The yellow walls
Green-capped towers.
Ri4ardsons — CC0 · Андрей Романенко — CC BY-SA 4.0 · simka — CC BY-SA 3.0 · simka — CC BY-SA 3.0 · Edgars Košovojs — CC BY-SA 4.0
Krustpils Castle is among the best preserved medieval castles in Latvia, in the city of Jēkabpils on the bank of the Daugava. Today it is an elegant yellow building with a lookout tower more than a war fortress, having turned over the centuries into a landlords' residence, and it holds a local museum with a neat garden around it. It is first recorded in 1237, when the Archbishop of Riga built a castle called Kreutz. The Livonian Order took it in 1359, and it was damaged in the Livonian War in 1559. In 1585 Stephen Báthory granted it to General Nikolai von Korff, whose family held it until the land reforms of 1920. Turkish prisoners were held here during the Russo-Turkish War, and many settled in the area afterwards. From outside you see yellow walls, round towers with green caps and a white tower with windows and a small dome, along with an older part of dark stone and brick. A garden with flowers and a fountain lies in front, and old anchors stand in the gateway. The tower looks over the gardens, river and city. Inside are displays on regional history. It is 118 km in a straight line from Riga, on the road towards Daugavpils, so it makes a good stop. Check museum hours, which may vary. Take time to climb the tower if it is open, and take care with children on the stairs. The garden looks best from spring to autumn. Do not touch the displays, and ask before taking pictures.
Green-capped towers.
Views of river and gardens.
Before the front.
Jēkabpils, on the River Daugava
It became a residence over the centuries, so it no longer looks like one.
Yes, on the road towards Daugavpils.