Neam Castle

Neam Castle
	Road and access ramp to the fortress
Alternative name (s):	Cetatea Neamț
Creation time :	Beginning of the 13th century
Castle type :	Hilltop castle
Conservation status:	ruin
Standing position :	High nobility
Construction:	River stone
Geographical location	47 ° 12 '51.4 " N , 26 ° 20' 35.9" E Coordinates: 47 ° 12 '51.4 " N , 26 ° 20' 35.9" E

Neamț Castle ( Romanian Cetatea Neamț or Cetatea Neamțului ) is a medieval fortress in the city of Târgu Neamț in north-eastern Romania . It was built in the 14th century in the Principality of Moldova during the reign of Petru I. Musat of Moldova and expanded in the 15th century. The castle played a key role in the defense system of Stephen the Great , along with Suceava , Chotyn , Soroca , Orhei , Bender , Kilija and Weissenburg .

history

Due to the lack of reliable information about the origins of Neamţ Castle, several hypotheses exist, the reliability of which has often been questioned. Some historians and philologists, such as AD Xenopol, BP Hasdeu , D. Onciul consider that - according to the papal bull of 1232 - the Teutonic Order from Burzenland between 1211 and 1225 built a castrum muntissimum on the east side of the Carpathian Mountains , which later when this castle was identified. The German (or Saxony) hypothesis has been adopted by many Romanian historians.

investment

The fortress is located on the lower slope of the 525-meter-high Pleșu Hill, covered with a thick oak forest. The short ascent on an asphalt road begins about a kilometer west of the central intersection of Târgu Neamț and leads through a tourist infrastructure with hotels and restaurants. The river Neam Fluss flows parallel to the hill in a south-easterly direction past the fortress for around 600 meters. The hill forms the eastern tip of a closed forest area belonging to the Vânători-Neamț National Park.

Prince Petru I. Muşat (r. 1375-1391) had the fortress built around 1380 with walls 3 meters thick and 12 to 15 meters high. The heyday began with Ștefan cel Mare in the second half of the 15th century. The walls were raised, reinforced by four bastions and additionally secured against the slope side in the north and northeast by a deep ditch. The bridge access leading over eleven brick pillars dates from this time.