Birzai Castle, Biržai, Lithuania

Biržai Castle is an earth bastion-type castle. The construction started in 1586 by the order of Krzysztof Mikołaj Radziwiłł. In 1575, preparing for this construction, a dam was built on the Agluona and Apaščia rivers at their confluence, and the artificial Lake Širvėna, covering about 40 km², was created. Major castle building works were finished in 1589.

Since the second half of the 17th century, the castle has been the main seat of the Biržai-Dubingiai Radziwiłł family line, which was transferred here from the Dubingiai Castle. Biržai Castle served as a major defensive structure during the wars with Sweden.

The castle was reconstructed from ruins in the 1980s, in the Renaissance-Baroque style. The residential manor of the castle houses a library and a regional history museum 'Sėla' (literally Selonia), founded in 1928.

References:

Wikipedia

Castles and fortifications in Lithuania

Address

Rotušės gatvė 2A, Biržai, Lithuania

See all sites in Biržai

Details

Founded: 1586-1589
Category: Castles and fortifications in Lithuania

More Information

www.birzumuziejus.lt
en.wikipedia.org
www.7seasons.eu
www.way2lithuania.com

Rating

4.6/5 (based on Google user reviews)

Interesting Sites Nearby

Panevezys Cathedral (59 km)
Skaistkalne Church (20,7 km)
Aizkraukle Castle Ruins (51,7 km)

User Reviews

Edith Talmon (5 months ago)
Awesome place, you can stil sense old history bits in the air... I visited library in the castle as well, really peaceful place.. Love it.

RK Geetha (9 months ago)
Did not visit the castle from inside but from out it looks splendid with a pleasant green garden and walkway. Have an ice-cream at the cart just outside. The ginger flavoured one is hot and nice. The black Berry one has lots of fruit in it. Loved it. The castle premises is surrounded by water bodies-lakes I think, again with lovely paths to walk on. Bucolic. A perfect picnic spot.

Marius Matonis (10 months ago)
Very nice place. You could walk around the castle and get amazing view over Birzai. The entrance still has old entrance and looking good. There was some construction work around area. We were in the evening, so the castle was closed but we will definitely go inside next time.

Simona Jareckaite (10 months ago)
Very pretty and loads of amazing views. A must if you visit the town. Being born in the town, I've always visited the Birzai castle for some walks and relaxation. Museum is amazing and they host a number of events. The beer tasting sessions are a must if you've never been before!

Justinas Lelys (11 months ago)
Very nice and calm place in a small town located in the north of Lithuania. Here you can take some authentic Lithuanian entertainment and taste home brewed beer. Its worth to mention that I had my wedding ceremony here in the balcony of the second floor.

Featured Historic Landmarks, Sites & Buildings

Photo from Flickr, copyright archer10 (Dennis) 211M Views

Historic Site of the week

Porta Nigra

The Porta Nigra (Latin for black gate) is the largest Roman city gate north of the Alps. It is designated as part of the Roman Monuments, Cathedral of St. Peter and Church of Our Lady in Trier UNESCO World Heritage Site. The name Porta Nigra originated in the Middle Ages due to the darkened colour of its stone; the original Roman name has not been preserved. Locals commonly refer to the Porta Nigra simply as Porta.

The Porta Nigra was built in grey sandstone between 186 and 200 AD. The original gate consisted of two four-storied towers, projecting as near semicircles on the outer side. A narrow courtyard separated the two gate openings on either side. For unknown reasons, however, the construction of the gate remained unfinished. For example, the stones at the northern (outer) side of the gate were never abraded, and the protruding stones would have made it impossible to install movable gates. Nonetheless, the gate was used for several centuries until the end of the Roman era in Trier.

In Roman times, the Porta Nigra was part of a system of four city gates, one of which stood at each side of the roughly rectangular Roman city. The Porta Nigra guarded the northern entry to the Roman city, while the Porta Alba (White Gate) was built in the east, the Porta Media (Middle Gate) in the south, and the Porta Inclyta (Famous Gate) in the west, next to the Roman bridge across the Moselle. The gates stood at the ends of the two main streets of the Roman Trier, one of which led north-south and the other east-west. Of these gates, only the Porta Nigra still exists today.

In the early Middle Ages the Roman city gates were no longer used for their original function and their stones were taken and reused for other buildings. Also iron and lead braces were broken out of the walls of the Porta Nigra for reuse. Traces of this destruction are still clearly visible on the north side of the gate.

After 1028, the Greek monk Simeon lived as a hermit in the ruins of the Porta Nigra. After his death (1035) and sanctification, the Simeonstift monastery was built next to the Porta Nigra to honor him. Saving it from further destruction, the Porta Nigra was transformed into a church: The inner court of the gate was roofed and intermediate ceilings were inserted. The two middle storeys of the former gate were converted into church naves: the upper storey being for the monks and the lower storey for the general public. The ground floor with the large gates was sealed, and a large outside staircase was constructed alongside the south side (the town side) of the gate, up to the lower storey of the church. A small staircase led further up to the upper storey. The church rooms were accessible through former windows of the western tower of the Porta Nigra that were enlarged to become entrance doors (still visible today). The top floor of the western tower was used as church tower, the eastern tower was leveled, and an apse added at its east side. An additional gate - the much smaller Simeon Gate - was built adjacent to the East side of the Porta Nigra and served as a city gate in medieval times.

In 1802 Napoleon Bonaparte dissolved the church in the Porta Nigra and the monastery beside it, along with the vast majority of Trier"s numerous churches and monasteries. On his visit to Trier in 1804, Napoleon ordered that the Porta Nigra be converted back to its Roman form. Only the apse was kept; but the eastern tower was not rebuilt to its original height. Local legend has it that Napoleon originally wanted to completely tear down the church, but locals convinced him that the church had actually been a Gaulish festival hall before being turned into a church. Another version of the story is that they told him about its Roman origins, persuading him to convert the gate back to its original form.

In 1986 the Porta Nigra was designated a World Heritage Site, along with other Roman monuments in Trier and its surroundings. The modern appearance of the Porta Nigra goes back almost unchanged to the reconstruction ordered by Napoleon. At the south side of the Porta Nigra, remains of Roman columns line the last 100 m of the street leading to the gate. Positioned where they had stood in Roman times, they give a slight impression of the aspect of the original Roman street that was lined with colonnades. The Porta Nigra, including the upper floors, is open to visitors.

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Birzai Castle