Khust Castle
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The Khust Castle (; ) is an abandoned castle located in the city of
Khust Khust (, ; ; ; ; ; ) is a city located on the Khustets River in Zakarpattia Oblast, western Ukraine. It is near the сonfluence of the Tisa and Rika Rivers. It serves as the administrative center of Khust Raion. Population: Khust was the capi ...
in
Zakarpattia Oblast Zakarpattia Oblast (Ukrainian language, Ukrainian: Закарпатська область), also referred to as simply Zakarpattia (Ukrainian language, Ukrainian: Закарпаття; Hungarian language, Hungarian: ''Kárpátalja'') or Transcar ...
(
province A province is an administrative division within a country or sovereign state, state. The term derives from the ancient Roman , which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire, Roman Empire's territorial possessions ou ...
) in western
Ukraine Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the List of European countries by area, second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which Russia–Ukraine border, borders it to the east and northeast. Ukraine also borders Belarus to the nor ...
. The former Hungarian castle lies on a 150-meter high mountain near the center of the city. The construction of the castle is believed to have started around 1090, during the reign of the Hungarian King St. Ladislaus I and it was finished in 1191, under the
Béla III Béla may refer to: * Béla (crater), an elongated lunar crater * Béla (given name), a common Hungarian male given name See also * Bela (disambiguation) * Belá (disambiguation) * Bělá (disambiguation) Bělá may refer to: Places in the Cze ...
. The castle was built as a fortress to protect the salt road from
Solotvyno Solotvyno (also Solotvina; ; ; or ; ; , ; ) is a rural settlement in Tiachiv Raion in Zakarpattia Oblast of Ukraine, located adjacent to Romania, on the right bank of the Tisza River opposite the Romanian city of Sighetu Marmației. The village' ...
, including the Khust Gate, and the border areas. The
Turkish Turkish may refer to: * Something related to Turkey ** Turkish language *** Turkish alphabet ** Turkish people, a Turkic ethnic group and nation *** Turkish citizen, a citizen of Turkey *** Turkish communities in the former Ottoman Empire * The w ...
traveler
Evliya Çelebi Dervish Mehmed Zillî (25 March 1611 – 1682), known as Evliya Çelebi (), was an Ottoman Empire, Ottoman explorer who travelled through his home country during its cultural zenith as well as neighboring lands. He travelled for over 40 years, rec ...
mentions the castle: "The Khust castle is located at the top of Mount Hassan. Its walls are high and thick, and with its power it is similar to the Iskander fortress, because its height already reaches the sky. Residential buildings facing east face one above the other. The roofs of the palaces are covered with colored tiles, the roofs of the churches - iron, the crosses on them - of pure gold and so shine that the one who looks at them gets tired eyes and is forced, with respect for them, to lower their gaze." After the defeat of the Hungarian army in the
Battle of Mohács The Battle of Mohács (; , ) took place on 29 August 1526 near Mohács, in the Kingdom of Hungary. It was fought between the forces of Hungary, led by King Louis II of Hungary, Louis II, and the invading Ottoman Empire, commanded by Suleima ...
in 1526, The Kingdom of Hungary fell apart and the castle in Khust became a part of the Principality of Transylvania.


History

On the outskirts of the city of Khust rises a mountain of volcanic origin, on which in the 11–12th centuries. a castle-fortress was built. From 1281 to 1321 the fort belonged to the
Principality of Galicia–Volhynia A principality (or sometimes princedom) is a type of monarchical state or feudal territory ruled by a prince or princess. It can be either a sovereign state or a constituent part of a larger political entity. The term "principality" is often ...
. In 1480,
Matthias Corvinus Matthias Corvinus (; ; ; ; ; ) was King of Hungary and King of Croatia, Croatia from 1458 to 1490, as Matthias I. He is often given the epithet "the Just". After conducting several military campaigns, he was elected King of Bohemia in 1469 and ...
of
Hungary Hungary is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning much of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia and ...
gives the castle to his wife, Queen Beatrice of Aragon. In 1511, Vladislaus II leased Khust Castle with all his possessions for rent to Gábor Perényi for 20,000 gold. In 1669 the commandant of the castle, Mihály Katona, made his inventory, which included 50 guns, several tons of gunpowder, 3,000 cores in 3 warehouses. In 1709 an all-
Transylvanian Diet The Transylvanian Diet (; ; ) was an important legislative, administrative and judicial body of the Principality (from 1765 Grand Principality) of Transylvania between 1570 and 1867. The general assemblies of the Transylvanian noblemen and the jo ...
of the supporters of Prince
Francis II Rákóczi Francis II Rákóczi (, ; 27 March 1676 – 8 April 1735) was a Hungarian nobleman and leader of the Rákóczi's War of Independence against the Habsburgs in 1703–1711 as the prince () of the Estates Confederated for Liberty of the Kingdom of ...
took place in the castle. In the 16–17th centuries, Khust and his castle were often fought by the Habsburgs and the princes of Seven, attacked by the Turks and Tatars. The last combat performance of Khust garrison took place in 1717, when soldiers attacked a 12,000th Tatar horde near Vyshkov. The castle was destroyed by lightning strikes during a storm - one of them in 1766 fell into powder warehouses. The mayor tried to keep the lock, started repairing it, but it turned out to be hopeless. In 1773, Empress
Maria Theresa Maria Theresa (Maria Theresia Walburga Amalia Christina; 13 May 1717 – 29 November 1780) was the ruler of the Habsburg monarchy from 1740 until her death in 1780, and the only woman to hold the position suo jure, in her own right. She was the ...
sent her son
Joseph Joseph is a common male name, derived from the Hebrew (). "Joseph" is used, along with " Josef", mostly in English, French and partially German languages. This spelling is also found as a variant in the languages of the modern-day Nordic count ...
to inspect the castle. He ordered the garrison to be transferred to
Mukachevo Mukachevo (, ; , ; see name section) is a city in Zakarpattia Oblast, western Ukraine. It is situated in the valley of the Latorica River and serves as the administrative center of Mukachevo Raion. The city is a rail terminus and highway junct ...
. In 1798 a storm damaged the last tower of the castle. Authorities gave the local community permission to dismantle the castle on the building stones. In 1799 , the eastern wall of the castle was demolished for the construction of the Catholic Church and various official buildings in Khust. Hungarian poet
Ferenc Kölcsey Ferenc Kölcsey (archaically English: Francis Kolcsey, 8 August 1790 in Sződemeter – 24 August 1838) was a Hungarian poet, literary critic, orator, and politician, noted for his support of the liberal current in Hungary regarding the pol ...
wrote his famous epigram (''Huszt'') about the ruins of the castle in 1831.Kölcsey-emléktáblát avattak Huszton
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Today

Only ruins remain. It is possible to walk to the castle from Khust via an uphill trail that starts near the park on the south edge of the city. The trail begins with flat cobbles and transitions to dirt near the top. It is a 25-minute walk from the center of Khust to the top of the hill. The castle hill offers views of Khust and the surrounding area.


References


The history of the Khust castle
{{Castles in Ukraine Khust Raion Ruined castles in Ukraine Buildings and structures in Zakarpattia Oblast Buildings and structures completed in 1191