge acquired its present appearance thanks to the Turks in XVII century. Now the width of the bridge is 7 meters at the top and 12.8 meters at the foot. And the height of the bridge is highest point is 28 meters!

Also on the territory of the fortress you will see Karmelyukov Tower, Debt pit and many others interesting objects. Kamenets-Podolsk Fortress you will find it at st. Zamkovaya, 1.

Architecture

City Hall of Kamenets-Podolsky is also a symbol of the city. It is located at st. Polish Market, 1. This landmark, built at the beginning XVI in, was used as the building of the city magistrate. IN 1884 year, a clock was installed on the town hall tower, which still shows exact time.

Russian Gate on the street Russkaya, 93 is a unique defense structure in Eastern Europe. After all, these gates are at the same time part of a complex system, which, in case of danger, flooded the river valley. Smotrich. To this day, unfortunately, only part of the structures that once represented the Russian Gate has survived. But even this part is a very fascinating site for tourists to visit.

By the way, some of the premises now house pottery, open to tourists.

A must-visit place in Kamenets-Podilskyi is Trinitarian Church. Built in 1765 year, it has been perfectly preserved to this day. The building is very beautiful. The main facade is decorated with pilasters and a pediment with amazing sculptures and vases. Inside the church there are 7 altars, decorated with icons and beautiful stucco.

Stone wall gate, separating the territory of the church from the street, are also a work of art. You will find the church at the address: st. Starobulvarnaya, 1-a.

Church of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul

But the main religious building in the city is considered Church of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul. The church built in XVII century, is the only Christian building in the world with a minaret. The reason for this strange combination is the twenty-seven year reign of the Turkish invaders.

The church is especially beautiful inside. There is a rich iconostasis, decorated with gilded wood carvings and a crucifix made of white marble, as well as a masterpiece Laura Przezdecka's gravestone, which at one time they wanted to transport to the Hermitage.

See the cathedral and also enjoy organ music, who sometimes plays here, you can visit st. Tatarskaya, 20.

Here are some more architectural monuments cities and its surroundings that deserve your attention:

Triumphal Arch Stanislav Augusta (Tatarskaya St., 20);
Polish Gate(Russkaya st., 2);
Dominican Monastery(Dominikanskaya St., 3);
Zhvanetsky Castle(village Zhvanets);
Church of the Virgin Mary(village Zhvanets);
Church of the Blessed Virgin Mary(village Kitaygorod);
Panowiec Castle(Panovtsi village).

Stefan Batory Tower(Russkaya st., 20);
Peter and Paul Church(Tatarskaya st., 9);
Nicholas Church(lane Nikolaevsky, 2);
Turkish Bastion(Russian market square, 1);
Pottery Tower(Valy st., 1);
Trinity Church(Trinity Square);
Armenian well(Polskiy Rynok Square, 1);

Museums

On the square The Armenian Market (on Pyatnitskaya street, 11) is located Art Museum cities. Previously, the museum building housed the city theater, then the Theological Orthodox Seminary. Therefore, the museum building itself is an important architectural monument.

In addition, the museum exposition contains more than 120 thousand unique works of painting and graphics, valuable sculptures and icons of various religious schools.

An important place in the museum's collection is occupied by exhibition of paintings Ukrainian artist of the twentieth century V. Rozvadovsky.

Archaeological Museum, located in former palace Bishop on the street John the Baptist, 2, is also both a museum and an architectural monument. The museum's exposition recreates the ancient human habitation and allows you to get acquainted with the tools and household items that the people of Podolia have used since ancient times.

Also on the territory of the museum in the courtyard there is lapidarium.

We also suggest that you familiarize yourself with:

Museum of Magdeburg Law;
Museum of the History of Money;
Exhibition “Court in Medieval Kamenets”.

All of them are located in the City Hall building on the street. Polish Market, 1.

City monuments

As for monuments, the most unusual of them is "Table of Agreement", located in the city of Tatarishche within the city. Second name of the sculpture "Monument of Seven Cultures".

The sculpture is a reinforced concrete disk 8 meters in diameter and seven huge stones located around the “table”. In the center of the table there is a metal "torch of friendship", and each stone represents a people who left a significant trace in the history of Kamenets-Podolsky. These are Ukrainians, Turks, Armenians, Jews, Poles and Lithuanians.

Not far from the disk there is another stone, inviting you to take part in cultural development cities.

Natural attractions

If you find yourself near Kamenets-Podolsky, be sure to visit National Park Podolsk Tovtry. This is unique mountain range with its unique, rich, beautiful nature. Beginning with X centuries, there were settlements of the ancient Slavs here. So, not only the park’s landscapes and ancient caves are of interest, but also the ruins of the Bakota monastery, the remains of fortresses and ancient ramparts.

Karst cave Atlantis(village Zavalye);
Kitaigorod forest(village Kitaygorod);
Vrublevetsky forest(Vrublivtsy village).

What to see in Kamenets-Podolsky in 1 day?

Let's start the journey with City Hall.
Let's get to Cathedral Peter and Paul Church.
Inspecting Smotritsky Canyon, surrounding the Old Town in an arc.
Walking through the Old Town in Kamenets-Podilskyi, you can do beautiful photos city and enjoy its attractions. Be sure to check it out Armenian well, Trinitarian Church, Nicholas Church, Kushnir tower.
We are moving towards the exit from the city. Inspecting Castle Bridge.
Finally we get to Old fortress, which has many of its own attractions.
If you wish, you can take a walk around night city.

Address: Ukraine, Kamenets-Podolsky
Date of foundation: end of the 14th century
Coordinates: 48°40"24.1"N 26°33"46.0"E

Content:

Kamenets-Podolsk Fortress is an ancient castle, one of the outstanding historical monuments of Ukraine, as well as one of the most famous monuments of fortification art in Ukraine, recognized cultural heritage UNESCO is all about the Kamenets-Podilsky fortress, located in the city of Kamenets-Podolsky, Khmelnitsky region.

Kamenets-Podolsk Fortress from a bird's eye view

A distinctive feature of the fortress is a unique combination of landscape with an impregnable fortification system created by man, which has no analogues in Europe.

Significant historical moments

According to archaeological data, in the period between the 9th and 12th centuries. On the territory of the modern castle there were buildings and a wooden wall protecting the ancient Slavic settlement. As a result of a fire at the turn of the 12th – 13th centuries. These buildings were replaced with stone buildings, but already in 1240 the inhabitants of the settlement were destroyed by the Golden Horde, and Kamenets found itself under the Tatar-Mongol yoke for about a century. After a century, the Tatars were defeated by the army of the Grand Duke of Lithuania Olgerd and the fortress came into the possession of the Lithuanian princes. This period can be called a period of revival of the fortress, which began to transform thanks to numerous donations from nobles, merchants, as well as popes who sent alms.

View of the fortress from the east

According to historical data, in the period between 1434 - 1793, fate Kamenets-Podolsk fortress passes into the hands of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, and it was during this period that the fortress became a strategically important center of the Polish voivodeship, becoming royal city. Subsequently, starting in 1793, Kamenets-Podolsky became part of the Russian Empire, the center of the Podolsk province. During the Russian-Turkish War (1809 - 1812), the Kamenets-Podolsk fortress no longer acted as a defensive structure, but was used as a correctional facility. However, during the First World War, the headquarters of the Southwestern Front of Russia was located in the fortress, thereby returning the Kamenets-Podolsk fortress to its military purpose. Civil War(1917 – 1923) brings a lot of unrest to the fortress. Power changes very often: Ukrainian nationalist troops are replaced by Bolshevik ones, and those, in turn, by German-Austrian ones. Kamenets-Podolsky even became the capital of Ukraine, although not for a long period from February 1919 to November 1920. In 1928, it was announced that the fortress was receiving the status of a state historical and cultural reserve.

View of the fortress from the south

Old and New Fortress

The Kamenets-Podolsk fortress is a defensive structure that originated in the era of feudalism and is to this day a monument of military architecture of that time. This complex consists of two parts. The first part is the Old Fortress (Old Castle), which protected the approach to the isthmus between the peninsula. The old castle is the central part of the fortress, which is an irregular quadrangle of fortress walls, with eleven towers along the perimeter, and an area of more than five hectares.

This fortress has a partially opened underground passage, which, according to ancient legend, led to the Khotyn fortress. In the courtyard of the Old Fortress there is a debt pit with a dummy of a debtor, which is of interest to many. In former times, tax evaders were imprisoned in this pit, but now it is customary to throw coins in order to never have debts. In the 17th century, a bastion system with additional defensive structures appeared inside the fortification - the New Fortress, which covered the Old Fortress from the side of the field.

From left to right: Laskaya Tower, Tenchinskaya Tower, Kolpak Tower

Fortress towers

The fortress is a collection of numerous impregnable walls and towers. The first tower, to the left of the entrance to the fortress, is the Papal Faceted Tower, built thanks to the tribute sent by Pope Julius II. Next rises the Kolpak tower, cylindrical in shape with a conical roof, which was heavily destroyed during the Turkish-Polish war and therefore its height is only 22 m. The fourth one to the left of the entrance is the cylindrical four-tier Laska or White tower, the masonry of which is dominated by white color . Now the height of the tower is 22.5 m. Directly from the entrance to the castle territory, on the western side, the Day Tower is responsible for the defense of the fortress - the most old tower, which is a rectangle with many loopholes. This was the main strategic observation point of the New Castle. The tower differs in that it does not have a roof.

Also on the western side is the New Tower (Big), which is presented in the form of a pentagon and which once protected the Day Tower from the southwest. To the right of the entrance to the castle territory rises the Black Tower (New Eastern Tower), which protected the approaches to the fortress from the north. This tower was damaged more than once during battles, it suffered heavy damage, however, then the tower was restored. Architectural feature towers - a well with wooden wheels for lifting water, the diameter of which is 4.5 m. The depth of the well is 40 meters. Commandant's Tower - a cylindrical tower with a conical roof built into the northern wall. This tower was observation deck for the garrison commander. The loopholes of the tower protected the roads to the city. The height of the tower is about nine meters. Another Vodyanaya tower is located outside the fortress and at one time was the main source of water during the siege, due to its location on the bank of the river. Smotrich.

Kamenets-Podolsky is known primarily as a fortress city that has gained worldwide fame.

The concept of the medieval fortifications of Kamenets, which is considered perfect by modern military experts, consisted of an organic combination of the natural protective properties of an impregnable rocky island surrounded deep canyon the Smotrich River, and artificial fortifications.

Military specialists, engineers and architects, whose names, unfortunately, are known to us only from the 16th century, contributed to their construction. - Job Pretfus, Matvey Wlodek, Matvey Galichanin, Camillus, Theophilus Schomberg, Archibald Andrzej Glover de Gleiden, Wilhelm Rappe, Jan de Witte, Stanislav Zavadsky.

Kamenets-Podolsk fortress in the evening.

The principles of the city's defense system are simple and logical. The island, surrounded on all sides by the Smotrich riverbed, was accessible only from the west, where it was connected to the plateau by a rocky isthmus.

Fortress on the island. Road across the bridge.

On its ridge, washed away by the waters of Smotrich and eventually collapsed, probably in the first centuries of our era, during the era of the Trajan Wars (when the first urban settlement arose on the island), a bridge was built on stone pylons (now the Castle Bridge). Therefore, the most powerful fortifications were needed here.

The road across the bridge, protected by the fortress, led to the city.

Stone walls of the fortress.

Almost simultaneously with the appearance of the bridge, the first stone fortifications appeared in front of it - a system of over ten towers connected by defensive walls.

In the 6th-8th centuries, during the Slavic period, a defensive ditch with a wooden palisade (the so-called “wolf pit”) was dug on the upper terrace of the fortifications of the castle cape, which crossed the defensive wall of the Daco-Roman period.

During times Ancient Rus' the large system of old fortifications in front of the bridge fell into disrepair; Only a small castle with an area of about 700 square meters was used. m. on the upper terrace of the cape (it was located in the western part of the current castle courtyard, between the Laska and Denna towers).

In the middle of the 13th century. the castle was on fire. This is evidenced by the pink-burnt stones and mortar of the walls, opened by restoration architects in the 1960s.

Day Tower (2nd - 16th centuries). Traces of fire.

Historians believe that the cause of the fire was an attack by the Golden Horde.

The earliest description of the fortress dates back to 1494. Most of the fortifications by 1494 were in poor condition. Therefore, on the initiative of the Apostolic Capital at the beginning of the 16th century. part of the “church tithe” was used to build new towers. It was then that all the towers of the Old Castle were built or reconstructed.

One could get from the city to the castle through the City Gate, which was guarded from a tower.

City gate.

On the north side of the castle there was a “Polynaya” gate. Between the gates there were oak “huts” and three towers. On the western side the castle had two towers; on the northwestern side it was protected by a moat.

From left to right: Tenchinskaya Tower, Laskaya Tower, Dennaya Tower, Western casemate with a small Western Tower, Lyantskoronskaya Tower.

In the castle courtyard there were: an Orthodox church, a commandant's house, quarters for guards and servants, weapons and ammunition warehouses, a bakery, a brewery, and stalls.

The garrison was armed with 11 cannons and 32 “hooks” (heavy guns with a hook-support).

The maximum length of the Old Castle is about 180 m, the width is about 50 m. The area of the castle courtyard together with the Northern and Southern courtyards is 1.5 hectares.

Walls and towers of the castle.

In 1544, the castle garrison was armed with 14 cannons, 43 “hakovnitsa”, 30 arquebuses, 20 muskets.

To strengthen the most dangerous western direction in 1621 a new castle was built, similar to the type common in Western Europe hornwork - a “horned” fortification of two semi-bastions connected by a straight wall - a curtain. On behalf of the Polish king Sigismund III Vasa, the German military artillery engineer Theophilus Schomberg developed a project for the New Castle, the implementation of which began in 1617 and ended in 1621, on the eve of the Khotyn War.

The new castle occupied an area of almost 250x250 m, blocking the castle promontory on the approaches to the Old Castle. The maximum width of the New Castle is 250 m, length - 220 m. The area of its fortifications reaches 3 hectares.

There is a legend that, having seen the magnificently fortified Kamenets in 1621, the Turkish Sultan Osman II asked: “Who built this city?” “Allah himself,” I heard in response. “So let Allah take him” - with these words the Sultan gave his army the order to retreat.

XVI - early XVII centuries. became the heyday of the medieval defensive system of Kamenets. In 1793, Kamenets, together with Podolia, became part of the Russian Empire.

Due to changes in the political situation, its defensive function gradually disappeared during the 19th century.

Inside the fortress.

Since 1812, the physically and morally outdated castle was removed from the military department. It was used only as a military prison.

The buildings then built along the walls in the castle courtyard, as well as the name of the Karmelyuk (Papal) tower, where the people's leader Ustim Karmelyuk was imprisoned, are reminiscent of this time.

In 1928, the castle was declared a state architectural reserve. In 1977, it became part of the State Historical and Architectural Reserve, and in 1998 - the National Historical and Architectural Reserve "Kamenets".

Over the past 40 years, Ukrainian restorers have restored a significant part of the fortifications of the Old Castle, as well as the City Gate, the Polish Gate, the city walls, the Kravetskaya and Reznitskaya towers.

Now there is a museum on the territory of the Kamenets-Podolsk fortress.

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