Castle Bourscheid in Luxembourg

delishtreats (70)in GEMS • 5 years ago

Would you like to visit another castle with me? Let me take you to the Bourscheid castle in Luxembourg.

This castle is the largest castle in Luxembourg and it belongs to the most valuable historical possessions of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg.

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The castle Bourscheid also known as Château de Bourscheid is situated in beautiful landscape. It stands on top of a hill, 150 meters above the river Sauer. It takes about 50 minutes by car to get to the castle from the Luxembourg city.

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We are coming closer to the castle. We are now standing on a viewpoint that is usually very crowded, but it was deserted two weeks ago. Are you asking why? I think it was because of the weather. It was 10 degrees Celsius and very windy!

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Welcome to the castle!

The construction of the castle Bourscheid began around the year 1000 when a stone construction replaced an earlier wooden defense structure. The first lord of the castle was Bertram of Bourscheid. His name was mentioned in 1095 for the first time in the castle history. After 1512, when the last lord of Bourscheid had died, Bourscheid Castle began to dilapidate. In the 19th century, the castle was abandoned and fell to ruin.

In 1936 the castle was declared a national monument and in 1972 it was bought by the Luxembourg state. Since then, the castle is slowly being restored.

Are you ready for the tour?

The entrance fee is EUR 5 and it includes an audio guide as well.

The castle is divided into three levels - lower, middle and upper. On each level of the castle lived a different social class of people. Working class, such as iron smith and carpenter lived on the lower level. The middle level was used by the middle class, for example officers. The upper level was reserved for the aristocracy.

We are now standing on the middle level. The door on the right leads us to a wine cellar. What was it used for? Let me tell you it was not solely used to store wine. There was a church built on the upper level of the castle. The lower class people were not allowed to enter this level of the castle hence they went to the cellar to follow the service. It was somehow connected and they could hear the ceremony.

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There are eight round towers (one of them is on the right) that were finalized in 1384. A defense wall that connects these towers was wide enough for guards to walk from one tower to another. In the same year, Stolzembourg House (in the middle of the photo) was erected. It served as a residential building. Today, it is used for cultural activities.

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My husband decided to show us how to walk on the wall. I think that those guards were not dressed like him and they were also not taking photos with their smartphones, but I think you get the point. 😊

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It's getting more and more windy so let's hurry up!

We will walk around the main defense tower before going up to enjoy the views. The Bastion was built in the 15th century with invention of the cannon.

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As the castle is built on top of the hill it was not easily accessible. The Bourscheid castle rapidly gained in strategic importance and it was enlarged in four phases. The last enlargement was finalized with the construction of the outer towers.

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I'd love to have a room with such a view! 😊 The Duke owned the land around the castle. However he didn't use it himself so he rented it to farmers. Those farmers had to pay him with a part of their harvest that they were bringing to the castle.

Would you like to see more views? Let's go to the tower!

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Here we can see various levels of the castle. The chimney on the left was part of the Manor's house.

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Now is the time to go back down to the castle and finish our tour..

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When this part of the castle was discovered, it was believed that it used to be a church. Why? Because of the large pillars standing in the 'room'. The archaeologists realized that it was a kitchen after they found some kitchen utensils later on.

The staircase used to have a circular shape and it was part of the Manor's house. What happened with the furniture that was in the Manor's house? I think you would say that it was destroyed. But the answer is that it was sold to families in Luxembourg.

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I walked on the wall as well 😊

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This is the middle level of the castle. How did we get here? There is a small tower that is the only connection between the upper castle and the other levels. The tower was guarded day and night and nobody could enter it unless they were asked to by a member of aristocracy.

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The castle had an important military function and it was unassailable by medieval weapons. We can also see it from the way the walls are built. The defense wall is built about two meters from the castle. If the enemy would manage to cross the defense wall, they would end up right in front of the tower that was constantly guarded. And the guards would take care of them before they would be able to enter the castle.

In case of danger, all people from nearby villages would seek the safety in the lower level of the castle.

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You can also admire the remains of the historical mosaic floor that have been unearthed.

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I've heard that the trees in the back were cut down and that new trees were planted. What I could see looked like grass, but I like to believe that it is the young trees.

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