Haut Koenigsbourg
The first records of a castle built by the Hohenstaufens date back to 1147. Staufenberg, as it was called at the time, sat high above the Alsace plain at an altitude of more than 700 metres. This rocky, promontory site was ideal for observing the main routes in the region, and provided a strategic fall-back point. The fortress changed its name to Koenigsbourg (royal castle) in around 1192. The castle was handed over to the Tiersteins by the Habsburgs following its destruction in 1462. They rebuilt and enlarged it, installing a defensive system designed to withstand artillery fire. This was the golden period for the Hohkoenigsbourg. The fortification work accomplished over the 15th century did not suffice to keep the Swedish artillery at bay during the Thirty Years War, and the Hohkoenigsbourg defences were overrun. Besieged, pillaged then finally burnt to the ground in 1633, the castle was left abandoned for two hundred years. Its ruins were classified as a historical monument in 1862. Three years later, the castle ruins were purchased by the nearby town of Sélestat. A restoration project was decided on, starting with the consolidation of part of the ruins. In 1882, the architect Winkler drew up an ambitious reconstruction plan which would never be carried out, as the town did not have the means to fund it. The Alsace region was annexed to Germany in 1871, and Sélestat made a gift of the still majestic ruins of the palace to Kaiser Wilhelm II in II, anxious to underline the fact that the Alsace was German territory once more, saw the castle as a symbolic marker for the western limit of his empire. He decided to undertake a complete restoration of the castle. The architect Bodo Ebhardt was entrusted with the restoration project. His approach was one of rigorous scientific principles, considering the level of knowledge at the time.
Size: 2912px × 4368px
Location: Haut-Koenigsbourg Castle Alsace France
Photo credit: © QEDimages / Alamy / Afripics
License: Royalty Free
Model Released: No
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