There are traces of Roman occupation including a fort, built in the late 300s AD, above the Alderneys only natural harbour. The Alderney Nunnery was probably located on the site of this one best preserved Roman forts in the British Isles.
The 26-foot tall Roman tower features 10-feet-thick walls. Built of stone and Roman concrete, many of the outer walls are still standing however only fragments remain of the tall tower that would have stood inside the walls, there is a similarity to Roman signal stations built in Yorkshire.
The British are believed to have refurbished the Roman fort in 1793, leveling off the tower walls in the process, according to Heritage Daily. When the German’s invaded the island it appears they inserted a Type 501 bunker neatly between the tower ruins, using the north and south internal walls effectively as shuttering to pour their concrete, according to Dr. Jason Monaghan, who is helping lead the excavation efforts.
The site is newly opened after a major make over. There are story boards, an information room, large WWII bunker and much, much more to explore on this amazing heritage site.
The Château du Haut-Koenigsbourg is situated in a strategic area on a rocky spur overlooking the Upper Rhine Plain, it was used by successive powers from the Middle Ages until the Thirty Years' War when it was abandoned. From 1900 to 1908 it was rebuilt at the behest of the German kaiser Wilhelm II. Today it is a major tourist site, attracting more than 500,000 visitors a year.
The first records of a castle built by the Hohenstaufens date back to 1147. The fortress changed its name to Koenigsburg (royal castle) around 1157. 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.
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 defences were overrun.