History
In the Middle Ages Kremon was one of the most important strongholds belonging to the Riga cathedral chapter. It was created during the reign of archbishop Albert Suerbeer, probably around 1255. In 1312 it was mentioned as the property of the archbishopric, illegally seized by the Teutonic Order. Not counting this short period, it remained in the hands of the cathedral chapter until the great invasion of the Moscow troops of Ivan the Terrible against Livonia in the 16th century. Then, after the end of the war, together with the majority of the region, it found itself within the boundaries of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. In 1601, the castle was occupied by the Swedish army, which, unable to keep the stronghold, blew it up. Although significant fragments of the castle survived, it ceased to play any military role. After the occupation of Livonia by Sweden, it became privately owned and the new owners did not undertake to rebuild it.
Architecture
The castle had a single courtyard, surrounded by a stone defensive wall, with an irregular shape adapted to the form of a castle hill. In the southern corner of the courtyard was the main, probably three-story house, on which floor there was a representative hall, perhaps a refectory. The other floors had economic and military functions. There was probably a kitchen on the ground floor, and the attic was for defense. In addition, the castle had a small, square tower located on the north side. The main gate preceded by the drawbridge was located in the south-western part of the castle, in the vicinity of the main house. In front of the stronghold there was a small castle’s settlement.
Current state
Currently, only relatively small fragments of defensive walls and a single, several-meter-high wall, dating only partly from the medieval period, have survived from the castle, because in the nineteenth century it underwent a partial romantic reconstruction.
bibliography:
Borowski T., Miasta, zamki i klasztory. Inflanty, Warszawa 2010.
Tuulse A., Die Burgen in Estland und Lettland, Dorpat 1942.