Turaida Castle Well - Sigulda, Latvia - Draw Wells on Waymarking.com

A sign on the wood cover for the well reads:

"Dug in the 15th century. The timber lining consists of round horizontal logs. This is the only known example of a timber-lined welll at a medieval castle in Latvia. It is 9 m deep, and is the deepest of the excavated wells at medieval castles in Latvia. It reached 5 m into the water-saturated layer and held up to 20 tonnes of water. It was filled up in the 18th century, and was archaeologically excavated and restored in 1992. The well is in use today."

The following information about the castle is from Wikipedia (visit link) :

"Turaida Castle (Latvian: Turaidas pils, German: Treiden, Treyden) is a recently reconstructed medieval castle in Turaida, in the Vidzeme region of Latvia, on the opposite bank of the Gauja River from Sigulda.

History

Turaida castle dominates the Museum Reserve and is visually, its most impressive element. When seen from the air, or the opposite bank of the river Gauja in Sigulda, Turaida castle rises above the trees like mighty ship built of red brick. The forepart of this imaginative ship is formed by the northern forecastle's gate tower. The main tower, which is the highest, is like a spar in the middle of the ship, and the rear of the ship is the southern forecastle with its tower shaped southern section.

Building of the castle was started in 1214, upon directions given by Albert, Archibishop of Riga to his Livonian Brothers of the Sword (soon to merge with the Teutonic Order) at the place where previously had stood the wooden castle of Liv. A 'castellum' type fortress was built and named Fredeland, which translates as 'Land of Peace', but became better known locally by the Livonian name of 'Turaida', which has survived until the present day. The castle was constructed largely in the classic red-brick construction of the Baltic crusading orders. Improving the castle's defensive system continued in later centuries, and in the 14th century, the tower shaped southern section was built; at the beginning of 15th century, when fire arms were invented, the semi rounded western tower was built. Domestic buildings and living accommodation were also erected in the inner yard of the castle. Minor reconstruction work was carried out in 17th century although the castle started to lose its strategic importance. After a fire in 1776 it was abandoned and gradually became ruinous.

By the beginning of the 20th century, only separate fragments of the defensive wall and some buildings – the main tower, semi-rounded tower and the western section, were left. From 1976 regular archaeological excavations were carried out, which were followed by restoration and conservation works revealing the castle's earlier state. Exhibitions about the history of the brick castle and Gauja Livs are available in restored buildings. From the viewing place of the main tower, you can see the unique landscape of picturesque Gauja Gauja valley and the territory of Turaida Museum Reserve."

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