Germany is unofficially considered a country of castles, because here there are more than 25 thousand, more than in any other state in the world.
Alas, many of them now are only more or less picturesque ruins.
But about 4300 German castles have been preserved much better, and tourists are willingly allowed there. Still would! After all, these (sometimes huge!) Architectural monuments need to be maintained and maintained in good shape.
Why did the German aristocracy build so many forts, fortresses, fortifications and castles? It's all about the turbulent history of medieval Germany.
After all, in fact, this state became a state in the full sense of the word only in 1871, when several dozen independent until that time German kingdoms, duchies, counties, etc., united around the Kingdom of Prussia.
Well, earlier all these mini-states constantly fought among themselves for land and power, because of which the territory of Germany, most often, was the most “troubled” region of Europe.
That is why every self-respecting aristocrat (from the smallest baron to the noble prince) considered it his duty to build for himself and his family a well-fortified castle-citadel, in which you can hold out longer in case of war and siege.
Over time, castles were repeatedly destroyed by enemies, rebuilt, very seriously rebuilt in accordance with new trends in fortification, architecture, etc.
Let us get acquainted with the most beautiful of them today.
10. Moritzburg (Schloss Moritzburg)
Just 14 km from the magnificent Dresden (Saxony), in the town of Moritzburg, there is a very interesting baroque castle with four round towers, surrounded by a large artificial lake (or rather, connected together by several small lakes).
Once upon a time in these places, completely covered with dense forests, the Saxon electors of the Vettin house were very fond of hunting. And then one day, Elector Moritz of Saxony ordered the construction of a hunting lodge here (in fact, an entire estate). So in 1542-1546. and the future castle of Moritzburg arose.
And almost two centuries later, Moritz of Saxony’s great-great-grandson, Augustus Strong, - by the way, not only the Saxon elector, but also the Polish king - wished to build his residence here and ordered the court architect Matthias Pöppelman to rebuild Moritzburg “according to the latest fashion” (which was done in 1661-1671 gg.).
The castle became baroque, “island” and embodied in its interiors all the possible luxury of the second half of the 17th century.
Its walls are decorated with bright murals with scenes from ancient mythology, rooms are furnished with expensive furniture, and collections of the best examples of Chinese, Japanese, and Meissen porcelain are stored here.
Many rooms remind of royal hunting - they collected trophies (and among other things - the largest deer horns in the world: 20 kg in weight and 2 meters long). By the way, there is a collection of carriages and strollers.
9. Hohenschwangau (Schloss Hohenschwangau)
Hohenschwangau Castle is located in Bavaria, near the town of Füssen, and very close to the famous Neuschwanstein (about which - below). Its name in translation is “High Swan Land”.
In the XII century, the Schwanstein fortress was founded on this site by the Knights of Schwangau. It safely existed until the XVI century, when the Schwangau clan was cut short. From this moment the fortress was abandoned and began to slowly collapse. During the Napoleonic Wars, it was almost razed to the ground.
But in the early 30s of the XIX century, these ruins were bought by Maximilian II of Bavaria, who really liked the places here. He ordered to rebuild everything anew (in the style of fashionable romanticism).
So in the years 1832-1836. Hohenschwangau appeared, becoming the official summer and hunting residence of the Bavarian monarchs.
After the death of Maximilian II, Hohenschwangau became the possession of his son Ludwig II of Bavaria - the dreamer king. Here he lived most of his life, here he invited the famous composer Richard Wagner (creating comfortable working conditions for him). A piano was preserved in the castle, after which the maestro wrote his magical operas.
All interiors of Hohenschwangau are decorated in lilac and lilac colors, and its walls are decorated with delicate frescoes with scenes from Bavarian legends, most often of “swan” themes.
8. Drachenburg (Schloss Drachenburg)
The youngest castle of our "top ten" - the beautiful neo-Gothic Drachenburg ("Dragon Castle") - stands on the Drachenfels hill, above the city of Königswinter on the banks of the Rhine.
In fact, this is a very successful “hybrid” of the palace, castle and villa, surrounded by a large park with fountains and sculptures.
This architectural masterpiece appeared in 1882-1884. at the whim and money of the German "nouveau riche" of that time, Stefan von Sarter.
The commoner Sarter made very good money as an exchange trader and one of the participants in the construction of the Suez Canal, bought the Baron’s title and decided, in this case, to own his own castle. True, Zarter did not intend to move into it.
In 1902, he died without writing a will (for he did not have a wife or children). As a result, Drachenburg went to his relative, Jacob Biesenbach, and he arranged in it a “premium hotel” overlooking the Rhine for the richest guests.
Then the castle managed to visit a railway school, a Catholic boarding school and a military school named after Adolf Hitler.
During World War II, anti-aircraft guns were on duty at Drachenburg, “thanks to which” it was bombed by Allied aircraft. (And then the Americans also “expropriated” many art objects from the castle).
In 1971, the administration of North Rhine-Westphalia was about to demolish the dull ruins, but they were bought (and thereby saved) by Paul Spinat, who restored Drachenburg and lived here until his death. And since 1989, the castle is state property.
Inside, Drachenburg is as gorgeous as it is outside - it is richly decorated with frescoes and tapestries, which depict scenes from German myths and legends (especially magnificent “Nibelungen rooms”), as well as other objects of art, a beautiful spiral staircase leads to its upper apartments.
7. Wernigerode (Schloss Wernigerode)
From anywhere in the city of Wernigerode (Saxony) you can see the castle of the same name, proudly towering on a high hill. The very first fortress was erected on this site (by order of Count Adalbert) back in the 12th century.
In 1429, when the clan of the Earls of Wernigerode stopped, it became the possession of the Earls of Stolberg (from that moment they began to be called Stolberg-Wernigerode). It was they who expanded the fortress to a castle in the 15th century, and in 1674-1676. significantly rebuilt it (according to the canons of the baroque).
The last reconstruction took place at the end of the XIX century - then Wernigerode acquired its neo-Gothic features. By the way, the descendants of the Stolberg-Wernigerode lived here until 1929.
If the castle seems vaguely familiar to you, then it is not in vain - the film “The Same Munchausen” of 1979 (with magnificent Yankovsky) was shot here. How so? Why was Soviet cinema shot in Germany? Because Wernigerode was then in the GDR.
6. Cochem (Schloss Reichsburg Cochem)
For the first time, Cochem Castle is mentioned in documents at the turn of the 11th-12th centuries. A military fortress with thick reliable walls surrounded by a moat was founded on a high hill above the Moselle River by the Lorraine Palatinate.
From there, all the surroundings were beautifully surveyed. Until the middle of the XII century, Cochem changed the owners more than once, until the king declared it imperial property (however, the Cologne archbishops constantly claimed the castle).
Finally, at the end of the 13th century, Adolf, the Earl of Nassau and the new king of Germany, was forced to nevertheless pawn Cochem by the Archbishop of Trier (due to lack of funds for his own coronation). And the next king - Albrecht I - also did not find money for the ransom of Cochem, leaving him to the bishops of Trier.
In the XVII century, during the German war with France over the Palatinate, the troops of the “King Sun” Louis XIV practically destroyed the castle, it was restored only in the XIX century, in 1868 Cochem bought the Berliner Louis Raven and rebuilt it in 9 years style neo-Gothic. Since 1978, the castle belongs to the town of Cochem.
5. Schwerin Castle (Schloss Schweriner)
In the city of Schwerin, on an island in the middle of a lake connected to the mainland by two bridges, there is a relatively young, but very photogenic castle, surrounded by a beautiful English park with a 17th-century chapel.
It was built in 1845-1857. for the Schwerin dukes, architect Georg Adolf Demmler (commissioned by Friedrich Franz II). Earlier in this place for a long time - since the X century - there was a military fortress, several times subjected to major restructuring. Nowadays, a museum works here, as well as the Landtag of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern.
Schwerin Castle is unique in its eclecticism (a mixture of styles) - its various facades and towers meet the canons of Gothic, Baroque, Renaissance, Classicism. And all this combines perfectly harmoniously. In the castle you can see collections of paintings by Dutch and German artists, samples of Meissen porcelain of the 18th century, silver items and jewelry, etc.
4. Lichtenstein (Schloss Lichtenstein)
Another young (but very beautiful) castle “saddled” a rocky cliff at an altitude of 817 meters in the Swabian Alb massif, near Reutlingen (Baden-Württemberg). Nearby you can see the ruins of the former fortress Old Lichtenstein, founded in the second half of the XI century, destroyed (almost to the base) at the end of the XIV century and never rebuilt in later times.
White and beautiful Lichtenstein was erected in 1840-1842 by order of the Duke of Württemberg, William of Urach, who was extremely inspired by Wilhelm Gauf's novel “Lichtenstein”.
The construction was carried out according to the then romantic notions of knight's castles, so it does not look severe, but light and even airy. By the way, descendants of counts Urakh who willingly admit visitors still live in it.
There is something to see in Lichtenstein (which can only be reached via a stone bridge) - magnificent collections of medieval weapons and armor, paintings, murals, etc. are collected here. In addition, the castle offers excellent views.
3. Hohenzollern (Burg Hohenzollern)
Settled on the top of the 855-meter mountain, the huge Hohenzollern castle is located in Baden-Württemberg, between Bisingen and Hechingen. Today it is one of the most visited castles in Germany. As its name implies, it is the former patrimony of the elector dynasty, who ruled in Prussia and Brandenburg (and from 1871 to 1918 they were Kaisers of all Germany).
In fact, the castle we can see today is already the third in the same place. The two previous ones were destroyed almost completely. One was founded back in the 11th century and was almost wiped off the face of the earth in 1423 by an army from Swabia. The second, rebuilt in the middle of the 15th century, withstood the Thirty Years War, but was practically abandoned (and half-dismantled) in the 18th century, after losing its strategic importance - in fact, only the chapel of St. Michael was preserved from it. Finally, the third castle ordered the construction of the Prussian king Frederick William IV (which was executed in 1850-1867).
Now Hohenzollern has a neo-Gothic look, it has 140 halls and rooms, which contain a lot of valuable items related to the history of Prussia and housed in chic interiors. So, the crown of William II, personal belongings of Frederick II the Great, a letter from US President Washington, etc. are stored here.
2. Eltz (Burg Eltz)
Eltz looks like a real standard of a medieval knight's castle. It was specially built in the most inaccessible place - on a steep rock in the middle of a dense forest. It’s hard to see even now, without going almost right up to the mark. And such a location justified itself completely - the castle was never captured during its entire long history, which began as early as the XII century (even during the most brutal wars of the XVII-XVIII centuries), and therefore it has been perfectly preserved to this day.
Eltz is located in Rhineland-Palatinate, near the Moselle River and the cities of Koblenz and Trier. It was once the ancestral estate of the families of Rübnach, Rodendorf and Kempenich.
The latest castle buildings date back to the 17th century. In general, its medieval architecture is unique - since Eltz had nowhere to expand, he constantly grew upward, "absorbing" elements from Romanesque to Baroque.
Inside the castle is as magnificent as outside: the original furniture, large collections of medieval weapons and armor, porcelain, items and jewelry made of gold, silver and precious stones (more than 500 items) are preserved here.
1. Neuschwanstein (Schloss Neuschwanstein)
Neuschwanstein, admittedly, is the most beautiful (and therefore the most visited) castle not only in Germany, but throughout the world. It is located just a couple of kilometers from Hohenschwangau Castle (more precisely, just above it, on a hill).
Neuschwanstein was built at the request of the "fairy king" Ludwig II of Bavaria, who dreamed of his own romantic knight's castle, in 1869-1886.
As you know, Ludwig simply abandoned state affairs, plunging into the world of ancient German legends (his favorite character and role model was Lohengrin - the Knight of the Swan). Therefore, all the halls of the castle are decorated with frescoes, which depict vivid scenes from German mythology (it all presents one large illustration for them), as well as pseudo-medieval chandeliers, armor, etc. The third floor is specially dedicated to the operas of Richard Wagner, the beloved composer (and real idol!) Ludwig of Bavaria.
As a result, the king spent so much money on this large and beautiful “toy” that a huge gap was created in the Bavarian treasury. And, since Ludwig did not want to listen to anything, while continuing to build and getting into debt, his ministers arrested the king, declaring him insane.
And in June 1886, Ludwig II of Bavaria drowned in Lake Starnberg under very mysterious circumstances - along with him they found dead Dr. von Goodden, who was assigned to him ...
By the way, it was Neuschwanstein that became the main model for the Disney studio logo. Take a closer look at him: isn't it, a familiar silhouette?