Top 10 most beautiful castles in Germany

The video shows the rankings on the 1st of October 2017

Germany is famous for its castles, with their pasts filled with knights, dukes and holy wars. Out of all the countries in Europe, Germany has one of the best collection of amazing castles ! Fairy tale castles that sit atop high mountains, medieval wonders or magnificent structures built to protect towns or just pleasure some kings, Germany has it all. Explore with us Germany's most amazing castles.

10. Zwingenberg Castle The spur castle was built on a hill spur in the triangle formed by the confluence of the steep Wolfschlucht gorge with the Neckar valley and lies about 50 metres above the river.

The lord of the castle today is Louis (Ludwig), Prince of Baden (born 1937), a descendant of Grand Duke Charles Frederick of Baden.... view details



9. Heidelberg Castle Heidelberg Castle is a ruin in Germany and landmark of Heidelberg. The castle ruins are among the most important Renaissance structures north of the Alps.

The castle has only been partially rebuilt since its demolition in the 17th and 18th centuries. It is located 80 metres (260 ft) up the northern part of the Konigstuhl hillside, and thereby dominates the view of the old downtown.

The city of Heidelberg has, at the beginning of the 21st century, more than three million visitors a year. The most important attraction, according to surveys by the Geographical Institute of the University of Heidelberg, is the castle with its observation terraces.... view details



8. Hohenzollern Castle Hohenzollern Castle is the ancestral seat of the imperial House of Hohenzollern. The third of three castles on the site, it is located atop Berg Hohenzollern, a 234-metre bluff rising above the towns of Hechingen and Bisingen in the foothills of the Swabian Alps of central Baden-Wurttemberg.

The present structure was built between 1846 and 1867 as a family memorial by Hohenzollern scion King Frederick William IV of Prussia. The design was based on English Gothic Revival architecture and the Chateaux of the Loire Valley.

Among the historical artifacts of Prussian history contained in the castle are the Crown of Wilhelm II, some of the personal effects of King Frederick the Great, and a letter from US President George Washington thanking Hohenzollern descendant Baron von Steuben for his service in ...... view details



7. Altena Castle Altena Castle was erected by the early Counts of Berg in the early 12th century. Eventually, the House of Berg abandoned Altena and moved their residence to Hamm.

In 1912, Richard Schirrmann established the world's first youth hostel within the castle, which is still in use today.... view details



6. Sigmaringen Castle Sigmaringen Castle was the princely castle and seat of government for the Princes of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen. Situated in the Swabian Alb region of Baden-Wurttemberg this castle dominates the skyline of the town of Sigmaringen.

The castle was rebuilt following a fire in 1893, and only the towers of the earlier medieval fortress remain. Schloss Sigmaringen was a family estate of the Swabian Hohenzollern family, a cadet branch of the Hohenzollern family, from which the German Emperors and kings of Prussia came. The castle and museums may be visited throughout the year, on guided tours.... view details



5. Nuremberg Castle Nuremberg Castle is a historical building on a sandstone rock in the north of the historical city of Nuremberg.

The castle comprises three sections: the Imperial castle (Kaiserburg), some buildings of the Burgraves of Nuremberg (Burggrafenburg), and the municipal buildings of the Imperial City at the eastern site (Reichsstadtische Bauten).

The castle, together with the city walls, is considered to be one of Europe's most formidable medieval fortifications.... view details



4. Munzenberg Castle Munzenberg Castle is one of the best preserved castles from the High Middle Ages in Germany.

A striking feature of Munzenberg Castle is that it has two tall defensive towers, a structure known as a bergfried. Such a tower is a typical feature of castles in the region, but there is usually only one, forming the strongest point of the castle. The bergfrieds at Munzenberg are both round, the taller one being 29 meters high.... view details



3. Neuschwanstein Castle Neuschwanstein is one of the most popular tourist destinations in Europe. The "fairy-tale" palace was commissioned by Ludwig II of Bavaria as a retreat and as an homage to Richard Wagner, whom the king has greatly admired.

The castle was intended as a personal refuge for the reclusive king Ludwig, but it was opened to the paying public immediately after his death in 1886.

Since then more than 61 million people have visited Neuschwanstein Castle. More than 1.3 million people visit annually, with as many as 6,000 per day in the summer.

The palace was commissioned by Ludwig II of Bavaria as a retreat and as a homage to Richard Wagner; it embodies both the contemporaneous architectural fashion known as castle romanticism, and Ludwig II's immoderate enthusiasm for the operas of ...... view details



2. Lichtenstein Castle By George Ghidrai Often hailed as the "fairy-tale castle of Württemberg", Lichtenstein Castle is a romantic castle built by Count Wilhelm of Württemberg to pay homage to medieval times. The structure we see today was largely inspired by the novel Lichtenstein by Wilhelm Hauff. The castle has an impressive location: perched on an 800 meters-high cliff just on the edge of the Swabian Alps, it offers magnificent views of the surrounding landscape and the valley of the Echaz river, a small tributary of the Neckar river. view details



1. Hohenschwangau Castle Hohenschwangau Castle is a 19th-century palace in southern Germany, very close to the border with Austria. It was the childhood residence of King Ludwig II of Bavaria and was built by his father, King Maximilian II of Bavaria. More than 300,000 visitors from all over the world visit the palace each year.... view details



This "top" is based on user ratings and it can change based on users votes; be sure to rate your favourite castles and check back soon.

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