The Dubno Caste stands on the steep cape near the Ikva River, in the city very center. It is one of Ukraine’s oldest fortification complexes. Impressing with its majestic beauty and huge historical value, it is a part of the Dubno historical and cultural reserve and is recognized as a true gem of Ukraine’s castle architecture.
The Prince Konstantin of Ostroh built the castle on the place of the Old Russian fortifications, in the late 15th century. The defensive complex consisted of wooden constructions, surrounded by an earthen wall, which was fortified with wooden paling. However, frequent fires that regularly destroyed the majority of castle buildings forced prince’s descendants to rebuild the fortification complex in stone one and a half centuries later. Thus, a fierce castle and two powerful brick-and-stone casemate bastions with towers appeared there. The castle was erected in the Renaissance style. Fortress’s outer defence was a deep ditch.
Today, one can see two palaces on the territory of the Dubno Castle – the Ostroh Palace, where the archives of the princely families were stored, and the Lubomirski Palace, which is notable for coats of arms of its former owners and elegant bas-relief frieze, made by an Italian master. It adorns the big hall, which used to serve for crowded feasts. There is a system of vaults and underground galleries under the palaces. Local residents used to hide there during numerous sieges, and supplies of water and food were stored. Nikolay Gogol described the dungeons of the Dubno Castle in his immortal work “Taras Bulba.” Nowadays, one of the vaults houses an exhibition of torture tools and hosts theatre performances. https://discover-ukraine.info/places/western-ukraine/rivne/2348