Danas, kada je teritorij Ukrajine postao bojno polje između autoritarnog i demokratskog svjetskog poretka, vrlo lako se rađaju asocijacije na drevnu povijest.  Naime, Ukrajina nije po prvi puta linija obrane. Ponovno se bije bitka, a gubitak bi mogao ugroziti i Ukrajinu i njezine zapadne susjede.

Drevna tvrđava u ukrajinskom gradu Hotinu mjesto je gdje je u ono davno vrijeme završila osmanska ekspanzija na zapad. Upravo se ovdje u 17. stoljeću dogodila Hotinska bitka između ujedinjene vojske Poljsko-litavske unije i kozačke vojske protiv vojske Osmanskog Carstva. Sultan Osman II, unatoč brojčanoj vojnoj nadmoći, izgubio je bitku kod Hotina. I nakon tog poraza, Osmansko Carstvo napustilo je svoje planove osvajanja Europe.

Povijest tvrđave

Tvrđava, tada još drvena, osnovana je u 10. stoljeću. Bila je dio teritorija Kijevske Rusije. U 13.-18. stoljeću  pregrađivana je i proširivana. Dugo je vremena Hotinska tvrđava na rijeci Dnjestar bila važno obrambeno i trgovačko čvorište u istočnoj Europi. Tvrđava je pripadala raznim državnim tvorevinama. Tek je u 19. stoljeću izgubila svoju obrambenu važnost.

Arhitektura Hotinske tvrđave

Veličanstvena građevina uzdiže se na stijeni iznad Dnjestra. Visina zidova tvrđave doseže 40 metara. Područje u obliku izduženog ovala omeđeno je zidinama debljine do 6 metara. Tvrđavu okrunjuje 5 masivnih kula. Na području tvrđave nalaze se Zapovjednikova palača, kapela i vojarna. Posebnu pozornost zaslužuje bunar s pitkom vodom. 60 metara u dubinu stijene – takav titanski zadatak izvršili su graditelji tvrđave kako bi joj osigurali autonomno vodoopskrbu.

Od 2000. godine Hotinska tvrđava je povijesno-kulturni rezervat. Svakog proljeća (prije rata) ovdje se održavao međunarodni festival povijesne rekonstrukcije srednjeg vijeka.

Khotyn Fortress: At the Edge of Worlds

Today, as Ukraine’s territory has become a battleground between authoritarian and democratic world orders, associations with older history are easily born. After all, this is not the first time Ukraine has become a line of defense. Once again, a battle is raging, the loss of which could threaten both Ukraine and its western neighbors.

The ancient fortress in the Ukrainian city of Khotyn once became the place where Ottoman expansion to the west ended. It was here, in the 17th century, that the Battle of Khotyn took place between the combined forces of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth and the Cossack army against the Ottoman army. Sultan Osman II, despite the numerical superiority of his army, actually lost the battle of Khotyn. And after this defeat, the Ottoman Empire abandoned its plans to conquer Europe.

History of the Fortress

The fortress, then still wooden, was founded in the 10th century. It was part of the territories of Kyivan Rus. In the 13th-18th centuries, it was rebuilt and expanded. For a long time, the Khotyn Fortress on the Dniester River was an important defensive and trade hub in Eastern Europe. The fortress belonged to various state entities. And only in the 19th century did it lose its defensive significance.

Architecture of the Khotyn Fortress

The grandiose structure towers on a rock above the Dniester. The height of the fortress walls reaches 40 meters. The territory in the form of an elongated oval is limited by walls up to 6 meters thick. The fortress is crowned by 5 massive towers. The Commandant’s Palace, chapel, and barracks are located on the territory of the fortress. A well with drinking water deserves special attention. 60 meters deep into the rock – such a titanic task was performed by the creators of the fortress to ensure its autonomous water supply.

Since 2000, the Khotyn Fortress has been a historical and cultural reserve. Every spring (before the war), an international festival of historical reconstruction of the Middle Ages was held here.