Three kilometres from Ostroh, in a picturesque landscape between the Viliia and Zbytenka rivers, lies the village of Mezhyrich. The landscape itself seems to suggest that the history of this place begins between the rivers. This natural setting made it an ideal place for settlement from ancient times, as the surrounding rivers and wetlands provided excellent protection against invaders. The first written record of Mezhyrich dates back to 1396.
The first fortifications were established here as part of the princes’ economic and defensive domain. The construction of the stone Holy Trinity Church is closely associated with the Princes of Ostroh. According to tradition, it was commissioned by Prince Vasyl-Kostiantyn Ostrozkyi in gratitude for his father Hetman Kostiantyn Ivanovych Ostrozkyi’s victory over the Muscovite army at the Battle of Orsha in 1514.
During the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, Mezhyrich gradually developed into a fortified monastery. The complex was surrounded by high defensive walls with four corner towers, while the monks’ cells, utility buildings, and fortifications formed a unified defensive ensemble capable of withstanding enemy attacks. A new chapter began in the early seventeenth century when Prince Janusz Ostrogski transferred the monastery to the Franciscan Order. The complex was rebuilt, further fortified, and expanded with new buildings, acquiring many of the features that can still be seen today. Today, the Holy Trinity Monastery of Mezhyrich is one of the best-known examples of sacred defensive architecture in Volyn and the ancestral sanctuary of the Princes of Ostroh.
The monastery’s greatest treasure is the miraculous Mezhyrich Icon of the Mother of God, a family relic of the Princes of Ostroh known since the sixteenth century. For centuries, it has attracted pilgrims from various Christian denominations. In 1779, the icon was solemnly crowned with papal crowns by permission of Pope Clement XIV, recognising its exceptional spiritual significance.
Another layer of the site’s history unfolds beyond the monastery walls. Here, the landscape opens up, revealing Mezhyrich as a former fortified town with its own economic infrastructure. Within this setting stands Janusz’s Oven, a massive seventeenth-century stone structure that is the only surviving remnant of Prince Janusz Ostrogski’s palace, which was destroyed by fire in the mid-seventeenth century. Nearby stands the fifteenth-century Zaslav Gate, once the main entrance to the fortified settlement. Today, partially ruined and overgrown with greenery, it remains a silent witness to the town’s rich past.