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Greifenstein Castle (german: Burg Greifenstein) lies in the eponymous village of Greifenstein in the county of
Lahn-Dill-Kreis Lahn-Dill is a ''Kreis'' (district) in the west of Hesse, Germany. Neighboring districts are Siegen-Wittgenstein, Marburg-Biedenkopf, Gießen, Wetteraukreis, Hochtaunuskreis, Limburg-Weilburg, Westerwaldkreis. History The southern district b ...
in Middle Hesse,
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 ...
. It is a geo point in the national geopark of Westerwald-Lahn-Taunus.


Location

The
hill castle A hill castle or mountain castle is a castle built on a natural feature that stands above the surrounding terrain. It is a term derived from the German ''Höhenburg'' used in categorising castle sites by their topographical location. Hill castles a ...
stands on a hill in the Dill Westerwald and has a good view over the Dill valley. At above sea level (NN) it is the highest castle in the county of Lahn-Dill. The castle is a highly visible landmark. It is signed from the A 45 motorway.


History

The hill castle was first recorded in 1160. In 1298 it was destroyed by the counts of Nassau and
Solms Geography Location Solms lies right in the Lahn valley at the mouth of the eponymous little river Solmsbach and is nestled between the foothills of both the Taunus and Westerwald at heights from 140 to 400 m above sea level. It is about 7& ...
, as was Lichtenstein, which was not rebuilt. In 1315 it was enfeoffed by the House of Habsburg ( Albert I had purchased the castle from Kraft of Greifenstein) to the Counts of Nassau.http://regesten.regesta-imperii.de/regshow.php?pk=44588&bandanzeige= After having several owners, it had become dilapidated by 1676 and was then converted into a Baroque ''
schloss ''Schloss'' (; pl. ''Schlösser''), formerly written ''Schloß'', is the German term for a building similar to a château, palace, or manor house. Related terms appear in several Germanic languages. In the Scandinavian languages, the cognate ...
'' by William Maurice of Solms-Greifenstein. After the counts moved to Braunfels in 1693 the site fell into ruins. In 1969 the castle ruins were gifted to the Greifenstein Society, who have since looked after the preservation of the site, which is open to the public and incorporates a restaurant. The castle is a
heritage site A historic site or heritage site is an official location where pieces of political, military, cultural, or social history have been preserved due to their cultural heritage value. Historic sites are usually protected by law, and many have been rec ...
in the meaning of the Hessian Monument Conservation Act. Since 1995, its
restoration Restoration is the act of restoring something to its original state and may refer to: * Conservation and restoration of cultural heritage ** Audio restoration ** Film restoration ** Image restoration ** Textile restoration * Restoration ecology ...
has also been supported by the
Federal Republic of 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 between ...
because it has been classified as a Monument of National Significances (''Denkmal von nationaler Bedeutung'').


Description

The circular walk across the castle terrain leads to a
gaol A prison, also known as a jail, gaol (dated, English language in England, standard English, Australian English, Australian, and Huron Historic Gaol, historically in Canada), penitentiary (American English and Canadian English), detention cen ...
with torture implements, weapons and a wine cellar, living rooms and a twin-towered
bergfried ''Bergfried'' (plural: ''bergfriede''; English: ''belfry''; French: ''tour-beffroi''; Spanish: ''torre del homenaje'') is a tall tower that is typically found in castles of the Middle Ages in German-speaking countries and in countries under Germ ...
accessible on a
spiral staircase Stairs are a structure designed to bridge a large vertical distance between lower and higher levels by dividing it into smaller vertical distances. This is achieved as a diagonal series of horizontal platforms called steps which enable passage ...
. On the pointed roof of the Brother Tower (''Bruderturm'') there is a
gryphon The griffin, griffon, or gryphon ( Ancient Greek: , ''gryps''; Classical Latin: ''grȳps'' or ''grȳpus''; Late and Medieval Latin: ''gryphes'', ''grypho'' etc.; Old French: ''griffon'') is a legendary creature with the body, tail, and ...
(German: ''Greif'', a reference to the name of the castle) as a
weather vane A wind vane, weather vane, or weathercock is an instrument used for showing the direction of the wind. It is typically used as an architectural ornament to the highest point of a building. The word ''vane'' comes from the Old English word , m ...
. In the tower itself is a peal of three bells with strike tones of F#1, A1 and C2. Attractions include the Village and Castle Museum (''Dorf- und Burgmuseum''), one of the few double chapels in Germany. The Chapel of St. Catherine was built in 1462 as a
fortified church A fortified church is a church that is built to serve a defensive role in times of war. Such churches were specially designed to incorporate military features, such as thick walls, battlements, and embrasures. Others, such as the Ávila Cathedra ...
in the
Gothic style Gothic or Gothics may refer to: People and languages *Goths or Gothic people, the ethnonym of a group of East Germanic tribes **Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths ** Crimean Gothic, the Gothic language spoken ...
. When the castle was converted into the
Baroque style The Baroque (, ; ) is a style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished in Europe from the early 17th century until the 1750s. In the territories of the Spanish and Portuguese empires including t ...
the castle courtyard was filled with earth with the result that, today, the chapel is below ground level. It contains frescoes and
arrow slit An arrowslit (often also referred to as an arrow loop, loophole or loop hole, and sometimes a balistraria) is a narrow vertical aperture in a fortification through which an archer can launch arrows or a crossbowman can launch bolts. The interio ...
s as well as casemates with vaulted ceilings and fighting rooms. The Baroque church built above the fortified chapel from 1687 to 1702 is richly decorated with stuccos and is of the Italian Early Baroque period. Upper and lower churches are linked by a staircase. Walks around the castle and an educational herb garden make the site a popular destination.


Gallery

File:Burg Greifenstein 1 Juli 2011.jpg, Aerial view File:Burg Greifenstein 2 Juli 2011.jpg, Front view from the air File:Greifenstein - Burg - Front.jpg, Front view File:BurgGreifenstein.jpg, The twin towers File:Burg Greifenstein Mario Becker Project-B-WW 20070325.jpg, Mystical side


References


Literature

* Georg Ulrich Großmann: ''Mittel- und Südhessen : Lahntal, Taunus, Rheingau, Wetterau, Frankfurt und Maintal, Kinzig, Vogelsberg, Rhön, Bergstraße und Odenwald.'' DuMont, Cologne, 1995, (=''DuMont Kunst-Reiseführer''), pp. 45–48. * Rudolf Knappe: ''Mittelalterliche Burgen in Hessen: 800 Burgen, Burgruinen und Burgstätten.'' 3rd edn., Wartberg-Verlag, Gudensberg-Gleichen, 2000, , pp. 287–288. * ''Schlösser, Burgen, alte Mauern.'' Herausgegeben vom Hessendienst der Staatskanzlei, Wiesbaden, 1990, pp. 148–150, .


External links

* * Greifenstein-Verein e. V.
Greifenstein Castle
* Wolfgang Braun
Artist’s impression based on the model
{{Authority control Hill castles Castles in Hesse Museums in Hesse Buildings and structures in the Westerwald Buildings and structures in Lahn-Dill-Kreis