Bzovík

Bzovík Castle (Slovak:Bzovík Hrad; also sometimes referred to as Bzovík Fortress), is a castle located in the village of Bzovík in the Banská Bystrica Region of Slovakia.

This castle was created through the renovation of the Cistercian Abbey established around 1130. A few decades later, the Premonstratesian provostship relocated to this site, transforming it into the largest feudal estate in the Hont region. Its fortress faced multiple destructions during the 15th century. In 1530, the property came under the control of Sigismund Balassa, who expelled the monks and oversaw the transformation of the Romanesque monastery into a Gothic-Renaissance castle, complete with robust outer fortifications that featured four corner bastions and a dike. The fortress sustained damage towards the end of the Second World War and has been recently restored. The castle is registered as a National heritage site in Slovakia.

Text adapted from “Bzovík Castle” on Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0.

Bzovík ranks #2,970 of 3,691 worldwide in the atlas's castle fame ranking, and #38 of the 99 mapped in Slovakia. Founded 1200, it is older than 81% of the atlas's dated landmarks — one of 194 atlas entries founded in the 12th century. See how Slovakia compares in the castle statistics.

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Read the full history on Wikipedia ↗