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Swallow’s Nest Castle

Swallow's Nest Castle

Well, if you don't like mowing the lawn, this may be the ideal place of residence.

But it has never been a place of residence. The Swallow's Nest Castle (Ukrainian name: "Lastivchyne hnizdo") is merely a decorative castle. It is located near Yalta on the Crimean peninsula in southern Ukraine.

A beautiful view of the sea

The castle overlooks the Cape of Ai-Todor on the Black Sea and is located near the remnants of the Roman castrum of Charax. Swallow's Nest is one of the most popular visitor attractions in Crimea, becoming the symbol of Crimea's southern coastline.

Built on a high cliff

It was built between 1911 and 1912 in Gaspra, on top of 40-metre (130 ft) high Aurora Cliff.

Its design is Neo-Gothic style.

Before the castle was built in 1911 by Russian architect Leonid Sherwood, it was actually a small wooden cottage called Love Castle. The legend goes that some 130 years ago a wounded general came to be cured in Crimea. For heroism in the Crimean war, the empire awarded him a land by the sea. On the high rock of Al-Todor Cape, the warrior built a small wooden house: he was looking for solitude, romanticism and calm, just like the sky and the Black Sea. The veteran called his humble house ‘The Castle of Love.’ But history does not say, whether it was love for a woman or for the incredible beauty of Crimea. This is how the ‘career’ of the stunning castle of Crimea, the Swallow’s Nest, began in the late 19th century. Over time it has been a restaurant, a reading club headquarters and, lately, a very popular tourist attraction.

The cliff is strengthened by a huge concrete plate.

In 1927 it survived a strong earthquake (between 6 and 7 on the Richter scale) with only a few decorative elements falling in the sea, but the cliff itself developed a huge crack, so access to the Swallow’s Nest was restricted for almost 40 years. In 1968 the castle was renovated and a monolithic concrete plate console was used to strengthen the cliff.

It is a very small castle

The building is quite compact in size, 20 m long by 10 m wide, which original design envisioned a foyer, guest room, stairway to the tower and 2 bedrooms on two different levels within the tower. The interior is not as unique as the exterior of the building, however, guestrooms are decorated with wooden panels; the walls of the rest of the rooms are painted. There is also an observation desk, from where guests can enjoy breathtaking views of the sea and Yalta’s distant shoreline.

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If you got impressions for which this feedback is insufficient, please take a look at the following web sites for more:

Wikipedia
TravelVivi
Oddity Central
Castles.com
BlackSeaJourney.com