Update 2020 – Kransberg Castle in Germany, former Nazi headquarters

Kransberg Castle is mostly known for having been Goering’s secret headquarters and where the American forces held the scientist Wernher von Braun’s family members in hiding from the Russians.

Schloss Kransberg

In 2012, I had to chance to visit the castle with the author Annie Jacobsen. More here: A Visit to Schloss Kransberg

The local paper, dated 28 May 2020, reported about the recent sale of the castle. For many years, the castle had just settled in dust, until 2012, when it had two potential buyers. The sale never came through though.

Now it has been sold to a Turkish-rooted investment company. The city of Usingen, which had the pre-purchase right, turned down the offer to buy it. The purchase price remains in the dark, but it is supposed to be below 1 million euro.

The new owner, Mr. Bilgiç Ertürk, had planned to turn the castle into an educational institute. Other Turkish investors supposedly had voiced their interest in cooperating with european universities.

These plans did not materialize, and so, concerts and weddings are taking place there now.

Baroque Castle in Werneck, Bavaria

For our most recent visit to my hometown, we decided to book a room at a brewery inn in Werneck (district of Lower Franconia in northern Bavaria). It was a good and convenient choice, as we only had to walk about a minute to reach the castle grounds.

I left home 40 years ago, and nowadays I’m trying catch up on local sights I missed to see when I was young.

Baroque Castle Werneck

Castle Park Werneck

We had picked a glorious day to take a stroll through the park.

Baroque Castle Werneck in spring time

Balthasar Neumann, Würzburg’s most famous architect of his time, had built this castle for the Prince Bishop, Friedrich Carl von Schönborn, between 1733 – 1745.

This historical postcard is part of my private collection.

Werneck Castle

The castle houses both a psychiatric and an orthopedic clinic.

The café, chapel, and park can be accessed by the public.

What to see in Germany

The longest castle in Europe is in the southern German town of Burghausen. The castle is situated on the Salzach river in Upper Bavaria, bordering Austria.

The castle, sitting on top of a ridge, can boast of a length of 1,043 m.

 

Medieval Ronneburg Castle in Germany

At our annual Christmas party, sponsored by Frankfurt International School (FIS), I ran into Richard Winn, who is one of the English teachers. Not only does he teach English to the upper school students, but he also knows how to capture rare moments on camera.

I had to compliment once more on the stunning photo he had taken at the Ronneburg Castle. This photo made it into the New York Times photo gallery in 2009.

The castle opens its gates to the public for various events throughout the year. On such an occasion, Richard was able to observe and capture the life portrayed from the medieval times.

Ronneburg Castle in Germany

I quote the following from his entry at the New York Times gallery:

Castle Ronneburg, Hesse, Germany, Sep 12, 2009

This woman was dressed up in medieval clothing and working in the kitchen for a festival at the castle. The room was smoky from an open wood-fired stove, creating this otherworldly light. I was in a real –life Flemish painting. Vermeer could have been standing beside me, painting away. I just moved to Germany from Las Vegas, and am still very much in the honeymoon phase of exploring a new country.

You can browse more photos submitted by readers. from nytimes.com/why we travel.

 – Photo published with friendly permission by Richard Winn –

 

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