Top 3 Castles around Ivanščica

Old ruins of Pusta Bela on the top of the hill

The fortified town of Bela (today Pusta Bela) has been a fortress and the center of the Ivano-Frankivsk population since the beginning of the 13th century. Their presence in this area is confirmed by the charter of Bela IV. from 1238. The Ivan family owned a large complex around Ivančica and Ivanec. The only material proof of the activity of the people of Ivano-Frankivsk is in the transmission of French architectural culture - in the Romanesque castles with a central defense tower that were brought to Croatia almost at the same time as they were created in France. This is confirmed even today by the remains of Pusta Bela, whose ruins preserve visible stone traces of a building with a circular floor plan within the remains of the ramparts. Pusta Bela is located at 430 meters above sea level, from where the passage through Belski dol was controlled. Not much remains of the former center of Ivano-Frankivsk, only the ruins of the city that burned down in 1481.

Milenrad (Hungarian: Milen vára) is a medieval town built in the 13th century after the Tatar invasion (1242) on the hill Ivanščica in Zajezda, which is now part of the Municipality of Budinščina in Krapina-Zagorje County. Fortress Milen or Milengrad is a protected cultural asset.

The road from the church of Sv. Maria Snow is pretty bad. It should be parked before entering the forest.

Medieval fortress, restored, with a beautiful view of the environment.

Great track at all weather conditions, especially in winter.

BELECGRAD FORTRESS The Belecgrad Fortress, ie its remains, are located approximately 3.5 km north of the present-day town of Belec. The fort is located on a secluded rocky peak 540m high. The slopes on the north and east sides of the hill are especially steep, and the south is only slightly milder. Therefore, access was possible only from the west. Belecgrad was for some time a royal estate when it passed from the possession of the lordship of Frederick of Celje to the possession of Peter Gising. The fort was ruled by the Celjski, Szekely, Frankopani, Keglević, Erdody and Rattkay families, among others. Belecgrad Castle was built as part of a chain of fortifications on the southern slopes of the largest mountain in Zagorje, Ivanščica. Then, for the needs of the defense of the Croatian-Hungarian kingdom, Loborgrad, Gradina near Lobor, Oštrcgrad, Belecgrad, the fortress of Židovina, Milengrad, Gradišče, Gotalovec and Grebengrad were built. The plan of the fort had the shape of an irregular trapezoid, 60 m long and 21 m wide. In the northern part of the fort there was a living space on two floors. With the development and strengthening of firearms during the 15th and 16th centuries, Belecgrad was additionally fortified from the south by a large circular bastion. The fort lost its significance after the threat of Turkish invasions ceased and was abandoned in the middle of the 18th century. The castle in Selnica then became the center of the estate. Height: 540 m Stamp: metal, at the entrance to the garden Bypasses: Belečki planinarski put, In the old towns of Ivanščica Access: From Belac, from the church of Sv. Marija Snježna, along marked paths (educational trail or road) to the Belecgrad mountain house, from which it takes 15 minutes to reach the hillfort along the marked path. From the top of Ivanščica from several directions to the mountain house Belecgrad and then to the hillfort. A hiking trail across Belig towards the Belecgrad mountain hut and a marked branch from that road towards the hillfort. https://belecgrad.com/znamenitosti/utvrda-belecgrad/

Well-preserved ruins with a good view. Inside the walls are several stamps to collect.