It may not be as famous as the “Disney castle”, but in our opinion it is much more beautiful than it is. Located in the heart of the picturesque valley, among wine terraces, it is the perfect complement to the fairytale landscapes of the cozy town of Cochem. Today we are taking you to Reichsburg castle!
Reichsburg Cochem is considered one of the most beautifully situated castles in Europe. You can’t be surprised at all, and you can’t talk about exaggeration. The monumental building, rising on a hundred-meter hill overgrown with vineyards, towers over the entire Moselle River valley, at which small, intimate and atmospheric towns are glued time after time. You can lose yourself in a cobblestone maze.
Interestingly, even the Polish theme appears in the turbulent history of this fortress. And that’s at its beginning. The first mention of the Cochem castle comes from the mid-11th century. It was then that Rycheza Loratynska, the eldest daughter of Count Ezzo, to whom Cochem owed her uprising, and at the same time the niece of Emperor Otto III and the wife of the Polish king from the Piast dynasty – Mieszko II – gave the stronghold to her nephew, Count Henry I …
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Reichsburg Cochem: the pearl of the Moselle Valley
In the whole history of the castle it is difficult to find calmer years. There was always something going on. If not war, that’s intrigue. They all were not without consequences for this wonderful building. Particular mention should be made of the destructive actions of the French army, moving under the coat of arms of Louis XIV. You probably already guessed that what you can admire in western Germany, in the Land of Rhineland-Palatinate, is nothing to do with the original plans of the fortress. The current version is completely unlike the Roman stronghold from ten centuries ago. At that time, its compact buildings were based on the circle plan, but numerous changes in the following centuries, and especially in the late Middle Ages, led to the transformation of the buildings so that the circle became a triangle! Not much of the original buildings may have survived, but this does not detract from the historical or aesthetic values of Cochem Castle.
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Perhaps to this day ruins would haunt this place were it not for the new owner. It was the fabulously rich industrialist, Louis Ravené. In 1868 he ordered the construction of a neo-gothic stronghold on the ruins, which served as the summer residence of the family over the years. Berlin architect Hermann Ende, who later had a whole group of successors, supervised the implementation of the project assuming the restoration of his appearance from 1576. The neo-Gothic building with its towers and battlements fitted into the national admiration of history that enveloped Germany in the nineteenth century.
This is one of the few buildings of this type in Germany, which – after complete destruction – has been rebuilt in the original style. Cochem also owes to the Ravené Reichsburg family virtually all the equipment, including an amazing collection of authentic Renaissance and Baroque furniture. You can! This is called respect for tradition, beauty and history!
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Reichsburg Cochem can be visited individually, but we recommend a guided tour who treats everyone with really colorful and floral stories. In about 45 minutes you will be able to learn all the meanders of this German fortress. On site you can also get richly illustrated and really specific mini-guides, most importantly – also in Polish. Cochem Castle still has many attractions and surprises. Certainly falconry shows are one of the most amazing ones. With a bit of luck, you can come across unique performances with hawks, buzzards, eagles, and even … vultures. In the evenings, you can go with a representative of the castle guard on an hour trip through the streets of Cochem, to listen to the stories of the castle’s glory times and city history by the light of the lanterns and the sound of the horn. And it is extremely long and turbulent. Mention of the settlement founded by the Celts, then called Cuchuma, dates back to the ninth century. It’s like …? When do you start planning your trip? Right now? 🙂
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Don’t even think that you already know a lot about Reichsburg Cochem! None of these things! On site it will surely surprise you many more!
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