Lubchansky Castle: the story of how to get there. Castles of Belarus

The history of the Republic of Belarus is very difficult. The people with a single language, culture, economy, territory and self-consciousness began to form in the 8th-9th centuries from the Dregovichi, Krivets, Radimichi. According to another version, the Old Russian people became part of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and the Commonwealth. By this time, cities already appeared. Lithuanian and Polish tycoons built fortresses and castles of Belarus. According to the inventory, the republic has 115 locks in varying degrees of safety. Some are not preserved, others are in ruins. The locks of Belarus are wonderful, but most require huge investments for restoration. Many of them are engaged in volunteers and patrons of art.

Locks that can be viewed by a tourist

• Grodno New Castle (Royal Palace, summer residence).
• Kossovsky, or the Puslovsky Palace. In this romantic building is now an intensive restoration, which will be completed by 2018.
• Lidsky. It actively restores, conducts colorful knight tournaments.
• Worldly. It is declared a heritage of UNESCO. Now it houses an art museum. There are a lot of interesting legends about which tourists are willing to tell.
• Nesvizhsky. It is also listed as a UNESCO heritage site. It is visited by a huge number of tourists. According to one of the legends, there is a wide underground passage between him and Mir Castle , intended for movement on carriages.

These buildings were often a combination of a defensive structure and a palace. They were built both on the hills and on the plains, both from stones and bricks, and from wood. They were often surrounded by parks. In some, the combination of Gothic and Renaissance predominates, in others, later - baroque.

Lubchansky castle will necessarily rise from the dust and will stand proudly, as this "island of history" stood since 1581.

How the name of Lyubcha appeared

According to legend, the great Lithuanian prince Mindovg crossed the Neman there. He met the beautiful Martha. And soon they were married. So, from the arising love, the new place has received the name. Another legend says that the pagan prince Mindovg was baptized here, in Lyubche, at the request of his beloved.

Lyubcha (Grodno region)

This small settlement today appeared at the very beginning of the 15th century. Through Lyubchu passes the tourist route "Dear Locks". In addition to the castle, which is being restored as the money arrives, there is another interesting place in the village of Lyubche - the Church of St. Elijah. It is very beautiful and is in excellent condition. Lyubcha and itself is good. It is located on the banks of the Neman. At this point the river flows smoothly and smoothly. It is surrounded by gently sloping banks, overgrown with bushes.

History of settlement

Lyubcha periodically changed from one master to another. At first it was owned by Khrebtovich, then by Gashtoldi, then by Kishki (it was with them that Lyubchansky Castle was built) and finally the Radziwills. The last owner strives for the economic prosperity of the place and its expansion. Therefore, he moves here philistines and craftsmen. Craft workshops appear, a printing plant is put up. It publishes books with verses, medicine, history, astronomy in Polish and Latin.

Lubcha starts to build according to plan. Direct streets clearly divide it into quarters. The area is located in the center in such a way that it is on the same axis with the lock. Lyubchansky Castle is on a hill and dominates the downtown located down below. All the streets either perpendicularly go to the river and end with arches, or are parallel to it and also end with a gate. In six blocks of Lubcha there were one hundred and fifty houses. But this ensemble has not survived. And it's a pity: it was unique for small settlements.

History of the creation of the castle

Jan Kishka on the hill began to erect a fortified castle in the 16th century. Later, he gave it as a dowry to Krzysztof Radziwill. He continued construction. The castle was surrounded by a moat on three sides, and the Neman defended the fourth wall. The building was wooden. Only the entrance tower was massive, stone. Its base went underground 4 meters. It served as a prison and a defensive fortification at the same time. In the tower there were loopholes that looked at the four directions of the world. This made it possible to fire at enemies who had broken into the territory. Beyond the walls were barracks, an ammunition depot and a house for the owners.

The sovereign ruler puts stone walls instead of wooden ones. Their width becomes more than a meter. Then he expands the master's house and puts the temple with the belfry. After his death, the Lubchansky Castle becomes the legacy of his son Jan, hetman Vilna and the governor. In 1655, Lubcha was taken by assault, killed residents who did not have time to escape, and the castle was partially blown up. Soon the hired killers took the life of Jan. The castle passes to Boguslav Radziwill. He restores the castle. Then the owners begin to change.

Only in the middle of the XIX century the new owners from the Baltic region of Falz-Fein decided to erect here their country residence. They demolished the old house and set up the palace in the style of neo-Gothic. The towers underwent reconstruction. On the lower floors, large windows were inserted. In addition, a guest house was built. He connected with the entrance tower by a covered gallery. The walls that surrounded the castle were gone. On the walls broke the flower beds. In 1945, there were ruins, the remains of two of the four towers and a two-story palace. This was how Lyubchansky Castle was built and collapsed. Its history is dramatic.

Enthusiasts

The first to talk about the need to restore the castle began talking pupils Lyubchan school Nikolai Skrebets and Ivan Pechinsky. "Clash" business from a place it was not possible. It took at least twenty years to begin the minimum work. Ivan Pechinsky, a capital entrepreneur, made every effort to ensure that the Department for the Protection of Historical and Cultural Heritage drew attention to the need to preserve the monument. From other fortresses is very different Lubchansky castle. Belarus no longer has anything like it. The two remaining towers are an example of the buildings of the 16th century. There are no analogues anymore.

The beginning of restoration

The two oldest towers were given to the former greatness. They were covered with building woods and roofs were erected. Especially unusual was the color solution. On the white plastered walls a plaster of another, black color was applied. Such a patterned painting is restored where it was applied - at windows and loopholes. In addition, the bearing outer structures were reconstructed, consisting of dark colored beams arranged at different angles.

Ivan Pechinsky

The entrepreneur created a charitable foundation. He is helped by a friendly team of local residents from old to young, as well as visiting students. All these people are not indifferent to the history of their native places.

What is done

Already now it is a lot of. Every year young people come, mostly students from Belarusian universities, as well as tourists and journalists. Everybody wears stones and bricks, they lay the walls, they do their whitewashing. The southern tower was restored. The development of the concept of further restoration under the guidance of the Academy of Sciences is in full swing. The historical finds are being studied. Priorbank takes an active part. Without his finances, all the work would stand up. This bank has been providing this material assistance since 2008. Its chairman, Sergey Kostyuchenko, came to Lyubchu to see personally the progress of the work. He was satisfied with the results. The bank will continue to provide assistance. But besides Lubchy, he also has other charitable objects.

How to get to Lyubchy

The village is in Novogrudok district. From Novogrudok to Lyubcha, the road takes about 35 minutes. by car. And to the capital, the length of the route along the E30 highway is 150 km (1 hour 55 min.).

The Lyubchansky Castle will soon become the beauty and pride of the Republic of Belarus. Restoration will turn it into an object of international tourism.