Kostel Castle

Kostel, Slovenia

Kostel Castle site was originally occupied by a smaller fortification, which was expanded into a castle between 1247 and 1325 by the Counts of Ortenburg, vassals of the Patriarchate of Aquileia. First mentioned in 1336 as castrum Grafenwarth, its current name is first recorded in 1449 as Costel. After the extinction of the Counts Ortenburg on 28 April 1418, the Counts of Celje inherited their area holdings, expanding the castle into a formidable fortress and renaming it Schloss Grauenwarth, although the surrounding settlement retained the Slavicised Latin name Kostel.

The castle and settlement were both surrounded by a high, two meter thick wall featuring five defence towers, built by order of Frederik II of Celje. The castle's purpose was the defence of the house's landholdings in Carniola; it also housed a local judiciary, and had its own dedicated execution site about 1 km away.

After the death of prince Ulrich II of Celje in 1456 and the extinction of the house, the castle was taken over by the Habsburgs, who eventually granted the settlement market rights.

During the 15th and 16th centuries, the castle was an important strategic fortification against Ottoman invasions. With many of the countries of southeastern Europe occupied by or paying tribute to the Ottoman Empire, Slovenia became exposed to further Ottoman inroads into Europe. The castle, standing along one of the Ottomans' common incursion routes into Slovenia, came under attack several times. Only in 1578 did the castle fall, when the garrison accepted supposed refugees from the Ottomans, but who opened the door that night to the Ottoman forces, who killed and captured the inhabitants of the castle and its village and the surrounding region. The depopulated area was then settled by numerous Uskoks.

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Address

Kostel 2, Kostel, Slovenia
See all sites in Kostel

Details

Founded: 15th century
Category: Castles and fortifications in Slovenia

More Information

en.wikipedia.org

Rating

4.5/5 (based on Google user reviews)

User Reviews

Aljoša Belovič (2 years ago)
Great little castle on top of a small hill. There is a parking place, well marked and maintained 5-10 min walk from the castle depending on your pace. It even has a porta potty, that was clean and had lots of toilet paper when we were there. The walk to the castle is not challenging and quite nice, but the last part is moderately steep. The staff was friendly and they provided instructions on how to see the castle and the route we should take, since there is no guided tour. But everything is well marked and the sings are in English and slovenian, only the video presentation was in Slovenian, but there might be an English version. They offer coffee (instant from the machine) and have a terrace infront of the castle, with a stunning view. There is even a castle escape room, but we did not have the time. Overall a nice experience.
Oryen Gael (2 years ago)
Beautiful castle with a great view, unfortunately it was closed
Mikael Lydecken (2 years ago)
Castle in great location and what a beatifull view there is from the castle.
Crni Krap (3 years ago)
Very beautiful and remote place. However, the castle is not always open
Dan L (3 years ago)
Beautiful place. The beer is very good
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