Indijos Hillfort

Also known as Pilė or Pilis, the Indijos Hillfort has been significantly eroded, with its northern part washed away by the Akmena River. It is surrounded by a valley, with steep slopes reaching 8–10 meters in height. The fortification features remnants of a platform approximately 20 meters long and 2–3 meters wide on the southwestern edge, and part of a former 4-meter-high rampart on its southeastern end. Beyond this rampart is a 2-meter-wide (at the top) and 1-meter-deep ditch. On the eastern slope, 7 meters below the platform, is a second, lower rampart. To the north of the hillfort, beyond a 10-meter-deep ditch, is another mound, which likely housed a secondary fortification, though it has largely been eroded by the Akmena River. The river may have once encircled the fort on three sides, leaving a remnant meander.

Historians Rimantas Jasas and Romas Batūra, along with archaeologist Gintautas Zabiela, suggest that in the early 14th century, this site might have been the location of the significant Karšuva land fortress mentioned in historical sources, known as Pūtvės Castle. This castle was burned by the Teutonic Knights in 1307 and 1315. The current land of Pūtvės village starts just about 2.5 kilometers south of the hillfort, and it may have included the castle site. This possibility is supported by historical records showing that the lands of the Pūtvė family estate, according to the 1562 Karšuva district inventory, extended to Vaičius, a village across the Akmena River. There was also a hillfort within Pūtvės village itself.

In 1307, during the first known attack, the Teutonic Knights, led by the Komtur of Ragainė, "secretly entered the secondary fort while the defenders were still asleep and set it ablaze, capturing or killing everyone except those who managed to escape to the main fortress." In the same year’s autumn, the same Komtur and his men burned the secondary fort again. However, the main fortress was not captured and destroyed until several years later, when a local noble traitor named Spudas opened the gates to the enemy, receiving the grace of baptism along with his family. The fortress was likely quickly rebuilt, as in 1328, "the Ragainė brothers with 80 men attacked the secondary fort and fought with the Pūtvės defenders." Later sources do not mention Pūtvės Castle.