Sigulda Medieval Castle Built in 1207 as a castellum type fortress , later rebuilt into a convent type building . From 2012 it is possible to climb up the North Tower , the Main Gate Tower and enjoy the medieval aura . Originally built eight centuries ago , the castle reopened its walls to visitors in 2012 and now encourages everyone to step back in time and enjoy the surroundings that bore witness to many historical events . In the ancient Gauja valley , shaped by the River Gauja and its tributaries , dozens of stone castles were erected and occupied in addition to the many castle mounds that were built by earlier locals . This area has the greatest concentration of castles not only in Latvia but also in Eastern Europe . Geographically , the Gauja valley played an important role during the Crusades due to its existing network of waterways and land roads that were already in place . The valley was also home to a variety of ethnic groups who each controlled their own lands . During the 13th century many new territories were established on the basis of war and battle . Sigulda Medieval Castle was built by the Livonian Brothers of the Sword who were later incorporated into the Teutonic Order of the castle , thus the castle eventually became the property of the Livonian Order . The Livonian Brothers of the Sword , officially known as The Militia of Christ of Livonia , was a military order composed of German " warrior monks . ” They later became better known as the Livonian Brothers of the Sword due to the symbols on their white capes : a red sword and cross . The order , founded in 1202 , was the first " warrior monk ” order formed outside the Mediterranean region . Historical documents indicate Bishop Albert and Cistercian Abbot Teoderih were the co - founders of the order . The military order ’ s mission was to remain in Livonia to protect the land and conquer new territories . As part of the land division between themselves and Bishop Albert in 1207 , the order gained the territory which stretched along the left side of the Gauja River . In the ongoing competition to determine hegemony between the Bishop and the Livonian Order , castle placement became a strategic factor . According to the Rhymed Chronicles , Sigulda Medieval Castle was erected sometime between 1207 and 1209 under the direction of Master Venno of the Order of the Brethren of the Sword . The Chronicle of Henry of Livonia says that the castle was in use by the Brothers of the Sword as a base while battling revolting Livs that were invading from a nearby castle . Sigulda Medieval Castle was initially built to monitor and control the water ways of the Gauja River and to fend off any invasion attempts from the nearby bishop ’ s castle in Turaida which was located on the river ’ s west coast . In 1224 the Pope ’ s legate , Wilhelm of Modena , stayed at the castle and established both a church and parish . In 1237 the lands of the Livonian Brothers of the Sword become the property of the German Order who continued to conquer additional territories in Latvia up until 1290 . The Grandmaster was the highest officer of the order , followed by the Livonian Master . Both , the Grandmaster and the Livonian Master were elected for life by the Generalkapitel . The Livonian Master lived in the Cesis Medieval Castle , which was the second most important castle in Latvia , after Riga ' s Castle . At the very beginning of the Livonian war , Sigulda Medieval Castle was damaged and in 1562 it became a part of the Polish Starostwo . At the end of the 16th century , the Poles repaired the castle and its surrounding buildings . During the Polish – Swedish war the castle was seriously damaged . After the war , the Swedes reported that the castle was empty and destroyed . In the 1622 it was again restored and a new residential building and sauna were built . In 1625 , the King of Sweden bestowed Sigulda as a gift to Count Uksensem , however , after the manor house reduction program it once again became state property . A layout of Sigulda Medieval Castle , created around 1680 , is stored in the War Archive in Stockholm . The castle was abandoned again during The Great Northern War . In 1737 Sigulda became a private estate . It was first the property of Count Lasi , followed by Brown and the Borhs . In the 19th century the castle and its layout were remodeled and a gate , inscribed with the year 1867 , was added to the front part of the castle . The gate tower surrounding the inner castle building was decorated with the Broh family coat of arms . Additionally , the ruins of the castle were fortified and two pseudo - gothic arches were constructed . Finally , between 1878 and 1881 , a new castle was built by Duke Kropotkin ’ s family . Sigulda Medieval castle is situated on the edge of the ancient Gauja valley on a projection formed by three steep slopes . A deep ditch at the south side of the castle was constructed to protect the castle buildings by separating them from the rest of the land . The castle sits on a highland and is naturally protected from invaders by high , steep slopes . Special ponds were created to secure the castle ’ s southeast side . Sigulda castle was originally built as a castellum or Roman - type watch tower and was later modified . It consisted of several interconnected structures which included a central building or castellum , an inner castle forepart and an outer or southern forepart . The building of Sigulda castle can be divided into several time periods . Construction started at the beginning of the 13th century . The first building was of rectangular shape and made of dolomite blocks with 3 meter thick walls . Below this , a large basement was built , 10 x 9 . 5 meters , with a roman style column in the middle of the room supporting the vault . A fragment of this building remains today as it was cemented into the southern wall of the castellum that was built later . According to historian Tulse , the second stage of construction occurred during the last quarter of the 13th century through the end of the 14th century when the square - shaped central complex or castellum with its inner courtyard surrounded by three buildings was erected . This converted the former castellum into a typical convent - type castle . Local stone was primarily used for construction although the walls and certain architectural elements were made of dolomite and limestone . The three - story high , south - west section of the convent building survives to this day . The chapel , which was ten meters wide and had Gothic window lintels and a lancet arch , was located at the southern end of the second floor . Its wall was decorated with a cross . The third floor was used to store weapons . In the second half of the 15th century , as firearms evolved , the machicolations on the battlements were rebuilt and the chapel and hall on the south complex second floor got larger windows . The central castle complex was surrounded by an inner fore - castle in the shape of an irregular square measuring 80 x 100 meters at its widest part . The square shaped towers projected out from the wall surrounding the southern side of the forecastle and its northeastern corner . The outbuildings along the side yards were built in the 17th century . Downstream , another wall was built to secure the inner fore - part of the castle . A small wicket gate at the north side of the inner forecastle leads to the Gauja River . The main entrance , at the southern side of the castle , swept through a four - story high gate tower that was built around the year 1400 . At the forefront was a drawbridge with a tower sitting on the opposite side of the ditch . A vaulted entrance on the southwest wing of the castella connected the inner yard of the forecastle with the inner yard of the castle . The lower part of the castellum was guarded and occupied by servants . The hall , built in the Gothic style , was located on the main floor . A chapel was constructed on the southeast side of the castle . The storage rooms with weapons and the machicolations were built above the main floor . Records show that the forecastle use to be three times larger than the inner castle or main building and was surrounded by a wall with a gate in the southern wall . Architectural plans dating from the 17th century show the outbuildings and yards use to be located in the outer forecastle . The structure of the main castle began to weaken around the 17th century . At the beginning of the 19th century the castle once again got attention but , following the trend of the times , it was simply admired as a romantic ruin . Monument protection concerns caused some construction work to be done in order to renew the gate tower and other important parts of the castle . Due to its importance as a tourist attraction , the castle walls have been fortified many times in the 20th century . After World War I with the establishment of Latvia , the ruins have been under the auspices of the Monument Board . Several history researchers simultaneously became interested in the history of the building of the castle . In 1922 , Karl Woldemar von Löwis of Menar , a researcher of Baltic - German origin , found a revised reconstruction plan for the castle , dated from the 17th century . It is currently housed at the Archive in Stockholm . Estonian art history researcher , Armins Tulse , discovered information related to the actual construction . In depth research and renovation of Sigulda castle began in 1962 . Measurements were made of the construction plan , facade and wall details . A topographic plan of the castle and its surrounding was created in 1978 . Historians used photo - fixation techniques as they collected all available castle data . Archaeological excavations of the ruins were supervised by Normunds Treijs from 1987 to 1988 and by Jānis Ciglis in 1997 . Architect Tatjana Vitola devised a method for fortifying the castle walls which has been used several times since 1962 . In 2011 , the European Union co - sponsored a project designed to assist with the renovations . It was officially titled “ Reconstruction of Sigulda Castle Ruins and Infrastructure Adjustment for Tourism Development ” and successfully concluded in 2012 . All of this has resulted in the reconstruction of the castle ruins and its surroundings which makes it a unique tourist attraction combining a rich cultural history in an ecologically clean environment .