Pidhirtsi Castle

Pidhirtsi Castle (Ukrainian: Підгорецький замок; Polish: zamek w Podhorcach) is a residential castle-fortress located in the village of Pidhirtsi in Lviv Oblast (province) western Ukraine, located eighty kilometers east of Lviv. It was constructed by Guillaume Le Vasseur de Beauplan between 1635–1640 by order of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth's Grand Crown Hetman Stanisław Koniecpolski, on the place of the older fortress. The castle was then part of the Kingdom of Poland and it is regarded as the most valuable of palace-garden complexes in the eastern borderlands (Kresy Wschodnie) of the former Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth.

Exterior

The structure, built with brick and stone, was designed in the characteristic palazzo in fortezza style. It is located on the northern side of the Woroniaki hills, standing at 399 meters above sea level, overlooking the Styr River valley, in a prominent location where it can be seen from great distances. The palace itself is built into the slope of the hill. In the 17th century, it was surrounded by vineyards and Italian-style parterre gardens, its wine celebrated by the poetry of Jakub Sobieski and Andrzej Morsztyn. Guarded by a moat and drawbridge, fortified walls with bastions and a set of iron cannons (some of which have been preserved to this day). The castle takes the form of an open square nearly 100 meters on a side, with three floors.

Its western part served as an official residency for guests; the eastern range was private, reserved for the owner and servants. Above the entrance gate, a marble plaque to this day bears a Latin inscription: "A crown of military labours is victory, victory is a triumph, triumph is rest." There also was a grange, a private zoo, vineyards, an apiary, a trout pond and a...