Rujiena Castle
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

The
ruin Ruins () are the remains of a civilization's architecture. The term refers to formerly intact structures that have fallen into a state of partial or total disrepair over time due to a variety of factors, such as lack of maintenance, deliberate ...
s of the Latvian
hill castle A hill castle or mountain castle is a castle built on a natural feature that stands above the surrounding terrain. It is a term derived from the German ''Höhenburg'' used in categorising castle sites by their topographical location. Hill castles a ...
Rujiena Castle are located on the edge of the present-day village of Rūjiena in
Valmiera Municipality Valmiera Municipality () is one of the 35 Municipalities of Latvia, municipalities established in Latvia in 2021, located approximately west of the national capital Riga. Its first elected municipal council took office on 1 July 2021. Its seat i ...
in the
Vidzeme Vidzeme (; Old Latvian orthography: ''Widda-semme'', ) is one of the Historical Latvian Lands. The capital of Latvia, Riga, is situated in the southwestern part of the region. Literally meaning "the Middle Land", it is situated in north-centra ...
region, on the right bank of the Rūja river.


History

Historic chronicles dating from 1125 tell of the wooden Livonian Castle, Metsepole, located on the right bank of the Rūja River, about from the current centre of the town, and how it was destroyed by invading forces from
Saaremaa Saaremaa (; ) is the largest and most populous island in Estonia. Measuring , its population is 31,435 (as of January 2020). The main island of the West Estonian archipelago (Moonsund archipelago), it is located in the Baltic Sea, south of Hi ...
. The region submitted to the
Livonian Brothers of the Sword The Livonian Brothers of the Sword (; ) was a Catholic Church, Catholic Military order (monastic society), military order established in 1202 during the Livonian Crusade by Albert of Riga, Albert, the third bishop of Riga (or possibly by Theode ...
after the
Battle of St. Matthew's Day The Battle of Matthew's Day () was fought near Viljandi (probably in Vanamõisa, Viljandi County, Vanamõisa) on 21 September 1217 during the Livonian Crusade. The adversaries were the Livonian Brothers of the Sword, Sword Brethren (a German Cr ...
. The wooden Livonian castle was replaced with a castle built by Landmeister of the
Teutonic Order The Teutonic Order is a religious order (Catholic), Catholic religious institution founded as a military order (religious society), military society in Acre, Israel, Acre, Kingdom of Jerusalem. The Order of Brothers of the German House of Sa ...
Burchard von Hornhausen in 1263. A substantial settlement was established around the castle and named Rūjiena. Rūjiena Castle guarded the border between the Teutonic Order and the dominion of the
Archbishopric of Riga The Archbishopric of Riga (, ) was a Catholic diocese and civil government in Medieval Livonia, subject to the Holy See. It was established in 1186 and ended in 1561. History The diocese was established in 1186 as the Bishopric of Livonia a ...
. The castle as an order castle of the
Livonian Order The Livonian Order was an autonomous branch of the Teutonic Order, formed in 1237. From 1435 to 1561 it was a member of the Livonian Confederation. History The order was formed from the remnants of the Livonian Brothers of the Sword after thei ...
was first mentioned in 1499. Their castle area not only included the parish of Rūjiena, but also the part of the parish of
Salisburg Mazsalaca (; , , ) is a town in Valmiera Municipality in the Vidzeme region of Latvia. It has 1269 inhabitants. History The area includes the largest known Stone Age burial site in Northern Europe and was first settled ca. 5000 BC. The present to ...
on the right bank of the Salis. Rūjiena shared a
bailiff A bailiff is a manager, overseer or custodian – a legal officer to whom some degree of authority or jurisdiction is given. There are different kinds, and their offices and scope of duties vary. Another official sometimes referred to as a '' ...
with Karkus and
Heimat ''Heimat'' () is a German word translating to 'home' or 'homeland'. The word has connotations specific to German culture, German society and specifically German Romanticism, German nationalism, German statehood and regionalism so that it h ...
. The Rūjiena crochet mill was called ''oppidum ''in 1555. During the reign of
Ivan III of Russia Ivan III Vasilyevich (; 22 January 1440 – 27 October 1505), also known as Ivan the Great, was Grand Prince of Moscow and Sovereign of all Russia, all Russia from 1462 until his death in 1505. Ivan served as the co-ruler and regent for his bli ...
, Rūjiena Castle was repeatedly attacked by Russian troops and destroyed in 1481. It did not suffer major damage and Rūjiena quickly recovered. In 1526
Walter von Plettenberg Wolter or Walter von Plettenberg ( – February 28, 1535) was Master ('' Landmeister'') of the Livonian Order from 1494 to 1535, and one of the greatest leaders of the Teutonic Knights. He was an important early Baltic German. Biography ...
, Master of the Teutonic Order, called a provincial assembly to try Archbishop for his relationship with Russia. Rūjiena's importance grew and the castle was raised to the rank of
commandery In the Middle Ages, a commandery (rarely commandry) was the smallest administrative division of the European landed properties of a military order. It was also the name of the house where the knights of the commandery lived.Anthony Luttrell and G ...
. was its only commander.Stefan Hartmann
Albrecht von Preussen und Livland (1557-1560): Regesten aus dem Herzoglichen Briefarchiv und den Ostpreussischen Folianten, Herzog
Volume 5 563 pages Böhlau Verlag Köln Weimar, 2006 ,
He died in 1557 and so did not see its destruction by the Russians in 1560. During the
Livonian War The Livonian War (1558–1583) concerned control of Terra Mariana, Old Livonia (in the territory of present-day Estonia and Latvia). The Tsardom of Russia faced a varying coalition of the Denmark–Norway, Dano-Norwegian Realm, the Kingdom ...
in 1560, the castle was occupied, looted and burned by the Lithuanian nobility, but was then restored. In September 1560, the Russian army under
Ivan the Terrible Ivan IV Vasilyevich (; – ), commonly known as Ivan the Terrible,; ; monastic name: Jonah. was Grand Prince of Moscow, Grand Prince of Moscow and all Russia from 1533 to 1547, and the first Tsar of all Russia, Tsar and Grand Prince of all R ...
destroyed Rūjiena Castle and the town. After
Vidzeme Vidzeme (; Old Latvian orthography: ''Widda-semme'', ) is one of the Historical Latvian Lands. The capital of Latvia, Riga, is situated in the southwestern part of the region. Literally meaning "the Middle Land", it is situated in north-centra ...
was partitioned to Poland in 1562, the Polish king
Sigismund August Sigismund II Augustus (, ; 1 August 1520 – 7 July 1572) was King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania, the son of Sigismund I the Old, whom Sigismund II succeeded in 1548. He was the first ruler of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth and t ...
presented Rūjiena to his brother-in-law, Swedish prince John. The occupation of the castle surrendered in 1575 King Magnus, but in the autumn of 1575 the Germans managed to take them back. Rūjiena was still called a castle in 1554 but it military value was
slighted Slighting is the deliberate damage of high-status buildings to reduce their value as military, administrative, or social structures. This destruction of property is sometimes extended to the contents of buildings and the surrounding landscape. It ...
in 1582. In 1622, King
Gustavus Adolphus Gustavus Adolphus (9 December N.S 19 December">Old_Style_and_New_Style_dates.html" ;"title="/nowiki>Old Style and New Style dates">N.S 19 December15946 November Old Style and New Style dates">N.S 16 November] 1632), also known in English as ...
lien A lien ( or ) is a form of security interest granted over an item of property to secure the payment of a debt or performance of some other obligation. The owner of the property, who grants the lien, is referred to as the ''lienee'' and the pers ...
ed the castle to his financial administrator, Jasper Mattsson Krus. Rūjiena Castle was completely destroyed during the
Great Northern War In the Great Northern War (1700–1721) a coalition led by the Tsardom of Russia successfully contested the supremacy of the Swedish Empire in Northern Europe, Northern, Central Europe, Central and Eastern Europe. The initial leaders of the ant ...
in 1704. Time has destroyed what little was left, and many of the remaining stones were taken by locals to build the dam for the mill.


Description

The oval castle complex indicates that there used to be a '' Wallburg'' at the site of the castle. The castle hill is located on the right bank of the river Rūja, surrounded by a deep ditch with a bridge on the west side. Rūjiena Castle was a typical ' fortress. The only square tower, on the north side, leans against the wall.


Castle names

Over the course of history, the castle was referred to in different documents under several names. *1414 – Ruyen *1437 – Rugen *1461 – Ruien, Rugen *1495 – Rughen *1496 – Rugenn *1499 – Rwen *16th century – Rujen Руйиенский орденский замок (Rujen)
/ref> *1573 – Royen Livoniae nova descriptio. Portantius, Johannes; Ortelius, Abraham Published by c. 1579,
Antwerp Antwerp (; ; ) is a City status in Belgium, city and a Municipalities of Belgium, municipality in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is the capital and largest city of Antwerp Province, and the third-largest city in Belgium by area at , after ...
.


Present condition

Fragments made of
enceinte Enceinte (from Latin ''incinctus'' "girdled, surrounded") is a French term that refers to the "main defensive enclosure of a fortification". For a castle, this is the main defensive line of wall towers and curtain walls enclosing the positio ...
from in height have been preserved from the ring wall. There has been an increase in the terrain from the
gatehouse A gatehouse is a type of fortified gateway, an entry control point building, enclosing or accompanying a gateway for a town, religious house, castle, manor house, or other fortification building of importance. Gatehouses are typically the most ...
. There are no information boards on site and the castle is not on the list of local attractions.


See also

* Rūjiena


References

{{Castles in Latvia Castles in Vidzeme Castles of the Livonian Order Rūjiena