Schloss Weesenstein is a ''

Schloss ''Schloss'' (; pl. ''Schlösser''), formerly written ''Schloß'', is the German term for a building similar to a château, palace, or manor house. Related terms appear in several Germanic languages. In the Scandinavian languages, the cogn ...

'' located in , a small village, part of

Müglitztal Müglitztal is a municipality in the Sächsische Schweiz-Osterzgebirge district, in Saxony, 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 th ...

in the Müglitz river valley, around south of

Dohna Dohna is a town in the Sächsische Schweiz-Osterzgebirge district, Saxony, Germany. It is located south of Heidenau, in the Müglitz (river), Müglitz valley and lies at the northeastern foot of the Eastern Ore Mountains. It is accessed by the P ...

Saxony Saxony, officially the Free State of Saxony, is a landlocked state of Germany, bordering the states of Brandenburg, Saxony-Anhalt, Thuringia, and Bavaria, as well as the countries of Poland and the Czech Republic. Its capital is Dresden, and ...

, Germany.

History

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 ...

was erected here sometime around 1200, built with the purpose of defending the border to the

Kingdom of Bohemia The Kingdom of Bohemia (), sometimes referenced in English literature as the Czech Kingdom, was a History of the Czech lands in the High Middle Ages, medieval and History of the Czech lands, early modern monarchy in Central Europe. It was the pr ...

; it was mentioned in written sources for the first time in 1318. The oldest part of the presently visible castle is its central round tower, erected sometime around 1300. The castle was built for the

burgrave Burgrave, also rendered as burggrave (from , ), was since the medieval period in Europe (mainly Germany) the official title for the ruler of a castle, especially a royal or episcopal castle, and its territory called a ''Burgraviate'' or ''Burgr ...

s of

; the burgraviate was incorporated in the

Margraviate of Meissen The Margravate or Margraviate of Meissen () was a medieval principality in the area of the modern German state of Saxony. It originally was a frontier march of the Holy Roman Empire, created out of the vast ''Marca Geronis'' ( Saxon Eastern March ...

in 1400 and in 1406 the castle was transferred by the margrave to the von Bünau family in gratitude for their support in the

Dohna Feud The Dohna Feud () was a 14th-century dispute between the Burgraves of Dohna, who resided in the Eastern Ore Mountains of Central Europe, on the one hand and Saxon nobleman, John of Körbitz (''Hans von Körbitz'') and the Meißen Margrave Will ...

. The Bünau family transformed the defensive castle into a residential ''Schloss'' in 1526–1575, and successive generations expanded and reconfigured the ''Schloss'' in stages. It continued to be the main seat of the family for about 350 years. As a consequence of the

Seven Years' War The Seven Years' War, 1756 to 1763, was a Great Power conflict fought primarily in Europe, with significant subsidiary campaigns in North America and South Asia. The protagonists were Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain and Kingdom of Prus ...

of 1756–1763 the family lost a substantial part of their wealth and had to part with the castle, which passed into the hands of the von Uckermann family. The Uckermanns owned the castle for two generations and continued to embellish the estate, not least the garden. In 1830 the ''Schloss'' was purchased by King

Anthony of Saxony Anthony of Saxony (; 27 December 1755 – 6 June 1836) was a King of Saxony from the House of Wettin. He became known as ''Anton der Gütige''Quinger p. 35 ("Anthony the Kind"). He was the fifth but third surviving son of Frederick Christian, E ...

. Several members of the Saxon royal family subsequently lived in the castle, including three kings: Anthony,

John of Saxony John of Saxony is the name of: * John the Old Saxon an Anglo-Saxon scholar and abbot of Athelney * John I, Duke of Saxony (1249–1285, Duke 1260–1282) * John of Saxony (astronomer) (fl. 1327–1355). * John, Elector of Saxony Joh ...

and

George of Saxony George (; 8 August 1832 – 15 October 1904) was king of Saxony and member of the House of Wettin. Early life George was born in the Saxon capital Dresden. He was the second son of King John of Saxony (1801–1873) and his wife, Princess Amal ...

. In late 1917, during

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, the castle was sold to an entrepreneur. In 1934 it was acquired by an association for the protection of the heritage of Saxony (). During

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, the castle was used for safekeeping most of the collections of the '' Kupferstich-Kabinett'' (Collection of Prints, Drawings and Photographs) of the

Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden (, ''Dresden State Art Collections'') is a cultural institution in Dresden, Germany, owned by the State of Saxony. It is one of the most renowned and oldest museum institutions in the world, originating from the ...

, the Dresden State Art Collections. Because of this, the castle and its contents were spared from destruction during the

bombing of Dresden in World War II The bombing of Dresden was a joint British and American Area bombardment, aerial bombing attack on the city of Dresden, the capital of the German state of Saxony, during World War II. In four raids between 13 and 15 February 1945, 772 heavy ...

. After the war, the castle was used to house refugees before it was taken over by the state. Today it belongs to the state corporation

State Palaces, Castles and Gardens of Saxony State most commonly refers to: * State (polity), a centralized political organization that regulates law and society within a territory **Sovereign state, a sovereign polity in international law, commonly referred to as a country **Nation state, a ...

(). It houses a museum and 35 of the rooms of the castle are open to the public.

Architecture

The presently visible ensemble is the product of centuries of development and rebuilding. The castle is thus a mix of styles, ranging from

Gothic architecture Gothic architecture is an architectural style that was prevalent in Europe from the late 12th to the 16th century, during the High Middle Ages, High and Late Middle Ages, surviving into the 17th and 18th centuries in some areas. It evolved f ...

Classical architecture Classical architecture typically refers to architecture consciously derived from the principles of Ancient Greek architecture, Greek and Ancient Roman architecture, Roman architecture of classical antiquity, or more specifically, from ''De archit ...

. The main portal, built in 1575, is considered one of the most valuable

Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) is a Periodization, period of history and a European cultural movement covering the 15th and 16th centuries. It marked the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and was characterized by an effort to revive and sur ...

portals in Saxony, The ''Schloss'' is built on a rock with storeys descending from the central, medieval round tower (with its 18th-century spire). In total, the castle has eight storeys. The castle contains around 200 rooms in total. The

Baroque The Baroque ( , , ) is a Western Style (visual arts), style of Baroque architecture, architecture, Baroque music, music, Baroque dance, dance, Baroque painting, painting, Baroque sculpture, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished from ...

chapel, described as the "architectural and artistic highlight of the entire castle", is thought to have been designed by

Johann George Schmidt Johann George Schmidt or Johann Georg(e) Schmi(e)d (1707 – 24 July 1774) was a German architect of the Dresden Baroque. He was born in Fürstenwalde bei Geising, and became the brother-in-law, student and successor of George Bähr. He di ...

. A formal garden lies adjacent to the castle. An

English landscape garden The English landscape garden, also called English landscape park or simply the English garden (, , , , ), is a style of "landscape" garden which emerged in England in the early 18th century, and spread across Europe, replacing the more formal ...

, one of the earliest to be created in Saxony (c. 1780), has since been overgrown.

Gallery

File:Schloss Weesenstein (14-2).jpg, View of the ''Schloss'' from a distance File:Schloss Weesenstein im Müglitztal, Ansicht von Norden.jpg, view from north File:Schloß Weesenstein 02.jpg, Overview of the layout of the ''Schloss'' File:Schloss Wesenstein - panoramio.jpg, The formal gardens of the ''Schloss'' File:Weesenstein Schloss (08) 2006-04-26.jpg, The Renaissance main portal File:Weesenstein-Altar LC0033.jpg, The chapel

References

External links

* {{commons category-inline, Schloss Weesenstein
Official homepage
Castles in Saxony Museums in Saxony Royal residences in Saxony Buildings and structures in Sächsische Schweiz-Osterzgebirge