- Type
- Castle
- Built
- c. 1443 · 15th century
- Commissioned by
- Livonian Order
- Coordinates
- 56.4036°, 24.1736°
History
The hill at the confluence was once a Semigallian stronghold. The Livonian Order began building a stone castle around 1443 under Master Heidenreich Vincke von Overberg, to guard the road from Riga to Lithuania. When the Order dissolved in 1562 the castle passed to Gotthard Kettler, the first Duke of Courland, and became one of the main ducal residences. In the late 16th century Duke Friedrich added a new palace wing with two round towers. Gustavus Adolphus's Swedes captured the castle in 1625, and in 1706, during the Great Northern War, the retreating Russians blew it up. The ruins were secured from the 19th century, and the palace has been rebuilt since the 1970s.
What to see
The complex has two parts: the ruins of the older Order castle with thick walls and a tower you can climb, and the rebuilt ducal palace. The palace houses a museum with reconstructed Renaissance and Mannerist interiors, and its facades bear restored black-and-white sgraffito decoration. The walls look out over the meeting of the Mūsa and Mēmele, and the river valley around the castle is laid out as a park.
Wikipedia article Official website Wikidata Q645898
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