Harburg Castle

Harburg, Germany

Harburg Castle is one of the jewels of the German Romantic Road. Wonderfully preserved, the castle sits high on a hill and overlooks the town for which it's named. It is unclear when the first structure was erected, but the castle was first mentioned in a document in 1150. Harburg was built by the former Hohenstaufen emperors of Germany in the 11th or 12th century.

In 1295, the castle was transferred to the Count of Oettingen and it has belonged to the Oettingen, and later the Oettingen-Wallerstein, families ever since.

The castle complex, including the castle house, chapel, sentry walk, prison tower, dungeon, and various buildings used to support the inhabitants, is surrounded by a wall supporting six towers. The castle ballroom is pictured at left. In the center of the complex is a large courtyard with a well.

The present-day fortifications mainly date from the 18th century and can be visited in summer from Tuesday to Sunday. There is also a small hotel-restaurant in the castle.

References:

Comments

Your name

Website (optional)


Address

B25, Harburg, Germany
See all sites in Harburg

Details

Founded: 11th century
Category: Castles and fortifications in Germany
Historical period: Salian Dynasty (Germany)

More Information

www.ireg.de
www.thespeedyturtle.com
www.romanticroadgermany.com

Rating

4.4/5 (based on Google user reviews)

Interesting Sites Nearby


Augsburg Town Hall (48,8 km)
St. Peter am Perlach Church (48,8 km)
St. George's Church (16,2 km)
St. George's Minster (41,5 km)
Fuggerhäuser (49,1 km)
Eichstätt Cathedral (38,2 km)
Augsburg Cathedral (48,3 km)
Fuggerei (48,9 km)
St. Ulrich's and St. Afra's Abbey (49,6 km)

User Reviews

thomse red (4 months ago)
Spacious parking, 3€ adult entry and another 4€ for the tour of the castle which is really informative.
Michael Barnes (7 months ago)
Beautiful castle along the road that makes for a wonderful detour. Worth a stop yo enjoy the very well preserved buildings and grounds with an excellent view over the valley.
alicia moraa (8 months ago)
Harburg Castle is the best place to visit while in Germany. So many Historical features since 1000yrs ago or more.... Look out for few pics to motivate you more
No Luck (8 months ago)
Went here on a tour and loved it all!! There is a painting at the end of the tour on the ceiling that gives an incredible optical illusion from one way she is laying down and walk across the room she will be sitting!! Beautiful original castle with deep stories behind it all.
Ben Bradley (11 months ago)
Interesting castle you will find there, walk around and in it, entrance fee to pay. Expect a nice little garden, a high placed sightseeing point, wonderful church, a little gift warehouse, and a inside the castle placed restaurant that I can't really recommend. Long waiting time to get some, price kind high. What I don't like, they allow motorcycles to drive inside the court of the castle. U get awful loud motor sound and stinky gas. Walking around the castle is impressive but all over very dirty.
Powered by Google

Featured Historic Landmarks, Sites & Buildings

Must-see historic sighs in Luxembourg
Photo from Flickr, copyright Alexxx1979

Historic Site of the week

Church of the Savior on Blood

The Church of the Savior on Spilled Blood is one of the main sights of St. Petersburg. The church was built on the site where Tsar Alexander II was assassinated and was dedicated in his memory. Construction began in 1883 under Alexander III, as a memorial to his father, Alexander II. Work progressed slowly and was finally completed during the reign of Nicholas II in 1907. Funding was provided by the Imperial family with the support of many private donors.

Architecturally, the Cathedral differs from St. Petersburg's other structures. The city's architecture is predominantly Baroque and Neoclassical, but the Savior on Blood harks back to medieval Russian architecture in the spirit of romantic nationalism. It intentionally resembles the 17th-century Yaroslavl churches and the celebrated St. Basil's Cathedral in Moscow.

The Church contains over 7500 square metres of mosaics — according to its restorers, more than any other church in the world. The interior was designed by some of the most celebrated Russian artists of the day — including Viktor Vasnetsov, Mikhail Nesterov and Mikhail Vrubel — but the church's chief architect, Alfred Alexandrovich Parland, was relatively little-known (born in St. Petersburg in 1842 in a Baltic-German Lutheran family). Perhaps not surprisingly, the Church's construction ran well over budget, having been estimated at 3.6 million roubles but ending up costing over 4.6 million. The walls and ceilings inside the Church are completely covered in intricately detailed mosaics — the main pictures being biblical scenes or figures — but with very fine patterned borders setting off each picture.

In the aftermath of the Russian Revolution, the church was ransacked and looted, badly damaging its interior. The Soviet government closed the church in the early 1930s. During the Second World War when many people were starving due to the Siege of Leningrad by Nazi German military forces, the church was used as a temporary morgue for those who died in combat and from starvation and illness. The church suffered significant damage. After the war, it was used as a warehouse for vegetables, leading to the sardonic name of Saviour on Potatoes.

In July 1970, management of the Church passed to Saint Isaac's Cathedral (then used as a highly profitable museum) and proceeds from the Cathedral were funneled back into restoring the Church. It was reopened in August 1997, after 27 years of restoration, but has not been reconsecrated and does not function as a full-time place of worship; it is a Museum of Mosaics. Even before the Revolution it never functioned as a public place of worship; having been dedicated exclusively to the memory of the assassinated tsar, the only services were panikhidas (memorial services). The Church is now one of the main tourist attractions in St. Petersburg.

Map Top Sights Tags Historical Periods City Guides About Us Sign Up Upload new site
© 2019 SpottingHistory.com. All rights reserved.