Wewelsburg Castle, Büren, Germany

Wewelsburg castle is perched atop a wooded slope close to Paderborn's airport. The fortification Wifilisburg was used during the 9th and 10th centuries against the Hungarians. The next castle was demolished in 1123/24 by revolting peasants. From 1301 to 1589, the Prince-Bishops of Paderborn assigned the estate to miscellaneous liege lords.

The masonry of both predecessor buildings was integrated in the current triangular Renaissance castle. In its current form, the Wewelsburg was built from 1603 to 1609 as secondary residence for the Prince-Bishops of Paderborn. Wewelsburg was taken several times during the Thirty Years' War. In 1646 it was occupied and then razed by Swedish troops – namely by the army commanded by General Carl Gustav Wrangel. After 1650, the mostly destroyed castle was rebuilt by Prince-Bishop Theodor Adolf von der Recke and his successor Ferdinand von Fürstenberg. He carried out some architectural changes; the three towers of the castle got their Baroque style domes.

During the Seven Years' War (1756–1763), the basement rooms were probably used as a military prison. In the 18th and 19th centuries the castle fell progressively into ruin. In 1802, during German mediatisation the castle came into the possession of the Prussian state . On 11 January 1815, the North Tower was gutted by a fire that was started by a lightning strike; only the outer walls remained. From 1832 to 1934, a rectory existed in the eastern part of the south wing of the castle.

In 1924, the castle became the property of the district of Büren and was changed into a cultural center. By 1925, the castle had been renovated into a local museum, banquet hall, restaurant and youth hostel. During the Nazi regime Wewelsburg was used a school for SS organisation, focusing to pseudo-scientific research in the fields of Germanic pre- and early history, medieval history, folklore and genealogy.

Today Wewelsburg hosts a Historical Museum of the Prince Bishopric of Paderborn, Wewelsburg 1933-1945 Memorial Museum and temporary exhibitions.

User Reviews

Sheryl Fredricks (2 years ago)
It was nice that it was open on a Sunday. I enjoyed both tours that were available through audio in English. One was a tour explaining the history of the Nazi SS and how they used the castle at Wewelsburg. The castle itself had a tour with explanation of the history of the Paderborn Wewelsburg area dating back thousands of years. I enjoyed this educational visit.

Kayleigh Mills (2 years ago)
A lovely place to spend half a day, really interesting museum, whilst alot of the interactive material is only in German there is some information in English too. This triangle castle is pretty cool and the cafe serves fab food at a reasonable price, its nice to have a walk around the grounds too.

Tatu Luuk (2 years ago)
Awesome acustics, you should definately go here and try the vibes in the middle of the basement while talking to it

Matthew Harcourt (2 years ago)
Good value for money, good exhibits, they make an effort to make it accessible for children. We enjoyed it.

Shaun Hanlon (3 years ago)
We live next to the Burg, it's a beautiful, well kept village and very peaceful and quiet. It gets quite busy at weekends with visitors to the Museum, there is a large free car park. Enjoy Wewelsburg; it's a beautiful location.

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Photo from Flickr, copyright Nicola since 1972

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Royal Palace of Naples was one of the four residences near Naples used by the Bourbon Kings during their rule of the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies (1734-1860): the others were the palaces of Caserta, Capodimonte overlooking Naples, and the third Portici, on the slopes of Vesuvius.

Construction on the present building was begun in the 17th century by the architect Domenico Fontana. Intended to house the King Philip III of Spain on a visit never fulfilled to this part of his kingdom, instead it initially housed the Viceroy Fernando Ruiz de Castro, count of Lemos. By 1616, the facade had been completed, and by 1620, the interior was frescoed by Battistello Caracciolo, Giovanni Balducci, and Belisario Corenzio. The decoration of the Royal Chapel of Assumption was not completed until 1644 by Antonio Picchiatti.

In 1734, with the arrival of Charles III of Spain to Naples, the palace became the royal residence of the Bourbons. On the occasion of his marriage to Maria Amalia of Saxony in 1738, Francesco De Mura and Domenico Antonio Vaccaro helped remodel the interior. Further modernization took place under Ferdinand I of the Two Sicilies. In 1768, on the occasion of his marriage to Maria Carolina of Austria, under the direction of Ferdinando Fuga, the great hall was rebuilt and the court theater added. During the second half of the 18th century, a 'new wing' was added, which in 1927 became the Vittorio Emanuele III National Library. By the 18th century, the royal residence was moved to Reggia of Caserta, as that inland town was more defensible from naval assault, as well as more distant from the often-rebellious populace of Naples.

During the Napoleonic occupation the palace was enriched by Joachim Murat and his wife, Caroline Bonaparte, with Neoclassic decorations and furnishings. However, a fire in 1837 damaged many rooms, and required restoration from 1838 to 1858 under the direction of Gaetano Genovese. Further additions of a Party Wing and a Belvedere were made in this period. At the corner of the palace with San Carlo Theatre, a new facade was created that obscured the viceroyal palace of Pedro de Toledo.

In 1922, it was decided to transfer here the contents of the National Library. The transfer of library collections was made by 1925.

The library suffered from bombing during World War II and the subsequent military occupation of the building caused serious damage. Today, the palace and adjacent grounds house the famous Teatro San Carlo, the smaller Teatrino di Corte (recently restored), the Biblioteca Nazionale Vittorio Emanuele III, a museum, and offices, including those of the regional tourist board.

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