The world's most comprehensive internet guide to the history and locations of the castles of Germany


The world's most comprehensive internet guide to

Castles, fortresses, fortified manors and towns

 This site will prepare you for your trip to Germany by providing historical data and road maps to many of Germany's castles. We begin with a brief history, but you have the option of cutting directly to the maps to, and photographs of the castles, or what is left of many of them, by clicking on the options at the bottom of each page. You may also go directly to the Castle Table to immediately find a castle whose name you already know. This table, like the site itself, will continue to grow. If you don't find it today, check again in the future. Soon another table will be added that will list castles not depicted in this web site but is a castle site not yet visited by me or visited but not yet included as a page. There is also a list of castle terms in both German and English on the drawing board. Stay tuned.

Fortifications
In searching for buildings that could rightly be included here it was a prerequisite that the structure have a history as a building designed or restructured to ward off an armed or hostile attempt at capturing the location or its inhabitants. This may well mean that the structure was never more elaborate or romantic than a very strong farm manor. This in a sense qualifies it as a medieval fortification. There are some that appear today to be simply large dwellings with no obvious signs of a Medieval history. Yet underneath the visible exterior may lie the basic workings of a former castle or fortified manor.

Achberg (at left, located just north of Lindau on the Bodensee) is a residential structure dating from the 17th century, but is built in part on the remains of 12th century fortified walls.

 To qualify as a true castle the building needs to have been structured at some point in its history with the accouterments of a castle. These would include perimeter walls, towers, battlements, portcullises and the like. Battlemented parapets such as the crenels and merlens in the tower at right are not always a sign of a true castle. In this case the battlements were added to a true castle at a later date. It is also important to know when the building was built. After the 16th century there was little value in building castles that were easy prey to the improving accuracy and destructive power of cannon.

Not: Neueschwanstein in southern Bavaria is considered by many travelers to be the pre-eminent castle in Europe. It is in fact nothing more than a very extraordinary palace. Its battlements and towers are no more than architectural attractions. The structure was built in a period beyond the upper limits of the Middle Ages and by then castles had long lost their essential role in military and political planning in Europe. So, while the building has the looks of a castle it falls far short of the qualifications. It simply has no place in any conversation centering on the Middle Ages or castles. The sites included in Roads to Ruins have, to the best of my ability, been determined by me to be authentic medieval fortified locations, or were at one time fortified.
  I am open to any suggestions for improving the accuracy of the information included here. To those with authority or intimate knowledge of the facts or history of any of these castles I would like to extend an invitation to submit any recommendations or information to me through my email address. If another type of correspondence is preferred please email your desire and I will make every effort to assist. This is, and will always be, a work in progress. Much information in my hands has yet to be accurately translated and will be included with time. I would like to thank Dr. Wilhelm Avenarius of the German Castle Association at Marksburg castle for his valuable expertise and contributions. On that note let me mention that the association is open to membership, and their funds go towrds the preservation of these historic sites. Of considerable help also is Dipl.-Ing. Konrad-Fischer, one of Europe's pre-eminent restoration architects whose work is responsible for preserving for future generations the physical evidence of Germany's medieval past.

With time each of these sites will be expanded with additional data and photographs and new sites will be added. If you are aware of locations that are not included in my list please feel free to send me what information you have and those locations will be investigated and considered for future inclusion. As you travel the "Roads to Ruins" I ask that you respect the labor that has gone into this presentation by adhering to the international laws governing the author's rights. All the contents of this publication are copyrighted by Edward G. Kane and no persons or organizations may reproduce, distribute or disseminate these contents or any portion of this publication without the expressed, written consent of the author.