It is one of the most famous castles in Slovakia. It is located on a 112-meter-high cliff above the Orava River, near the village of Oravský Podzámok. The castle has a rich history of more than 800 years 📜
Oravský hrad (Oravský castle) was first mentioned in 1267. At that time it belonged to Count Petr of Orava.
⚔️ Due to its favorable location and important trade positions, the castle often served as a target for the selfish plans of invaders. Against this background, the defensive system of the castle was constantly improved. Some of these medieval transformations have survived to this day. For example, the “tar nose”, was used to defend against the enemy with boiling oil or tar.
Oravský hrad has witnessed many historical events, and its walls still keep many secrets and legends 🏰
One of them is related to Peter Komorowski, who took over the castle after the Hungarian King Ladislaus partitioned his territories in 1441. Peter was known as a ruthless man and showed a special favor to young girls. So he decided to steal one innocent beauty he liked from her wedding. The girl, being in despair, jumped out of the window of the castle.
Later people began to notice that a dove often soars over the hail, chased by a hawk. They believe that this is the innocent soul of the girl, whom the treacherous Peter is still hunting.
Where here is the truth and where is the legend – judge for yourself. But the place is very exciting and worthy of attention. Today Orava Castle is one of the most popular tourist attractions in Slovakia.
🎞️ By the way, many scenes from the early Dracula movie “Nosferatu: Symphony of Terror” were filmed here.
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