Castle tower of Rakovets

Castle tower of Rakovets

Fortress was founded in 40-ies of the seventeenth century.This castle withstood numerous Tatars sieges, including 1667, during the Polish-Turkish war, but it was twice successfully seized by the Turks in 1672 and 1676 respectively. What seized the castle several times due to its unusual location – the mountain. But this place wasn't chosen by chance – the fortress is fortified by high rock from the side of Dniester, it also had important source protected by the walls of the castle. Castle had a size of 40 x60 meters and was fortified by three towers, located in the center of the palace area of 10 x 20 m. There was a tower with a gate and drawbridge on the north. The walls had a height from 2 to 9 m and from half to two meters thick. The highest tower even now stands 20 meters hight. The fortress had many caves, the entrances to which are now filled up.Rakovets castle was an important srategic point – it housed the warehouse for fodder and provisions. Till 1763 the castle was inhabited, but that year there was a fire, after which the castle was not restored. Ruins were gradually dismantled for building materials, so from the facility only one piece of the wall and towerremained. The Rakovets castle offers extremely beautiful view of the canyon Dniester, covered with forests.