June 26, Lepel /Own. inf./ Excavations on the island.
What was it like, how did life flow in it, what wars and sieges did the fortress withstand?
June 26, Lepel /Own. inf./ Excavations on the island
Lepel Castle. What was it like, how did life flow in it, what wars and sieges did the fortress withstand?
Finally, what did it look like exactly? There are no answers to these and many other questions yet. Regrettably, historical chronicles do not contain a single, even remotely detailed description of the Lepel stronghold, nor a single drawing or engraving. Perhaps the book "Pamyat" quotes the Polish historian Aleksander Gwagnini: "Lepel is a sufficiently fortified town and castle, built on a lake as if on an island." Another source states that the fortress was rectangular with corner flanking towers.
For over ten years, archaeological excavations have been carried out on the island near the village of Stary Lepel every summer, but unfortunately, archaeologists have not yet managed to find any traces of the former castle grounds. This year, an expedition from the Institute of History of the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus, led by Marat Klimov and Pavel Kinko, has also been dispatched to the island.
-- The main task of our expedition this year is the reconnaissance and research of historical layers on the island. The island is about 25 hectares, people lived here almost everywhere, so in every pit (excavation) we find traces of human activity.
The typical find during excavations in Belarus is one or two rusty nails and a lot of ceramic shards. Iron production in the Middle Ages was a long, difficult, and laborious process. Moreover, Belarusian subsoil is poor in iron ore, so there were few iron products even in wealthy noble households. They were cherished, passed down from generation to generation, and efforts were made not to lose them. Ceramics are different. To make a jug or a bowl, you need clay, water, and firewood for firing – all of which were abundant in the vicinity. In addition, ceramics are preserved in the ground much better than iron.
People lived directly on the island until approximately the end of the 16th century. The territory was not densely populated; homesteads were not located in the same places, and new generations settled where they wished. After wars or fires, people did not necessarily build houses and farm buildings in the same spots. If they found a better vacant plot, they occupied it. Therefore, the cultural layer – the layer of earth containing finds – ranges from 10 to 35-40 centimetres in different locations.
- The Lepel Castle is a complete mystery. Even its exact former location is unknown, and there are no drawings or precise descriptions. The Ministry of Culture has adopted and is implementing the programme "Castles of Belarus". Within its framework, the expedition was given a second task – to identify and localise the castle site on the island of Lake Lepel, if possible. I personally believe that the fortress in question might have been situated in the northern part of the island, as it would have blocked the isthmus, the passage from Old Lepel to the island. This, in my opinion, is the most advantageous location for defence. We will try, and perhaps we will find something.
Defensive fortifications on the island of Lake Lepel existed long ago, perhaps from the time of the first mention of the settlement. In chronicles, they were referred to as a citadel, town, fortress, castle, stronghold, or keep. They usually housed a small permanent garrison headed by a starosta or castellan, warehouses with provisions, stables for horses, pens for other livestock, administrative buildings, and a temple. Ordinary people lived in the surrounding settlement, which was called a posad or poselenie, and their inhabitants were thus called posad people or townspeople.
In the event of an enemy attack, the townspeople would hide in the town, taking with them whatever they could carry.
Together with the garrison, women and adolescents repelled enemy attacks and treated the wounded on the walls. The burning of the posad was not considered a terrible disaster – there was plenty of forest around, and it could be rebuilt, as long as people remained alive and uninjured. There were even cases when the defenders themselves set fire to their houses if necessary.
The first written mention of the castle in Lepel dates back to 1563.
What might the Lepel Castle have looked like? It is most likely that it was a wooden fortification, not of a palisade but of a log construction, which is more durable. Historical sources indicate that the castle had a permanent garrison – 200 horsemen and 100 infantry soldiers. This might cause some misunderstanding as to why cavalry was needed for castle defence. The author believes another use for this type of troops is more probable. The main task of the cavalry detachment was reconnaissance, observation of the enemy in Kapi, and small raids and diversions.
It is highly likely that such attacks did not go unanswered, and invaders attempted to conquer Lepel. During such times, our ancestors could have used tactics brilliantly employed by David of Grodno and Anastasia of Slutsk. The essence of this tactic is that the infantry garrison of soldiers and townspeople would shut themselves in the fortress and hold the defence; no special training is required for defensive combat on the walls, only courage and steadfastness. The cavalry, at a convenient moment, would leave the castle and disappear into the surrounding forests. Their role was to conduct diversions against the enemy besieging the fortress. Every night, the horsemen would launch attacks, not allowing the invaders to sleep peacefully. As soon as the enemy soldiers dared to storm, they would be attacked from the rear.
Legends circulated about the power of the cavalry of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania; cavalry detachments defeated enemy formations twice or even three times their size, as the best warriors were recruited into them.
After the end of the Livonian War in 1583, the military-strategic significance of the Lepel Castle somewhat decreased. Three years later, the city acquired a new owner – Lev Sapieha, Vice-Chancellor of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, who soon moved the city to the southern bank of the lake, to its current location. From this time on, the settlement on the island was relegated to the status of a simple village, and the fortifications crumbled and disappeared over the years. In 1609, Lev Sapieha gifted Lepel to the Vilnius monastery; the new owners did not pay much attention to the construction of the castle or the economic prosperity of the city.
In subsequent wars, Lepel did not play such a strategic role as in the Livonian War; invaders captured it relatively easily and were also driven out just as easily.
The last day turned out to be inclement, with non-stop rain. Marat and Pavel decided not to conduct full-scale excavations at the presumed castle site in the mud, limiting themselves to a detailed inspection. The archaeologists' finds included fragments of pottery and an old, medieval-made nail.
The immediate task for historians and those interested in the history of their native region is to more accurately determine the location of the Lepel Castle.
Vasil MATYRKA