Description of the attraction
Turaida Castle is located in the city of Sigulda, 50 km north-east of the capital of Latvia. The Turaida Museum-Reserve covers an area of 41 hectares and is located on the right bank of the Gauya River. There are 37 historical buildings on the territory of the reserve. Turaida Museum-Reserve is one of the most popular museum complexes in Latvia, according to statistics, about 170 thousand tourists visit it annually.
The castle was founded in 1214. Bishop Philip founded the Turaida Castle at the direction of the Bishop of Riga Bukskhevden. Upon completion of the construction, the castle received the name "Fredeland", which translated from German means "Peaceful land". However, this name did not catch on, and the name "Turaida" has survived to this day, which in translation from the language of the ancient Livs meant "Divine Garden".
For several centuries, Turaida Castle has retained its strategic importance. However, in 1776, after a fire, the fortress was almost completely burned down. At the beginning of the 19th century, an estate was built in the courtyard of a medieval castle. Then they built residential houses, as well as barns, stables and other outbuildings. In 1924, the ruins of the Turaida Castle were included in the list of historical buildings protected by the state. The restoration of the fortress began only after the end of the Second World War, thus, the restoration began almost 200 years after the destruction of the castle in a fire.
So, the repair and restoration work began in 1953, the main tower of the Turaida Castle was restored first. In 1974, large-scale archaeological excavations and scientific research began on the territory of the fortress. Since 1976. As a result of archaeological excavations, about 5000 ancient finds were discovered, the most interesting of which were the discovered ancient ovens, a bathhouse with a well, a brewery, coins, etc.
The already mentioned stoves, which heated the fortress, turned out to be an interesting find. Warm air from the furnaces rose through the voids made in the brickwork, then it spread along the walls and under the floors of the castle, thus perfectly heating the fortress. Interestingly, a similar heating principle was used in baths in ancient Rome.
The result of the excavations carried out at that time, in addition to the finds themselves, was about 1000 pages of text, which described the found exhibits, in addition, the participants in the excavations made about 500 schemes and plans and made about 7000 photographs.
The reconstructed main tower of the Turaida Fortress, which is 26 meters high, is today used as an observation deck, from which a delightful view of the surroundings, which was named Latvian Switzerland for its beauty, opens up. You can climb to the observation deck through very narrow and low passages with stone steps. The height of the passages is just over one and a half meters, and the width is only half a meter.
In addition to the Observation Bath, other objects of the Turaida Fortress were also restored: the fortress walls, the Semicircular and North Towers, as well as the South Tower. Since 1962, the restored utility building houses the exposition of the museum-reserve.
Archaeological excavations, begun in the middle of the last century, do not stop today. Therefore, new exhibits are constantly replenishing the museum fund. Turaida Castle is one of the most popular tourist attractions in Latvia. Here, concerts of ancient and modern music are constantly held, as well as all kinds of festivals, exhibitions and other cultural events. Craftsmen work in the castle courtyard.
The Legend of the Turaida Rose is associated with the castle. According to legend, in 1601, Swedish troops captured the castle. After the battle, the palace clerk Greif found an emaciated girl among the dead. He brought her home and pledged to raise her. It happened in May, so he decided to call the girl Maya.
Over the years, Maya became so beautiful that they began to call her the Turaida Rose. On the other side of the River Gauja, her fiancé, the gardener of the Sigulda castle, Viktor Heel, lived. In the evenings, Maya and Victor met in Gutman's cave. Victor to the left of this cave dug another small one. In anticipation of meeting his bride, he decorated the small cave with flowers. Today this cave is named after Victor.
The beauty of Maya was carried away by one of the mercenaries of the manager of the Turaida castle, Adam Yakubovsky, whom the manager was going to dismiss soon. Turaida Rose rejected all advances and offers of Adam. Then Adam decided to take revenge on Maya and take her by force. In this he was assisted by his friend Peteris Skudritis.
In August 1620, the Maya received an invitation (allegedly from Victor) for an urgent meeting in a cave. Arriving at the meeting, Maya saw Yakubovsky and Skudritis and realized that she had been deceived. Then she shouted: "Stop! Now you yourself will be convinced of the strength of the handkerchief. I will tie it. The sword is with you, cut with all your might and you will not harm me." Adam struck with a sword on Maya's neck covered with a handkerchief. Blood poured out immediately, the girl fell without even crying out. Adam realized that he was a "terrible beast" and fled deep into the forest. Some time later, Skudritis found Adam in the forest, hanging himself in the sling of his sword.
Skudritis and Adam thought that the handkerchief had some kind of magical power, so none of them expected such an outcome, and only then Skudritis realized that Maya decided to do so, because she believed that it was better to die than to lose honor.
That evening, Victor came to the cave to meet with Maya and found her bloody body. Victor was accused of Maya's death, since a gardener's hatchet was found in the cave. The judges decided to knock out a confession from Victor by means of torture, from which Skudritis' testimony saved him. Peteris Skudritis was haunted by the crime, so he came to court and told everything. The case was solved. The gardener Victor and the clerk Greif insisted on punishing Peteris so as not to defile Maya's memory with blood, moreover, they did not consider him the direct culprit of the crime.
Maya's remains were buried with all honors, Victor personally installed a cross on her grave, and after that left the country, since a broken heart could not find peace here. The corpse of Yakubovsky's killer was buried in a swamp. Skudritis spent 4 months in prison, during which time he deeply repented, after which he was expelled from the country.
The legend of the Turaida Rose was introduced into circulation by the participant of the Vidzeme court court Magnus von Wolffeld. The found archival documents of the Vidzeme court court indicate that the legend is based on real events. Although the veracity of the legend of the Turaida Rose has been repeatedly challenged.
