Exterior view

In the German architecture of the first half of the 19th century, there was a tendency to retreat into rustic idylls and evocation of medieval architectural forms. Two crown princes, Frederick William of Prussia and Maximilian of Bavaria, built themselves ruined medieval castles as country retreats. In the years after the liberation wars, medieval castles came to symbolize national liberty and were rediscovered as witnesses to Germany’s history and culture.

The idealized chivalric virtues of their aristocratic builders constituted the notion behind the Romantic castle concept that developed in the 1820s and 1830s. The result was a string of newly built or rebuilt “medieval” castles sporting defensive walls, towers and battlements. An example is - among many others - Burg Stolzenfels near Koblenz, a medieval fortress castle (“Burg”) turned into a palace, designed by Karl Friedrich Schinkel and built by Friedrich August St�ler.