The tower
A pointed red roof.
Mike1979 Russia — CC BY-SA 3.0 · Liashko — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Mike1979 Russia — CC BY-SA 3.0 · Viktar Palstsiuk — CC BY-SA 3.0 · Fczarnowski — CC BY-SA 4.0
Old Grodno Castle is a hilltop castle on the bank of the Neman River in the city of Grodno, in western Belarus. It dates back to the 11th century, when the first wooden fort was built where the Neman and Gorodnichanka rivers meet, and today it is a museum. Grand Duke Vytautas of Lithuania rebuilt it in stone between 1391 and 1398 and added five Gothic towers, making it one of his main residences. King Stephen Bathory later made it his seat, hired an architect from Parma to turn it into a Renaissance palace, and died here in 1586. It was damaged in wars and restored several times. You see a long white building with a square tower under a pointed red roof and a small grey dome, above a green grassy slope. A stone bridge over a dry moat leads in, and from the top you see the Neman River and the neighbouring New Castle on the next hill. It is about 247 km from Minsk in a straight line, in the centre of the city. The UK Foreign Office advises against all travel to Belarus, so read the current advice before any planning.
A pointed red roof.
Over the moat.
From the top.
Above the Neman, central Grodno, Belarus
Grand Duke Vytautas, then King Stephen Bathory, who died here in 1586.
Yes, the UK Foreign Office advises against all travel to Belarus.
