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| | Name: Haut-Koeningsbourd
Location: Alsace
Country: France
Review
this castle
Photos provided by Patrick
Bantzhaff
| Lorraine Barnett, 52, from Midwest USA,
wrote: |
| My family and I toured this
beautiful castle in the first week of October, 2001. We toured with
a church group, partly German speakers, partly English speakers, and the
tour was conducted well for all of us to understand. It was a
fascinating castle to tour, especially, learning the long and varied
history. The room that was reclaimed by Kaiser Wilhelm "for the
glory of the German Empire" was perhaps the most intriguing to me.
The colorful crests painted on the ceiling were a testament of his
political savy even at the turn of the century. The view is
astounding. This is highly recommended for families, for groups, for
individuals. Be sure to get a tour and before you go, read up on the
history of the castle. It makes what you see so much richer! |
| Susie Clawson, 39, from Western USA,
wrote: |
| We loved this castle. We took our
five children to France and the castle was the high light of their trip.
The admission price was great. All of our children were free!
We strolled the grounds (every home should have a court yard) and climbed
the stone stairs, their (the kids) imaginations running wild. They
played in the armory, as if they were bombing the invaders. The room
with all the suits of armor fascinate them. I think the only thing
we would have enjoyed more was to have guides dressed in period
clothing explaining the rooms, the daily life of these having lived in the
castle, etc. |
| Daniel Trueman, 30, from England, wrote: |
| A superbly re-built castle, with a
fantastic view of the surrounding area. In a way, it's a little
disappointing to know that most of it is a 20th century re-construction,
but you forget about that as you wander through the many rooms in the
castle and wonder what it was like to be there in the middle ages. Nice
little cafe too. I loved it so much i visited 3 times in 2 days! There's
also a monkey zoo to visit on the way up to the castle, but it was closed
when i got there. |
| Verl Tidwell, 44, from USA, wrote: |
| We just returned from a trip to the
Alsace area of France and just loved this castle!! The view of this
castle from the valley is amazing, situated at the peak of a hill.
It is a vast castle with many draw bridges, etc. A very neat place
to visit. An easy drive outside of Strausbourg. |
| Keith E. Bonn, 43, from Pennsylvania
wrote: |
| Haut-Koenigsbourg is actually the
last of several castles to be built on the Staufenberg (el. 2,484 ft.)
overlooking the Rhine Plain. Erected atop the ruins of walls
originally built by the Romans to protect the approaches to a high pass in
the southern Vosges (today the city of Ste. Marie-aux-Mines), the fort had
a long and complicated history between the time of its construction as a
medieval military edifice in the 12th century and its destruction in 1633.
The castle passed from the ownership of the House of Hohenstaufen to the
House of Lorraine, and eventually form the House of Württemberg to the
Hapsburgs. It served at various times as a fortress-residence of
vassals of the Dukes of Lorraine and the Bishops of Strasbourg, as a haven
for the robber barons who preyed on the traffice through the nearby pass,
and as a bastion of the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation. In 1633, its garrison was under the command of Captain Philippe de
Lichtenau, an Imperial officer when it was besieged by Swedes attacking
through Germany during the Thirty Years' War. The stubborn and
valiant de Lichtenau managed to hold out for more than three months within
the battered remnants of the castle, refusing the dire surrender ultimata
of the commander of the Swedish Hubalt Regiment. Finally, out of
food and ammunition, with the troops of the garrison mutinously
evaporating into the night, de Lichtenau surrendered and the structure was
sacked and burned. Haut-Koenigsbourg lay in ruins until the reign of Kaiser Wilhelm II, who
financed the restoration of the castle as part of the re-Germanization of
Alsace, around the turn of the 19th/20th centuries. Today, it is
beautifully restored and well worth a visit, especially on a clear day,
when one can see all the way to Germany to the east, and almost to
Switzerland to the southeast. |
| Stephanie Jentner, age 18, from Canada wrote: |
| It's a very beautiful castle in a perfect region of France
called Alsace. It is set a top a mountain peek. The entrance of the castle is through the huge court yard and it has
amazing detailed work in the stone walls. The view from the highest tower is very stunning it
looks over the small town of Colmar. I give it 2 big thumbs up. I can't wait to see it again. |
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