Castle Čičva

The ruins of Čičava Castle stand on a hill 225 m above sea level above the Podčičva settlement. The castle was probably built in the years 1309-1316 and was the center of a large noble estate. It was a watchtower on the pass known as the "Gate of Poland", because its walls could be used to control the road leading to the main trade route with Poland. Originally it was a small castle with an irregularly shaped tower and courtyard, which was protected by a wall. There was a three-story residential palace in the courtyard. At the end of the 15th century and the beginning of the 16th century, it was thoroughly rebuilt and fortified to withstand a possible attack by Polish troops that invaded Stropkov at the end of the 15th century, causing significant damage. The castle was then surrounded by a stone wall, a round bastion was also built to guard the entrance gate and a large cannon tower over the steep slope towards Ondawa. At that time, there were stables, barns, sheds and granaries in the courtyard. Despite the construction of further fortifications, it was conquered in 1684 and then in 1704. The final blow to the castle was the arrival of the tsarist army in 1711, then it was completely destroyed and since then it fell into disrepair.

In the 16th and 17th centuries, the castle's archives contained the so-called Book of Lies and Liars, which was known throughout Slovakia as the "Chechava Book". Next to the names of liars, all possible and impossible lies and untruths were entered into it. Thanks to this book, a well-known Slovak saying was created: "It should be written in the Book of Chicava".