Novogrudok Castle is a legendary landmark of Grodno Oblast, a unique specimen of military architecture of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania of the 14th-16th centuries. It is located on one of the highest points of Belarus, 323m above sea level. Centuries ago, Novogrudok Castle was the only seven-tower castle in Eastern Europe. Until the end of the 14th century, all its fortifications were wooden, survived the Galicia-Volhynia and Tatar invasions, sieges of the Crusaders. In the time of Vytautas, it was one of the strongest and most formidable citadels of medieval Europe. It hosted the country’s most important events, including parliament sessions, meetings of kings and ambassadors ... Unfortunately, time was not kind to the castle: it was gradually destroyed by wars and sieges, and natural disasters. Only ruins have survived to this day.
The fragments of the ancient walls and the two best-preserved towers of Novogrudok - Shchitovaya and Kostyolnaya - draw numerous tourists, and serve as a setting for a famous festival of medieval culture. Its program traditionally includes knightly tournaments, performances, archery competitions, minstrel shows. The program culminates with the storming of the Castle Hill.
Today, the castle is undergoing conservation and restoration as part of the Castles of Belarus program. In 2020, specialists were busy strengthening the hillside of the Castle Hill, conserving the ruins of Dozornaya, Posadskaya and Vkhodnaya towers and restoring the fortification walls of the citadel. This year they are set to complete another stage of the reconstruction project, including the construction of a drainage system in the citadel, strengthening of the hillside leading from Kostyolnaya to Vkhodnaya towers with the installation of a drainage system at the base of the rampart.
Novogrudok Castle is a legendary landmark of Grodno Oblast, a unique specimen of military architecture of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania of the 14th-16th centuries. It is located on one of the highest points of Belarus, 323m above sea level. Centuries ago, Novogrudok Castle was the only seven-tower castle in Eastern Europe. Until the end of the 14th century, all its fortifications were wooden, survived the Galicia-Volhynia and Tatar invasions, sieges of the Crusaders. In the time of Vytautas, it was one of the strongest and most formidable citadels of medieval Europe. It hosted the country’s most important events, including parliament sessions, meetings of kings and ambassadors ... Unfortunately, time was not kind to the castle: it was gradually destroyed by wars and sieges, and natural disasters. Only ruins have survived to this day.
The fragments of the ancient walls and the two best-preserved towers of Novogrudok - Shchitovaya and Kostyolnaya - draw numerous tourists, and serve as a setting for a famous festival of medieval culture. Its program traditionally includes knightly tournaments, performances, archery competitions, minstrel shows. The program culminates with the storming of the Castle Hill.
Novogrudok Castle is a legendary landmark of Grodno Oblast, a unique specimen of military architecture of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania of the 14th-16th centuries. It is located on one of the highest points of Belarus, 323m above sea level. Centuries ago, Novogrudok Castle was the only seven-tower castle in Eastern Europe. Until the end of the 14th century, all its fortifications were wooden, survived the Galicia-Volhynia and Tatar invasions, sieges of the Crusaders. In the time of Vytautas, it was one of the strongest and most formidable citadels of medieval Europe. It hosted the country’s most important events, including parliament sessions, meetings of kings and ambassadors ... Unfortunately, time was not kind to the castle: it was gradually destroyed by wars and sieges, and natural disasters. Only ruins have survived to this day.
The fragments of the ancient walls and the two best-preserved towers of Novogrudok - Shchitovaya and Kostyolnaya - draw numerous tourists, and serve as a setting for a famous festival of medieval culture. Its program traditionally includes knightly tournaments, performances, archery competitions, minstrel shows. The program culminates with the storming of the Castle Hill.
Today, the castle is undergoing conservation and restoration as part of the Castles of Belarus program. In 2020, specialists were busy strengthening the hillside of the Castle Hill, conserving the ruins of Dozornaya, Posadskaya and Vkhodnaya towers and restoring the fortification walls of the citadel. This year they are set to complete another stage of the reconstruction project, including the construction of a drainage system in the citadel, strengthening of the hillside leading from Kostyolnaya to Vkhodnaya towers with the installation of a drainage system at the base of the rampart.
