Raudone Castle, Graužėnai, Lithuania

Raudonė Castle construction works started in late 16th century, during the reign of King Sigismund II August. A new renaissance castle was built on the ruins of the old one by a German knight, Hieronymus Krispin-Kirschenstein. The castle has since been rebuilt many times. The 18th century Polish owners of the Raudone estate, the family Olędzki (Olendzki) h. Rawicz commissioned Wawrzyniec Gucewicz with a renovation of the castle. The next owner, the Russian Prince Platon Zubov, acquired the estate in the first half of the 19th century and his family transformed the castle yet again. Their architect was Cesare Anichini.

Today the building is an example of 19th century neo-Gothic architecture. Its last private owners were Sophia Waxell (a Zubov) and her Portuguese husband from Madeira, José Carlos de Faria e Castro. The original castle is the setting of an East Prussian legend known as 'The White Maiden of the Bayersburg'.

References:

Wikipedia

Castles and fortifications in Lithuania

Address

1725, Graužėnai, Lithuania

See all sites in Graužėnai

Details

Founded: 16th century
Category: Castles and fortifications in Lithuania

More Information

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

Rating

4.7/5 (based on Google user reviews)

Interesting Sites Nearby

Panemune Castle (9,1 km)
Molavenai Hill Fort (42,2 km)

User Reviews

Lady N (7 months ago)
Neo classicism castle with nice charm. There is located secondary school. Not aviable for tourists visits within winter.

Tomas Gudas (12 months ago)
Beatiful castle. 16th century.

James P (13 months ago)
Just spent two weeks in Lithuania from USA. This was my second time visiting Lithuania . We have family in Kaunas We had a great time. We stopped here on the way to other areas and was amazed at the beautiful scenery . You can climb to the top for 1 euro. Its worth the climb. The views are great and theres a park nearby to walk with a huge chair , wwII statues and a pond in the shape of some mans face. Good times! Will be back soon!

Domantas Juodikis (14 months ago)
It was a really swell time that me and my friends spent there. It has a historical value and the nature view is amazing as well. It works really well for picnics and walks. Truly recomend it to anyone!

Giedre Liutikaite (14 months ago)
Beautiful red castle. There are a huge old forest to walk around the castle. You will see a small lake formed and titled as a “Napoleons hat”. A small walk around this lake called “The way of romance”. Locals are selling homemade sweets and other snacks such as meat, apples, mushrooms and etc. You may capture the picture on a huge chairs double sized as you. The parking lot is quite big to park a tourist bus. To visit Raudones tower the entrance will cost you 1 eur./ adult and 0.5 eur. / kid. Interesting fact: there were a school inside the castle for a local kids. Now it is closed. You need around 30 minutes to walk around. The best time to visit is spring time when all the nature is awakening and blooming!

Featured Historic Landmarks, Sites & Buildings

Photo from Flickr, copyright Alexxx1979

Historic Site of the week

Church of the Savior on Blood

The Church of the Savior on Spilled Blood is one of the main sights of St. Petersburg. The church was built on the site where Tsar Alexander II was assassinated and was dedicated in his memory. Construction began in 1883 under Alexander III, as a memorial to his father, Alexander II. Work progressed slowly and was finally completed during the reign of Nicholas II in 1907. Funding was provided by the Imperial family with the support of many private donors.

Architecturally, the Cathedral differs from St. Petersburg's other structures. The city's architecture is predominantly Baroque and Neoclassical, but the Savior on Blood harks back to medieval Russian architecture in the spirit of romantic nationalism. It intentionally resembles the 17th-century Yaroslavl churches and the celebrated St. Basil's Cathedral in Moscow.

The Church contains over 7500 square metres of mosaics — according to its restorers, more than any other church in the world. The interior was designed by some of the most celebrated Russian artists of the day — including Viktor Vasnetsov, Mikhail Nesterov and Mikhail Vrubel — but the church's chief architect, Alfred Alexandrovich Parland, was relatively little-known (born in St. Petersburg in 1842 in a Baltic-German Lutheran family). Perhaps not surprisingly, the Church's construction ran well over budget, having been estimated at 3.6 million roubles but ending up costing over 4.6 million. The walls and ceilings inside the Church are completely covered in intricately detailed mosaics — the main pictures being biblical scenes or figures — but with very fine patterned borders setting off each picture.

In the aftermath of the Russian Revolution, the church was ransacked and looted, badly damaging its interior. The Soviet government closed the church in the early 1930s. During the Second World War when many people were starving due to the Siege of Leningrad by Nazi German military forces, the church was used as a temporary morgue for those who died in combat and from starvation and illness. The church suffered significant damage. After the war, it was used as a warehouse for vegetables, leading to the sardonic name of Saviour on Potatoes.

In July 1970, management of the Church passed to Saint Isaac's Cathedral (then used as a highly profitable museum) and proceeds from the Cathedral were funneled back into restoring the Church. It was reopened in August 1997, after 27 years of restoration, but has not been reconsecrated and does not function as a full-time place of worship; it is a Museum of Mosaics. Even before the Revolution it never functioned as a public place of worship; having been dedicated exclusively to the memory of the assassinated tsar, the only services were panikhidas (memorial services). The Church is now one of the main tourist attractions in St. Petersburg.

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Raudone Castle