Welcome back to Curious Castles! Most North Americans might not know about it, but this is not really a curious one for Europeans... Festung Königstein! This mountain fortress is a big one, actually one of the biggest in all of Europe! Sitting atop its eponymous sandstone mesa, the fortress spreads out over more than 23 acres (9.5ha), its battlements spanning over 5900ft (1800m) with the walls going up as high as 137ft (42m). The 50 buildings on the inside date back up to 400 years and provided both military and civilian use. Another astonishing feature is its 500ft (152.5m) deep well, the deepest in Saxony and second deepest fortress well in all of Europe. It was first mentioned in 1233 in a certificate of Wenceslaus I of Bohemia, although it didnt receive its name until 1241. Its history includes many noteworthy moments, some of which are being in the possession of the Bohemian Empire, Holy Roman Emperor Charles IV using it as a temporary seat, later owners pawning it off for a period of 50 years, and finally being expanded by Christian I of Saxony and his successors. Up until then there might have been stone buildings, but the only remnant is a chapel that remains from late 12th to early 13th century. The well had not been built until the middle of the 16th century. Before that water was acquired through cisterns and by collecting rain. During its expansion, the walls have been extended up onto the edge of the cliff, giving the fortress its maximum area. Possibly because it was so unbelievably difficult to capture, its military importance was rather negligible. Even August III. of Poland could only watch from it as his army surrendered without a fight in the valley during the Seven Years War. So it came that after the late 18th century, its casemates were used to store important art during war times. Later on the castle also held important prisoners and was used as a POW camp during the Franco-Prussian War and both World Wars. Today, it is an open air museum that is just stunning to visit. If you are ever in the area, definitely check it out. It is a must-see. And if you are able to, at least make the scenic walk up to it. My recommendation: Get there early by train (if you stay in Dresden or another city nearby), hike up, be exhausted, but enjoy a nice brunch/lunch (depending on your pace) in the restaurant inside and then explore... for hours... until you make your decent by shuttle (if memory serves right, it should be a little train on wheels). If you stay in the area for several days, the Bastei, a famous rock formation with equally stunning view and old stone-carved remnants of fortifications is just a little while downstream towards Dresden. And naturally. check out Dresden in all its glory. In fact, if any of you are there right now, by chance, do check out the castle next Sunday (Sept 7th) and hear its old cannons thunder across the valley! I hope you enjoyed this one and I have a few interesting pictures that I would like to share. A beautiful misty view of the castle, to put it in perspective; an aerial shot that shows the sheer size of it; a stunning panorama taken from Lilienstein, a mesa just across the Elbe; a display of the cannons on the inner battlements; the massive entrance gate; a blueprint from 1690; and lastly a gorgeous painting by Canaletto from 1756-1758. Enjoy your day!
Posted on: Sat, 30 Aug 2014 17:00:01 +0000
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