The International Castle Research Society (ICRS) was established in

Aachen Aachen ( ; ; Aachen dialect: ''Oche'' ; French and traditional English: Aix-la-Chapelle; or ''Aquisgranum''; nl, Aken ; Polish: Akwizgran) is, with around 249,000 inhabitants, the 13th-largest city in North Rhine-Westphalia, and the 28th- ...

in 1986 as a not-for-profit organization following earlier initiatives by Bernhard Siepen, architect, who has been its president since 2000. Early supporters were the long-standing Aachen member of parliament, Dr. Hans Stercken, and Consul Cornel Renfert, of the Franco-German Chamber of Commerce,

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

Background

The first model, the Donjon of Coucy, was started in 1997, with a number of models following, the latest being the Castel del Monte. Whereas the earlier models were of French fortified keeps, or

donjon A keep (from the Middle English ''kype'') is a type of fortified tower built within castles during the Middle Ages by European nobility. Scholars have debated the scope of the word ''keep'', but usually consider it to refer to large towers in c ...

s, then Crusader castles and bazaars as well as medieval ships, for some time now ICRS has been working on creating models of palaces typical of the 9th to 12th centuries. There are also plans for a model of the imperial Aachen palace of

Charlemagne Charlemagne ( , ) or Charles the Great ( la, Carolus Magnus; german: Karl der Große; 2 April 747 – 28 January 814), a member of the Carolingian dynasty, was King of the Franks from 768, King of the Lombards from 774, and the first Holy ...

, dating from around AD 800, and of historic buildings in

Jerusalem Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...

ICRS activities

The president, team and ICRS consultants: *create models of historic buildings, ships, life- scenes *bring these models to life peopling them with hand-painted figurines *present models, descriptions, plans of important castles *organize seminars, talks, multimedia shows as well as visits to exhibitions and existing historic buildings *support and organize research study courses on historic buildings at school and university level *train young people in handicrafts relating to creating models

Models

Models created by ICRS based on historical sources, at 1/25 of natural size Modell Donjon von Coucy.jpg, Donjon of Coucy, France (AD 1339)
6x6 metres, 2,40 m height, c 2,500 figurines Modell Ritterturnier.jpg, French

jousting Jousting is a martial game or hastilude between two horse riders wielding lances with blunted tips, often as part of a tournament (medieval), tournament. The primary aim was to replicate a clash of heavy cavalry, with each participant trying t ...

tournament
2x2 metres, c 700 figurines Modell Basar von Aleppo.jpg,

Aleppo )), is an adjective which means "white-colored mixed with black". , motto = , image_map = , mapsize = , map_caption = , image_map1 = ...

Bazaar (16th century)
4x4 metres, c 750 figurines Modell Krak des Chevaliers.jpg,

Crac des Chevaliers Krak des Chevaliers, ar, قلعة الحصن, Qalʿat al-Ḥiṣn also called Hisn al-Akrad ( ar, حصن الأكراد, Ḥiṣn al-Akrād, rtl=yes, ) and formerly Crac de l'Ospital; Krak des Chevaliers or Crac des Chevaliers (), is a medieva ...

Syria Syria ( ar, سُورِيَا or سُورِيَة, translit=Sūriyā), officially the Syrian Arab Republic ( ar, الجمهورية العربية السورية, al-Jumhūrīyah al-ʻArabīyah as-Sūrīyah), is a Western Asian country loc ...

(AD 1271)
6x6 metres, 2.30 m height, c 2,000 figurines Modell Muslimische Steinschleuder.jpg, Arab

trebuchets A trebuchet (french: trébuchet) is a type of catapult that uses a long arm to throw a projectile. It was a common powerful siege engine until the advent of gunpowder. The design of a trebuchet allows it to launch projectiles of greater weight ...

and

mangonel The mangonel, also called the traction trebuchet, was a type of trebuchet used in Ancient China starting from the Warring States period, and later across Eurasia by the 6th century AD. Unlike the later counterweight trebuchet, the mangonel opera ...

s
1x0,6 meters, c 50 figurines Modell Hafen von Akkon.jpg, Crusader ships anchored in

Akko Acre ( ), known locally as Akko ( he, עַכּוֹ, ''ʻAkō'') or Akka ( ar, عكّا, ''ʻAkkā''), is a city in the coastal plain region of the Northern District of Israel. The city occupies an important location, sitting in a natural harb ...

harbour (AD 1270)
3x2 metres, c 600 figurines Modell Castel del Monte.jpg, Castel del Monte
3x3 metres, c 400 figurines

Exhibitions

More than one million people in both in Europe and North America so far have visited ICRS exhibitions.

Publications

*Französische Donjons, ed. Bernhard Siepen, Aachen 2002, *Wohntürme, ed. Heinz Müller, Langenweißbach 2002, *Ile de France gothique – 2 – Les demeures seigneuriales, ed.

Jean Mesqui Jean Mesqui, (born 27 May 1952 in Paris) is an engineer, researcher in castle studies, and specialist in the bridges of France. Biography Jean Antoine Marie Joseph Mesqui was born on 27 May 1952, in the 16th arrondissement of Paris. He studie ...

, Paris 1988, *Châteaux et enceintes de la France Médiévale, ed.Jean Mesqui, Paris 1991, *Les programmes résidentiels du château de Coucy du XIIIe au XVIe siècle, ed. Jean Mesqui, Paris 1994 *Burgen und Basare der Kreuzfahrerzeit, eds. Hans Altmann and Bernhard Siepen, Fulda 2005, (book of the exhibition) *Burgen und Basare der Kreuzfahrerzeit, eds. Bernhard Siepen, Karina Kisza and Nina Radermacher (painting book), Fulda 2005, *Spuren der Kreuzfahrer – Modelle, eds. Bernhard Siepen and Ulrich Alertz, Aachen 2009, *Damaskus – Aleppo – 5000 Jahre Stadtentwicklung in Syrien, eds Mammoun Fansa, Heinz Gaube, Jens Windelberg, Mainz 2000, *Castel del Monte – Forschungsergebnisse der Jahre 1990 bis 1996, ed. Wulf Schirmer, Mainz 2000, *Wissenschaft und Technik im Islam, Einführung in die Geschichte der arabisch-islamischen Wissenschaften, ed. Fuat Sezgin, Frankfurt am Main 2003,

External links

* in English, French, German * in English, French, German {{Authority control Castles History organisations based in Germany Organizations established in 1986