Sharivka Manor, Heritage château in Sharivka, Ukraine

Sharivka Manor is a white stone Neo-Gothic palace built at the end of the 19th century on a hill above the Merchik River. Its two-storey facade has pointed windows and a balcony, with two octagonal towers topped by battlements and spires flanking the south-facing main entrance. Inside are 26 rooms and three halls, including a ballroom and a library with dark oak carving.

Savva Olkhovsky, a retired major, founded the estate in the village of Sharivka in 1836 after receiving the village from Catherine II. The property later passed to the Gebenstreit brothers, one of whom, Christian, an amateur botanist, planted the park with exotic species. In 1881 the sugar manufacturer Leopold Koenig bought it and, with his sons and European specialists, brought the buildings and park to their final form by 1912.

Locals call the palace the "Sugar Castle" after Leopold Koenig, the sugar magnate who bought the estate in 1881. A legend says he had his favourite hill covered with tonnes of sugar so his ailing wife could ride a sleigh there in summer. The linden alley he planted for her survives, its branches growing upright like poplars.

The estate lies in Sharivka, Bohodukhiv district, Kharkiv Oblast, on the banks of the Merchik River. The palace stands on a hill at the centre of the complex, with terraces leading south into the park. The entrance is currently open; tickets are sold at the estate entrance, including separate tickets for photo sessions in the halls. Almost all rooms are accessible except the two-storey veranda and the west wing.

The lime avenue planted for Koenig's wife still stands, and its branches grow vertically like poplars rather than spreading sideways. Legend says Koenig once had her favourite hill covered with tonnes of sugar so she could ride a sleigh there in summer, which gave the slope the name Sugar Hill.