The Livonian Order built the castle, and the article says the Sword Brethren conquered the site in 1223 and started construction in 1224. Stone fortifications went up on a former hillfort. The convent house was erected in the late 13th to early 14th century, in the typical Teutonic Knights form, and the castle was later extended. The article names no architect and gives no dimensions.
It is called one of the strongest castles in Livonia. The early 17th-century Polish-Swedish wars badly damaged it, and it was never repaired. The introduction says it was finally destroyed, while the body only says badly damaged. Stone was quarried from the ruins in the 18th century.
Excavations began in 1878 and 1879 and now run almost every year. The ruins are a popular resort area with an open-air stage in the former courtyard.
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