Description of the attraction
Bykhov Castle is now in a deplorable state. So far, we can only talk about the ruins of the Bykhov castle. This is the last surviving fortress city of the 17th century.
The city of Bykhov was formed on the high right bank of the Dnieper in the XIV century as a private property of the Lithuanian prince Svidrigailo. The stone fortress town was built in 1610 by the renowned military leader Jan Karol Chodkiewicz. Chodkiewicz received permission to build a fortress from the king after a sudden attack by the Cossack troops.
The construction of the new fortified castle was completed in 1619. In 1628, Bykhov Castle passed to the Sapieha princes, who rebuilt it according to their own taste. The military barracks style was replaced by the more graceful Baroque style characteristic of the Renaissance era. Arcade galleries appeared in the castle.
However, the proximity to the Cossack Ukraine did not allow the owners of the castle to relax. He continued to build up the fortifications. The castle was surrounded by earthen ramparts and surrounded on all sides by deep moats with water. Watchtowers were built along the perimeter of the impregnable walls, from which sentinels watched day and night.
Bykhov, like most of the cities of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, was a multi-confessional city. In it, in particular, there was a synagogue, also built as a defensive structure capable of withstanding a serious siege.
In the Northern War, the Sapieha assisted Sweden, for which the victorious Russian troops destroyed the castle, but it was soon rebuilt again. In 1830, after the failure of the November Uprising, the property of the rioters was confiscated in favor of the state. This fate befell the Bykhov Castle. Then for some time it existed as a barracks, and at the beginning of the 20th century it was completely abandoned and was empty for more than a century.
Last year, the government of the Republic of Belarus made a long-awaited decision - to allocate money for the restoration of the Bykhov Castle. Tourists will soon be able to see this majestic fortress in all its glory.
