A village called Dobromil was established 115 kilometers (71 miles) from the city of Lviv, Ukraine.
Records from 1374 indicate that the land was granted to the family of Herburt by the prince at that time, Vladislav Opołczyk. However, older records suggest that the village was established back in the 12th century.
The village was well-known partly due to the nearby steep and wooded mountain known as Blind Mountain. The mountain is 556 meters (,1824 feet) above sea level and it is located four kilometers (two and a half miles) northeast of Dobromil, Lviv region, ukraine.
In 1450, Nikolai Herburt decided to build a wooden castle at the top of this mountain. It didn’t last very long since in 1497, the castle was burned down by the Tatar-Mongols.
No attempts were made to restore the castle after this attack, and the area remained abandoned until 1566.
In 1566, Stanislav Herburt decided to restore the castle, but he chose to construct it from stone this time. The castle was inherited and completed by Jan Herburt, who went on to be a political and literary figure.
The local population were fiercely proud of Jan Herburt who was always the first to defend their interests.
In 1601, he married an Orthodox princess. After that, Jan chose to rebel against the king of Poland. Since the king was a Catholic, many people thought that Jan’s wife contributed to his revolutionary activities.
Jan was imprisoned as a consequence of his revolt. While in jail, he became interested in literature. After he was released from prison, he wanted to print the books he’d written while he had been incarcerated. He established a printing house in the village for this purpose.
In 1614, Jan Herburt decided to expand and renew the castle, making it an impregnable fortress.
The castle had an oval shape which corresponded to the shape of the mountain upon which it was built. The entrance to the castle was equipped with gates that were adorned with the Herburt coat of arms which is an apple, pierced with daggers, and the inscription “My defense.” This is still the coat of arms of the village today.
Unlike some other castles, Dobromil was primarily a defensive stronghold, and any living quarters on the site were designed only to provide temporary accommodation rather than a family home.
The wall reached a thickness of two meters (six and a half feet) in some places and there was a well inside the walls in case the castle faced a siege.
When Jan Herburt passed away in 1616, the castle was put up for sale. It was acquired by the Konetspolsky family who were to be the last owners of this magnificent building. The castle remained in their possession until the division of Poland.
In 1772, Poland was divided and Lviv became part of the Austrian Empire. The Austrian government ordered that the stone castle be dismantled for building materials. As a defensive structure, it was considered obsolete as there was no more need for defense in that area.
Throughout the 19th century, the castle was slowly destroyed a piece at a time.
Currently, the ruins of the northern part of the castle have been preserved. This includes the entrance tower as well as the two-meter-thick walls. Locals have a great respect for the Herburt family and there are various legends about them.
One legend states that men from the Herburt clan could turn into eagles. This idea most likely came about because you can often see these birds above the castle ruins.
The owner of the photos is Maxim Ritus who kindly gave us his permission to share them.
The project “Ukrainian Architectural Attractions – Heritage” was launched by Maxim Ritus to gather information about architectural monuments and their photographs. You can find more photos and information about the project on his LiveJournal page via this link.
Abandoned Boron Air Force Station & Prison
