Castle Hohenzollern (German Burg Hohenzollern) - castle-castle, 50 km south of Stuttgart. It is considered the patrimony of the Hohenzollern dynasty, which was elevated throughout the Middle Ages and ruled by Prussia and Brandenburg to the end The First World War.
Castle is located on the top of the mountain Hohenzollern at an altitude of 855 meters and is located near the settlements of Hechingen and Bisingen, in the federal state of Baden-Württemberg.
For the first time the medieval castle fortress it is mentioned in 1267, but it is assumed that it was built earlier, in the XI century. May 15, 1423, after a long siege by the troops of the imperial cities of Swabia, the fortress was taken and completely destroyed.
In 1454-1461 a second castle was erected, which served as a refuge for the Swabian branch of the Hohenzollern house during the Thirty Years' War. By the end of the XVIII century, however, due to the loss of the fortress of strategic importance, the complex of buildings is gradually dilapidated and some dilapidated buildings are being dismantled. Until now, only the chapel of St. Michael.
The third structure of the castle, which has survived to this day, was erected by the King of Prussia, Frederick William IV, between 1850 and 1867, under the leadership of the famous architect of those days Friedrich August Stuyler. Since the castle was built like family monument, none of the representatives of the Hohenzollern house used this building as their residence until 1945, when the castle became the home of the last Prussian Crown Prince William. Here he was and was buried with his wife Crown Princess Cecilia.
Since the completion of the construction of the third castle, the latter was practically not used by the Hohenzollerns for either military or representative functions and originally had the function of a tourist attraction being open to visitors. Only the last Prussian crown prince Wilhelm lived in the castle a few months after the evacuation from Potsdam in the final period of the Second World War. Wilhelm and his wife Crown Princess Cecilia were buried in the castle, after their family estate in Brandenburg was occupied by Soviet troops.
Since 1952 the castle was filled historical artifacts from the collection of the Hohenzollern House, as well as from the former Hohenzollern Museum in the Monbijou Palace. One of the most famous relics stored in the museum are the crown of Prussian kings and the uniform belonging to Frederick the Great. From 1952 to 1991, the remains of Frederick I and Frederick the Great rested in the castle museum. After the reunification of East and West Germany in 1991, the remains of the Prussian kings were returned to Potsdam.
Castle является как и прежде частным владением: на 2/3 принадлежит бранденбурго-прусской линии Гогенцоллернов и на 1/3 линии швабско-католической. Castle ежегодно about 300 thousand tourists visitmaking it one of the most visited castles in Germany.
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