Once upon a time, Rus princes (most likely Volodymyr the Great in the 10th century) built wooden fortifications in Lutsk. In their place, in the 14th century, a large brick building was erected.
It was already built by the Grand Dukes of Lithuania - Lubart started the construction, that is why the fortress was named after him, and Witold and Svydrygailo continued it. Lutsk Castle is now called one of the most striking examples of medieval defensive architecture in Ukraine.
Lubart Castle is a beautifully preserved example of fortification architecture of the late Middle Ages. Previously, it was the defensive core of the Lutsk (Okolny) castle, which, unfortunately, has lost its integrity. Reconstruction pictures show what Lutsk Castle was like in the 17th century.
But this majestic building reached us only in pieces - it's good that at least the Lubart Castle was preserved, because it was once (during the Russian Empire) sold for building materials. From the auction. Fortunately, a year later, the Kyiv commission forbade dismantling the fortress.
So, the Lutsk Castle once consisted of two parts: the Upper (Lyubart Castle) and the Lower (Okolny) Castle. Only one tower of the Okola castle has been fully preserved - the Czartoryisky tower. It is now a museum space. The structure of the streets and, sporadically, fortifications, which became parts of later buildings, have been preserved.
But the Lubart castle was well preserved. It has three towers: Vyizna (Nadbramna, Lyubarta), Styrov (Svidrygaila) and Vladych, which are connected to each other by high walls. The courthouse (18th century), the county treasury (19th century), the remains of the princely palace (14th century) and the church of Ivan the Great (12th century) were located in the inner courtyard.
The main construction of Lubart Castle lasted 80 years (1350-1430), later only the height of the towers changed - they became higher. At that time, Okolny Castle was still made of wood. The construction of a large brick fortress on its site began in 1502.
Lutsk Castle was originally the residence of the Grand Duke of Lithuania, later it housed the royal administration and court. Church leadership was still based here - both Catholic and Orthodox, but the main function of the castle until the 18th century was to defend Lutsk from enemies. Its main current function is attractive. This is an incredible museum, for which, first of all, tourists go to Lutsk.
On the territory of the castles, there were both cathedrals - the Latin one of the Holy Trinity and the Orthodox one of Ivan the Theologian. In addition, meetings and assemblies of the Volyn nobility of both faiths were held there.
In the 18th century, the castle began to lose its functions, which was connected with the transformations of the society of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. The surrounding castle ceased to exist, and in the 19th century, when Volyn was annexed by the Russian Empire, the Upper Castle also ceased to be used for its intended purpose. The ruins remained, which were protected by law only at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries.
Over the course of the 20th century, the Upper Castle and the remains of Okolnyk were restored and are open to visitors today. And at the beginning of the 21st century, a fragment of the Okola Castle was also restored.
Lubart Castle is depicted on the Ukrainian 200 hryvna banknote.
Directly opposite the castle stands the Lutheran church - probably the highest church in Ukraine. This neo-Gothic, fabulous building reminds us that, in addition to Ukrainians, Poles, Jews and Russians, there were also many Germans living in Lutsk at the beginning of the last century.
And behind the kirkha (the street to the left of it) is the Lutsk House with chimeras. It was built by the sculptor Mykola Golovan - having started making various whimsical sculptures back in the 80s of the last century.
Lutsk is a tourist city. There are even tourist and information centers here (for example, on the Lesya Ukrainka pedestrian street), with souvenirs, magnets, and most importantly - books about Lutsk, photo albums, guidebooks. Streets in the central part of the city are decorated with red signs of tourist objects, sometimes there are maps of the main attractions, correlated with your location.
Theaters (including a puppet theater), cinemas, entertainment centers, restaurants, cafes, pubs - everything is as it should be, there are even candy stores. And the main thing is that it is full of sights, and some more.
There are so many old buildings of Catholic monasteries alone... Bridgets, Sharites, Trinitarians, Dominicans, Basilians. The most spectacular is the complex of the Jesuit monastery, with an incredible size church - the church of Peter and Paul (it is one of the largest Roman Catholic churches in Ukraine).
There are many old tenement houses in Lutsk, built in different periods and in different architectural styles. The construction of the interwar period, when Lutsk was ruled by the Poles, also is interesting.
You can read about Lutsk food and beer here: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/panm/lutsk-food-restaurants
Lutsk can be found here:
https://maps.app.goo.gl/dbCTqhTgF4524dFf6
