At the beginning of the 14th century there was a Rus wooden fortress defending this cliff over the Zbruch River that guarded the trade route between the Tatars of Crimea and Lviv, one of the westernmost outposts of the Rus Kingdom. It was Fyodor Koriatovych, who took control of the town in 1331, who built the stone fortress that now stands in ruin.
Upon his death the town became a part of the Polish Kingdom and was given to Stanislav Lyantskronski who also controlled the famous fortress of Kamianets-Podilsky. He greatly increased the defenses of the fortress. Sheer cliffs and the Zbruch River protected three sides of the fortress. A deep ditch, high walls, and the Powder Tower defended the south side.
Despite its strong defenses, the fortress suffered capture many times over the centuries. The Tatars took the fortress in 1475, the Vlachs in 1538, the Tatars again in 1615 & 1620. In 1648 the Cossacks, under the command of Bogdan Khmelnitsky, stormed the fortress. And then in 1657 the fortress fell to the Transylvanian forces of George II Rakotsi during his rebellion against Austria-Hungary.
By the end of the 17th century, the fortress lost its defensive significance and was given to Adam Tarlo who rebuilt the walls and constructed a luxurious two-story palace. But by the beginning of the 18th century the fortress and palace laid in ruin after a thunderbolt struck the palace and the structure burned to the ground. It has been neglected since and has fallen into deep disrepair.