monuments
Považský castle
The ruins of Považský Castle protrude from high gates on a steep hill with an altitude of 497 m. It was also called Bystrice Castle and was one of the important castles in Považie. About 400 people lived in it during its heyday.
The castle has a unique location. The road to it leads next to the church and one of the two mansions in Považský Podhrad. It is steep and rocky. In addition to the tower gate, the entrance to the castle was protected by two bastions, parts of thick walls with firing holes, through which the castle garrison defended itself from the enemy. The lower rooms of the tower gate served as a warehouse for ammunition. There was also a secret gate through which the inhabitants of the castle interacted with the outside world, when the tower gate was bricked up during the danger. A square tower protrudes to the north. It was originally a prison. To the east of it you can see the main gate, the so-called a sound, still quite preserved, which led to the carriageway. There was a cannon depot nearby. There was also an apartment of castellans. The fort was surrounded by a moat (reservoir spring), which served for defense during the war. On the southwest side of the castle you can see the ruins of a group of buildings that served as apartments. The ground floor rooms were warehouses, granaries, kitchens and chambers. The floors were inhabited. The castle was originally three-storey. They used sandstone and limestone as building materials, which are visible in the walls. According to unverified reports, the castle was built in 1128, in written documents it is first mentioned indirectly only in 1316, in the time of Matúš Čák Trenčiansky. This castle was originally wooden.
It was administered as a royal property by royal castellans. After Matúš Čák, who seized it by force, its first known holder was the regional judge Alexander Héderváry. Together with their son Mikuláš, they lived in the castle in the years 1325 - 1354. From In 1354 the castle already belonged to Pavel Ugali, the pronotary and chancellor of the former landscape judge. At the end of the 14th century, King Sigismund had the castle in his possession for several years by the nobleman of Polish origin Sudivoy of Ostrorog, a Galician palatine.
In the years 1400 - 1424 he was replaced by Ctibor of Beckov and his son. In the 15th century, the castle, as a royal gift, became the private property of the Podmanický family. King Matej Korvín, as soon as he ascended the throne, rewarded Ladislav Podmanický for his services by donating to him and his descendants r. 1458 castle and adjacent manor.
After the Battle of Mohács, difficult conditions arose in Hungary. Part of the nobility chose Ján Zápoľský as the ruler, the other was under Ferdinand of Habsburg. The existence of two crowned monarchs in the country had dire consequences. Other descendants of the Podmanický family, Ján and Rafael, who were supporters of Ján Zápoľský, acquired most of their property through robberies. Ján Podmanický died in 1545. Rafael became the heir to his property for 13 years, as he died in 1558. Raphael's death ended the 120-year reign of the Podmanicks. After their extinction, the castle and manor were sold by the royal chamber in 1560 to Gašpar Šerédy and his wife Anne Mérey for 53,000 gold coins. Gašpar Serédi died in 1563, without descendants. The widow Anna Méreyová married r. 1571 for Ondrej Balaš.
The shingled castle was one of the largest well-fortified buildings of its kind. At the time of its glory, water was brought here through underground wooden pipes from a well called Sklepitá. This was evidenced by the narration of the oldest citizens of the village, whose parents in In 1912, they found parts of such a pipeline. The second half of the 17th century brought stormy times to the castle. The definitive end of his glory was made by the imperial troops in 1698, when the castle was demolished and set on fire. The memories of the older inhabitants of Podhradie preserved the story of their ancestors, who mentioned how the inhabitants of that time watched the burning castle.