Pidhirtsi Castle and its greatness, riches and mysticism

If the Game of Thrones were filmed in Ukraine, the main location would definitely be Pidhirtsi Castle.  Probably a few spectacular episodes could be taken from the history of this mysterious palace, located in the village of Pidhirtsi in Lviv Oblast, western Ukraine. It's hard to say how many times the castle was attacked, looted and destroyed. Each attack on the palace ended with great destruction, but every single time the palace rose from the ashes and recovered. During its historical prosperity, Pidhirtsi Castle was visited by many kings and famous personalities, such as Honore de Balzac. But the most interesting side of this palace is the number of mystical stories that attract not only tourists but also ghostbusters. In this article, I will tell you about all greatness, riches and mysticism of Pidhirtsi Castle.

History of the legendary palace

In the 7th century, an area where Pidhirtsi Castle stands today used to belong to Polish nobility. The main functions of the future palace were rest and entertainment of the last ones. At different times, the families of Koniecpolski, Sobieski, Zhewu and Sengushki ruled there. A chief architect of this great palace, known** as "Palazzo in Fortezzo", was Andrea dell’Aqua, while the project of fortifications was constructed by Guillaume Le Vasseur de Beauplan. The castle combines a majestic residence and a defensive fortress in itself. There, you can see the main architectural trends of that era: huge terraces and an Italian park with fountains. A huge hall of the palace was decorated with dozens of paintings. It even had its own Catholic church and a theater. During its heyday, the castle was struck by riches and magnificence. In the period between the two World Wars, the palace was a private museum of the Sengushki family. After the Second World War, Pidhirtsi Castle** was ruined and served as a sanatorium for tuberculosis patients. In 1956, during a massive fire, its majestic halls were ultimately destroyed. 

“Woman In White”

The most attractive thing about this castle are the legends of a ghost woman wandering the castle halls to this day - “Woman In White”. It is a story about the most mysterious figure of Pidhirtsi Castle - Maria Zhevuska. Legend has it that, once her husband, duke Zhevuski, immersed the body of the woman in a stone wall by his own hands. There are different versions of the reasons behind such a cruel act. The first one is the inability of the woman to give birth to the heirs of the duke. But the most widespread is the version of Mary's infidelity to her husband. It is known that Mary was 40 years younger than her husband. They say that her ghost is walking around the palace at night and cannot find peace until today. Nowadays, many ghostbusters and psychics visit the castle in search of a meeting with a mysterious  “Woman In White”.

If you are brave enough, you can check by yourself if it is a myth or a reality. But I want to warn you that on numerous pictures taken by cameras of tourists, there are obscure white strokes. The nature of this effect is unknown to this day. Pidhirtsi Castle is a unique place that encompasses the grandeur and beauty of architecture, the century of heyday and periods of decline, as well as mysticism which makes it frightening even for the most daring ones. I definitely assure you that the greatness, riches and mysticism of Pidhirtsi Castle will impress you.