History of the Tustan Fortress
The fortress, which was built on the rocks near the modern village of Urych, Skole district, Lviv region, has no direct analogues in Ukraine. “The fortifications of this fortress, built of wood, have not survived to this day, but numerous grooves made of wooden structures, sunk into the rock massifs, have been preserved. The complete preservation of the grooves allows not only to reliably reconstruct the scope of fortress buildings, but also to trace the stages of formation of the fortress, its gradual development over several centuries. On the other hand, the Tustan fortress is not only rocks with traces of grooves, but also the remains of archaeological sites sunk into the ground, a cultural layer of varying strength, both in and beyond the interstellar space. After all, the research of previous decades allows us to consider Tustan as a majestic complex of various buildings – fortifications, housing, communications, engineering, etc., which characterize the monument as an extraordinary site [1] of national heritage.
“A relatively limited number of written materials related to the city of Tustan have survived. There is no reliable information about the time and circumstances of its founding”[2].
The earliest written mention of Tustan can be found in the work of the Polish chronicler Janko of Charnkow, who was Vice-Chancellor of King Casimir III of Poland. In his chronicle, which covers the events of 1363-1384, he mentions "Lamburg or Lviv, the town of Przemyśl, the town and city of Sanok, the town of Korosno, the cities of Lyubachiv, Terebovlia, Halych, and Tustan among the cities and towns of the Kievan Rus which were re-fortified by the king[3].
If Janko of Charnkow does not mention anything about the capture of Tustan, another Polish chronicler Jan Dlugosz (1415-1480) directly points out that in 1340, “King Casimir took over all Rus in one summer”: “Casimir…, on the birthday of John the Baptist, moved to the Rus lands and there captured the towns and castles of Przemyśl, Halych, Lutsk, Volodymyr, Sanok, Lyubachiv, Terebovlia, Tustan, and other Rus towns and fortresses[4].
Historians of the late 19th - early 20th century drew attention to the fact that the conquest of such large territories by Casimir during the summer of 1340 and even without allied troops was unlikely. Myroslav Voloshchuk, a researcher of Rus-Hungarian relations, pointed out that the Hungarian army took part in Casimir’s military campaign in 1340. This seems quite logical, because as a result of the Polish-Hungarian dynastic union, the Hungarian king was considered perhaps the closest ally of Casimir III. Hungarian sources contain references to the participation of their troops in the events of 1340 in Kievan Rus. Based on this, Myroslav Voloshchuk hypothesizes that “during April-May 1340, Polish troops captured Sanok, Przemyśl and Lviv, while at the same time the Hungarian palatine Villermo occupied Tustan, Halych and, quite possibly, Terebovlia”[6].
Mentions of these two chroniclers indicate that Tustan as a defensive fortress had already existed before its capture by the Polish king or possibly the Hungarian palatine Willerman in the 14th century. This is evidenced by archaeological excavations. Archaeologists have discovered ceramic pottery dating back to the 12th - first half of the 13th century[7].
Confirmation that Tustan was part of the Przemyśl principality is indirectly found in the letter of Bishop Peter of Cracow dated 1398. In his letter, Peter settled the dispute between the Przemyśl Bishopric and the Galician Catholic Archdiocese. According to this letter, Tustan returned to the jurisdiction of the Diocese of Przemyśl (previously Wladyslaw of Opole transferred Tustan to the Archdiocese of Galicia. * The boundaries of the diocese of Przemyśl coincided with the boundaries of the principality).
The name Tustan is of Proto-Slavic origin[8]. The ancient folk interpretation of the origin of the name (recorded by the Polish historian Stanislaw Sarnytsky in 1585) and the modern oral tradition provide an explanation – “tut staty”[9].
The oldest known documentary mention of Tustan is connected with the letter of Pope Boniface IX. Thus, in a letter dated 1390, the pope points to the transfer by Wladyslaw of Opole of Rohatyn, castles in Olesk and Tustan, with districts, farms, property and all lands, as well as tithes of salt in Drohobych and Zhydachiv to the newly founded Galician Catholic Diocese. Since the letter mentions the granting of the above-mentioned towns and castles by Wladyslaw of Opole, it is obvious that there was an earlier mention, namely the granting of Olesko and Tustan castles to the Galician Archdiocese by Wladyslaw of Opole. This grant must have taken place between 1375 (creation of the Galician Catholic Diocese) and 1387, ie the years of Wladyslaw of Opoleas as King of Rus.
Probably after the appointment of Wladyslaw of Opole as King of Rus, Hungarian garrisons occupied part of the border towns and castles. This is suggested by the fact that “after the escape of Prince Wladyslaw of Opole, Hungarian garrisons held the foothills of the Carpathians on the Dniester right bank with the towns of Zhydachiv, Tustan and, possibly, Stryi until 1390[11]".
Mykhailo Rozhko also pointed to the possibility of occasional location of Polish or Hungarian garrisons in Tustan in the second half of the 14th century with reference to A. Petrushevych. In addition, the researcher pointed to the samples of arrowheads of the Western European model found during archeological excavations. This weapon may have been used by the Hungarian or Polish garrisons[12].
The mace found here also speaks of the Hungarian factor in the history of Tustan. Mykhailo Rozhko attributed local origin to it, when later studies are more inclined to attribute Hungarian origin to this mace. Thus, the presence of this “mace may confirm the presence of the Hungarian garrison in Tustan. However, its commercial or trophy origin cannot be ruled out. To solve this issue, further scrupulous analysis of artefacts from Tustan with the selection of other reliable materials of Hungarian origin is required”[13].
In addition to defence, Tustan performed an administrative function and was the centre of the volost. This is evidenced by the royal deed of gift to the village of Krushelnytsia dated November 4, 1395. It states that the village of Krushelnytsia, Tustan volost was given as a gift to faithful servants Ivan and Damian and their sons with all their posessions… with forests, meadows, fields, and hayfields[14].
“The Polish historian Przemyslaw Dombkowski, based on all available materials at the time, stated: “ this povit (ie, Tustan volost – M. R.), which, no doubt, existed in the 14th century near the Stryi povit, most likely occupied a sparsely populated mountainous country, possibly from the source of the Opir River to Stryi, in the eastern direction to the source of the Stryi River and to the state border, to the Beskid ridge”[15].
The principality of Przemyśl, which included Tustan, “was rich in salt deposits – then the only preservative of all food products”[16]. Since there were no refrigerators then, the meat was salted. Therefore, “salt was a strategic product and belonged to export goods, the monopoly of which was held by the prince’s treasury, because there were no salt deposits in other lands of Rus”[17].
We assume that the fortress already played the role of customs at this time (13th century). “The trade route from Drohobych saltworks to the Carpathian heights up to Western Europe passed through Tustan. The existence of the trade route is indicated by the toponyms Pidhostynets, Gostynets, and also the mountain Tovar. Merchants carried salt from Drohobych through the village of Tustanovychi, then through Tustan and the village of Pidhorodtsi, which was a suburb of the fortress-hail, and then through the valleys of the rivers Stryi and Opir to the “gate” * on the heights[18].
In the above referenced first documentary mention of Tustan - the letter of Pope Boniface IX to the Bishop of Przemyśl dated 1390, which refers to the gift given to the newly established Galician Catholic Diocese. The foundation was about the bishop’s jurisdiction over the town of Rohatyn, the towns of Olesko and Tustan, and the tithe of profits in Drohobych and Zhydachiv. It is obvious that all the salt springs of Galicia (including Drohobych) and the profits from them belonged to Wladyslaw of Opole as regalia inherited from the Halych-Volyn principality. As follows from the above, Drohobych were of great economic importance saltworks in the 14th century, which suggests their existence at a much earlier time”[19].
The lustration of the Drohobych salt zhupa (1565) states that “in Tustan, they take tolls from merchants who go through the mountains, passing Drohobych”[20].
“Roads were one of the main points of trade policy of the medieval times’ rulers. During the reign of Polish kings in Galicia, the importance of trade routes was determined by current legislation. According to the laws adopted at that time, all goods had to be transported only by certain routes, on which there were customs points where customs duties were collected. The right to collect duties was given to towns, grand feudal lords, and royal administrators. The customs duty was intended for the repair of roads, bridges, and dams, although these repair works were mostly carried out at the expense of the “sharvarks”, that is, the unpaid labor of the peasants who served the serfdom. In addition, the king, princes or rulers of the town undertook to organize road safety, protection of merchants and their goods. Customs houses were located throughout the country, both at the borders and in the middle of the country. They were installed where there was the greatest trade movement, ie on the main roads, paths, tracts, where merchant caravans passed.
In the 15th-16th centuries, the economic and political situation in Central Europe changed, which led to a decline in the development of the salt industry in Galicia. As a result, the volume of salt exported from Drohobych zhupas decreased, but merchants continued to overland cattle and transport agricultural products and other goods through Tustan to the places where fairs were held”[21].
In 1539, at the request of Jan of Tarnow **, the king donated to Mykolay Blizinski and his heirs “the fortress of Tustan, and in fact only a rock in the Stryi mountains near the border with Hungary”. They undertook “to defend, restore, strengthen and maintain this castle on the mentioned rock at their own expense and by their own efforts”. It is not known whether the Tustan Fortress was repaired and fortified, but Blizinski donated the village of Pidhorodtsi and the Tustan Fortress to Jan of Tarnow in 1541[22].
“The fact that Tustan was well known in Europe can be seen from ancient maps. Among the oldest maps that are available to us are the ones by Gastaldi (1548, published in 1560) and Melanchthon (1554). The first one better localizes the hail between the two mountain ranges (and not in front of the Carpathians, as the other discovered maps) and indicates the presence of the pass. From the nearest Ukrainian towns, Sambir, Sil (now Stara Sil – M.R.), Zhydachiv, Dolyna, ie well-known centres of salt production and sale are listed on it[23].
[1] Програма перспективних археологічних досліджень ДІКЗ «Тустань». – Київ, 2014. – 4 с.
[2] Рожко М. Архітектура та система оборони українських Карпат у княжу добу. – Львів, 2016 – С.112
[3] Рожко М. Тустань – давньоруська наскельна фортеця. – Київ: Наукова думка,1996. – 27 с.
[4] Там само. – С. 27
[5] Волощук М., Стасюк А. Про похід палатина Віллермана in Ruteniam у квітні 1340 р. – C.47
[6] Там само. – С. 51
[7] Миська Р. Нові дані до історії наскельної фортеці «Тустань». – С.336
[8] Рожко М. Архітектура та система оборони українських Карпат у княжу добу.– С.112
[9] Рожко М. Тустань – давньоруська наскельна фортеця. – С. 27
* Боніфацій ІХ – папа римський впродовж 1389-1404 рр. На час його понтифікату припав розкол в католицькій церкві, коли три особи одночасно називали себе справжнім папою Римським. Причиною розколу були радше політичні ніж теологічні мотиви. Цей конфлікт швидко переріс з церковної суперечки в дипломатичну кризу, яка поділила Європу. Світські монархи вибрали собі зручнішого папу. Боніфацій ІХ не зробив нічого, щоб ліквідувати розкол. В період його понтифікату процвітали непотизм, торгівля відпущенням гріхів і бюрократизм.
** Владислав Опольский - намісник угорського короля Людвіка І Угорського у Галичині (1372–1378 та 1385–1387, формально, як титулярний «Король Русі»).
[10] Там само. – С. 28
[11] Миська Р. Нові дані до історії наскельної фортеці Тустань. – С.341
[12] Рожко М. Архітектура та система оборони українських Карпат у княжу добу. – С. 213
[13] Миська Р. Нові дані до історії наскельної фортеці Тустань. – С.341
[14] Рожко М. Тустань – давньоруська наскельна фортеця. – С.30
[15] Рожко М. Тустань – давньоруська наскельна фортеця. – С.29
* Воротами в народі називали укріплення або заслони, які розташовувалися у горах на важливих шляхах.
[16] Войтович Л. Князь Лев Данилович – Львів, 2012. – С.17
[17] Войтович Л. Як харчувалася галицька еліта у XI-XIV ст.//Журнал Ї. - №73
[18] Пархуць Л. Шляхи сполучення Тустанні// Фортеця, 2012. – Кн.2. – С.42
[19] Петрик В., Петрик А. Дрогобицька жупа (солеварня) в світлі історичних та архітектурно-археологічних досліджень// Фортеця, 2012. – Кн.1. – С.476
[20] Рожко М. Тустань – давньоруська наскельна фортеця. – С.31
[21] Пархуць Л. Шляхи сполучення Тустанні// Фортеця, 2012. – Кн.2. – С.42,44
[22] Рожко М. Тустань – давньоруська наскельна фортеця. – С.31
** Ян з Тарнова – видатний державний, політичний, військовий діяч Польського королівства. Великий гетьман коронний (1527–1559). Придворний короля (з 1502). Каштелян войницький (з 1522), краківський (з 1536). Воєвода руський (1527–1535) і краківський (з 1535). Староста сандомирський, жидачівський, сондецький, городельський. Перший граф Священної Римської імперії в родині Тарновських (1547). Засновник міста Тернополя.
[23] Рожко М. Тустань – давньоруська наскельна фортеця. – С.30