Callenberg Castle (''Schloss Callenberg'') is a

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 cogn ...

on a wooded hill in Beiersdorf, an ''

Ortsteil A village is a human settlement or Residential community, community, larger than a hamlet (place), hamlet but smaller than a town with a population typically ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand. Although villages are often located ...

'' of

Coburg Coburg ( , ) is a Town#Germany, town located on the Itz (river), Itz river in the Upper Franconia region of Bavaria, Germany. Long part of one of the Thuringian states of the Ernestine duchies, Wettin line, it joined Bavaria by popular vote only ...

, Germany, from the town centre. It was a hunting lodge and summer residence and has long been the principal residence of the

House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha The House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha ( ; ) is a European royal house of German origin. It takes its name from its oldest domain, the Ernestine duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, and its members later sat on the thrones of Belgium, Bulgaria, Portugal ...

. It was owned by Andreas, Prince of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, who created the Ducal Saxe-Coburg and Gotha House Order. A large and architecturally important family chapel is contained within. According to the Schloss Callenberg web site "the castle became the property of Duke Johann Casimir of Saxe-Coburg in 1588, after the death of the last von Sternberg. Until 1825 the ducal treasury and the Castle of Callenberg were property of the Dukes of Saxe-Meiningen. It was only in 1826 that the Dukes of Coburg become owners of Callenberg Castle again. Until 1945 the castle was the summer residence of the Dukes of Coburg."

History

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 ...

here was first mentioned as ''Chalwinberch'' in 1122. It served as the main seat for the ''Ritter von Callenberg'' until 1231, when the lord sold it to the Prince-Bishop of Würzburg. The knight made use of the proceeds to participate in a

Crusade The Crusades were a series of religious wars initiated, supported, and at times directed by the Papacy during the Middle Ages. The most prominent of these were the campaigns to the Holy Land aimed at reclaiming Jerusalem and its surrounding t ...

. In 1317 the

House of Henneberg The House of Henneberg was a medieval German Graf, comital family (''Grafen'') which from the 11th century onwards held large territories in the Duchy of Franconia. Their county was raised to a Princes of the Holy Roman Empire, princely county ( ...

purchased the property and gave it as a

fief A fief (; ) was a central element in medieval contracts based on feudal law. It consisted of a form of property holding or other rights granted by an overlord to a vassal, who held it in fealty or "in fee" in return for a form of feudal alle ...

to the Sternberg family. This family died out in 1592. As a vacant property, it now fell to Duke Johann Casimir. He intended to use it as a summer palace and planned substantial renovations but during his lifetime only the castle chapel was rebuilt. Major construction work resumed only in 1827 under Ernst I. He had the castle completely redesigned, a

landscape garden The English landscape garden, also called English landscape park or simply the English garden (, , , , ), is a style of "Landscape architecture, landscape" garden which emerged in England in the early 18th century, and spread across Europe, r ...

was created and an exhibit farm added, in which silkworms were bred. From 1842, Callenberg was the summer residence of the heir and future duke Ernst II. Today's Gothic revival elements date to another renovation after 1857. From 1893, Callenberg served as dowager house for Princess Alexandrine of Baden, the widow of Ernest II. The last ruling duke, Carl Eduard, used Callenberg as a summer residence. After his death in 1954 he was buried here. Post

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, the castle fell into disrepair. It was first used by American troops and later served as a nursing home, housed a technical college and then a foundation. From the late 1970s, the castle stood empty and changed owners several times.

Architecture

The chapel features Gothic arches,

Doric columns The Doric order is one of the three orders of ancient Greek and later Roman architecture; the other two canonical orders were the Ionic and the Corinthian. The Doric is most easily recognized by the simple circular capitals at the top of t ...

, Italian Renaissance parapets, medieval walls and a

Baroque The Baroque ( , , ) is a Western Style (visual arts), style of Baroque architecture, architecture, Baroque music, music, Baroque dance, dance, Baroque painting, painting, Baroque sculpture, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished from ...

pulpit A pulpit is a raised stand for preachers in a Christian church. The origin of the word is the Latin ''pulpitum'' (platform or staging). The traditional pulpit is raised well above the surrounding floor for audibility and visibility, accesse ...

Today

''Schloss Callenberg'' is once again owned by the House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. Due to its history and

Gothic revival architecture Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic or neo-Gothic) is an Architectural style, architectural movement that after a gradual build-up beginning in the second half of the 17th century became a widespread movement in the first half ...

it is a listed monument. Since 1998 it has displayed the ducal art and furniture collection and since 2004 it has also housed the German Rifle Museum (''Deutsches Schützenmuseum''). The cemetery, Cemetery Waldfriedhof or Waldfriedhof Beiersdorf, still remains, containing the remains of Charles Edward, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha and his wife Princess Victoria Adelaide of Schleswig-Holstein, among others.

Other burials

* Prince Hubertus of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (pilot) * Friedrich Josias, Prince of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha *Princess Claudia (Mrs. Schäfer), daughter of Friedrich Josias *Princess Caroline Mathilde of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha * Princess Victoria Adelaide of Schleswig-Holstein * Charles Edward, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha

References

External links

Website of Callenberg Castle

Official Website of the Ducal House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha
{{Authority control Castles in Bavaria House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha Gothic Revival architecture in Germany Buildings and structures in Coburg Burial sites of the House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha