17th century fortress in Kudryntsi: a scenic outpost on the borderland (05/07/06)

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17th century fortress in Kudryntsi: a scenic outpost on the borderland

by Irene Pustinnikova

KUDRYNTSI, Ukraine - Podillia is a generous land that for centuries found itself torn among Turks, Poles, Lithuanians and Tatars. Whether they wanted to or not, Podillians had to think in terms of protection and defense. Perhaps this is why Podillia is a land rich with stone fortresses and gloomy castles.

One of the most scenic outposts of this one-time borderland is situated in the village of Kudryntsi. The Zbruch River mirrors the grey ruins of castle turrets, like a great stone trident whose crown graces the heights of Mount Strilka, facing the opposite bank as though in challenge.

Across the river is the Khmelnytskyi region, but here it is still Ternopil territory. Today, this is the ghost of a border marking two administrative areas in modern Ukraine. But years ago, the river Zbruch marked the dividing line between the empire of the Romanovs to the east and that of the Habsburgs to the west.

This fortress on its high rock was built in 1615 by the Herburt grandees. The village, located on the Bessarabian border along the bloody Tatar-Wallachian trail, begged for a castle. Tatars raided the region throughout the 16th century, while the Wallachians greedily eyed the rich Podillian soil.

The shape of the fortress was determined by the terrain itself. It is built in a four-square plan with three huge corner towers and stone walls a meter and a half thick. The battlements were suited to both crossfire and flank attacks. Protected by the steep canyon of the Zbruch, the eastern side was virtually impregnable.

Alas, the fortress failed to live up to its heroic demeanor. In the summer of 1648, the Kozaks under Maksym Kryvonis helped an uprising of villagers drive away the Polish garrison. In 1672 Turks seized the fortress - and again in 1694. Meanwhile, the rapid development of artillery meant that the castle walls and towers were a convenient target for cannon practice.

By the early 17th century Kudryntsi's fortress gave up all pretense of being formidable and became the family nest for the local landowners, the Humenetskyis. Living in the towers was not especially comfortable, so a six-room residence was built in the courtyard, next to the east wall of the fortress. In time, the fortress passed into new hands, the Kozibrodskyis, who decided to turn it into a museum, filling its rooms with family and other portraits, as well as antique furniture.

The remains of the Kozibrodskyi collection can be seen today in the Ternopil Museum of Ethnography. In Kudryntsi itself, not a trace can be found of the residence: the wars of the 20th century wreaked the greatest havoc with the east wall.

But the other three walls survived, along with the southwestern and southern towers and part of the tower over the main entrance. A secret passageway - the inevitable attribute of any romantic relic of the Middle Ages - began under the southern tower, but today it has fallen in. Near the south wall visitors can see a small gate used for forays against an enemy. A shallow area in the courtyard indicates the place where a well once stood.

Old ruins without legends are like food without salt. So locals from both the Khmelnytskyi and Ternopil side of Kudryntsi are always ready to tell tales, both tall and true, about their fortress. You can hear about the underground passageways that go all the way to Kamianets-Podilskyi - a mere 20 kilometers away - under the Zbruch River. About the young girl who was walled alive by Turkish barbarians and whose restless ghost still wanders the castle grounds on moonlit nights. Or about the immense fire that started when lightning struck one of the towers.

Of course, the most popular legend is about the countless treasures buried under the grey stone walls by the fortress's various owners. The clue to their hiding place is simple: where the ground hums. That would seem fairly straightforward - if not for the fact that Podillia happens to be one of the most cavernous regions in the world! Just three kilometers from Kudryntsi is a very popular, three-storyhigh cave called Atlantis. And karst, where groundwaters meet underground streams in limestone terrain, really does hum. The old-timers might not know the word "karst," but they've seen plenty of strangers wandering around the fortress with spades in their hands.

The tourists who climb Mount Strilka under the watchful eyes of numerous lizards may never find the fairytale treasure. But the real treasure of Kudryntsi is a rendezvous in these romantic ruins among the gentle Podillian hills and pine forests. For the really observant visitor, nature even offers a little surprise: if you look where you put your feet, you will see, between the grass and the wildflowers, the gleam of white, fragile marble.

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