For more than four centuries, the legend of the Black Lady has been living in the ancient city of Nesvizh. Many writers, artists, musicians told about her in their works. Ex-cursors introduce this legend to numerous tourists, leading them to a wonderful palace-castle in a picturesque park. In oral folk art, she lives in various versions.

Here is what they say in Nesvizh.

In the middle of the 16th century, the mighty and glorious Nikolai Radziwill, nicknamed Black, was the owner of the city. In literature, he is shown as a capable diplomat, an educated statesman, very influential in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, performing the duties of the Grand Chancellor. In 1547, Nikolai Cherny achieved the title of prince for himself and his brothers, but did not rest on this. He dreamed of taking the principality out of the power of the Polish crown and becoming the most independent king in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. To fulfill his dream, Radziwill also used a new trend in religion - Protestantism. The prince himself accepted the teachings of Calvin and invited numerous reformers to Nesvizh. It was at this time that the Nesvizh printing house began to operate, in which books were published in the Belarusian language. The influence of Nicholas Cherny increased even more when he became related to the future Polish king Sigismund August through his cousin Barbara Radziwill.

The beautiful Barbara lived in Vilna. Her father was considered an experienced commander, who was called ‘Hercules of Lithuania’ because he won 30 victories over the enemy. By the way, his portrait, executed in the manner of the German Renaissance, has survived to our time, was restored in 1982. There is an assumption that it was written by one of the Cranachs. Barbara lost her father early, and soon her first husband. The castles of the young widow and the prince Sigismund were nearby. The prince did not remain indifferent to the beauty of Barbara. They started dating and soon fell deeply in love with each other.

Relatives learned about their meetings. The Nesvizh Radziwill, Nikolai Cherny, was especially excited. He cared about the reputation of his sister and decided to take the necessary measures to save the name and honor of her and his family from unwanted gossip. The danger was that the mother of the prince Bona Sforza fiercely hated the "upstarts" Radziwills.

The old king was living his last days. Soon his son was to become the monarch. A wife for him was sought among the most influential royal courts of Europe.

Nesvizh Radziwill decided to go to Vilna himself and restore order. He took with him his cousin Nikolai Ryzhy (Barbara's brother) and went to the prince. In knightly attire, the brothers looked very menacing. They demanded a final decision from Sigismund: either marry Barbara, or no longer meet with her. The prince, who knew his unstable position, the attitude of the queen mother to the representative of the Radziwill family, as well as the intrigues at the Polish court, had to give his word that he would leave his beloved.

The brothers pretended to leave Vilna. The king wanted to see Barbara again. During the meeting of the lovers, the brothers suddenly appeared and demanded from Sigismund that he marry their sister, since he had broken his word. The prince agreed because he loved Barbara very much. He only asked that the wedding be kept secret until such time as he took the Polish throne, otherwise he would not be able to protect not only Barbara, but also himself.

After some time, Sigismund the Old died. Korolevich was urgently summoned to Krakow. Bona Sforza is actively looking for a bride for the young king. Marriage should strengthen the throne and increase the prestige of the Commonwealth in Europe. The news came like a thunderclap that the king already had a wife. Bona Sforza makes every effort to prevent the Diet from crowning Barbara. To successfully resolve this issue, Nikolai Cherny had to go to Rome to see the pope. When the Sejm was nevertheless forced to crown Barbara, the queen mother left Krakow in protest and went home to Italy. She took her entire court with her, but left agents with the task of poisoning the hated Queen Barbara. The surname of the pharmacist Monti has come down to our days, who instead of the necessary medicine prepared poison, which slowly but inexorably brought the blooming beauty to the grave. Barbara was crowned in December 1550, and six months later, in May 1551, she died.

The despair and grief of the king were immeasurable. According to the will of the deceased, the coffin with her body was taken to Vilna. The inconsolable king followed the coffin on foot all the way from Krakow. Barbara was buried in the Cathedral on Gediminas Square. The sarcophagus with her remains is still there today.

Many works have been written about the great love and grief of the king. It lives in such a legend.

After the death of his beloved, the king was so sad that he decided to summon her soul with the help of alchemists. As historians testify, Tvardovsky and Mnishek (historical figures) undertook to do this. In the semi-dark hall, everything was prepared so that with the help of mirrors, on one of which Barbara was engraved in full growth in white clothes, loved by the king, to play the scene of the meeting of the king and Barbara's soul. They put the king in a chair and they wanted to tie his hands to the armrests so that he would not accidentally touch the ghost. Sigismund gave his word that he would sit quietly and only at a distance would ask his beloved how he should live on. But when the ghost appeared, he forgot his oath from excitement, jumped up from his chair, rushed to the ghost with the words: "My little fable!" - and wanted to hug her. There was an explosion, there was a cadaverous smell - now Barbara's soul could not find its way to the grave, it would forever wander the earth. Since that time, she has been walking among people, and after the death of the king, she settled in the Nesvizh castle. Before the living, she always appeared in a black robe as a sign of mourning for her ruined love. In the castle, it was believed that the ghost warns the owners of the castle about the danger that threatens them - war, illness.

In the middle of the 18th century, the Black Lady began to fulfill new duties - she monitored the behavior of young beautiful girls and women. Some she taught in dark places during balls, when they allowed themselves to appear in very open toilets.

The existence of the Black Lady in the castle was also believed by the Germans, who twice occupied Nesvizh. When they saw something black at the end of the park, then with a cry of "Schwarz Frau!" fired in that direction and ran to hide.

Shortly after her premature death, Barbara began to be considered a saint. Artists painted icons of the Mother of God from her portraits. One of the icons is located in Vilnius. The Belarusian poet Yanka Sipakov wrote a ballad-lament "Request" on this plot.

O my gentle king!

Like shchyra you cry - I can smell ...

As if I were tired of strings,

kab only sutseshyts tsyabe.

How glad I was

your troubles are black to sleep,

Rejoice zbudzіts, like earlier,

to the wounded of your hearts ...

O unforgettable my husband!

I will be remembered and here I am,

How are you ў vochy may get so happy looking,

How not to shepherd you,

what to separate us hazel,

Yak stumbled evil and your good smile ...

And how many evil-doing courtiers

hatsel our hands are different -

Taba, punish, already shukali new zhonka yana.

Matsі yours, karaleva,

my daughter-in-law didn’t have a dream,

For I am here, "and Radzіvіlaў - to the family of the nyalyubaga.

Theta I remember...

Taksama, as I remember, that you are not paddowy: That nonsense, which was poured by everyone,

skіdvaўsya pure vada.

I remember how sweaty - oh dziva! —

you, that the throats were all fighting,

What is ugly

spagudzіts only і praglі mane, -

Yak yana sweaty lіslіva

ў creature vinavata looked,

I, xmo groaning like the most, - the lower itself bent ...

O my mighty king!

You dig out an absurd request

1 Adgan Hell Meany Perman Nyagodnika.

What is paused on your knees -

patsalavatsya mae place I then hang out nyashchira

over my head of us.

Yana, like a slut

my white, my shroud is cold

I will be: “Holy!” *, “Holy!” - wandering bushes milk.

Bonysh, im a nyatsyazhka

call me a saint,

Whom zhytstsi, kab prameli,

muggle would be stunned and ў in tears.

Chuesh, my king is affectionate?

Khutchey IX, Khutchey adhani you -

I don't want to be a saint!

It seems, King Sigizmund weeps / a lot of shchyra,

Glasses, Varvara's request, it seems, he couldn't resist...

K. Ya. Shishigina-Pototskaya

From the book "Legends of Nesvizh"", 1997

The legend of the Black Lady is one of the most beautiful and mystical legends of Nesvizh. It is based on a romantic and, at the same time, tragic story that actually took place.

Barbara Radziwill, a representative of the most influential magnate family of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, secretly married Sigismund, the future king of the Commonwealth. According to the rules that existed in those days, Sigismund had to strengthen the state with a good marriage. The court did not know about the marriage of the young king, so the courtiers immediately began to look for a bride from the noble families of Europe. The news of the secret marriage of the king struck like a bolt from the blue. She was especially unpleasant to Sigismund's mother - a proud Italian, Queen Bona Sforza. Barbara's marriage to the king strengthened the positions of the Radziwills in Poland and brought them closer to the throne. Bona Sforza passionately hated this family, considered them upstarts. It was better for the Polish court to see the Turkish sultan on his throne than one of the Radziwills. The Italian did her best to prevent Barbara's coronation. The Catholic clergy suggested that Sigismund get a divorce, and share the sin for breaking the marriage vow among all subjects of the state. But the king, passionately in love with his beautiful wife, replied that he would rather convert to Protestantism than abandon Barbara and break the promises made to her before God.

When the diet nevertheless crowned Barbara, Bona Sforza acted like a real Italian. With the whole court, she moved to Italy, but left the doctor, who prepared poison for Barbara. Barbara was crowned in December 1550 and died six months later. She was buried in Vilna, the city of her childhood. All the way from Krakow, the inconsolable king walked behind the coffin of his beloved.

Thus ends the story and begins the legend. Sigismund, who loved Barbara very much, did not want to come to terms with her death. The king decided with the help of alchemists and magicians to call the soul of the deceased wife. According to the rules, during the séance, the king was not supposed to touch the ghost of Barbara. When all the necessary ritual actions were completed, and the spirit of Barbara appeared in the room, the king could not resist, rushed to his beloved with a cry of "My little fawn ..." and touched her. At the same moment, an explosion thundered in the room, a cadaverous smell began ... They say that since then the ghost of Barbara could not find peace. It is believed that the ghost after the death of the king settled in the Nesvizh castle. As a rule, the spirit of Barbara appears in the Nesvizh Palace at night, at one o'clock. According to legend, the appearance of the soul of Barabara warns of impending troubles. She was seen at the Palace just before the big fire in 2002, when much of the palace burned down.

I strongly advise everyone who is planning a trip to Belarus to visit the Nesvizh Castle - get a beautiful and informative tour with a slight touch of mysticism.
A UNESCO World Heritage Site, the family home of the famous Lithuanian princes Radziwills, the castle seemed to me more like an elegant palace than a powerful defensive fortress. In the summer of 2011, when my meeting with the castle took place, restoration work was still going on in some places, and under the bridge, right in the moat, a bulldozer was cheerfully floundering ... Nevertheless, the castle and the city itself left only the most pleasant impressions.

Separately, it is worth mentioning the local guides, who talk with such inspiration about the castle and its inhabitants, the stories and legends associated with them, which I want to applaud. By the way, about the owners of the frame, the Radziwills, you can write separate opuses. This family was so rich and influential that contemporaries called them nothing more than "uncrowned kings." In addition, they are quite capable of “showing the middle finger” to the same king ... Even the nicknames given to them by compatriots did not leave me indifferent - Orphan, Black, Rybonka, Panya Kokhanka (well, a person with that name cannot be uninteresting, isn’t it ? :))

In a word, a beautiful castle with a fascinating history, covered with many legends and, by the way, having its own ghost - the Black Lady. This is what I will focus on in my story, because it is already like a “calling card” of the castle.

The story is extremely heartbreaking, lovers of melodrama, please prepare handkerchiefs ... For it will be about tragic love and untimely death. So, according to legend, Barbara Radziwill, the wife of the Polish king Sigismund Augustus, who managed to be queen for only 6 months, acts as a ghost. The story began in 1542, when the young heir to the throne, Prince Sigismund, fell in love with Barbara, the widow of Gashtold, the first beauty of the Commonwealth. Things might not have come to marriage if it weren’t for the zealous efforts of two of Barbara’s relatives - brother Radziwill the Red and cousin Radziwill the Black ... Wanting to strengthen their political influence at court, they cunningly arranged a wedding, organizing a performance with a peeped date, the threat of a scandal and a priest suddenly appearing from somewhere. Well, well, the prince in love did not really resist ...

When King Sigismund the Old dies, and our hero has to take the throne, his caring mother, Queen Bona Sforza, with all the agility of her Italian soul, begins to look for a bride for her son. This is where the secret marriage becomes clear. Despite the stormy protests of the entire Polish Sejm, who did not at all want to call the Lithuanian princess his queen, and the ultimatums of his mother, Sigismund still seeks the crown for his beloved. But is it good? This is where the story about Snow White and the insidious stepmother begins, sorry, in this version - the insidious mother-in-law. Never reconciled, Queen Bona drove off to Italy with her retinue, but left her personal doctor with orders to poison Barbara. Yeah, everything is in the best traditions of sunny Italy... Barbara's fate causes sympathy, doesn't it, ladies? Just imagine, here is a young and beautiful, puts on a crown, a loving husband is nearby and rrraz! ... from that day on she does not get out of bed anymore. For six months Barbara struggled with the "disease", and all the time Sigismund did not leave her side. The guide, with a trembling voice, tells how the king personally looked after the patient, even when it became completely unbearable to be around. This is where the real story ends and the mysticism begins. The king suffered all the time, and could not come to terms with the death of his wife. Finally, he decided to summon the spirit of his beloved at a seance. Huge mirrors and portraits of Barbara were installed in the dungeon, and the king received the strictest order - in no case should he touch the phantom ... But Sigismund, overcome by feelings, could not restrain himself and tried to hug his wife. The ritual was broken, the spell was broken, and the spirit of the unfortunate queen could no longer return. Since then, the Black Lady has been wandering through the chambers of the castle, foreshadowing trouble for everyone who meets her...

Touching, yes. Causes associations with the ancient myth about Orpheus and Eurydice ... But if you dig, you can find out a lot of unpleasant facts proving that Barbara was by no means an angel. Even under her first husband, she was called "the great whore of Lithuania", attributing at least 38 lovers! Our lady also loved fashionable outfits, pearls and used cosmetics abundantly ... The first husband, Stanislav Halshtod, by the way, did not lag behind the missus in his exploits, and even infected her with the “French disease”, that is, syphilis ... So maybe Queen Bonet was what to hate such a daughter-in-law? And maybe the beautiful Barbara did not die from poison at all? And some Polish researchers even believe that rapidly progressing cancer was to blame. Having started to dig, I can’t stop, it’s interesting, and honestly, I myself was not happy ... Let the beautiful legend remain such!

But, there is nothing to do, and I went to debunk the legend itself. To smithereens, may romantically inclined persons forgive me... Firstly, Barbara Radziwill never even visited Nesvizh, which during her lifetime was just a provincial seedy town... The foundation stone of the Nesvizh castle was laid no earlier than 30 years since Barbara's death. So even purely theoretically, she could not walk through its halls and corridors. The princess was born in Vilna (modern Vilnius, the capital of Lithuania), where she was buried according to her own dying wish. So maybe she is not that notorious Black Lady of Nesvizh at all? The descendants of the Radziwills themselves, by the way, sincerely believe in the existence of the Black Lady, but they mean a completely different woman. Her name is Princess Anna Radziwill-Sangushkova, who lived in Nesvizh for a long time and was buried under the slabs of the Church of the Body of God. According to their version, Anna appears only to members of the Radziwill clan, and only to warn of impending misfortune.

Secondly, it seems that the enthusiasm for the beauty of Barbara is greatly exaggerated. There are only two authentic portraits left, and it is on them that the princess looks like a nondescript gray mouse. And the later copy of this portrait, the more attractive they draw our Barbara. And in some records of her contemporaries it is indicated that the “beauty” had broad shoulders and a rather strong-willed face, abundantly sprinkled with white powder ... And the reconstruction of the princess’s face from her skull completely baffled scientists: it turns out that Barbara had a rather impressive nose with a hump ! Oh, somewhere we have already heard about this notorious “hump nose”, which belongs to another famous fatal beauty of antiquity. Of course, I mean Cleopatra… That’s how the image of a beauty with a doll face melted away, alas… Could she really win the king’s heart with her charm alone?

And another legend, about an underground passage that allegedly connects the Nesvizh Castle with the Mir Castle, does not seem to be so extravagant. Not so long ago, archaeologists discovered one of the previously unknown underground corridors, research is underway. Maybe the famous missing treasure of the Radziwills will be discovered. It's no joke, a ton of gold...

In addition to the castle, I advise you to take a walk along the alleys of its park. Of course, for those who have visited, say, Tsarskoe Selo or Pavlovsk, he may seem very modest. I really liked the silvery willows growing there, as well as numerous park sculptures, for example, Ondine's mermaids, or the dog that saved her master from a bear ...

And the real “gift” for me was the organ in the church of the Body of God. Just during our excursion, Sunday mass was served in the temple, I did not take pictures at that moment ...

She just sat on a bench and enjoyed the solemn chords, unable to leave. Forgetting about everything in the world, including that they have been waiting for me for a long time ... I must say thanks to Viapol and the kind Belarusians who did not leave me there, and were not too lazy to find and put my carcass on the bus. It was the carcass, because my soul remained there, next to the organ ... By the way, since then in St. Petersburg I have attended more than one organ concert, but somehow everything is not that, not impressive ...

👁 Do we always book a hotel on Booking? Not only Booking exists in the world (🙈 we pay for a horse percentage from hotels!) I have been practicing Rumguru for a long time, it’s really more profitable 💰💰 Booking.

👁 Do you know? 🐒 this is the evolution of city tours. VIP guide - a city dweller, will show the most unusual places and tell urban legends, I tried it, it's fire 🚀! Prices from 600 rubles. - will definitely please 🤑

👁 The best search engine in Runet - Yandex ❤ started selling air tickets! 🤷

The castle in the city of Nesvizh, Minsk region, is one of the few monuments of the Middle Ages that have survived in Belarus to this day. The residence of the famous family of the Radziwills is covered with gloomy and romantic legends. As befits an ancient castle, a ghost lives in it - the Black Pani.

two trees

Since the 16th century, a fair amount of evidence has accumulated about the appearance in the Nesvizh Castle and its environs of a tall, slender woman in a black dress. With an unhurried smooth gait, she walks through the halls, through the courtyard of the castle, along the alleys of the park. But woe to the one who meets her is a sign of imminent trouble, a warning of imminent danger.

One of the phenomena of the Black Lady is associated with a romantic legend about a tragic event that happened in the 17th century. At that time, Prince Mikhail Kazimir Radziwill owned Nesvizh, and Slutsk was owned by his brother Jerome Florian. And both of them maintained court theaters in which their serfs played. To diversify the repertoire, the brothers often exchanged artists. And then one day a Nesvizh serf artist fell in love with a visiting beauty ballerina from Slutsk. His feeling did not remain unrequited, and the lovers decided to ask their owners for permission to marry. The kind-hearted Nesvizh prince agreed, but his brother, who was distinguished by a stern and absurd disposition, opposed and ordered his servants to return the girl to Slutsk. Upon learning of this decision, the young people decided to run away and get married in secret. They agreed on this on a date in the vicinity of the castle. And so, when the lovers, having discussed all the details of the risky venture, returned to the castle, they met an unfamiliar lady in black clothes in the alley. Raising her veil, she gazed at them intently, shook her head mournfully, and, without uttering a word, walked away.

The lovers nevertheless decided to escape, but they did not manage to go far: the chase overtook them not far from Nesvizh, both were put in chains and sent to their owners. Soon the girl, unable to bear the hardships of imprisonment and separation from her beloved, died in the dungeons of the Slutsk castle. And the artist, having learned about this, begged his prince to let him go to the monastery. Before leaving, he planted two trees at the place of the last meeting with his beloved: an oak and a pine. This monument of love and fidelity has survived to this day. The trees withered a few years ago.

Lithuanian emancipe

Who is hiding under the veil of the Black Lady? In most legends, the ghost of Nesvizh Castle is associated with the name of Barbara Radziwill, the first beauty of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and the Kingdom of Poland and one of the most outstanding women of that era. She is the daughter of the Vilna castellan and the great Lithuanian hetman Yuri Radziwill. Barbara was born in 1520, received an excellent education, spoke and wrote fluently in Belarusian and Lithuanian, spoke Latin, knew Greek and German. She was taught drawing, poetry, playing musical instruments. Barbara knew mathematics, geography and theology. In addition, she was an excellent fencer and rode like an Amazon. She was a strong, strong-willed, charismatic woman passionately in love with life. Many men lost their heads because of her.

Barbara was married early - to Stanislav Gashtold, governor of Novogrudok and Trok, son of an influential nobleman, governor of Vilna Albert. Their marriage was purely dynastic, there was no talk of love. The husband, apparently unable to recognize all the virtues of his wife, often had fun on the side. Barbara paid him in the same coin. The list of her lovers is impressive. No wonder this woman was nicknamed "the great whore of Lithuania."

Love and Death of a Queen

Soon her husband died, and Barbara moved to Vilna, to her brother Nicholas the Red Radziwill. Barely removed from mourning, the young widow plunged into a whirlwind of balls and other secular entertainment. And she caught in this cycle not someone, but the Grand Duke of Lithuania Sigismund August, the son of the Polish king. They became lovers. Sigmund fell in love with a slender, tall blonde with light brown eyes, whose gaze possessed some kind of magical power. He was shocked by her beauty and grace, erudition, tact, impeccable taste, elegance, subtle sense of humor and intelligence.

In 1547, the lovers secretly married, and in 1548 Sigismund August became the Polish king. And, despite the fierce resistance of the mother of Bona Sforza and the objections of the Diet, he insisted on his own and made Barbara queen.

But the new queen did not rule long. A year after her coronation, on May 8, 1551, Barbara died unexpectedly at the Wawel Castle in Krakow. Prior to that, she was ill with a serious terrible disease. The doctors of that time could not understand what kind of ailment it was. The whole body of the young woman was covered with terrible ulcers and purulent sores, which opened before death, emitting a disgusting smell. Neither the doctors nor the servants could stand him. Only one devoted husband was at her bedside until the very end.

It is believed that Barbara was poisoned by her mother-in-law, Bona Sforza, who came from an Italian family who possessed the secrets of poisons. She was jealous of her son for a young beautiful woman, in addition, she wanted another party for him, which would make him related to the powerful houses of Europe.

Barbara was buried not in the Wawel Cathedral in Krakow, like all other Polish monarchs, but in Vilna, near the Church of St. Stanislaus. It was her will, expressed before her death. The king on horseback accompanied the deceased wife from Krakow to Vilna, and when the funeral procession passed through cities and villages, he dismounted and slowly walked behind the coffin.

Failed Ritual

The king could not forget his wife, his Basenka... In his mind, darkened with grief, a crazy idea arose to order the sorcerers to summon Barbara from the other world so that his spirit and the spirit of his beloved would be reunited forever. Sigismund arrived at Nesvizh Castle, to Barbara's brothers, with Pan Tvardovsky, a spiritualist and magician known throughout Europe, and his assistant Mniszek, who undertook to summon a ghost, but strictly forbade the king to touch him.

Sigismund was led into a dim hall lined with mirrors. On one of the mirrors, the sorcerer engraved a full-length portrait of Barbara in white clothes. Pan Tvardovsky wanted to tie the king's hands to the armrests so that he would not accidentally touch the ghost, but Sigismund promised that he would behave calmly. However, when the ghost of Barbara appeared, the king could not stand it, rushed to him with a cry of "My little fable!" and tried to hug. There was an explosion, the mirror shattered, a putrid smell spread around the room, Barbara's white clothes turned black, and the ghost disappeared - disappeared into the air of the castle ...

The eternal wandering of a ghost

Since then, Barbara's soul cannot find its way to the realm of the dead and is doomed to wander forever in the Nesvizh castle and its environs. Everything could have been different if the king had come to die in this castle. Then his spirit would forever unite with the spirit of Barbara. But death overtook him in a completely different place, and since then his ghost, lonely and unhappy, has been wandering around the Krakow castle.

Black Pani warns people about dangers - wars or fires. And in the middle of the 18th century, she suddenly became a guardian of morals, watching the behavior of beautiful girls and women. If they allowed themselves to come to the ball in very revealing outfits, a ghost appeared before them in the dark passages and corridors of the castle and scared the poor things half to death.

During the Great Patriotic War, Chernaya Pani was very unhappy with the behavior of the Germans who occupied Nesvizh. She terrorized them so much that if the Fritz saw something black in the park, then with a cry of “Schwarze Frau!” fired in that direction and ran in all directions.

Before the fire in 2002, which almost destroyed the Nesvizh Castle, the ghost of the Black Lady appeared to the watchman Vladimir Zhuravsky. Around midnight, after walking around the territory, he went into his gatehouse, located to the right of the entrance to the castle, stood in front of a large window and lit a cigarette. And then something flashed outside the window. Behind the glass, blocking the entire window opening, something resembling a black pleated skirt swayed in complete silence. This went on for a minute, after which the vision disappeared. The eyewitness was so frightened that he did not dare to go outside. And a month later there was a fire - just when he took over his shift. Vladimir Vladimirovich believes that the Black Lady appeared to him to warn of a fire.