Exploring Germany’s Elegant, Historic Hohenzollern Castle
One of the most elegant historical sites in Germany is Hohenzollern Castle. Located 40 miles south of Stuttgart, the 19th-century structure is the third castle built on the site. The first castle was erected in the 11th century (when the dynastic family was known as the Zollerns) and was known as Germany’s “most fortified House” and the “Crown of all Castles in Swabia.” In 1423, the castle was destroyed following a 10-month siege.
The larger and even more fortified castle constructed in the mid-1600s served as a regional military hub and changed control several times during the Thirty Years’ War. This protracted conflict featured Roman Catholics and Protestants at war, with mercenary armies attacking and plundering as they marched, ravaging villages, burghs, and castles. When it ended in 1648 with the Treaty of Westphalia, the map of Europe was completely redrawn, and Spanish imperial power diminished.
By the late 1700s, the second Hohenzollern Castle had fallen into disrepair, as it was no longer strategically important. The third and final castle was erected by Prussia’s King Frederick William IV from 1850 to 1867 in a Gothic Revival style common in France and England at the time.
Interestingly, no Hohenzollern family member lived permanently in the current castle, which functioned as a vacation house, with staff members and soldiers tasked with keeping the castle functioning. This was because the Hohenzollern family had long since decamped to Berlin, taking a leadership role within the German Empire. Following Germany’s defeat in 1945, the castle briefly served as the residence of the former Crown Prince Wilhelm, the son of Kaiser Wilhelm II, Germany’s last monarch. The next patriarch, Prince Louis Ferdinand, died in a military maneuver and, preceding his sons, who had married commoners, passed it on to his grandson, Wilhelm II’s great-great-grandson George Friedrich. Today, the castle and the land around it are still owned by George Friedrich, who holds the title Prince of Prussia. Naturally, this role connotes no political power in the modern democratic republic that Germany has become.
A noted tourist destination, Hohenzollern Castle attracts around 300,000 visitors each year, making it one of the continent’s most popular castle destinations. Visitors enter through the grounds’ rear access point, designed as the castle fortress, where guards can stealthily observe intruders from subterranean casements and intercept them if necessary. It is here also, among labyrinthine foundations and passageways, that the first stone was laid at the base of the first Hohenzollern castle, forming the basis of an enduring dynasty.
One of the most noteworthy elements of the museum-like castle interior is a great hall that features the family tree of the Hohenzollern, with names of nobility and monarchs painted on the walls, from floor to ceiling. In addition to Frederick William I, the soldier king, and Kaiser Wilhelm II, Frederick the Great is among the most illustrious names on the wall. As King of Prussia from 1740 to 1786, Frederick expanded his kingdom to include sizable sections of Germany and Austria, which bolstered Prussia’s fleet and military capacities. In addition, he composed poetry, wrote on history and politics, and composed music.
Elements of a sumptuous and elegant castle interior include golden chandeliers fitted with candles that are replaced daily and cathedral-like arched ceilings with expansive stained-glass windows. The queen’s chamber features plush furniture upholstery in shades of blue, with the overall effect on the visitor more of a museum than a lived-in space.
