Khotyn Fortress

The Khotyn Fortress (Ukrainian: Хотинська фортеця, Polish: twierdza w Chocimiu, Turkish: Hotin Kalesi, Romanian: Cetatea Hotinului) is a fortification complex located on the right bank of the Dniester River in Khotyn, Chernivtsi Oblast (province) of south - western Ukraine. It is situated on a territory of the historical northern Bessarabia region which was split in 1940 between Ukraine and Moldova. The fortress is also located in a close proximity to another famous defensive structure, the Old Kamianets Castle of Kamianets-Podilskyi. Construction on the current stone Khotyn/Hotin fortress was started in 1375, while major improvements were made in the 1380s and in the 1460s, under the Moldavian princes, Alexander the Good, and Stephen the Great.