The Château de Wildenstein () is a ruined
castle
A castle is a type of fortification, fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by Military order (monastic society), military orders. Scholars usually consider a ''castle'' to be the private ...
in the
Alsace
Alsace (, ; ) is a cultural region and a territorial collectivity in the Grand Est administrative region of northeastern France, on the west bank of the upper Rhine, next to Germany and Switzerland. In January 2021, it had a population of 1,9 ...
region of France, situated in the ''
commune'' of
Kruth
Kruth (; ) is a commune in the Haut-Rhin department in Grand Est in north-eastern France. Its railway station is the terminus of a TER service to Mulhouse.
Geography Climate
Kruth has a humid continental climate (Köppen climate classificati ...
in the
Haut-Rhin
Haut-Rhin (); Alsatian: ''Owerelsàss'' or '; , . is a department in the Grand Est region, France, bordering both Germany and Switzerland. It is named after the river Rhine; its name means Upper Rhine. Haut-Rhin is the smaller and less pop ...
''
département
In the administrative divisions of France, the department (, ) is one of the three levels of government under the national level (" territorial collectivities"), between the administrative regions and the communes. There are a total of 101 ...
''.
History
The castle's position on top of a
glacial
A glacier (; or ) is a persistent body of dense ice, a form of rock, that is constantly moving downhill under its own weight. A glacier forms where the accumulation of snow exceeds its ablation over many years, often centuries. It acquires ...
moraine
A moraine is any accumulation of unconsolidated debris (regolith and Rock (geology), rock), sometimes referred to as glacial till, that occurs in both currently and formerly glaciated regions, and that has been previously carried along by a gla ...
dominating the road from the Oderen Pass towards
Lorraine
Lorraine, also , ; ; Lorrain: ''Louréne''; Lorraine Franconian: ''Lottringe''; ; ; is a cultural and historical region in Eastern France, now located in the administrative region of Grand Est. Its name stems from the medieval kingdom of ...
made it an excellent instrument for surveillance. The Château de Wildenstein is first mentioned in 1312 as the property of the
count of Ferrette, Ulrich III. He promised his rival, the
abbot of Murbach, that he would not build castles on the abbey's territory, on condition that Pierre de Bollwiller was given a free hand at Wildenstein. It was given as a fief to Pierre and stayed in his family's hands until 1536. At this date, it was practically in ruins and the abbot of Murbach bought it back and began to rebuild and restore the castle, to better suit it to warfare with firearms. A chapel was also built at this time, dedicated to the Holy Cross (''Sainte Croix''). During the
Thirty Years' War
The Thirty Years' War, fought primarily in Central Europe between 1618 and 1648, was one of the most destructive conflicts in History of Europe, European history. An estimated 4.5 to 8 million soldiers and civilians died from battle, famine ...
, it was taken and retaken by the Swedes and the French. It was destroyed by the Swedes in 1644 and from the end of the 17th century it was used as a source of building materials for the neighbouring villages, including the church at
Oderen.
Description
The castle occupies the entire summit of a rocky outcrop (called Schlossberg), 666 m altitude. The rock has been pierced by a tunnel to give access to the lower courtyard, artificially enlarged in the 16th century. Little of the castle is visible today, apart from traces of round towers, portions of wall of low height and staircases cut into the rock to reach the upper terrace.
Archaeological
Archaeology or archeology is the study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of Artifact (archaeology), artifacts, architecture, biofact (archaeology), biofacts or ecofacts, ...
digs and preservation work were carried out in 1995. A plan published by abbé Sifferlen, in his work on the Saint-Amarin valley, shows the layout of the buildings, but on site it is very difficult to find them. The only well-preserved wall is a retaining wall to the east of the lower courtyard.
Though one of the largest castles in
Alsace
Alsace (, ; ) is a cultural region and a territorial collectivity in the Grand Est administrative region of northeastern France, on the west bank of the upper Rhine, next to Germany and Switzerland. In January 2021, it had a population of 1,9 ...
it is also one of the least known to visitors.
The Château de Wildenstein is not listed as a ''
monument historique
() is a designation given to some national heritage sites in France. It may also refer to the state procedure in France by which national heritage protection is extended to a building, a specific part of a building, a collection of buildings, ...
'' by the
French Ministry of Culture
The Ministry of Culture () is the ministry (government department), ministry of the Government of France in charge of List of museums in France, national museums and the . Its goal is to maintain the French identity through the promotion and pro ...
due to its poor state.
See also
*
List of castles in France
This is a list of castles in France, arranged by Regions of France, region and Departments of France, department.
;Notes:
# The French word ''château'' has a wider meaning than the English ''castle'': it includes architectural entities that are p ...
References
External links
*
Château de Wildenstein on Castleland.com site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wildenstein, chateau de
Ruined castles in Haut-Rhin