Monday, November 11, 2019

Portugal x World RR - Group S31 * Castles

If money wasn't an issue, I'd definitely join more RR's, especially groups dedicated to castles. There's something magical about castles. These are from England, Poland and Germany. 

When I saw that someone from the USA was in this group I thought "what kind of castle will someone from USA send me?". Well, Kristin didn't send me an American castle card, Rochester Castle is located in England. 
Rochester Castle is known as one of the preserved and finest examples of Norman architecture in England. 
It was constructed by the Bishop of Rochester in around 1090 in the angle of the Roman town wall. The four-squared towers were added by Archbishop William de Corbell in 1127. 
Rochester Castle was fortified against the King John and soon became a stronghold and headquarters for the rebels.
King John lay siege to the castle in 1215 and took it after two long months. He finally undermined the south east tower and burned the props with the "fat of forty pigs" causing the tower to collapse. The city was well placed for raids on London and it also enabled them to devastate the lands of Kent, particularly those belonging to Lanfranc, Archbishop of Canterbury, who had crowned Rufus and was therefore Odo's and the rebels' enemy.
By the 17th century, the castle had become neglected, the keep had been burned out, and the site was being used as a local quarry for building materials. In 1870 the castle grounds were leased to the City of Rochester, who turned them into a public park and eventually, in the 20th century, responsibility for this imposing old structure was taken over by English Heritage.
Today, the castle stands as a proud reminder of the history surrounding the old town of Rochester, along with the cathedral, the cobbled streets and the Dickensian reflections. - in: http://www.bbc.co.uk/kent/discover_kent/castles_houses/rochester.shtml

fot: Dariusz Krokowiak
Martin brought me back some nice memories of my trip to Poland in 2012 with this card of Olsztyn castle. My friends and I visited this castle on our way from Krakow to Warsaw. That day we also visited the Jasna Góra Monastery in Częstochowa. 
The castle, located on a hill, among limestone rocks, is part of the Trail of the Eagles' Nests. It belonged to a system of fortifications, built by King Casimir III the Great, to protect western Lesser Poland from Czechs, to whom Silesia belonged at that time. For some time, as a fee, it belonged to Prince Władysław Opolczyk.
Taken away from him in 1396, the castle was then handed by King Władysław II Jagiełło to a local nobleman, Jan Odrowąż of Szczekociny. The castle was invaded several times by Silesian princes in the 15th-century, and with the advancement of warfare, its fortifications became obsolete. In 1655, it was captured by the Swedes, and since then, it became a ruin. In 1722, it was partly demolished, with bricks used to build a parish church at Olsztyn. Currently, only fragments of defensive walls remain. The most impressive still standing part of the castle is a 35-metre round tower, built in the 13th-century, which served as a prison. - in: wikipedia

Foto - Gestaltung * Matthias Kunz
A new castle from Germany sent by Uwe. 
Medieval Kriebstein Castle, mentioned for the first time in the 14th century, is situated in Middle Saxony, right at the center of the triangle between the cities of Dresden-Chemnitz-Leipzig and is a popular destination.
Saxony’s most beautiful knight’s castle, a closed, fully preserved and completely reconstructed building complex from late-Gothic times, rises on a steep rock towering over the Zschopau River. . in: https://www.burg-kriebstein.eu/en/kriebstein-castle/

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