Secrets of the castle dungeons:
legends and reality

Dungeons of medieval castles are one of the most mysterious parts of ancient fortresses and palaces. These spaces hidden from prying eyes have given rise to many legends, rumors and speculations over the centuries. The gloomy atmosphere, dampness, darkness and tangled corridors created an ideal environment for stories about ghosts, hidden treasures and secret passages. However, behind the romantic veil of medieval legends there are real historical facts about the purpose and structure of underground structures that were built for very practical purposes.

The historical purpose of the castle dungeons

Defensive function

Initially, underground structures of castles were created as part of a defensive system. Secret passages allowed the defenders of the fortress to quietly leave its borders during a siege to replenish supplies, conduct reconnaissance, or carry out sabotage behind enemy lines. Some underground tunnels could lead to hidden exits located several kilometers from the castle, which gave the garrison the opportunity to leave the besieged fortress in an emergency.

As noted in the studies of the Nesvizh Castle: “The secrecy in the case of underground passages is quite understandable - they mainly served to secretly replenish food supplies, ammunition, penetrate the enemy’s rear to conduct reconnaissance or carry out sabotage, and, ultimately, leave the besieged object.”

Utility rooms

A significant part of the castle’s underground spaces was allocated for economic needs. The dungeons housed:

• Food storage facilities
• Wine cellars
• Iceboxes for storing perishable products
• Weapons and ammunition depots
• Wells and cisterns for collecting water

In Nesvizh Castle, for example, there was a medieval icehouse: “This is a medieval icehouse where food supplies were stored, and on the northern side of the rampart there is a moss-covered wall in which a walled-up hole can be seen. Through it, the remains of the ice that had melted during the summer were thrown out of the icehouse into the castle moat to make room for new ice.”

Dungeons

Dungeons often served as prisons for prisoners. The cold, dampness, and lack of sunlight made such conditions particularly torturous. Bran Castle in Romania, often associated with Count Dracula, is said by tour guides to have underground labyrinths “that were used as a prison.”

Shelters

In the event of a castle being captured, the dungeons could serve as a last refuge for its inhabitants. Sometimes they were equipped with living quarters where people could hide for a long time.

Technical aspects of construction

Complexity of creation

The construction of underground structures required enormous efforts and resources. As one source notes: “Anyone who has ever swung a shovel, digging a hole for a country toilet, knows that even such a “mini-pit” is not so easy to dig. Now imagine a whole network of underground tunnels or an underground shelter with three tiers - those who did this hellish work had to have a very convincing reason to go underground.”

The design and construction of the underground system required significant engineering and construction expertise, as well as significant resources:

• Tools for working with stone and earth
• Logistics for the delivery of building materials
• Financial support for the works
• Large workforce

"With some reservations, we will accept as a fact that almost all interesting "dungeons" visited by the heroes of our games were built by some organized communities. Of course, the builders had to understand something about construction (which automatically makes them not complete cretins), and have solid resources - tools, logistics for delivering equipment, money, well, and a hundred or two workers."

Engineering solutions

The dungeon builders had to solve many technical problems:

• Provide ventilation to prevent carbon dioxide build-up
• Strengthening vaults to prevent collapses
• Groundwater drainage
• Creation of a lighting system (niches for torches and lamps)
• Providing acoustics for "auditory tunnels"

It is interesting that sometimes structures are discovered that were created using unknown technologies: "A bottomless shaft about one and a half meters in diameter with amazingly smooth edges was discovered under the Black Sea city of Gelendzhik. Experts unanimously claim that it was created using a technology unknown to people and has existed for hundreds of years."

Auditory tunnels

The so-called "auditory tunnels", which are often confused with secret passages, deserve special attention. Their main function is the early detection of enemy tunnels:

“In these tunnels, at a distance of fifty paces, one could hear whether the enemy was digging. And the roar of the enemy cavalry’s hooves could be heard long before it appeared in the guards’ field of vision.”

Famous Castle Dungeons of Europe

Castles of Latvia

Latvian castles are rich in legends about underground passages. According to legends, many fortresses were connected to the surrounding areas by a network of tunnels.

According to old-timers, there were several underground passages in Ludza Castle:

“One of them, in their opinion, starts in the western part of the castle hill from the side of Talavijas Street and leads to the city. The other entrance is in the castle dungeon and leads to Kostelna Hill. Undoubtedly, the most interesting is the underground passage that runs under the Great Ludza Lake. It also starts in the castle dungeon, crosses Odu Street underground and, passing under the lake, ends on its opposite shore, not far from the Ezersalsk Boarding School.”

Old residents of Talsi tell about an ancient settlement called Monastery Hill (Klosterkalns): “There is supposedly a castle there that went underground. There are experts who will show you several holes on the top of the mountain – these are the openings of the castle pipes. On the slope of the mountain you can see an oblong and rather deep hole – there were gates here.”

According to legend, these gates once opened for a hungry old woman who found a rich kitchen with gold and silver dishes inside. Tempted by wealth, she stole a gold knife and fork, for which the gates were closed forever.

There is also a legend about underground secrets about Tukums Castle: “Once upon a time there was a castle on Tukums Hill. But one day the cleaning lady wanted to tell someone about it so much that she couldn’t stand it and blurted it out to her husband. As soon as she let it slip, both she and her husband turned into stones, and the luxurious castle sank underground.”

Nesvizh Castle (Belarus)

Nesvizh Castle is one of the most well-studied sites in terms of underground communications. The castle had both utility dungeons and secret passages.

In the north-eastern part of the castle is the Intimate Courtyard, which got its name due to the presence of entrances to secret dungeons. In addition to secret passages, the castle had a medieval icehouse for storing food.

Edinburgh Castle (Scotland)

Edinburgh Castle is famous for its underground labyrinths. According to legend, “hundreds of years ago, secret passages were discovered beneath the castle, leading to different parts of Edinburgh. A young bagpiper was sent to explore them, playing his instrument while the band above followed the sound. After a while, the music suddenly stopped, and the young man was never seen again.”

Bran Castle (Romania)

Bran Castle, often associated with Count Dracula, also has a system of underground passages. “A well located in the inner courtyard of the fortress supposedly leads to mysterious underground rooms. Secret passages also connect the interior of Bran. For example, behind the fireplace on the first floor there is a hidden door. Behind it is a staircase leading to the third floor of the castle.”

Predjama Castle (Slovenia)

A unique feature of Predjama Castle is its location – it is built into a rock, which allowed the creation of a branched system of natural and artificial caves. These secret passages played an important role in the history of the castle:

“The siege lasted a year – secret passages in the rock helped Erasmus provide the castle with everything it needed: he even allowed himself to throw fresh cherries from the walls to tease his enemies.”

In 1991, workers discovered under the castle floor "a chest containing precious utensils from the 16th century. This treasure, which includes cups, bowls and other objects, is now on display in the museum."

Catacombs of Paris (France)

Although the Paris Catacombs are not castle dungeons in the strict sense, they are one of the most extensive examples of underground structures. They were originally quarries where limestone was mined for the construction of the city:

“The first underground limestone mining was located beneath what is now the Luxembourg Gardens, when Louis XI donated the land of the Château de Vauvert for limestone mining. New mines began to open further and further from the city centre.”

These spaces were later converted into ossuaries - places to store the remains of the dead when the city cemeteries of Paris became overcrowded:

“The 7,000 square metre Cemetery of the Innocents, which had been in use since the 11th century, housed the burials of parishioners from 19 churches, as well as unidentified corpses. In 1418, the Black Death, or bubonic plague, added another 50,000 corpses. In 1572, the cemetery housed thousands of victims of the St. Bartholomew’s Day massacre.”

Legends of the underground inhabitants

Underground passages and caves have always attracted people’s attention, giving rise to legends about mysterious creatures that supposedly live underground.

Ural Chud

One of the most famous cycles of legends is associated with a mysterious people - the Chud, who allegedly live in the caves of the Ural Mountains.

“Some of them will feature light-eyed and soft-voiced dwarfs, others – tall and handsome people, and still others – even heroes. But all of them, so different, are called by one name – Chud. Russian historians have long argued about this mysterious people, mentioned in the Laurentian Chronicle (1377), but have not yet come to a consensus.”

According to legends, the Chud were engaged in the extraction of precious metals and stones: “The beginning of the Ural legends was laid by explorers and the first Russian settlers who heard voices coming from underground and the sounds of metal striking stone: the Chud were extracting precious stones and metals.”

Many treasure hunters tried to find the riches hidden by the chud, but to no avail: “But all attempts to penetrate the secret of the underground inhabitants ended in failure. And many treasure hunters simply did not return, having disappeared in the tangled labyrinth of mysterious caves.”

Divine people

Another Ural legend tells of the so-called "divya people": "The divya people live in the Ural Mountains, and have exits to the world through caves. They have the greatest culture…". This legend continued to exist even in the 1920s.

Modern Legends of the Underworld

The idea of the existence of an underground civilization has not disappeared in the modern era. “Meanwhile, the most authoritative archaeologists of Peru today do not doubt the existence of an underground empire: not yet explored by anyone, it, in their opinion, extends under the seas and continents. And above the entrances to this grandiose dungeon in various corners of the planet rise ancient buildings: for example, in Peru it is the city of Cusco.”

Legends about underground inhabitants are also found in the USA: “For example, modern Indians living in the mountainous regions of California say that very tall, golden-haired people sometimes come from Mount Shasta: they once descended from the heavens, but were unable to adapt to life on the earth’s surface. Now they live in a secret city, which is located inside an extinct volcano.”

Strange phenomena and mysterious findings

Legends about dungeons are often supported by stories of unexplained phenomena and mysterious discoveries that supposedly took place in various parts of the world.

England

“The miners, digging an underground tunnel, heard the sounds of working machinery coming from somewhere below. Having made a passage, they discovered a ladder leading to an underground well. The sound of the working machinery grew louder, and so the workers became frightened and ran away. Returning after some time, they found neither the entrance to the well nor the ladder.”

USA

“Anthropologist James McCann and his colleagues were exploring a cave in Idaho that had a bad reputation among the native population. The locals believed that it was the entrance to the underworld. The scientists, having gone deeper into the dungeon, clearly heard screams and groans, and then discovered human skeletons. Further exploration of the cave had to be stopped due to the increasing smell of sulfur.”

Gelendzhik

"A bottomless shaft about one and a half meters in diameter with amazingly smooth edges was discovered under the Black Sea city of Gelendzhik. Experts unanimously claim that it was created using a technology unknown to people and has existed for hundreds of years."

Curses of the Dungeons

Many legends associate underground structures with various curses and supernatural phenomena.

Zhitomir dungeons

The underground structures of Zhitomir are surrounded by many myths and legends. According to legends, they were first built by the pagan Slavs, and then the work was continued by Byzantine monks and Polish builders:

“According to legend, the Poles built a secret workshop in the caves and grew a fungus around it. Its fumes poisoned all unwanted visitors. The Poles borrowed these fungi from the Egyptians – they protected the tombs of the pharaohs in this way.”

The dungeon defense system was quite sophisticated: “There were many traps in the labyrinth: Ferris wheels, suspended logs, passages without exits, air with intoxicating substances. Innocent souls of people who died because of these traps still wander the labyrinth.”

The Cursed River

In the Zhitomir region, there is a legend about a cursed river: “In the villages of the Zhitomir region, there is a legend that a thousand years ago, a princess with a child was sailing on a gilded barge along the river. Despite the mother’s requests not to be naughty, the baby tripped, fell out of the boat and drowned in the river. The mother went mad with grief and cursed the river.”

The results of the curse were catastrophic: “The clean river that gave life to the tribes, nourished the forests and fields around, suddenly became shallow, swampy and dirty. And the land around it was also cursed – the grass and trees dried up, the animals died or moved to other places, and epidemics of unknown diseases began in the tribes.”

Scientific explanation of legends

Many legends about underground passages have a basis in reality, but often the facts are surrounded by fiction and exaggeration.

Confusion with the purpose of dungeons

Archaeologists note that people often perceive ordinary utility buildings as mysterious secret passages. For example, basements, cellars, glaciers and auditory tunnels can give rise to legends about branched underground labyrinths.

In the Nesvizh Castle, the walled-up hole in the wall, through which “the remains of the ice that had melted during the summer were thrown into the castle moat to make room for new ice,” was considered by local residents to be the entrance to a secret underground passage.

Acoustic features of caves

Many stories about voices and sounds coming from underground can be explained by the acoustics of caves and underground cavities. Sounds can travel long distances and become distorted, creating the impression of people or machines.

Geological processes

Some mysterious phenomena associated with underground places can be explained by natural geological processes:

• Landslides and shifts can cause cave entrances to disappear.
• The release of natural gases (methane, hydrogen sulfide) can create strange odors and optical effects
• Thermal springs can produce steam and fog, creating a mystical atmosphere.

Real Finds

Despite the abundance of fiction, archaeologists sometimes make amazing discoveries in the dungeons of ancient castles. Thus, in Predjama Castle in 1991, a treasure trove of precious utensils from the 16th century was discovered.

Dungeons of Kyiv Monasteries

A special place in the history of underground structures is occupied by the caves of the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra and other monasteries of Kyiv. According to archaeologist and art historian Yuliy Lifshits, “the caves arose as a monastery cemetery. A monk died – they dug a cave further, made…”.

These underground labyrinths served not only as burial places, but also as a refuge for monks in times of danger, as well as rooms for prayer and ascetic feats.

Dungeons as part of urban infrastructure

Over time, the underground structures of castles and fortresses became part of the urban infrastructure of the settlements growing around them.

Evolution of functions

As cities developed, underground passages and rooms were adapted for new purposes:

• Water supply and sewerage systems
• Shelters during military operations
• Warehouses and storage facilities
• Secret routes for movement during sieges

Inclusion in the urban environment

In some cases, parts of underground systems were integrated into new urban developments. For example, in Paris, quarries that were originally located outside the city gradually ended up under its built-up areas:

“The expansion of the residential part of Paris during the Renaissance and later, under Louis XIV, led to the fact that by the 17th century, the lands above the quarries were already within the city limits, and a significant part of the residential areas were effectively “hanging” over the abyss.”

This created serious problems for urban development: “The most dangerous places were the ‘Saint-Victor suburb’ (from the eastern edge of the Rue des Ecoles south to Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire), the Rue Saint-Jacques, and finally the suburb (then a small town near the castle) of Saint-Germain-des-Prés.”

Dungeons in Material Culture

Architectural features

The architecture of underground structures has its own characteristic features that distinguish them from above-ground buildings:

• Arched vaults for uniform load distribution
• Columns and buttresses to support the ceiling
• Ventilation shafts for air circulation
• Specific waterproofing systems
• Corridor geometry taking into account soil structure and groundwater direction

Building materials

Various materials were used to build the dungeons, the choice of which depended on local conditions and the purpose of the structure:

• Hewn stone for walls and vaults
• Brick for arches and openings
• Wood for temporary structures and reinforcements
• Lime mortar for bonding stones and bricks
• Clay for waterproofing

Technical solutions for life support

To ensure a comfortable (or at least acceptable) stay for people in the dungeons, special systems were created:

• Drainage channels for water drainage
• Wells and cisterns for collecting drinking water
• Niches and holders for torches and lamps
• Chimneys for the removal of combustion products

Modern research of castle dungeons

Archaeological methods

Modern archaeology uses various methods to study underground structures without the need for large-scale excavations:

• Ground penetrating radar scanning for underground cavities detection
• Thermography for detecting hidden passages
• Electrical resistivity tomography for creating 3D models of underground structures
• Microgravimetry for searching underground voids

Virtual reconstruction

Modern technologies make it possible to create detailed virtual models of underground structures, even if access to them is limited or impossible. This helps scientists better understand their structure and functions, and makes them accessible to a wider audience.

Conservation and restoration

Underground structures require a specific approach to conservation and restoration:

• Controlling humidity levels to prevent mold and mildew growth
• Strengthening vaults and walls to prevent collapse
• Combating groundwater and capillary rise
• Creating safe routes for visitors

Museification

Many historical dungeons are becoming objects of tourist interest. In Nesvizh Castle, for example, “soon everyone will be able to walk (through the underground passages).”

Dungeons in Folklore and Literature

Motives and plots

Underground passages and hiding places are often found in the folklore of different peoples, where they appear as:

• Treasure Hiding Places
• The habitats of mythical creatures
• Passages to the other world
• Shelters for heroes in times of danger

Symbolic meaning

In culture, dungeons are often given symbolic meaning:

• The space of testing and initiation of the hero
• Metaphor of the subconscious and hidden fears
• Symbol of transition between worlds
• Space of secret knowledge

Literary images

In literature, castle dungeons often become the setting for key episodes, introducing elements of mystery and suspense into the narrative.

Dungeons as a tourist attraction

Popular routes

Many castle dungeons are open to tourists. Among the most famous are:

• Catacombs of Paris
• Edinburgh Castle Dungeons
• Bran Castle Caves
• Underground passages of Prague Castle
• Dungeons of Krakow

Organization of excursions

To ensure the safety of visitors and the preservation of historical monuments, tourist routes in the dungeons must be specially equipped:

• Reinforced passages and stairs
• Lighting systems
• Ventilation
• Emergency exits
• Information stands and signs

Legends as part of the tourist experience

Legends and tales of ghosts, treasures and secret passages are actively used in the tourism industry, making a visit to the dungeons more exciting and memorable. Tour guides often include mystical stories associated with these places in their stories.

The scientific significance of studying underground spaces

Historical aspect

Studying underground structures allows us to obtain important information about the history of castles and fortresses:

• Construction techniques in different historical periods
• Development of engineering thought
• Changes in military strategy and tactics
• Everyday life of the castle inhabitants

Archaeological finds

Dungeons often preserve artifacts that might not otherwise survive due to exposure to the elements or human activity.

Geological research

Studying underground structures provides information about the geological structure of an area, which can be useful for understanding the historical context and assessing contemporary risks.

Preservation and protection of historical dungeons

Threats to safety

Historical dungeons face various threats:

• Natural deterioration due to exposure to moisture and temperature fluctuations
• Pressures of modern urban development
• Vandalism and unauthorized excavations
• Uncontrolled tourism

Legislative protection

In order to preserve underground historical monuments, it is necessary to include them in the lists of protected cultural heritage sites and develop special regulations that take into account their features.

The role of local communities

Involving local residents in the process of preserving and studying underground structures helps to develop a caring attitude towards historical heritage and helps to collect and preserve legends and traditions associated with them.

Castle dungeons represent a unique layer of material culture, combining historical reality and rich folklore traditions. Numerous legends about secret passages, underground inhabitants and hidden treasures reflect people’s persistent interest in what is hidden from view, in the secret and unknown.

Modern scientific methods allow us to separate historical truth from fiction, but this does not diminish the cultural value of the legends themselves, which become part of the intangible heritage. Underground structures of castles and fortresses continue to attract the attention of researchers and tourists, revealing to them the pages of bygone eras.