Attractions of Chortkiv district

The cave monastery in Monastyrok was founded in the 9th-10th centuries by hermit monks on the site of an ancient Slavic pagan temple.

It is noticeable that human hands put effort into the arrangement of the natural cave. A huge stone overhanging the entrance to the cave is supported by several columns made of flat stone blocks.

In the temple there is an image of Jesus, which, according to legend, came to the monks in the form of a play of light and shadow. They drew this image with paint and got what we can see now.

An ancient altar is also preserved in the cave, which is still used for its intended purpose. It is decorated with icons and lamps. Archeologically, it has been proven that the temple was lined with wood, had a wooden floor and may have been heated.

At the end of the 17th century, the temple was destroyed by fire, and in the 18th century it was destroyed by an earthquake.

Back in the 16th century, the Basilian Monastery was founded nearby. The complex includes the Ascension Church (XVI-XVIII centuries) and monastery cells. Near the entrance to the cave lies a stone with a cross carved on it, which is called the "stone of Dovbush". Perhaps it was a pagan altar.

The early Christian cave temple near the village of Stinka in Ternopil region belongs to the 12th-13th centuries.

The natural cave of karst origin is located on the left bank of the Dniester at an altitude of 15 meters. On the second level, an artificial room measuring approximately 8 by 9 meters was cut out of the travertine rock. In the center of the eastern wall is an altar with a solar sign in the form of a swastika. Crosses and other Christian and pagan symbols are depicted on the walls.

Probably, the temple existed even in pagan times, and with the advent of Christianity it became a cave monastery.

Two round Gothic crenellated towers at the bottom of the giant crater are the remains of the ancient Chervonohorod Castle, the history of which dates back to the 9th century, when there was an ancient Rus settlement called Chorlene Mistechko (later it was called Chervonohorod, Chervonohrud, Chervonohrad).

In 1351, the Rus-Lithuanian princes Koriatovychi (Koryatovychi) built a wooden castle in Chervonohorod for protection from the Tatars. At the beginning of the 17th century, the royal elder Mykola Danylovych built a new stone castle at the bend of the Dzhuryn River, which was later destroyed by the Turks. The picturesque ruins served as the basis for Prince Karol Poninsky to build a magnificent Gothic palace in 1870 (architect Yulian Zakharevych).

The estate in Chervonohorod was considered one of the most elegant tycoon residences in Poland. Until 1939, Princess Lyubomyrska lived in the Chervonohorod castle.

By the middle of the 20th century, the estate fell into disrepair, during the Soviet rule, most of the buildings were dismantled for building materials. Nearby you can see the ruins of the Peter and Paul Church of the XVII-XVIII centuries, the abandoned cemetery with the Poninsky tomb, as well as the remains of the hydroelectric station near the Dzhuryn waterfall.

Descent into the canyon to Chervonohorod Castle - 2.5 kilometers of rather steep ground, which in bad weather can be difficult for cars to pass. Lately, there is an entrance fee, walking is free.

The stone Chortkiv Castle at the foot of the Vygnan mountain was built in 1610 by the new owner of these lands, Stanislav Holsky, on the site of the wooden fortress of the Princes of Chartkivsky.

The pentagonal fortification with towers at the corners, inside which the palace and farm buildings were located, was considered a typical defensive structure of its time, but it had an unfortunate strategic position - the Chortkiv Castle was repeatedly destroyed. In particular, in 1648 it was stormed by the troops of Maksym Kryvonos, and in 1672 it was captured by the Turks.

In the 19th century, the representatives of the Potocki princely family tried to restore the Chortkiv Castle, for some time it was owned by the order of Carmelite sisters, but it remained uninhabited and gradually fell into disrepair. During the 20th century, it was used as a warehouse. Until recently, it was owned by one of the city's utility companies.

Currently, Chortkiv Castle is under the protection of the National Reserve "Castles of Ternopillya". Archaeological research and conservation work are underway. It is planned to create a museum and a cafe.

The Chortkiv Museum Residence (formerly the Chortkiv Local Lore Museum) has been located in the building of the former children's library, not far from the Chortkiv Castle, since 2022.

The residence was founded in 1976 as a non-profit local history museum. Initially, the institution was located in a building from the first half of the 20th century on Zelena Street. The museum's main collections include over 10,000 items.

The Chortkiv Museum Residence features exhibitions dedicated to different periods of the region's history. In particular, various archaeological materials tell about the life of people in ancient times, about ancient crafts and industries.

The history of the Ukrainian army and the national liberation struggle in the Chortkiv region is highlighted. A separate exhibition tells about the consequences of the Bolshevik terror and the expulsion of the Nazi occupiers.

The nature department of the museum displays the flora and fauna of the region.

The defensive synagogue in the Gothic-Moorish style is located on a hill in the oldest part of Husiatyn.

It was built in the 16th century, when there was a significant Hasidic Jewish community in the city. Initially, the building had a pronounced defensive character, but in many respects it lost it after the reconstruction of the 17th century. Gun loopholes have been preserved in the walls of the first tier.

During the Second World War, the building was badly damaged. Later, the synagogue was restored, placing a local lore museum in its premises. Later, the museum was moved to another building, the synagogue building is falling into disrepair.

The Dniester Canyon National Nature Park was created in 2010 to preserve valuable natural and historical-cultural complexes and objects of the forest-steppe zone in the middle course of the Dniester River.

It occupies an area of ​​10,000 hectares within the Chortkiv district of the Ternopil region. There are layers (walls) containing ancient fossilized remains of flora and fauna, which are about 500 million years old.

The pride of the park is travertine rocks with caves and grottoes. About 50 large and small caves are known, including some of the longest in the world: Ozerna (105 kilometers), Optymistychna (230 kilometers).

A large number of rare plants, animals, and birds can be found on steep rocky shores and picturesque islands. Relict forest, rocky and alkaline-steppe vegetation has been preserved.

Popular tourist routes to the Dzhurynskyi Waterfall and in the "Hlody" tract to the "Farinnikova Krynytsia" spring.

Dzhurynskyi (Chervonohorodskyi, Chervonogradskyi) waterfall near the village of Nyrkiv is the largest plain waterfall in Ukraine (height - 16 meters).

It is located in the Chervone tract, next to the picturesque ruins of Chervonohorodskyi (Chervonohradskyi) castle.

According to legend, the Dzhurynskyi waterfall is of artificial origin. In 1620, Turks and Tatars, breaking through to an impregnable castle surrounded by water, destroyed a stone ridge and changed the course of the river so that it passed by the castle.

According to another version, the channel was changed during the construction of the Poninsky Palace in the 18th century.

On the rocky shores of Dzhurynskyi Waterfall, you can see the ruins of a water mill that existed in the past. This is a popular place of recreation for residents of Ternopil.

The wooden church of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross of the Lord is located in the southern part of the city of Kopychyntsi, in the former suburb of Kutets.

It was built in 1630 (legend attributes the construction to Ukrainian Cossacks, although the city was under the control of the troops of Bohdan Khmelnytsky a little later - in 1648-1652).

There is a small wooden bell tower nearby.

The majestic monastery of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross of the Lord rises in the center of Buchach on the opposite hill from Buchach Castle, in the Fedir tract.

It was built for the parents of the Basilians, who were invited to the city by Stefan Potoski in the 18th century to found a theological school.

The central building of the Basilian Monastery complex is the Baroque Church of the Ascension of the Holy Cross with a bell tower (architect Yohan Shiltser). It is adjoined on two sides by the buildings of the cells and the Basilian gymnasium (now the Saint Yosafat Buchach Collegium).

During the Soviet era, the Basilian Monastery was closed and fell into disrepair, but after 1991, a complete restoration was carried out. All buildings, including the hydroelectric power plant on the Strypa River, have been restored and are being used as intended.

Fragments of the fortifications of the Polish fortress of Holy Trinity Trench, built in 1692 by crown hetman Yablonovsky for the blockade of Kamyanets-Podilskyi, which was occupied by the Turks.

For six weeks, the entire army under the leadership of engineer Gommer poured powerful ramparts, erected towers and walls. A very advantageous place was chosen for the fortress from a strategic point of view - a narrow rocky isthmus at the confluence of the Zbruch and the Dniester. From the lookout tower, Khotyn and Zhvanets fortresses were perfectly visible, and in the distance you could see the domes and minarets of Kamyanets-Podilskyi.

Since 1693, the Polish garrison began to regularly carry out successful attacks on Turkish camps, disrupting the supply of products from Kamyanets-Podilskyi. After Podillya was returned to Poland in 1699, the Fortress "Holy Trinity Trenches" lost its strategic importance. In 1769, it was taken by Russian troops, later it was used as a border outpost.

The Lviv and Kamyanets gates, the ruins of the watchtower above Zbruch, as well as the system of earthen fortifications have been preserved.

A 400-year-old linden tree (Golden Linden) growing near the road to the Zolotyi Potik is a witness to a historical event - the signing of the Buchach Peace Treaty with Turkey in 1672, which was humiliating for Poland.

The day before, the Turkish army captured Buchach and began to threaten the central regions of Poland from here. According to the peace treaty, the eastern part of Ukraine with Podillya was declared an independent state under the protectorate of Turkey.

The park of the Golukhovsky manor in Skala-Podilska is a monument of horticultural art of national importance. Founded at the end of the 18th century by the Polish elder Adam Tarlo.

Until 1939, it was the estate of Count Agenor Golukhovskyi. According to legend, the count built the park in the shape of the name of his beloved Olena.

In 1968, the "Zbruch" tourist center (now a children's health center) was built on the foundation of the Count's Palace. An outbuilding styled after a medieval castle has survived from the original manor buildings, where the polyclinic is now located.

More than 100 types of exotic and rare trees grown in the park on 26 hectares of land, imported from different countries of the world, including: Japanese red oak, black maple, silver spruce, European cedar, black and Weymouth pine, Virginian juniper, western and eastern thuja, magnolia, sycamore and others. The pearl of the park is an old linden tree over 550 years old with a trunk thickness of 7 girths.

According to local legend, some hermit settled in these places about 200-300 years ago. There are conjectures about the honorable origin of this man, but the reasons for which he was forced to renounce worldly life are not known. During the first four years, he hollowed out a cave cell in the ancient rock in which he prayed. According to legend, the hermit was killed and buried next to the cell in a stone niche.

In the 1990s, the place was restored. Every year, believers from nearby villages come to pray on the Trinity.

"Hermit's Cave" is part of the complex of monuments of the ecological trail of the same name, developed for tourists by the "Medobory" nature reserve. Also nearby are the ancient pagan settlement of Zvenyhorod and the Perlyna cave.

You can visit these sights independently by following a marked route from the village of Krutyliv, or accompanied by employees of the reserve.

The Church of the Holy Intercession in Chortkiv is one of the new churches of the city, which is distinguished by its rich decoration.

It was built in 1905 at the expense of parishioners on the site of a wooden church. The building of the Intercession Church in the classical style was built according to the project of the Lviv architectural company under the leadership of the architect Mykola Shashkevych and the Chortkiv builder Andriy Drazhnovsky.

According to legend, after the consecration of the Church of the Holy Intercession, a miraculous spring broke out in the yard, over which a chapel was built in honor of the Mother of God. In 1944, another miracle happened: a German shell hit the church, severely damaging it, but the icon of the Mother of God remained intact. And in 2004, there was an apparition of the Mother of God over the chapel of the Queen, built on the site of a new spring.

The 40-meter bell tower with a gilded dome was built in 1996.

There is a bathhouse on the territory of the temple.

Intercession Church belongs to the Orthodox Church of Ukraine.