Creuzburg Castle

Between 1165 and 1170, Landgrave Ludwig II commissioned the construction of Creuzburg Castle, possibly on the site of an earlier monastery. This Romanesque curtain wall castle, whose curtain wall, tower house, and parts of the palas have been preserved, served to protect the landgravial possessions, the town of Creuzburg founded in 1213, and the Werra bridge. In the 12th and 13th centuries, the castle was a secondary residence of the Thuringian Landgraves. It withstood two sieges: in 1260 during the Thuringian War of Succession and in 1295 by King Adolf of Nassau, who set the town on fire and forced the castle garrison to surrender. Under the Wettins, Creuzburg became the administrative seat of an office. With the advent of firearms, the fortress lost its military significance and served as a court and administrative seat from the 15th century onwards. In the 18th century, it was converted into a palace complex by Gottfried Heinrich Krohne. After the office was dissolved in 1879, the castle changed hands several times.