Enchanting and enormous castles situated on rough hills are not from a distant region. Take a look at the most captivating and gorgeous castles in the world, which have inspired countless poetry, films, and novels.
1.Predjamski Castle
This Renaissance castle is located in south-central Slovenia, in the historical area of Inner Carniola. It is located in the settlement of Predjama, about 11 kilometers from Postojna and 9 kilometers from Postojna Cave.
The castle was originally documented in 1274 under the German name Luegg, when the Patriarch of Aquileia constructed it in Gothic style. To make entry difficult, the castle was erected behind a natural rocky arch high in the stone wall. The Luegg aristocratic family, commonly known as the Knights of Adelsberg, eventually purchased and extended it (the German name of Postojna).
The castle became known as the residence of the knight Erazem Lueger (or Luegger), ruler of the castle and famed robber baron in the 15th century. He was the son of Nikolaj Lueger, the Imperial Governor of Trieste.
According to folklore, Erazem clashed with the Habsburgs when he assassinated the head of the Imperial troops, Marshall Pappencheim, for offending the honor of Erazem’s slain friend, Andrej Baumkircher of Vipava. Erazem arrived at the family castle of Predjama, fleeing the anger of the Holy Roman Emperor, Frederick III. He then formed an alliance with King Matthias Corvinus of Hungary and began attacking Habsburg holdings and towns in Carniola. The emperor tasked Trieste’s governor, Andrej Ravbar, on capturing or executing Erazem.
2.Hohenzollern Castle
Is the imperial House of Hohenzollern’s ancestral seat. It is the third of three castles on the site and is situated atop Berg Hohenzollern, a 234 m (768 ft) bluff rising over the towns of Hechingen and Bisingen in the Swabian Alps of central Baden-Württemberg, Germany.
Hohenzollern Castle is a renowned tourist destination, with over 300,000 visitors every year, making it one of Germany’s most visited castles.
The mountain’s first stronghold was built in the early 11th century. The House of Hohenzollern divided multiple times over the years, but the castle remained in the hands of the Swabian branch, the dynastic elders of the Franconian-Brandenburgian cadet branch that subsequently gained the imperial crown. After a ten-month siege by the free imperial towns of Swabia, this stronghold was demolished in 1423. From 1454 to 1461, a larger and sturdier edifice was built, which functioned as a shelter for the Catholic Swabian Hohenzollerns, including during the Thirty Years’ War. It was deemed to have lost its strategic value by the end of the 18th century, and it progressively fell into disrepair, resulting to the removal of numerous old structures.Only the medieval chapel exists now.
3.Neuschwanstein Castle
This is a Romanesque Revival palace built in the nineteenth century on a steep hill above the hamlet of Hohenschwangau in Füssen in southwest Bavaria, Germany. Ludwig II of Bavaria commissioned the mansion as a retreat and a tribute to Richard Wagner. Ludwig financed for the palace with his own money and substantial borrowing, rather than with Bavarian public funds.
The palace was built as a personal hideaway for the reclusive king, but it was opened to the public following his death in 1886. Over 61 million visitors have visited Neuschwanstein Castle since then. The palace attracts about 1.3 million visitors every year, with as many as 6,000 visitors per day during the summer. It has figured prominently in various films and served as the inspiration for Disneyland’s Sleeping Beauty Castle and other, similar constructions.
4. Hawthornden Castle
Hawthornden Castle is situated on the North Esk River in Midlothian, Scotland. The castle is located one mile east of Roslin at grid reference NT287637, right downstream of Roslin Castle. Hawthornden is made up of a 15th-century ruin and a 17th-century L-plan dwelling. The home was repaired and is currently used as a writer’s retreat. Caves dug into the rock beneath the castle have been used for far longer than the castle itself.
From the 13th century, the Abernethy family owned Hawthornden, which passed to the Douglases in the 14th century. The castle’s earliest elements, dating from the 15th century, include a huge three-story tower and the south curtain wall of a triangular courtyard. During The Rough Wooing, the Earl of Hertford stormed the fortress twice, in 1544 and 1547.
The castle was sold in the 16th century to Sir John Drummond, one of King James VI’s ushers. Sir William Drummond of Hawthornden, the poet, was born here and subsequently expanded the castle. His contribution, dated 1638, is the L-shaped north range, which likely replaced older structures on this side of the courtyard. English poet Ben Jonson paid him a visit in 1618, and Dr. Johnson returned the next century.
This house has undergone extensive renovations, including a major mid-century modernization. Dr William Abernethy Drummond, Bishop of Edinburgh, erected the Abernethy family arms above a door in 1795. In addition, the bishop dedicated a memorial to his ancestors, Sir William Drummond and Sir Lawrence Abernethy of Hawthornden.
5.The Alcázar of Segovia
Segovia Castle is a castle in Segovia’s historic center, Spain. It is one of the most remarkable castle-palaces in Spain due to its design – like the bow of a ship – rising out on a rocky cliff over the confluence of two rivers in the Guadarrama mountains. The Alcázar was established as a fortification but has since been used as a royal residence, a state jail, a Royal Artillery College, and a military institution. It is now utilized as a museum and military records facility.
The Alcázar of Segovia, like many fortresses in Spain, began as an Arab fort, which was constructed on a Roman fort, but only a portion of that construction survives. The earliest mention of this Alcázar occurred in 1120, around 32 years after Segovia was recovered to Christian hands (during the time when King Alfonso VIreconquered lands to the south of the Duero river down to Toledo and beyond). However, archaeological evidence reveals that the location of this Alcázar was formerly utilized as a stronghold in Roman times.
The Alcázar’s design and form were unknown until the reign of King Alfonso VIII (1155-1214), but early documents referenced a wooden stockade barrier. Beforeto Alfonso VIII’s reign, it was probably little more than a timber fort erected over the existing Roman foundations. Alfonso VIII and his wife, Eleanor of England, made this Alcázar their primary residence, and extensive work was done to create the foundations of the stone fortifications that may still be seen today.
