Falkenstein Castle or ''

Castrum ''Castra'' () is a Latin language, Latin term used during the Roman Republic and Roman Empire for a military 'camp', and ''castrum'' () for a 'Fortification, fort'. Either could refer to a building or plot of land, used as a fortified milita ...

Pfronten'' is the ruin of a castle in the Bavarian Alps, near Pfronten, Germany. At above

sea level Mean sea level (MSL, often shortened to sea level) is an mean, average surface level of one or more among Earth's coastal Body of water, bodies of water from which heights such as elevation may be measured. The global MSL is a type of vertical ...

, it is Germany's highest castle. King

Ludwig II of Bavaria Ludwig II (Ludwig Otto Friedrich Wilhelm; 25 August 1845 – 13 June 1886), also called the Swan King or the Fairy Tale King (), was King of Bavaria from 1864 until his death in 1886. He also held the titles of Count Palatine of the Rhine, Duke ...

purchased the ruin in 1883 and planned to construct a

fairy tale A fairy tale (alternative names include fairytale, fairy story, household tale, magic tale, or wonder tale) is a short story that belongs to the folklore genre. Such stories typically feature magic, enchantments, and mythical or fanciful bei ...

castle A castle is a type of fortification, fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by Military order (monastic society), military orders. Scholars usually consider a ''castle'' to be the private ...

, but the plans were abandoned upon his death in 1886.

Geography

The ruins of Falkenstein Castle are located on the eponymous Falkenstein above sea level, making it Germany's highest elevated castle.

Castrum Pfronten

Originally known as Castrum Pfronten, the stone castle was built approximately 1270–1280 by Count Meinhard II of

Tyrol Tyrol ( ; historically the Tyrole; ; ) is a historical region in the Alps of Northern Italy and western Austria. The area was historically the core of the County of Tyrol, part of the Holy Roman Empire, Austrian Empire and Austria-Hungary, f ...

on the borders of his land. Because of the unusual situation of the castle it has been interpreted in historical context as a symbol of opposition to the

Duchy A duchy, also called a dukedom, is a country, territory, fiefdom, fief, or domain ruled by a duke or duchess, a ruler hierarchically second to the king or Queen regnant, queen in Western European tradition. There once existed an important differe ...

of Bavaria. (During the winter the castle was dangerous to inhabit because of the high altitude at which it is located.) The name Castle Falkenstein only came into use in the 15th century. The castle was largely destroyed in the 17th century. In 1646, towards the end of the

Thirty Years' War The Thirty Years' War, fought primarily in Central Europe between 1618 and 1648, was one of the most destructive conflicts in History of Europe, European history. An estimated 4.5 to 8 million soldiers and civilians died from battle, famine ...

, the Austrian outposts of Falkenstein, Eisenberg, and Hohenfreyberg were set on fire on the orders of the Tyrolean state government to prevent them from being used by the approaching Protestants. The attackers changed their line of advance, so the destruction was unnecessary. All three castles have remained uninhabited ruins since.

Ludwig's vision

King

purchased the ruin in 1883 and commissioned several architects, the first being Christian Jank (the designer of

Neuschwanstein Neuschwanstein Castle (, ; ) is a 19th-century historicist palace on a rugged hill of the foothills of the Alps in the very south of Germany, near the border with Austria. It is located in the Swabia region of Bavaria, in the municipality of ...

), to replace the existing structure with a romantic castle. Jank first created a restrained design, but later envisioned the castle in a dramatic,

High Gothic High Gothic was a period of Gothic architecture in the 13th century, from about 1200 to 1280, which saw the construction of a series of refined and richly decorated cathedrals of exceptional height and size. It appeared most prominently in France ...

style. Georg von Dollmann was employed to produce plans and elevations in the same year based on Jank's design. However, his modest and economical designs displeased Ludwig. The task of redesigning Falkenstein was then given to Max Schultze, the Prince

Thurn und Taxis The Princely House of Thurn and Taxis (, ) is a family of German nobility that is part of the ''Briefadel''. It was a key player in the mail, postal services in Europe during the 16th century, until the end of the Holy Roman Empire in 1806, and ...

' architect, who was flattered by the royal commission. He not only planned the architecture of the castle in a robber baron's style (a highly simplified version of Jank's sketch), but also began creating the castle's

interior design Interior design is the art and science of enhancing the interior of a building to achieve a healthier and more aesthetically pleasing environment for the people using the space. With a keen eye for detail and a Creativity, creative flair, an ...

and

fresco Fresco ( or frescoes) is a technique of mural painting executed upon freshly laid ("wet") lime plaster. Water is used as the vehicle for the dry-powder pigment to merge with the plaster, and with the setting of the plaster, the painting become ...

s (in a secular

Byzantine The Byzantine Empire, also known as the Eastern Roman Empire, was the continuation of the Roman Empire centred on Constantinople during late antiquity and the Middle Ages. Having survived the events that caused the fall of the Western Roman E ...

style) with the help of August Spieß. Of particular note was Ludwig's bedroom, which was reminiscent of a vast chapel. During this time, in 1884, road and water lines were made to service the site and a

papier-mâché file:JacmelMardiGras.jpg, upright=1.3, Mardi Gras papier-mâché masks, Haiti Papier-mâché ( , , - the French term "mâché" here means "crushed and ground") is a versatile craft technique with roots in ancient China, in which waste paper is s ...

model of Schultze's plan was created. However, Schultze withdrew from the project in 1885. Julius Hofmann and Eugen Drollinger were chosen to succeed Schultze, although they knew that it was unlikely Falkenstein would ever be built. Thus, they made their designs as spectacular and impractical as they wished. Drollinger was working on a plan of Ludwig's bedchamber – redesigned to feature stained glass windows and a mosaic dome – when he learned of the King's death. Burg Falkenstein Pfronten 12

Ludwig died in 1886 before work on the castle proper could begin, and the many plans for Falkenstein were permanently abandoned. The ruin of Castrum Pfronten on the building site was never demolished. Burg Falkenstein Pfronten 11

Footnotes

Citation

References

*Klaus Leidorf, Peter Ettel: ''Burgen in Bayern. 7000 Jahre Burgengeschichte im Luftbild''. Stuttgart, 1999. (in German) *Toni Nessler: ''Burgen im Allgäu''. Band II. Kempten, 1985. (in German)

External links

Prince Prigio
Castle Falkenstein is mentioned in chapter twelve of

Andrew Lang Andrew Lang (31 March 1844 – 20 July 1912) was a Scottish poet, novelist, literary critic, and contributor to the field of anthropology. He is best known as a folkloristics, collector of folklore, folk and fairy tales. The Andrew Lang lectur ...

's " Prince Prigio".
Falkenstein Castle
, a "castle" inspired by Jank's design built in the

Texas Hill Country The Texas Hill Country is a geographic region of Central and South Texas, forming the southeast part of the Edwards Plateau. Given its location, climate, terrain, and vegetation, the Hill Country can be considered the border between the Ame ...

. {{DEFAULTSORT:Falkenstein Castle Buildings and structures completed in 1280 Buildings and structures in Ostallgäu Castles in Bavaria Unfinished castles Ruined castles in Germany Hill castles