Archaeological research shows that the area was already inhabited in the Neolithic era, and that in the Bronze and Iron Ages there was a fortress on the site of today's castle.

At the time of the conquest, a fortress built from piles[clarification needed] stood at the top of today's castle hill.

Together with his courtyard he moved to the Munkács region, and with his activities he greatly promoted the economic and cultural development of Transcarpathia.

At his feet,[clarification needed] a wide ditch was dug and filled with water; The other name of the castle is "Palánk".

In 1527 the castle was still in King Louis II's widow Queen Mary's ownership, when János Szapolyai occupied it in 1528.

After the death of Gábor Bethlen in 1629, the castle was owned by his wife, Katalin of Brandenburg, who was forced to hand it over to György Rákóczi I, Prince of Transylvania, a few months later.

According to the law of inheritance, after Katalin's death the castle should have become the property of the royal House of Habsburg, but György Rákóczi I did everything he could to obtain this strategically important fortress.

The prince arranged[clarification needed] his court here and welcomed the French, Polish and Swedish ambassadors he had successfully invited to negotiate with them.

After his death, his wife Zsuzsanna Lorántffy obtained possession of the castle, and continued to expand and strengthen it, using the expertise of French architects.

The Poles, led by Prince Lubomirsky, sacked the counties of Bereg, Ung and Zemplén in revenge, destroyed the cities, including Munkács and Beregszász, but could not occupy the castle.

The advancing imperial troops easily captured the Castle of Ungvár and arrived at Munkács in the middle of November 1685.

On March 10, 1686, Imperial General Aeneas de Caprara (1631–1701) called for surrender, but Ilona Zrínyi stood firm.

For seven months she defended the castle with his[clarification needed] Hungarian, Ruthenian, Slovakian and German soldiers.

Showing her personal heroism, she often appeared on the bastions with her ten-year-old son Francis, defying the strong gunfire.

However, the enemy did not give up the hope of acquiring a strategically very important fortress and bringing together new forces under[clarification needed] the castle.

She signed the agreement on January 15, 1688, and two days later, Emperor Leopold I's army, led by Antonio de Caraffa entered the castle.

[clarification needed] The siege of the castle began in November 1703 and ended on February 16, 1704 with the victory of the Kuruc army.

Rákóczi immediately moved in and headed for a freedom fight,[clarification needed] which was a very important base for his strategic position.

He therefore instructed Demoiseaux brigade engineer[clarification needed] to prepare a plan for the modernization and reconstruction of the castle.

After the failure of the War of Independence led by Rákóczi, the castle of Munkács fell into the possession of Charles VI, Holy Roman Emperor, who in 1728 granted it to Austrian Count Lothar Franz von Schönborn.

After the first division of Poland in 1772, East Galicia was attached to the Austrian Empire, and the castle finally lost its strategic military significance.

Among others, the leader of the Greek independence struggle Alexander Ypsilantis from 1821 to 1823, Ferenc Kazinczy, a Hungarian writer and language innovator, and 42 participants in the Martinovics conspiracy.

From 11 December 1805 to 10 March 1806, for 88 days, escaping from Napoleon, the Holy Crown of Hungary was concealed under arrest in the castle.

When Nicholas I, Russian Tsar, came to help the Austrian emperor, defenders of the Munkács Castle (32 officers and 1329 public soldiers) were forced to give up on August 26, 1849.

On July 1, 1855, upon the decree of Emperor Franz Joseph I, the castle was again converted into a prison, and many soldiers of the War of Independence lived their cells.

The castle was bought by the Ministry of Finance for 393,859 crowns and was entrusted[clarification needed] by the Bereg County Treasury.

The ruined castle has recently undergone "real" refurbishment work, and there are several exhibitions in the restored rooms.