BYSTRICA (POVAŽSKÝ) CASTLE

The ruins of Považská Castle (also called Bystrica Castle) are located near Považská Bystrica on a steep hill on the right bank of the Váh River. The castle was built in the second half of the 13th century to protect an important Považská road. Among the most famous owners of the castle were the Podmanick brothers, Andrej Balaša. The first mention is around 1300 as Bystrice Castle. A great fire in 1543 severely damaged individual buildings. During the repair, some architectural elements were changed and the castle will be extended by a fort. In 1631, the owners left the uncomfortable castle and moved to a new, Renaissance manor house below the castle. In 1684, the castle was besieged by the army of Emperor Leopold I, when it was occupied shortly before by the troops of Thököly. Fearing that it would not become the seat of the insurgents, the emperor had it destroyed in 1698.

Access to the castle is possible through Považské Podhradie, a local part of Považská Bystrica, 4 km north of the city center, on the right bank of the Váh below the castle ruins.