Taufers Castle, Campo Tures, Italy

Taufers Castle (Castel Tures) perfectly fits the scenery in which it is located, as the high mountains of the valley serve as background. In succession of “Castel Tobel” in 1100 AD, Taufers has been mentioned for the first time in 1225. In the first half of the 14th century the Lords of Taufers were in possession of the castle, but when the last member of the family died in 1349 the castle continually deteriorated. The Romanic part of the castle - the donjon, the residential tower with double arched windows and the chapel - dates back to this time.

Only under the Dukes of Austria, the castle has been expanded in the 15th century. Buildings such as the lavatorium, drawbridges and wall walks were added. Ludwig Lobmayr renovated the castle for the first time in the early 20th century. In 1945, however, Hieronymus Gassner provided for maintenance works.

Today the South Tyrolean Castle Institute is in possession of Taufers castle. For the most part the castle is open to the public. The furniture in the 64 rooms is near-completely intact and old tiled stoves heat the residential rooms. Pine panelling, frescos by Friedrich Pacher in the chapel, armoires dating back to different eras, armaments and a huge library provide a special insight into the history of the castle.

References:

suedtirolerland.it

User Reviews

Mika Cimolini (2 years ago)
Spooky. Old castle. Beautiful. The guide was great. But only Italian or German.

Pop Kuk (2 years ago)
Nice place for family break

Karen Giacomelli (2 years ago)
Nice tour guide, interesting and entertaining also for my young children.

Andreas Kar (3 years ago)
Great place to visit, nice sightseeing spot, the castle tour was fantastic, might be interesting for children as well

Jelique DuMott (3 years ago)
Historical place with guided tour inside the building. Scheduled guided tour, so. Check up the website before. Very interesting. There's a souvenir shop. It's worth it probably to buy some silver stuff, not that expensive, good quality. Otherwise normal souvenir stuff. A coffee after or before the tour worthy.

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Photo from Flickr, copyright levaletfrancois

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Château de Falaise

Château de Falaise is best known as a castle, where William the Conqueror, the son of Duke Robert of Normandy, was born in about 1028. William went on to conquer England and become king and possession of the castle descended through his heirs until the 13th century when it was captured by King Philip II of France. Possession of the castle changed hands several times during the Hundred Years' War. The castle was deserted during the 17th century. Since 1840 it has been protected as a monument historique.

The castle (12th–13th century), which overlooks the town from a high crag, was formerly the seat of the Dukes of Normandy. The construction was started on the site of an earlier castle in 1123 by Henry I of England, with the 'large keep' (grand donjon). Later was added the 'small keep' (petit donjon). The tower built in the first quarter of the 12th century contained a hall, chapel, and a room for the lord, but no small rooms for a complicated household arrangement; in this way, it was similar to towers at Corfe, Norwich, and Portchester, all in England. In 1202 Arthur I, Duke of Brittany was King John of England's nephew, was imprisoned in Falaise castle's keep. According to contemporaneous chronicler Ralph of Coggeshall, John ordered two of his servants to mutilate the duke. Hugh de Burgh was in charge of guarding Arthur and refused to let him be mutilated, but to demoralise Arthur's supporters was to announce his death. The circumstances of Arthur's death are unclear, though he probably died in 1203.

In about 1207, after having conquered Normandy, Philip II Augustus ordered the building of a new cylindrical keep. It was later named the Talbot Tower (Tour Talbot) after the English commander responsible for its repair during the Hundred Years' War. It is a tall round tower, similar design to the towers built at Gisors and the medieval Louvre.Possession of the castle changed hands several times during the Hundred Years' War. The castle was deserted during the 17th century. Since 1840, Château de Falaise has been recognised as a monument historique by the French Ministry of Culture.

A programme of restoration was carried out between 1870 and 1874. The castle suffered due to bombardment during the Second World War in the battle for the Falaise pocket in 1944, but the three keeps were unscathed.

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