The castle was originally given to John Hunyadi's father, Woyk (Vajk, Voicu), by Sigismund of Luxembourg, king of Hungary and Croatia, as severance in 1409.

The current castle is the result of a fanciful restoration campaign undertaken after a disastrous fire and many decades of total neglect.

[6] Built in a Renaissance-Gothic style and constructed over the site of an older fortification on a rock above the smaller Zlaști River, the castle is a large and imposing structure with tall towers, bastions, an inner courtyard, diversely coloured roofs, and myriad windows and balconies adorned with stone carvings.

The Buzdugan Tower (named after a type of mace) was solely built for defensive purposes and it had its exterior decorated with geometric motifs.

The gallery and the keep - the last defense tower (called "Neboisa" which means "Don't be afraid" in Serbo-Croatian), which remained unchanged from John Hunyadi's time, and the Capistrano Tower (named after the saint, Franciscan friar from the Battle of Belgrade in 1456) are some of the most significant parts of the construction.

In the wing of the castle called the Mantle, a painting can be seen which portrays the legend of the raven from which the name of the descendants of John Hunyadi.

Tourists are told that it was the place where Vlad the Impaler, Prince of Wallachia, was held prisoner by John Hunyadi, Hungary's military leader and regent during the King's minority.