LUXEMBOURG

Site name:

Castle
Vianden

Site in French,
German and
English

The castle
in 1974.


After the
restoration.

Vianden Castle was constructed between the 11th and 14th centuries on the foundations of a Roman 'castellum' and a Carolingian refuge. It is one of the largest and most beautiful feudal residences of the romanesque and gothic periods in Europe. Until the beginning of the 15th century it was the seat of the influential counts of Vianden who could boast their close connections to the Royal Family of France and the German imperial court.
Henry I of Vianden (1220-1250) is known as 'the Sun Count' for it is duringhis tenure that the holdings, lifestyle and influence of the House of Vianden reached its zenith. His ancestors were influential in the Ardennes, Eifel and Luxembourg regions for hundreds of years. His wife, Margarete of Courtenay, was of the French Royal Family, daughter of the Latin Emperor of Constantinople, sister-in-law to the King of Hungary and cousin to King Philip-Augustus. Margarete's ancestors included the Crusaders from the Houses of Flanders and Hainault. Henry's and Margarete's son, Frederic had served in the Fifth Crusade. In 1417, the dominion passed by inheritance to the House of Nassau, (more)

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History

Follow these interesting links on the site!:

The small fort of the Late Empire

The high Middle Ages

The first strong castle of the middle Ages



The first residential castle

The second residential castle

The third residential castle

The Gothic phase

The decline

LUXEMBOURG

Site name:

Tourist-Info-
Vianden

Site in French,
German, English
and Dutch

Merian
1643

VIANDEN, the medieval city,
was during the middle Ages the capital of the powerful county of Vianden, an area as large as the present Grand Duchy of Luxembourg. It included 136 villages and stretched as far as Prum and Bitbourg.
It was a fortified city, tucked at the foot of the castle, which dominated and protected it. Five gates gave entry to the city, which was surrounded by ramparts with 24 semi-circular towers.
The present bell-tower, the " Hockelstour", standing on a rock between the castle and the town, originally served as a watchtower, allowing an effective vigilance to be maintained. The Marechal de Bouffiers, who also dismantled the castles of Brandenbourg, Falkenstein and Stolzembourg, destroyed the city wall in 1679.

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About 1850, the last two gates of the town, the gate of the upper town and the bridge gate were considered cumbersome and were pulled down as well...

(more)

Written by
Gaby Frantzen-Heger