Top 5 Castles around Widuchowa

A fragment of the retaining wall of the former defensive castle from 1700

Since the first half of the 13th century, Swobnica and the surrounding areas belonged to the Templar Order, whose main seat was in the village of Rurka. After the liquidation of the order in 1312, the Templars' property was taken over by the Ionite Order, who, due to a conflict with the inhabitants of Rurka and the local knights, were forced to leave the property in Rurka and move to nearby Swobnica. Drawing on the experience of Rurka, the monks decided to build a more defensive structure. In 1377, the Hospitallers already had a building permit. The castle in Swobnica was built at the end of the 14th century. The brick building was created on a square plan and surrounded by a 15-meter wall, and additionally a 35-meter tower was built at the gate, which strengthened the fortifications of the estate. After the Thirty Years' War, the castle was taken over by the Swedes, and in 1680 the building was bought by the wife of the Elector of Brandenburg. On her orders, the building was rebuilt into a three-winged, Baroque hunting residence. During the modernization of the building, the western section of the defensive wall was demolished, along with the gate, while window openings were created in the remaining parts. Despite the renovation, the new owners preserved the brick facade and the tower – to which stairs were led from the courtyard level (previously, the tower could only be entered from the gun porch, which was located at a height of 16 meters). The castle remained in the hands of the Hohenzollerns until 1945. After the end of World War II, the castle was robbed, and later the building was repeatedly devastated by "treasure hunters", who, among other things, broke through the chimneys in the castle. During the Polish People's Republic, the castle served as the seat of the State Agricultural Farm, which first had its offices here and then created a granary in the castle. In 1993, the building was bought by a private investor from Belgium, who was to renovate it. In 2008, the oldest wing of the building collapsed. In 2011, the Banie commune regained the monument, a year later the eastern wing of the castle and the roof were renovated. In 2013, the renovation of the tower was completed. The castle is surrounded by a 2.5 ha landscape park from the 19th century, with a rich tree stand. The castle has been on the list of monuments since March 1957. Since August 2009, the Swobnica Castle Association has been operating, whose main task is to save the monument.

The castle was built in 1377 by the Order of St. John. Initially, it was just a brick, quadrangular defensive wall. In one corner there was a tower, and a residential house was attached to the northern wall. In the 15th century, the house was expanded, creating an entire residential wing. The eastern wing was also added. In the 16th century, the southern wing also appeared. The entrance to the castle was located on the west, near the tower. The St. John owned the castle until 1648, and in 1690 it was taken over by the Hohenzollern family from Schwedt. It was then rebuilt into a baroque residence. From the original design, only the tower remained. The Hohenzollerns ruled the castle until 1945. Later, the castle was taken over by the State Agricultural Farm. In the 1990s, when the castle was abandoned, treasure hunters took action, breaking down the walls and devastating everything that could be destroyed. Selling the castle to a private owner turned out to be a mistake, because for years he did nothing, allowing further devastation. In 2008, the north wing collapsed. Eventually, they managed to take over the castle. It is now the property of the commune. There is no money for renovation, but a new roof was put on and stairs were built to the tower.

The almost completely preserved medieval city wall of Chojna is now a listed building. Königsberg/Neumark received city fortifications in the 14th and 15th centuries. This was supplemented by 3 gates and numerous defensive and watchtowers. Despite significant war damage in World War II, the city wall in Chojna remained almost completely intact. Two goals remained until our time. One, the Bernikower Tor, got its name from the village of Berniko. It was created in the 14th and 15th centuries. The second preserved gate is the Schwedter Tor, Brama Swiecka, built in the 15th century and is considered one of the most beautiful Gothic city gates in the country. The city fortifications included numerous towers, three of which have been preserved: Baszcza Piekarska, Więzienna and Bociania (baker, prison and stork tower). The Billerbeck Tower, which was also called the prison or powder tower, is located on the northern city wall.

From the first half of the 13th century, Swobnica and the surrounding areas belonged to the Templar order, whose headquarters were in the village of Rurka. After the liquidation of the Order in 1312, the property of the Templars was taken over by the Jonites, who, due to a conflict with the inhabitants of Rurka and the surrounding knights, were forced to leave the taken over property in Rurka and move to nearby Swobnica. Drawing on their experience from Rurka, the monks decided to build a more defensive structure. In 1377, the Hospitallers already had a building permit. The castle in Swobnica was built at the end of the 14th century. The brick building was built on a square plan and surrounded by a 15-meter wall, and an additional 35-meter tower was built at the gate, which strengthened the fortifications of the estate. After the Thirty Years' War, the castle was taken over by the Swedes, and in 1680 the building was bought by the wife of the Elector of Brandenburg. On her orders, the building was rebuilt into a three-wing, baroque hunting residence. During the modernization of the facility, the western section of the defensive wall, along with the gate, was dismantled, and window openings were created in the remaining parts. Despite the renovation, the new owners kept the brick facade and the tower - which was reached by stairs from the courtyard level (previously, entry to the tower was only possible from the shooting porch, which was at a height of 16 meters). The castle remained in the hands of the Hohenzollerns until 1945. After the end of World War II, the castle was robbed, and later the building was repeatedly devastated by "treasure hunters" who, among others, they broke the chimneys in the castle. During the Polish People's Republic, the castle served as the headquarters of the State Agricultural Farm, which first had its offices here, and then created a granary in the castle. In 1993, the facility was bought by a private investor from Belgium, who was to renovate it. In 2008, the oldest wing of the facility collapsed. In 2011, the Banie commune regained the monument, and a year later the eastern wing of the castle and the roof were renovated. In 2013, the renovation of the tower was completed. The castle is surrounded by 2.5 ha of a 19th century landscape park with rich trees. The castle has been on the list of monuments since March 1957. The Swobnica Castle Association has been operating since August 2009, whose main task is to save the monument.

The first mention of the castle in Widuchowa (Fiddichow) dates back to 1159. In 1700, the then owners of the town - the Wulffs, built a new defensive castle, but it was destroyed already in 1730. Fragments of the lower parts of the castle, which serve as retaining walls, have survived to this day. The northern fragment is on private property, and the western one strengthens the Oder escarpment and is accessible to everyone. A transport company operates in the former courtyard.

The fortifications of the town of Gartz (Oder) essentially consisted of a ring of town walls with originally four town gates; from the 13th century due to their strategic importance for the protection of the city, built from boulders (field stones) with mortar containing ox blood and from brick; only the north and west parts of the wall and the Szczecin Gate have survived today; supplemented by three watchtowers - the "Storchenturm" (still prominent today), the "Pulverturm" (round tower) and the "Blue Hat" (today only remnants remain);

The only castle on the route and locked! I didn't want to torment myself through the stinging nettle bypass.