Vianden Castle

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Castle Vianden

Vianden Castle is a medieval fortification in Vianden in the eponymous canton of Vianden in Luxembourg. It is one of the largest castles preserved west of the Rhine.

History

Origin of the whole system forms a Roman fort, dating back to 360-450 AD. A more important and numerous extensions, such as the installation of a decagonal chapel learned the imposing Stauferburg and most powerful yet existing fortifications of Luxembourg in the 11th century. The occasion was the relocation of the Lords of Vianden from the Eifel to this place. The Counts of Vianden were to the 15th century, the most powerful men between the Rhine, Moselle and Meuse.

From 1417 until the French Revolution, the castle was owned by the House of Orange -Nassau. In the 17th century the castle was a manor house in Renaissance style. During the French Revolution it was confiscated, but returned in 1815 to Grand Duke William I of Luxembourg. Wenceslas Coster, the then mayor of the city, the castle in 1820 purchased at an auction for 3,200 guilders. ( At the same time the castles Burscheid and Esch- Sauer were auctioned. ) He sold the materials of the castle as the Kupferverdachung, stained glass, wood paneling and iron fittings, doors and windows, so that the buildings of the castle fell rapidly.

In 1890 Grand Duke Adolf acquired from the older house of Nassau castle ruins now for 1100 florins, and intended to let them rebuild. However, this did not materialize, so the system while in the possession of the Grand Dukes but remained steadily disintegrated. Since its nationalization in 1977, it is gradually restored and is open to visitors daily. Your renewal is indeed almost complete, in small areas but they still continued into the 21st century. This work will be scientifically monitored.

Description of the buildings and of the overall system

The castle is located above the town of Vianden, at an altitude of 310 meters above the river Our. It has an inner wall with corner towers. Within these core castle houses the living rooms, banquet halls and utility rooms. The outer ring of walls is significantly lower and offers by three successive gates access to the main castle. The plant is a total of about 85 meters long and 30 meters wide.

It is divided into four levels: the main area includes the armory, an " archaeological crypt ", a small and a large kitchen, a lower chapel, the knights room, the dining room and the great knight's hall. This can hold up to 500 people.

Above are a courtyard, followed by battlements, followed by the Upper Chapel, the " Byzantine Gallery ", the banquet hall, the bedroom, three named after persons rooms ( Vic Aben, JP Koltz and Ch Arendt ), the small palace (from the 12. century) and the pedigree room.

Incorporated partly in the rock are a large basement and a defense plant, which had been created at the time of the Carolingians; in 1250, the then owner strengthen the defensibility of these bailey. This area is characterized by the " Black Tower ".

Special

In 2000 the castle was the filming location for the film Shadow of the Vampire.

During the tour in a larger room the castle's history in pictures and models is shown. Information panels provide information about that towards the end of the 20th century by means of laser scanning a detailed survey of the entire system could be made for the first time. There was a photo-realistic three-dimensional model of the castle.

The financing of the reconstruction work carried out for the most part from EU funds. Also, Les Amis du Château de Vianden ( Friends of the Vianden Castle ) contribute a part.