Blutenburg Castle is an old ducal country seat in the west of

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the third-largest city in Germany, after Berlin and Ha ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

, on the banks of river

Würm The Würm is a river in Bavaria, Germany, right tributary of the Amper. The length of the river is , or including the ''Steinbach'', the main feed of Lake Starnberg. It drains the overflow from Lake Starnberg and flows swiftly through the villag ...

History

The castle was built between two arms of the River Würm for Duke

Albert III, Duke of Bavaria Albert III the Pious of Bavaria-Munich (; 27 March 1401 – 29 February 1460), since 1438 Duke of Bavaria-Munich. He was born in Wolfratshausen to Ernest, Duke of Bavaria and Elisabetta Visconti, daughter of Bernabò Visconti. Life Albert ...

in 1438–39 as a hunting-lodge, replacing an older castle burned down in war. The origin of this castle is a moated castle of the 13th century. The core of this castle was a residential tower, the remains of which were uncovered in 1981. The fortress was first mentioned in writing only in 1432. Albert's son, Duke

Sigismund of Bavaria Sigismund of Bavaria (26 July 1439 – 1 February 1501) was a member of the Wittelsbach dynasty. He ruled as Duke of Bavaria-Munich from 1460 to 1467, and then as Duke of Bavaria-Dachau until his death. Biography Sigismund was the third son of ...

, ordered extensions of the castle beginning in 1488 and later died here in 1501. The main building became derelict during the

Thirty Years War The Thirty Years' War was one of the longest and most destructive conflicts in European history, lasting from 1618 to 1648. Fought primarily in Central Europe, an estimated 4.5 to 8 million soldiers and civilians died as a result of battl ...

, but was rebuilt in 1680–81. The castle is still surrounded by a ring wall with three towers and a gate tower. The defensive character of the castle, however, was with the reconstruction in 17th century significantly reduced. The plant was already at that time no longer defensible.

The chapel

Sigismund of Bavaria also ordered the construction of the palace chapel, a splendid masterpiece of late Gothic style which still has preserved its stained-glass windows, along with the altars with three paintings created in 1491 by

Jan Polack Jan Polack Johannes Po(l)lack (Hanns Polagk, Polegk), ( la, Ioannes Polonus) (between 1435 and 1450 – 1519) was a 15th-century painter. From his nickname it is assumed that he might have been born and/or worked in Kraków. From the mid-1470s ...

. The cycle of the statues of the apostles on the side walls was built around 1490/95. The executive master is controversial, which is why the statues are assigned to the "Master of the Blutenburg apostles." The apostles can not always be clearly identified as the attributes were partially reversed or lost. Appendant to these figures the "

Man of Sorrows Man of Sorrows, a biblical term, is paramount among the prefigurations of the Messiah identified by the Bible in the passages of Isaiah 53 ('' Servant songs'') in the Hebrew Bible. It is also an iconic devotional image that shows Christ, usuall ...

" and the distinguished "Mother of God" (Blutenburger Madonna) were erected in the choir on crest consoles that match those of the apostles.

Present day

Jewish Memorial - Castle Blutenburg - Munich

Since 1983 the

International Youth Library The International Youth Library (IYL) (, IJB) in Munich is a library that specializes in the collection of children and youth literature from around the world in order to make them available to the public, focusing on the international community. ...

(''Internationale Jugendbibliothek'') has been housed in Blutenburg Castle. The Blutenburg concerts are well known. Near the castle, a memorial by the sculper Hubertus von Pilgrim was set up to remember the thousands of victims of the

death march A death march is a forced march of prisoners of war or other captives or deportees in which individuals are left to die along the way. It is distinguished in this way from simple prisoner transport via foot march. Article 19 of the Geneva Conven ...

that the prisoners of the Dachau concentration camp were forced to go on. This memorial is one of 22 identical sculptures erected along the routes of the death marches. In 2013 at the Blutenburg Castle there was erected the Sculpture of

Agnes Bernauer Agnes Bernauer (c. 1410 – 12 October 1435) was the mistress and perhaps also the first wife of Albert, later Albert III, Duke of Bavaria. Because his father, Ernest, ruling Duke of Bavaria at the time, considered this liaison with a commone ...

with

by Joseph Michael Neustifter. The memorial was funded by Ursula und Fritz Heimbüchler.

References

External links

Blutenburg PalaceSchloss Blutenburg (German Site)
{{Authority control Royal residences in Bavaria Palaces in Bavaria Buildings and structures in Munich Tourist attractions in Munich Gothic architecture in Munich 1438 establishments in Europe Castles in Bavaria Hunting lodges in Germany Pasing-Obermenzing