The passage of time can not be stopped. He steps forward ruthlessly, burning everything in his path and leaving mountains of ash behind him. Those who manage to survive in the crazy whirlwind of history become real legends. Kamianets-Podolsk fortress, without a doubt, is one of these. 
There was something to be proud of: thanks to the fortress, the city for almost 6 centuries wore the crown of the capital of Podilly.So let's move on to the history of the fort.The history of the ancient city of Kamianets - Podolsky begins with it, steep rocky shores and high walls with embrasures did not let anyone in for many centuries. 
Historians like to argue, don't they? They also discuss the time of the appearance of the Kamianets-Podolsk castle. Some argue that the fortress was born in the XIV century, others say that it grew in the III-III century. as the center of the ancient Roman city of Klepidava. The Smotrich River, indifferent to these controversies, only remembers that she really liked the newly built castle, so she even made a loop around the city to guard it along with the fortress.
Then it was the people's business — in the XI century they built a wooden palisade that protected part of the Galician-Volyn principality. After a large-scale fire in the XIII century. the tree came to be replaced with stone. However, such an innovation did not at all protect the city from the cruel khan Batya. In 1240, he managed to destroy half of the city's population and enslave the surviving part for a hundred years. 1362 — a cardinal turn in the history of the fortress. From strangers, she is saved by the great Lithuanian prince Olhred, who crushes fierce enemies under the Blue waters. Therefore, the castle becomes the property of five brothers, nephews of the prince: Konstantin, Fedor, Boris, Yuri and Alexander Koriotovich. The castle takes a second breath. A large-scale reconstruction begins. The new owners turned the castle into a powerful stone fortification. To the Smotrich River, it seemed that the fortress of the baby grows from the rocks that support it with their brave shoulders.These were the best times for the castle, it acquires modern features. When the last Lithuanian stronghold owner, Prince Vitovt, dies, there is an ongoing civil struggle between his heirs. Thus, the fortress passes to the “left” Polish hands. By 1793, the Kamianets-Podolsk fortress became a strategic royal city, the center of the Polish Voivodeship.
After Poland, the Russian Empire came into ownership, which owned the fortress and the city until the arrival of the USSR.

In 1620, the Turkish sultan Osman II defeated Khotyn and was already preparing an attack on Kamenets Castle.To do this, he took 200 thousand troops with him. Either the intrusiveness of the castle frightened the owner, or, on the contrary, fascinated, but he could not take his eyes off the fortress. The Sultan asked his faithful servant: “Who built such an amazing castle?” The servant, no less impressed by the sultan, replied: “- Allah himself put his hand here!” Osman II replied, “Then it is up to Allah to conquer this city!” and, returning his troops, left these lands forever.
But in 1672, the Turks, who could not forget about the idea of seizing the castle, nevertheless conquered it, but only because there were 60 times more than the defenders of the fortress. 



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After the Russo-Turkish War of 1809-1812. The southern borders of the empire are greatly expanded, and the Kamenets-Podolsk fortress loses its defensive function. Therefore, in the view of the Russians, the fortress was more necessary to limit the will of others.
The civil war brought turmoil to the Ukrainian lands and made the Kamenets fortress a so-called trophy for the Germans and Austrians, for the Bolsheviks and for the Ukrainians. For the latter, this happened in 1919, when the UNR government capitulated from Kiev and Kamenets became the Ukrainian capital of the UNR.
Already in 1928, the Soviet authorities felt the importance of the Kamenets fortress and made it a historical and cultural reserve.Unfortunately, the protected walls could not withstand the hostilities of World War II.

 


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Architecture of the Kamianets-Podolsk fortress
There are no analogues of the Kamenets-Podolsk fortress in all of Europe. The natural landscape and overwhelming human labor have created an unattainable dream out of the firmament. It is located on the so-called peninsula, surrounded on three sides by steep rocky cliffs and the Smotrich River. The entrance to the city was defended by the Polish and Russian gates. If an enemy was noticed, the canyon was instantly filled with water. Such an unexpected line of defense made the castle even more inaccessible.
The entire fortress is divided into Old and New Castle.
The old castle is located in the heart of the fortress. Its total area is 1.5 hectares. In shape, it resembles an irregular quadrangle, around the perimeter of which there are as many as 11 towers. To the south, to the left of the course are: Papskaya, Tenchinskaya, Lyaska and the Kovpak tower; from the west they lined up in a row: Western, Day, New (Great) towers; to the right of the entrance, on the north side, North and South bastions, Rozhanka tower, Vodyana, Liantskronskaya, Komen Dantskaya, Black Tower.


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Papal Tower

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Unique in shape and history, the Papal Tower was erected with money given by Pope Julius II in 1515. 1-2 floors of the tower are square, 3-4 octagons, the last 5 are cylindrical. The tower is also famous for the fact that Ustim Karmelyuk, the leader of the peasant uprising, served three times behind its walls.
Cap TowerThe tower was built at the beginning of the 17th century. Its name arose from the conical shape of the roof. The tower was redesigned in 1544 — the facades were trimmed, the foundation was strengthened and the entrance of the tower was brought to the outside. Then the tower was much higher, but as a result of the Polish-Turkish war, it retained a height of only 22 meters.


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Lyaska (White) Tower

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The Lyaska Tower is cylindrical in shape and has 4 tiers. Such a strange name is due to the fact that the jewels of the bishop were once kept here. Above the wooden entrance to the tower is a wise and instructive inscription: “A faithful friend is rarer than a phoenix.” In the middle of the 17th century. the tower was rebuilt, leaving only the upper floor for combat. The facade was skillfully plastered and the internal staircase was repaired. Lyaska Tower is one of the tallest, its height is 22.5 meters.
Day TowerThe oldest of all towers, the approximate date of construction in the XII century. This is a rectangular structure with a huge number of loopholes. There is no roof in it, instead of it there is a wooden superstructure at the top with a springboard, along which a variety of tools were transferred. It was transferred to the next New Tower.


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New (Big) Tower

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The largest and most strategic tower in the entire castle. It is practically located on the outside of the castle, attached only to one wall of the castle. This provided more success and advantage during the fighting. Its architect I. Preppers made a real combat “machine” out of the tower. Observations were carried out from the Day Tower, and from Nova — the main combat operations directly. During the Polish-Turkish War, the Turks managed to blow up the Great Tower, which ensured their final victory.


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Black (East) Tower

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The black tower is equipped with a well encased in the rock and has a large ancient wooden wheel that was used to raise water from a well 40 meters deep. Buckets of water were pulled out with the help of huge wooden wheels, 4.5 meters in diameter.
South and North BastionThe new fortress was erected to increase the defensive capacity of the castle. The new walls were erected according to the latest Dutch technologies for the construction of fortifications by the architect T. Schomberg in the seventeenth century. The walls are fortified on the sides by two bastions — South and North. The new castle is a whole system of defensive ditches and ramparts, so in order to get to the territory of the Old Castle, a suspension bridge was erected.




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Today, by prior arrangement, you can become a participant in a theatrical tour of the Old Fortress. The tour in the towers (towers) and dungeons of the fortress is conducted by the Kamianetsky “starosta” and his “svita”, which with interesting stories, songs, dances not only acquaint tourists with the history of the castle and weapons, but also create a unique feeling of traveling through time.Visitors to the fortress have the opportunity to visit rescue and take pictures in medieval costumes, ride on horseback, shoot crossbows and bows, personally mint a commemorative coin.
In the twentieth century. the castle became the cinema site of more than 10 films about courageous heroes, namely “The One Who Walked Through the Fire”, “Taras Bulba”, “Gypsy Aza”, “Born of the Storm”, “The Ballad of the Valiant Knight Ivengo” and others.Because of its beauty and beauty Reputation The Kamenets fortress is called a flower on a stone, which over time becomes more valuable and majestic.