At the turn of the 13th and 14th centuries Jasenov castle belonged to the noble man Peter from Bačkov. He was formerly an ally of the king, Charles Robert, during the period of struggle with the family of Omodejs (of the Abov county). Later, because Peter turned agains the king and tried to murder him, his property was thus entirely confiscated and in 1317 most of it given to the faithful Philip Drugeth. Since then it was owned continously by the Drugeths, still their’s even in the 17th century as a part of the the domain of castles Brekov and Jasenov.
The first written document mentions the castle in the 1320s. The geographical position of the castle, built in the mountains away from the main provincial road was suitable for the function of a noble lord‘s seat. The nearby Brekov served the more typical purpose of a guard castle in the service of defending the local land or accomodating the king on his travels. George I Rákoczi’s army conquered and destroyed the Jasenov castle in 1644, during the third great uprising against the Habsburg empire. After the initiative of Count Andrássy, the vanishing ruin of the castle was partly conserved, several objects were roofed and the entrance part was fixed during the beginning of the 20th century. Today, however, only ruins remain.
References:The Beckov castle stands on a steep 50 m tall rock in the village Beckov. The dominance of the rock and impression of invincibility it gaves, challenged our ancestors to make use of these assets. The result is a remarkable harmony between the natural setting and architecture.
The castle first mentioned in 1200 was originally owned by the King and later, at the end of the 13th century it fell in hands of Matúš Èák. Its owners alternated - at the end of the 14th century the family of Stibor of Stiborice bought it.
The next owners, the Bánffys who adapted the Gothic castle to the Renaissance residence, improved its fortifications preventing the Turks from conquering it at the end of the 16th century. When Bánffys died out, the castle was owned by several noble families. It fell in decay after fire in 1729.
The history of the castle is the subject of different legends.