Stahleck

#97 Burg Stahleck
Bacharach, Rhineland-Pfalz, Germany
1135
This is NOT an official Lego site

Burg Stahleck's early history is a bit muddled. The castle is variously said to have been originally built beginning in 1135 by the wealthy knight Goswin von Stahleck or built somewhat earlier by the Archbishops of Cologne, but later handed over to Konrad by his brother Frederick I Barbarossa (1123-1190) in 1135! Konrad's daughter inherited the castle. She is remembered for secretly marrying the son of Henry the Lion, Duke of Bavaria, thus ending one long and costly feud. Since the Investiture Controversy with Rome resulted in widespread local warfare with myriad knights and noblemen building castles, Burg Stahleck became an important factor in control of the lucrative Rhine River traffic.

The history of Burg Stahleck is relatively quiet until the seventeenth century. The castle was taken by the Swedes in 1632 and bombarded in 1644 during the Thirty Year War. The castle was extensively repaired and modernized beginning in 1666 by the elector, Count Carl Ludwig and devastated in 1689 by the army of Louis XIV of France, when many other castles in the west of Germany were destroyed as well. The ruin of Stahleck passed to Crown Princess Elizabeth in 1829, a gift from her lover and later King Friedrich Wilhelm IV. Damaged curtain walls were removed and a vineyard planted [see upper right photo]. I have tried in my model to reproduce something like the original castle. Extensive repair work was done on the ruin from 1925-27 and the castle turned into a youth hostel, which it remains today. It is reported to be a rigorous 15 minute climb from the village of Bacharach, probably best left to the young!

Photos of the Lego Model Built June-August 2004

Here's Burg Stahleck from the northwest with the gatehouse and bridge.	Here's the north side showing some of the sloping landscape from the Rhine River on the left.	A general view of the castle from the northeast suggests the size of the Hall building.	From the southeast one can appreciate the battlements as seen from the vineyards.

This closeup shows the main gatehouse and protected castle entrance.	Here's a more detailed view of some of the residential accommodations from the SE.	The donjon (Bergfried) is massive and shown in original state (minus the 20th century roof!)	The battlements are protected and extensive, with two turrets and a bridge into the donjon.

This is the main courtyard as seen from the southeast.	Here's a detail of the main court- yard entrance, and the door into the Bergfried as well.	From the southwest the Great Hall (Palas) can be appreciated with its attic rooms and patio.	A detail of the other end of Hall range.


The early northwest view shows fthe north barbican & moat.	The northeast view slopes downhill towards the Rhein.


Soon the bridge from the west main entrance is built.	A southwest view shows the south barbican & bergfried base.	The southeast angle ignores a modern (?) residential range.


Here's the northwest range as it could not be seen when the Bergfried (keep) was completed.	And finally the completed curtain wall with watch turret.


South Elevation	Courtyard Section (without the Bergfried)

The Restoration Note: The keep is absent on the left

The Plan Note: I have no scale with the plan

Build Your Own

Ground floor plan


Front (West) Elevation	North Elevation