Unique places on the Dnister
Khotyn: the “Movie star” Fortress
The Khotyn Fortress of the 13-18th century is one of the seven wonders of Ukraine
Among all the castles of Ukraine, this stronghold in the small district of Bukovyna attracts filmmakers the most. The Khotyn Fortress has more than forty years of cinematographic "career" and a track record of being filmed in several dozen movies. The fortress played the role of the French rebellious La Rochelle, the severe English castle, a fairytale palace of Hans Christian Andersen stories, and the medieval outpost of Robert Louis Stevenson novels. It was the place of Robin Hood squads of archers, Moldavian haiduks, and Zahar Berkut hutsuls. The fortress was excellent in every role.
As a popular star, the Khotyn Fortress hides from strangers: one can drive through one-story town without even guessing what treasure hides on the bank of the Dnister river. A monument to Hetman Petro Sahaidachnyi, the hero of the Khotyn war of 1621, stands in front of the entrance to the fortress, like its “bodyguard”. Further, a tourist may find a high 1 km long stone defensive wall of the New fortress, built by the Turks in 1718, according to the French engineers’ projects. Behind this wall, lies the breathtaking panorama of the 700-year-old Old Fortress which reminds the favorite movies of childhood.
Only five towers on 40-meter walls, decorated with red brick ornaments remained to our time. In some places, the ornament changes to gray stones, the scars on a famous fortress from the enemies’ cannonballs. Before its career in the movies, the castle was a warrior for many centuries. On the one of gray scars, one can see a red silhouette of a jug. The legend says the jug perpetuates the memory of a courageous girl who saved the garrison from thirst. A long time ago, during the siege of Khotyn, the castle has no water well inside. The fortress defenders fight courageously, but thirst was another enemy that was taking away their strength. A young girl decided to help the defenders and, in the night, she went down the rope ladder to the stream, flowing around the fortress to the Dnister river. While climbing back with a jug of water, the girl was shot by the enemy’s poisoned arrow. However, she brought water to the soldiers and died in the arms of the defenders. This tragic death led to the creation of a water well.
Hence, in the center of the Commandant's yard, the 65-meter water well, dug in rocky soil, represents a man’s triumph over nature. Next to the well is the remains of the Commandant Palace. In the days when Khotyn was under the Ottoman Empire, the palace turned into a golden cage for 37 women of Pasha’s harem. The beauties had a pool, as well as their own cosmetologists (!), whose miraculous recipes archaeologists discovered only several years ago.
Whitestone gothic windows and a massive portal decorate the castle’s temple. Inside its foundations, there is a diorama of the Khotyn Battle in 1621 that pictures how the cossacks of Sahaidachnyi and the army of Hetman Karol Khodkevych rescued Europe from the Turkish attack. It would seem that 57 000 Poles and 40 000 cossacks are nothing against the 400 000 soldiers of Ottoman II army. Khan arrogantly predicted that under the walls of Khotyn he would have breakfast among the сossack army, and in the fortress, among the Polish army, he would have lunch. However, a man proposes, god disposes. The fight lasted for five weeks, half of the soldiers died, and the fortress remained unoccupied.
By the way, nobody respected the prisoners at that time, the castle was too small, and the majority was dumped into the Dnister river from the highest tower of the Mortals.
Nevertheless, it was a long time ago. Now the Khotyn Fortress welcomes thousands of tourists who visit it, looking for a miracle, and, as the result, fall in love with the "movie star" castle.
Interesting Facts
In the 30s of the 15th century, the lands of Bukovyna were under the Principality of Moldavia . It marked one of the most significant stages in the construction of the Khotyn Fortress, when the level of the courtyard was raised by 10 meters (33 ft) and new defensive towers were built.
Later, when the castle was taken by the Turks, French engineers created an external line of defense, consisting of stone defensive walls, bastions, entry towers, battle terraces, moats, escarpments , and countercarps.
Being at the intersection of East and West cultures, as well as of great strategic importance, the Khotyn Fortress combines the architecture of many epochs. After all, it was considered be the main defensive outpost, in Kyiv Rus, Galicia-Volyn principality, Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, Ottoman Empire, Austro-Hungarian Empire, and Russian Empire.