Rheinfels
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Rheinfels Castle () is a
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 ...
ruin located above the left (west) bank of the
Rhine The Rhine ( ) is one of the List of rivers of Europe, major rivers in Europe. The river begins in the Swiss canton of Graubünden in the southeastern Swiss Alps. It forms part of the Swiss-Liechtenstein border, then part of the Austria–Swit ...
in
Sankt Goar Sankt Goar () is a town on the west bank of the Middle Rhine in the Rhein-Hunsrück-Kreis (district) in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It belongs to the ''Verbandsgemeinde'' Hunsrück-Mittelrhein, whose seat is in Emmelshausen. Sankt Goar is w ...
,
Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...
. It was started in 1245 by Count Diether V of Katzenelnbogen. After expansions, it was the largest fortress in the Middle Rhein Valley between
Koblenz Koblenz ( , , ; Moselle Franconian language, Moselle Franconian: ''Kowelenz'') is a German city on the banks of the Rhine (Middle Rhine) and the Moselle, a multinational tributary. Koblenz was established as a Roman Empire, Roman military p ...
and
Mainz Mainz (; #Names and etymology, see below) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate, and with around 223,000 inhabitants, it is List of cities in Germany by population, Germany's 35th-largest city. It lies in ...
. It was
slighted Slighting is the deliberate damage of high-status buildings to reduce their value as military, administrative, or social structures. This destruction of property is sometimes extended to the contents of buildings and the surrounding landscape. It ...
by
French Revolutionary Army The French Revolutionary Army () was the French land force that fought the French Revolutionary Wars from 1792 to 1802. In the beginning, the French armies were characterised by their revolutionary fervour, their poor equipment and their great nu ...
troops in 1797. It is the largest castle overlooking the Rhine, and historically covered five times its current area. While much of the castle is a ruin, some of the outer buildings are now a luxury hotel, wellness centre, and restaurant. There is also a museum within some of the better preserved structures.


Description

The main entrance to the castle complex is a tall square clock or gate tower (~1300 AD) opposite the hotel. A connecting path joins the clock tower to the remains of the living quarters of the
landgrave Landgrave (, , , ; , ', ', ', ', ') was a rank of nobility used in the Holy Roman Empire, and its former territories. The German titles of ', ' ("margrave"), and ' ("count palatine") are of roughly equal rank, subordinate to ' ("duke"), and su ...
s of Hesse-Darmstadt (the so-called Darmstadt Building). The Darmstadt building was designed in Tudor style with pointed gables. The connecting path was the site of the former moat of the main castle buildings; part of which is now the large cellar or basement. This large cellar was arched over in 1587–1589 in two visible phases. It is the largest self-supporting vaulted cellar in Europe and has a length of , a width and height of approximately and can accommodate up to 400 people. The walls are up to thick. Previously a wine barrel was constructed for storage. The cellar was renovated in 1997 and restored to its original condition and now serves as a meeting place for concerts, theater performances, and other shows. Next to the Darmstadt building once stood a tall tower. It had a diameter of with walls thick at the bottom. In the 14th century, a narrow round tower was added to the top, making it the highest
butter-churn tower A butter-churn tower () is a two-part defensive tower in which the upper section has a smaller width than the lower section. This design provides a ledge or fighting platform about half-way up that acts as a chemin de ronde whilst the narrower ...
in Germany. The castle museum is located in the former castle chapel which is the only finished room of the original castle. It is accessed through an internal gate and up the path. The museum contains a model reconstruction of the castle before its destruction giving one a sense of how big the castle used to be. The medieval castle courtyard is found beyond the castle museum building (slightly uphill). This was the centre of the medieval castle which contained a bakery, pharmacy, garden, brewery, well, and livestock—which would have allowed it to withstand an extended siege. During peacetime, 300–600 people lived in the castle complex. During a siege, that number could swell to 4,500. Remnants of the original 13th-century plaster which was painted white can still be found on some walls.


Hohenzollern claim

In June 2019, a claim made by
Georg Friedrich, Prince of Prussia Georg Friedrich, Prince of Prussia (born 10 June 1976, as ''Georg Friedrich Ferdinand Prinz von Preußen'') is a German heir who is the current head of the Prussian branch of the House of Hohenzollern, the former ruling dynasty of the German Em ...
, that Rheinfels Castle be returned to the Hohenzollern family was dismissed by a court. In 1924, the ruined Castle had been given by the state of Rhineland-Palatinate to the town of St Goar, under the proviso it was not sold. In 1998 the town leased the ruins to a nearby hotel. His case made the claim that this constituted a breach of the bequest. In January 2020, the Prince of Prussia reached an out-of-court settlement with the city. In the future, St. Goar will work closely with the non-profit Princess Kira of Prussia Foundation, which supports socially disadvantaged young people.Hohenzollern kassieren Burg Rheinfels nicht ein ''Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung'', 29 January 202

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Notes


References

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Further reading

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Rheinfels, Schloss Castles in Rhineland-Palatinate Landmarks in Germany Museums in Rhineland-Palatinate Historic house museums in Germany Ruined castles in Germany Castles in the Hunsrück Fortresses in Germany