In a way similar to the Malbork Castle in Poland, the Trakai Island Castle in Lithuania is another unique, large brick castle in Eastern Europe. Located on Lake Galvė, the construction of the castle begun in the late 14th century and it was finished in the first decade of the 15th century.
Trakai was one of the main centers of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. It had great strategic importance but lost its military significance soon after the Battle of Grunwald when the Grand Duchy of Lithuania was defeated by the Lithuanian-Polish army.
Before being heavily damaged and eventually fallen in despair in the 17th century, it also served as a prison.
The castle was reconstructed in its original style in the 1960s.
