Esch-sur-Sûre Castle (

Luxembourgish Luxembourgish ( ; also ''Luxemburgish'', ''Luxembourgian'', ''Letzebu(e)rgesch''; ) is a West Germanic language that is spoken mainly in Luxembourg. About 400,000 people speak Luxembourgish worldwide. The language is standardized and officiall ...

: ''Buerg Esch-Sauer''; ;

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

: ''Burg Esch-Sauer''), now a ruin, is located on a spur in the small town of

Esch-sur-Sûre Esch-sur-Sûre (, ; , ; , ) is a commune and small town in north-western Luxembourg, situated in the canton of Wiltz. At one point it was the second smallest commune by area in Luxembourg (after Remich), until Neunhausen and Heiderscheid were ...

in the north-west of

Luxembourg Luxembourg, officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, is a landlocked country in Western Europe. It is bordered by Belgium to the west and north, Germany to the east, and France on the south. Its capital and most populous city, Luxembour ...

. It is naturally protected by a sharp meander in the River Sûre which surrounds the town and the castle on three sides.

History

In 927, a certain Meginaud or Maingaud and his wife Hiletrude acquired the site of Esch-sur-Sûre where he built a Romanesque tower eight metres square as well as farm buildings. The castle was considerably enlarged in the Gothic style by the two last Counts of Esch during the 13th century."Esch-sur-Sûre"
''Association des châteaux luxembourgeois''. 22 March 2011. With the introduction of gunpowder in the 15th century, additional defences were required. The entire village was reinforced with a solid wall stretching 450 metres around the village complete with two defensive towers. The round watchtower or Lochturm opposite the keep was also built in the 15th century as were the entrance gate and the castle stables. The castle started to deteriorate in the middle of the 16th century and was dismantled in 1685 by the troops of

Louis XIV LouisXIV (Louis-Dieudonné; 5 September 16381 September 1715), also known as Louis the Great () or the Sun King (), was King of France from 1643 until his death in 1715. His verified reign of 72 years and 110 days is the List of longest-reign ...

. The outer wall was however left intact as many of the houses used of it for their back walls. The castle fell into the hands of commoners. When

Victor Hugo Victor-Marie Hugo, vicomte Hugo (; 26 February 1802 – 22 May 1885) was a French Romanticism, Romantic author, poet, essayist, playwright, journalist, human rights activist and politician. His most famous works are the novels ''The Hunchbac ...

visited the village in 1871, several families were still living there. In 1902, the Egyptian Martin Riano d’Hutzt bought the ruins from the State for 1,000 francs. He charged the architect Charles Arendt with restoration work and the chapel was restored in 1906 but then funds appear to have run out."Esch-sur-Sûre Castle"
, ''Castles in Luxembourg''. Retrieved 22 March 2011."Le château et l’histoire de ses seigneurs"
''Les Amis du château d'Esch-sur-Süre''. Retrieved 22 March 2011.

The castle today

Today only the ruins of the castle remain although the State acquired the site in 2005 and began restoration work the following year. The site is open to the public and is illuminated in the evenings.

References

External links

Esch-sur-Sûre Castle website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Esch-Sur-Sure Castle Castles in Luxembourg Ruined castles in Luxembourg Castles in the Ardennes (Luxembourg) Castles in the Eifel

History

The castle today

See also

References

External links