Vilnius Castle Complex

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Vilnius Castle Complex around 1530

Vilnius Castle in 1740:
Upper Castle: 1. Western tower; 2. Southern tower (foundations remain); 3. Castle Keep (ruins remain)
Lower Castle: 4. Gates and bridge to the city (Pilies Street); 5. Road and bridge to Tiltas Street; 6. Vilnius Cathedral; 7. Palace of Supreme Tribunal; 8. Palace of bishops; 9. Royal Palace; 10. Palace garden; 11. The New Arsenal, currently a museum; 12. Northeastern tower and gates of the Old Arsenal; 13. Yard of Old Arsenal

The Vilnius Castle Complex (Lithuanian: Vilniaus pilių kompleksas or Vilniaus pilys) is a group of defensive, cultural and religious buildings on the left bank of the Neris River, near the inflow of the Vilnia River, in Vilnius. The complex evolved between the 10th and 18th centuries, and was one of Lithuania's major defensive structures.^[1] The complex has been the subject of extensive archeological research.^[2]

The complex consisted of three castles: the Upper, the Lower, and the Crooked (Lithuanian: Kreivoji). The Crooked was burnt by the Teutonic Knights in 1390 and was never rebuilt.^[3] The Vilnius Castles were attacked several times by the Teutonic Order after 1390, but they never succeeded in capturing the entire complex. The first time any foreign power managed to capture the Vilnius Castle Complex was in 1655.^[4] Soon afterwards, the castles lost their importance, and many buildings were abandoned. During the Tsarist annexation,^[5][6] several historic buildings were demolished; many more were damaged during the fortress construction in the 19th century.

Today, the remaining Gediminas Tower is the symbol of the city of Vilnius.^[7]

[edit] History of the Upper Castle

Plan of Vilnius Castle Complex in the 18th century

One part of the castle complex, which was built on a hilltop, is known as the Upper Castle. The hill, now known as Gediminas Hill, is about 40 meters (43.7 yards) in height and around 160 meters (175 yards) in length.^[8]

Archaeological data shows that the site has been occupied since Neolithic times. The hill was strengthened with defensive wooden walls that were fortified with stone in the 9th century. Around the 10th century a wooden castle was built, and since about the 13th century the hilltop has been surrounded by stone walls with towers. During the rule of Gediminas Vilnius was designated the capital city; in 1323, the castle was improved and expanded.^[9]

Remains of Upper Castle`s Keep

The Vilnius Castles were attacked by the Teutonic Order in 1365, 1375, 1377, 1383, 1390, 1392, 1394 and 1402, but the castles were never taken completely.^[3] The most damaging assault was led by the Teutonic Order marshal Engelhard Rabe von Wildstein and Konrad von Wallenrode in 1390. Many noblemen from Western Europe participated in this military campaign, including Henry, Duke of Derby, the future king Henry IV of England, with 300 knights, and the Livonian Knights, who were commanded by the Grand Master.^[10] The attackers were also supported by Vytautas the Great, who fought with his cousin Jogaila for the title of Grand Duke of Lithuania.

Remaining tower of the Upper Castle

At the time of the attack in 1390, the Complex already consisted from all tree parts (Upper, Lower and Crooked). The Teutonic Knights managed to take and destroy the Crooked Castle situated on the Bleak Hill (Lithuanian: Plikasis kalnas), but failed to capture the others. During the 1394 attack, the Vilnius Castles were besieged for more than three weeks and one of the defense towers of the Vilnius Castle was damaged and fell into the Neris River.

During the rule of Vytautas the Great, the Upper Castle underwent its most notable redevelopment. After a major fire in 1419, Vytautas initiated a reconstruction of the Upper Castle, as well as fortification of other buildings in the complex. The present-day remains of the Upper Castle are from the era of Vytautas.^[3] Before reconstruction took place, Vytautas spent about four years with the Teutonic Order during internal fights with Jogaila. He had the opportunity to get to know the architecture of the castles of the Teutonic Order, and to adopt some of their elements in his residence in Vilnius.

The Upper Castle was reconstructed in Gothic style with glazed green tiling on its roof. The Upper Castle keep hall, on the second floor, was the largest hall (10 x 30 m) within the complex and it was a little smaller than the hall of the Grand Master's Palace (15 x 30 m) in Marienburg and much bigger than the hall at the Duke's Palace in the Trakai Island Castle (10 x 21 m). Reconstruction of the castle ended in 1422. The castle had made plans to host the coronation of the proclaimed king Vytautas the Great, which were disrupted by his untimely death.

After the 16th century, the Upper Castle was not maintained, and it suffered from neglect. Until the early 17th century, a prison for noblemen was located in the Upper Castle. It was used as a fortress for the last time during the invasion of the Muscovites in 1655, when for the first time in Lithuanian history, a foreign army captured the entire complex.^[4] Six years later, the Polish-Lithuanian army managed to recapture Vilnius and the castles. Afterwards the Upper Castle stood abandoned and was not reconstructed.

The complex suffered major damage during the World Wars. At this time, only the western tower, known as Gediminas Tower, is still standing. It is a symbol of Vilnius and of Lithuania. Only a few remnants of the castle's keep and other towers survived.

[edit] History of the Lower Castle

The Castle Complex has been inhabited since Neolithic times. Prior to the 13th century, its structures were built from wood. In the 13–14th centuries defensive walls, towers and gateways were built from stone, which were reorganized and expanded several times. The only freestanding structures that remain intact are those at the Lower Castle.

The two principal buildings of the Lower Castle are the Royal Palace and Vilnius Cathedral.

[edit] Royal Palace

Main article: Royal Palace of Lithuania

Model of Royal Palace

Royal Palace

The Royal Palace in the Lower Castle evolved during the years and prospered during the 16th and mid-17th centuries. For four centuries the Palace was the political, administrative and cultural center of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania.^[5]

In the 13th and 14th centuries there were stone structures within the palace site; some archeologists believe that a wooden palace stood there as well. The stone Royal Palace was built in the 15th century, apparently after the major fire in 1419.^[8] The existing stone buildings and defensive structures of the Lower Castle, which blocked the construction, were demolished. The Royal Palace was built in Gothic style. The Keep of the Upper Castle, as well as the Royal Palace, were meant to host the coronation of Vytautas the Great. The Gothic palace had three wings; research suggests that it was a two-story building with a basement.^[11]

The Grand Duke of Lithuania Alexander, who later became King of Poland, moved his residence to the Royal Palace where he met with foreign emissaries. He ordered the renovation of the palace. After his marriage to a daughter of Moscow's Grand Duke Ivan III, the royal couple lived and died in the palace.

Sigismund I the Old, after his ascension to the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, conducted his affairs in the Royal Palace as well as in Vilnius Cathedral. During the rule of Sigismund I the Old, the palace was greatly expanded – another wing was added, as well as a third floor; the gardens were also extended. By contemporary accounts the palace was worth 100,000 ducats.^[12] The palace reconstruction plan was probably prepared by Italian architect Bartolomeo Berrecci da Pontassieve, who also worked on several other projects in the Kingdom of Poland. In this palace Sigismund the Old welcomed an emissary from the Holy Roman Empire, who introduced Sigismund to Bona Sforza, his second wife, in 1517.

Sigismund's son Sigismund II Augustus was crowned Grand Duke of Lithuania in the Royal Palace. Sigismund II Augustus carried on the palace development and lived there with his first wife Elisabeth of Austria, daughter of the Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire. She was buried in Vilnius Cathedral.^[13] Sigismund II's second wife, Barbara Radziwill, also lived in the palace. According to contemporary accounts of the Holy See's emissary, the Royal Palace at that time contained more treasures than the Vatican.^[14] Sigismund II also assembled one of the largest collection of books in Europe.^[14]

The palace was remodeled in the Renaissance style in the 16th century. The plan was prepared by several Italian architects, including Giovanni Cini da Siena, Bernardino de Gianotis Zanobi, and others. The palace was visited by Ippolito Aldobrandini, who later became Pope Clement VIII. Another major development took place during the reign of the Vasa family. The Royal Palace was refurbished in early Baroque style during the rule of Sigismund III Vasa. Matteo Castello, Giacopo Tencalla, and other artists participated in the 17th century renovation.

Devastated Royal Palace. Drawn in the late 18th century

During the rule of Vasas, several notable ceremonies took place in the palace, including the wedding of Duke John, who later became King John III of Sweden, and Sigismund Augustus' sister Catherine. The first opera in Lithuania was staged in the palace in 1634.^[15] Marco Scacchi and Virgilio Puccitelli were the opera's impresarios.

After the Muscovite invasion in 1655, the state began weakening, and that negatively affected the Royal Palace. The palace was greatly damaged by war, and its treasures were plundered. After the recapture of the city of Vilnius in 1660-1661, the palace was no longer a suitable state residence, and stood abandoned for around 150 years. In the late 18th century, after the fall of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, several families lived in parts of the ruined palace. Soon after the Grand Duchy of Lithuania was incorporated into Tsarist Russia, Tsarist officials ordered the demolition of the remaining sections of the Royal Palace.^[15] The Palace was completely demolished in 1801 and the site was bowered.

Recently the Seimas, Lithuania's Parliament, passed a law resolving that the Royal Palace be rebuilt for ceremonies commemorating the millennium of Lithuania's name in 2009.

[edit] Vilnius Cathedral

Main article: Vilnius Cathedral

Present day view of Vilnius Cathedral

The Royal Palace and Vilnius Cathedral formed a complex and stood side by side during the centuries, but the two buildings have different histories.^[16]

There is evidence that in pre-Christian times, the pagan god Perkūnas was worshipped at this location. The King of Lithuania, Mindaugas, built the original cathedral in 1251 for his baptism into the Christian rite. After his death in 1263, the cathedral reverted to the worship of pagan gods.^[17]

In 1387, the year when Lithuania converted to Christianity, a second Gothic cathedral with five chapels was built. In 1419 the cathedral burned down. In its place Vytautas built a larger Gothic cathedral. In 1522, the cathedral was renovated, and written sources mentioned a bell tower for the first time.^[13] The bell tower was built from a defensive tower of the Lower Castle around the 15th century. After a fire in 1530, the cathedral was rebuilt again, and from 1534 to 1557 more chapels and crypts were added. During this period the cathedral acquired architectural features associated with the Renaissance. After a fire in 1610, it was rebuilt once again, and the two front towers were added. It was renovated and decorated several more times.

Chapel of Saint Casimir.

In 1783, the cathedral was reconstructed according to a design by Laurynas Gucevičius in the neoclassical style, and the church acquired its strict quadrangular shape. This design survived to the present day. Between 1786 and 1792 three sculptures were placed on the roof - Saint Casimir on the south side, Saint Stanislaus on the north, and Saint Helena in the center. These sculptures were removed in 1950 and restored in 1997.

Many famous people are buried in the crypts of the cathedral, among them Vytautas the Great (1430), his brother Sigismund (1440) and his cousin Švitrigaila (1452), Saint Casimir (1484), Alexander (1506), two wives of Sigismund August: Elisabeth of Habsburg (1545) and Barbara Radziwill (1551), and others.^[17]

Vilnius Cathedral remains one of the most important Catholic sanctuaries in Lithuania to this day.

[edit] Castle Arsenals

Old Arsenal

The Vilnius Castle Complex had two arsenals – the so-called New and Old - during its history. The New Arsenal was established in one of the oldest castle buildings in the 18th century, by order of the Grand Hetman of Lithuania, Casimir Oginski. The building was used to house soldiers and is well-preserved. Its outer wall was part of the defensive wall system,^[2] and during the 16th century its tower guided ships in the Neris river. The arsenal also at times housed castle administration.

New Arsenal

In contrast to the New Arsenal, which was adapted to this need in the 18th century, the Old Arsenal had already been established in the 15th century, during the rule of Vytautas the Great.^[18] The Old Arsenal was expanded during the reign of Sigismund the Old, and this work was continued by his son Sigismund II Augustus. During the 16th century reconstruction a new wing was built; in the mid-16th century and at the beginning of the 17th century, two more wings were built. According to contemporary accounts, the Old Arsenal at that time housed about 180 heavy cannons.^[18]

During Tzarist rule, the arsenals housed soldiers and military materiel. The buildings suffered major damage during World War II; some sections were restored after World War II and in 1987 and 1997. The arsenals now house the Lithuanian National Museum and the Museum of Applied Art.

[edit] See also

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Vilnius Castle Complex

• Vilnius Dungeons
• Cathedral square
• Pilies Street

[edit] References

1. (Lithuanian) Ragauskienė, R.; Antanavičius, D.; Burba, D.; ir kt. Vilniaus žemutinė pilis XIV a. – XIX a. pradžioje: 2002–2004 m. istorinių šaltinių paieškos. Vilnius. 2006
2. (Lithuanian) Drėma V. Dingęs Vilnius. Vilnius. 1991.
3. (Lithuanian) Budreika E. Lietuvos pilys. Vilnius. 1971

[edit] External links

1. (Lithuanian) Lietuvos Didžiosios Kunigaikštystės Valdovų rūmų radiniai

Coordinates: 54.687° N 25.290° E