Old Castle / Starhrad

The Old Castle, originally called Varín Castle, is one of the oldest castles in the Považie region. It was built one thousand two hundred and thirty-five years ago, probably during the reign of King Andrew II of Hungary, to protect an important trade route leading through the Váh valley. Its main mission was to guard the north-western border of Hungary and the ford through which the old road from Silesia through Kysuce and Liptov to Košice passed. The castle was built on a rocky hill on the right bank of the Váh River, where tolls were collected for the crossing. The oldest part of the castle is the assault tower from the 13th century. The castle changed owners from the Balassa family, through the powerful Matúš Čák, to the royal castellans. In the 14th century, it became the seat of the royal captain, who administered an estate with a large territory. After the construction of the new castle Strečno, which better guarded the road and the ford, the Old Castle lost part of its strategic function and acquired its present name. It was owned by various important families, the longest being the Pongrác family, who gradually moved to more comfortable manor houses. The castle began to deteriorate from the 18th century and became a ruin. During the Slovak National Uprising in 1944, it became a place of fighting when German troops occupied it and used it to shell French partisans in the area. Today, the Old Castle is an interesting historical monument that reminds us of the rich medieval past of the Považie region and the importance of the old trade and defence routes in the area.