German Castle Road: A scenic route to the past

The first highlight on the Castle Road, located directly on the Neckar River, is Heidelberg Castle. It was greatly damaged by wars during the 17th century. Today, the impressive complex is preserved as a ruin. Romantic era artists immortalized it in numerous paintings, describing it in rapturous verse.

Further upstream in Neckarsteinach you can admire four castles at the same time. The small town on the Neckar thus holds the unofficial "Castle Road Record." Two of the four castles are still in good condition and even inhabited; they can be toured by arrangement with the owners. The other two are ruins and freely accessible. The picture shows Hinterburg (left) and Mittelburg (right).

Hornberg Castle in Neckarzimmern is considered the largest and oldest castle on the Neckar River. Götz von Berlichingen, the knight about whom the famed German writer Goethe wrote one of his first dramas in 1773, spent 45 years of his life here. Nowadays, the castle houses a hotel and a restaurant.

A little further along the Castle Road, you will pass one of the most beautiful castles on the route: the Renaissance moated castle of Neuenstein. In the castle's own art and curiosity cabinet you can admire, among other things, a shoe that once belonged to Russian Empress Catherine the Great.

Langenburg Castle is located on a ridge high above the Jagst Valley. The castle has been owned by the princely family of Hohenlohe since the 13th century and is still their residence today. In addition to a cafe, the castle rooms also house a car museum.

Lichtenau Fortress in the district of Ansbach dates back to a medieval moated castle. After its destruction in the 16th and 17th centuries, the fortress was rebuilt according to the model of Italian-Dutch citadels.

Greifenstein Castle has been in the possession of the Schenk von Stauffenberg family since the 17th century. Colonel Claus Schenk Graf von Stauffenberg carried out an assassination attempt on Adolf Hitler in 1944. Afterwards, the castle was to be burned down but its destruction was prevented. Today parts of the castle housing a large collection of hunting weapons and trophies are open to visitors.

On the highest of the seven hills around Bamberg, Altenburg Castle towers above the town. It was first mentioned in a document in 1109 and was the seat of the prince bishops of Bamberg from the 14th to the 16th century. Until the 1980s, the brown bears kept in a kennel in the castle courtyard were an attraction for visitors.

The Veste Coburg Fortress offers a fantastic view over the city. It was built on a 167-meter (548-foot) hill and is one of the largest and best-preserved castle complexes in Germany. In 1530, it served as a refuge for the church reformer Martin Luther for almost half a year.

Rosenberg Fortress is one of the last stops on the German section of the Castle Road. In its more than 750-year history, it has never been invaded. Today, the south wing of the fortress houses a branch of the Bavarian National Museum with paintings from the 13th to 16th centuries. From here, the Castle Road continues on through the Czech Republic to Prague.