A castle (from Latin: castellum) is a type of fortified structure built in Europe and the Middle East during the Middle Ages by nobility. Scholars debate the scope of the word castle, but usually consider it to be the private fortified residence of a lord or noble. This is distinct from a palace, which is not fortified; from a fortress, which was not always a residence for nobility; and from a fortified settlement, which was a public defence - though there are many similarities among these types of construction. Usage of the term has varied over time and has been applied to structures as diverse as hill forts and country houses. Over the approximately 900 years that castles were built, they took on a great many forms with many different features, although some, such as curtain walls and arrowslits, were commonplace.
Castles
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3Abaujvar Castle (Place, Ruins)
Abaujvar Castle (Place, Ruins). The castle was built by King Aba Samuel in the years 1041-1044, but in fact, the roost already existed in the 10th century.
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1Amadeus Aba Castle (Ruins), Gonc
Amadeus Aba Castle (Ruins), Gonc. The Amade Castle was built between 1271 and 1288. It was first mentioned in the document in the era of King of Hungary Ladislavus IV in 1288.
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1Apafi Castle, Dumbraveni
Gergely Apafi, bought land in Dumbraveni in the middle of the sixteenth century from the Bethlen family, and built the Renaissance castle between 1552 and 1567. His son, Miklos established his family residence here in 1590.
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3Baligrod Castle (Ruins)
The original castle built in the early sixteenth century (16th century). Nicholas Ball Gozdawa coat of arms. It was probably a wooden building. The founder of a new brick castle already was Peter Ball.
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3Bathory Castle, Nyirbator
Bathory Castle, Nyirbator. Built by the Bathory family the casle was first mentioned in 1549, but in the 18th century was a ruinous state.
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10Beaumaris Castle
Beaumaris Castle, located in the town of the same name on the Isle of Anglesey in Wales, was built as part of Edward I's campaign to conquer the north of Wales after 1282. Plans were probably first made to construct the castle in 1284, but this was delayed due to lack of funds and work only began in 1295 following the Madog ap Llywelyn uprising.
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7Beckov Castle (Ruins)
Beckov Castle is a castle in ruins located near the village of Beckov in Nove Mesto nad Vahom District, Trencin Region, western Slovakia.
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2Benevar Castle (Ruins), Matrafured
Benevar Castle (Ruins) near village Matrafured in an outer part of Gyongyos in Heves county, Hungary in the southern part of the Matra mountain range.
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5Berezhany Castle (Ruins)
Berezhany Castle round which the modern town of Berezhany has sprung up, was built on an island in the Zolota Lypa River in the 1530s and 1540s by Mikolaj Sieniawski as the main residence of the Sieniawski magnate family.
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10Berezka Castle (Ruins)
After entering the village Berezka, on the left you can see the hill with the remnants of the old terraces of the garden. Berezka Castle (Ruins).
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6Bethlen Castle, Cris
he Bethlen-Cris Castle is located in its namesake village, Cris, which is in Southern Transilvania, Romania. The medieval castle has been declared an historic monument. It dates back to the 14th century, having been modified and enlarged until the 18th century. Some say it is the prettiest Renaisance castle in Transilvania.
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6Bethlen Castle, Sanmiclaus
The Bethlen Castle from Sanmiclaus is a representative construction for the late Renaissance from Transylvania. It was built between 1667 and 1683, by Bethlen Miklos, being the place where his daughter married with the baron Kemény Zsigmond, in 1719. The castle has a quadrate shape, built on 2 levels.
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8Bethlen Haller Castle
The Bethlen Castle was built in the 16th century in the French Renaissance style and restored in the 17th-18th centuries in the Baroque style. The Reformed Church, situated next to the Castle is a 13th century building.
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1Biely Kamen Castle (Ruins), Svaty Jur
The castle of Biely Kamen was mentioned for the first time in 1217. It was the seat of the counts of Svaty Jur until 1609, when they moved to a more comfortable manor house in the town.
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1Blatnica Castle (Ruins)
Blatnica Castle is a Gothic castle whose ruins are situated near the village of Blatnica, on the foot of the Greater Fatra Range in Slovakia.
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1Blh Castle (Ruins)
Blh (Velky Blh) castle was built in the 13th century. In 1323 it was renovated in the Gothic style and in 1483 it was extended and fortifications were added.
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4Bocskai Castle (Ruins), Aghiresu
Bocskai Castle in Aghiresu was built in 1572 by György Bocskai in the Transylvanian Renaissance style. Build on a quadrilateral plan, this was an imposing building, with towers at the four corners and a large courtyard.
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10Bojnice Castle
Bojnice Castle is a medieval castle in Bojnice, Slovakia. It is a Romantic castle with some original Gothic and Renaissance elements built in the 12th century.
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4Boldogko Castle
Boldogko Castle. The castle was built for the order of king Bela IV, after the invasion of the Mongols in 1241-42, by the Tomaj family. It was first mentioned in 1282, when it became the property of the king.
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6Bontida Banffy Castle
Banffy Castle is an architectonic Baroque monument situated in Bontida, a village in the vicinity of Cluj-Napoca, Romania. It was owned by the Banffy family (of which Miklos Banffy was a member). The owner is Katalin Banffy, who has two daughters, Nicolette and Elisabeth.
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10Boppard Castle (Electoral Castle)
The castle in Boppard is one of the important fortified complexes at the Middle Rhine. It was built by Balduin the archbishop of Trier as a stronghold after he had conquered the town in 1327. The tower with pouring holes belonged to the original building, the four wings and the yard date from the 17th Century.
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10Borsa Castle
Borsa Castle was built after the Tatar invasion (13th century) by the king Belo IV. Its history is not known very good, we only know, that castle was owned by many families (Perin, Polonyi, Lorantffy, Rakoczi and others).
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1Botany Castle (Ruins)
About castle in Botany almost no information. It located in the village Botany. In the years 1648-1650 was in its place built mansion.
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1Brahin Castle (Ruins)
Brahin Castle Ruins in Brahin urban-type settlement in Belarus and an administrative center of Brahin Rajon. Castle ruined in 1648 year.
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10Bran Castle
Bran Castle, situated near Bran and in the immediate vicinity of Brasov, is a national monument and landmark in Romania. The fortress is situated on the border between Transylvania and Wallachia, on DN73.
