A Gothic tower of the second half of the 14th century, 34 m high, with three terraces, part of Stargard’s town walls listed as a Historic Monument.
The Red Sea Tower (Baszta Morze Czerwone) is a Gothic tower from the second half of the 14th century, part of Stargard's fortifications. It stands in the Old Town, at the junction of Warowna and Władysława Łokietka streets, and is 34 m high. According to the Wikipedia entry it was among the peak achievements of medieval defensive architecture in Pomerania. Together with the Collegiate Church of St Mary and the remaining walls, it has been a Historic Monument (pomnik historii) since 17 September 2010.
Legends link the name to the Thirty Years' War, when fighting was said to have taken place nearby, causing a sea of blood to flow. Other legends speak of condemned prisoners being thrown from the top of the tower, leaving red marks. A more likely origin of the name is the rust-coloured marshes that existed in this area even before the tower was built.
The tower rests on a rectangular stone plinth measuring 8 by 9 m. Its central shaft is a brick cylinder laid in Polish bond, decorated with diamonds of glazed brick. It has three viewing terraces, the upper two crowned with crenellation, and the whole is closed by a brick, octagonal pyramid. The interior consists of eight levels connected by stairs, which replaced the former ladders. On each level there are slits for observation and firing, set in a chequerboard pattern on the elevation.
The base housed a prison dungeon, whose shape can be seen in the passage cut through the square base in 1860. On the western side, at the height of the walls, there was a platform for placing cannon.
The entrance leads in at first-floor level from the inner side of the fortifications and, according to the Wikipedia entry, is open to tourists in the summer season. Dates and hours should be checked before your visit at the tourist information office in Stargard.
Nearby stands the Pyrzyce Gate.
Not far away is St John's Church.
About 400 m further on rises the Collegiate Church of St Mary, Queen of the World.
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