The legend of a knight – Predjama Castle

Not far from Postojna stands a mysterious Predjama Castle that will make you hold your breath from the minute you’ll see it. Standing there for more than 800 years this magnificent construction is definitely worth the visit and intriguing legends might remind you of some of the knight movies you’ve seen. Not to mention that this is also one of the locations where Jackie Chan movie Armour of gold was shot. On top of that it is also listed on the Guinness World Records as the largest cave castle in the world. We could just give it a medal right away, it seems.

It is amazing how cave made by nature and castle made by human can blend and form such an intriguing creation. Sometimes it is even hard to distinguish where the natural stone ends and human made walls begin. Its architecture provided a safe place during the siege and a valuable storage for food and source of drinking water. The secret passage being enabled through the specific karstic terrain was of great advantage when being surrounded by enemies.

There exist interesting stories about Erazem of Predjama, the most famous owner of the castle that lived in 15th century. The legend of a brave robber baron, who took from rich merchants and gave to poor, a Slovenian Robin Hood. When surrounded by enemies who chose to await and defeat him by starving him, he smuggled food from the valley on the other side of the hill. To mock the enemy, he sent them the cherries from the castle, which happened in the beginning of spring, where bringing cherries seemed as a magic trick, since it was still too early for cherries to grow. Surprised opponent didn’t know the cherries came from neighboring valley, with warmer weather where the cherries were already ripe. Unfortunately, a servant betrayed Erazem and he didn’t withstand that siege.

Taking the tour of the castle will give you an insight of life a few hundreds of years ago. As fascinating as it might seem it was quite demanding and uncomfortable to survive in this cold shelter. In informative and beautifully formed tour through castle chambers and rooms you can see the bedrooms, living spaces and objects needed at the time, be it weapons or kitchen supplies. In warmer months one can also visit the cave under the Predjama Castle which is inhabited by numerous bats and offering fascinating views. To imagine the medieval life even better, there is the Erazem’s Knight Tournament that is bringing the legend of brave baron to life. At this event the medieval dances and music are presented, and games with fire are shown, that can take you hundreds of years in the past.

Predjama Castle

Predjama 13, 6230 Postojna, Slovenia