Medininkai Castle in south-eastern Lithuania is an excellent example of a defensive complex, which can be considered the most developed and authentic enclosure-type castle and one of the oldest monuments of stone and brick masonry architecture and defensive objects in Lithuania.
Medininkai Castle is believed to have been built in the first half of the 14th century, during the reign of Grand Duke Gediminas of Lithuania (1316–1341). The fortress was one of the points that defended the Lithuanian state with its capital Vilnius against the aggression of the Teutonic and Livonian Orders, and a possible attack from the east.
Medininkai Castle consisted of 4 towers, and 1.8–1.9 m thick masonry walls rising up to 15 m high, and defensive ditches. A separate staircase on the fourth floor gave access to the shooters’ bridge gallery, which encircled the entire perimeter of the walls. The 285 openings in the walls were used by the castle shooters to defend themselves against enemy attacks.
Today, the main tower of Medininkai Castle, the Donjon, is approximately 25 m high and 5 storeys high, housing 4 exhibition halls. There are many exhibits of 14th–18th century weaponry: cannons, stone projectiles, archaeological finds; a collection of silverware from the 10th –20th centuries; and a collection of hunting trophies and hunting knives from the President of the Republic of Lithuania, Algirdas Mykolas Brazauskas, which were donated to the Museum by his relatives after his death. Visitors are also introduced to the history of the brick castles of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. From the fifth floor, you can go to the Donjon’s open-air observation deck and have a look around the surroundings of Medininkai.
Interestingly, Medininkai Castle has never had its own Duke. Vytautas the Great visited the castle several times, and the fortress was garrisoned by Tatars, but after Vytautas’ death, the castle’s significance declined until it was destroyed by a fire at the turn of the 15th century, and the fortress did not recover – only ruins remained.
Restoration of Medininkai Castle began only at the end of the 20th century, when Lithuania regained its independence. Today, you can visit the castle, stroll around the vast territory, see the expositions and temporary exhibitions, and take part in traditional living history events.
This article is a part of a project implemented within the framework of the Innovation of Tourism Services and Products Program, with funding from the Agency for Science, Innovation and Technology, and from funds allocated by the Ministry of Economy and Innovation of the Republic of Lithuania.
