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The fortress of Medzhibizh | |
which Mezhibozhzhia played not last role. We
are talking about the Medzhibizh castle, which became very famous in time of the late
Middle Ages. In 1240 the fortress was besieged and was taken by an attack, and then was
destroyed by the forces of Batiy. In the next century the castle was reconstructed by the
princes Koriatoviches, those nephews of Olgerd, who did many things for Podillia and
Bratslavshchina in the middle of XIVth century. Like the other strengthenings of that
time, the Medzhibizh fortress was wooden. After the capture by the Polish king Kazimir the
Volynsk Lands the castle passes to the property of the prince Lubart for some period of
time. The new times in Medzhibizh came after the known magnates and militarians Seniavskis
became the owners of the city and castle in 1540. They radically reconstructed the old
wooden strengthenings and soon they built towers and walls of the new stone building. The
new castle 
repeated a configuration of the old and also was located on a triangular cape
between Southern Bug and Bozhok. Besides, the fortress surprisingly successfully entered
in an environmental landscape. From the point of view of the fortification Medzhibizh
castle is a transitive type to the castle-palace, it has united features of architecture
of fortresses and forms of the
Renaissance. It had free planning, according to the relief of
the district. The three towers were located on the western part of the fortress, where
there was an entrance; the east wall was protected only by one tower, but it has huge
sizes and complicated configuration. Two palace complexes, which “ran up” to the
protection of the castle walls are located. A history of the Medzhibizh castle is
interesting and instructive. This building saw many events on its age, and always overcame
the difficult situations with honor. In 1566 Medzhibizh has sustained the Tatar siege. In
1516 army of 100 thousand Crimean warriors came to the city, but they didn’t risk to
assault the fortress. Not once the enemy armies of some generations of Siniavskis were
defeated near Medzhibizh. The Medzhibizh fortress did not sustain only the Turkish
aggression in 1672, but we know that the army of Magomet IV could subdue the more powerful
Kamenets castle that year. Staying in
Medzhibizh, the Turks considerably strengthened the castle, decorated it on 
the east manners. A mystery of so-called “Turkish castle” on
an island Rakovets is connected with the period of the Turkish management of the history
of Medzhibizh. Many legends are connect with this building. One sources connect it to the
Turkish garrison of Medzhibozh, others approve, that it is the castle of the Semigradskiy
prince Rakotsi, who also was here. It is interesting, that the building connected with the
Medzhibizh castle by the underground passage.
There are many underground passages on this area, for example, the main tunnel to the
Letichiv castle (it is 40 km!), and, probably, to Khmilnik and Starokostiantiniv. In
XVIIIth century the castle lost strategic importance. It wasn’t destroyed and today we
can observe powerful walls and bastions of the Medzhibizh castle, comparing the seen with
the stories of the historical annals and chronicles.
