Hey guys,

with my last post, the series about Brittany has unfortunately already ended... and this time I'm staying in the country where I live - namely Germany. Especially because of the lockdown, when it's otherwise difficult to travel carefree, you can always find great new places to discover in your own country. and that's what happened to me with drachenburg castle. It's a rather strange name, you'll agree - it has both a castle and a palace in it.
Just to let you know in advance: Castle and Park Drachenburg is unfortunately closed again at the moment due to corona.

From a castle to a society house

And now to the history of Schloss Drachenburg: Drachenburg Castle was intended to be the representative residence of Baron Stephan von Sarter. He laid the foundation stone for the castle.
Even at that time, the historicist architecture and magnificent furnishings of the castle were very remarkable and attracted a lot of attention, even from outside. However, the baron never found his main residence here, as he lived and died in Paris.

His nephew finally bought the castle after his death. He had witnessed the construction of the castle or the idea himself and lived for a long time in the nearby Hirschburg. He wanted to make Drachenburg Castle accessible for tourism.
To this end, Burghof, which belonged to the estate, was demolished. Instead, a hotel in the "Swiss style" was built on the exact spot.

In the park of Schloss Drachenburg, "Nordic" log cabins were now built there as exclusive holiday flats. There was even a game enclosure. Schloss Drachenburg now became more and more a kind of social house: there was even a restaurant.

In the following decades, the castle was used in very different ways: At one time even as a Christian boarding school and chapel. Sometimes as a training centre for the Reichsbahn. In 1960, the German Federal Railway relocated the school. From then on, Drachenburg Castle stood virtually empty.
It became more and more dilapidated. As a result, the interior deteriorated visibly. The carved wood panelling, which was of very high quality, was now used for burning. Wall paintings were simply stolen.
In 1971, a textile merchant, Paul Spinat, finally acquired Schloss Drachenburg. He virtually rebuilt the castle and had many things repaired.
Even the missing wall paintings were reconstructed as far as possible. In 1973, the castle was opened to the public. Schloss Drachenburg has been a listed building since 1986.

A virtual round trip

And now I would like to give you a little virtual tour:
The very first thing you see when you enter the castle is the main staircase.
In general, the main staircase is seen by architects as a "representative showpiece" in the construction of villas and palaces. It is, so to speak, the first thing people look at and form a first impression of. It represents the building. Accordingly, in most castles you will find a staircase that is magnificently designed. Like that of the Drachenburg.
In the Baroque period, it was even a must: in this architectural epoch, the staircase was the centre of the entire estate. It followed a strictly hierarchical structure with a sequence of rooms that had to be firmly adhered to. The staircase was used for welcoming guests, receiving them on the stage and was thus oriented towards the banqueting hall.

Drachenburg Palace was also characterised by a sense of prestige. Above all, it was to embody and reflect the prestige and rum of the lord of the house.
This is created above all by the architecture: The ascending steps thus create an ascending effect intended to present power.

In the main stairwell of Drachenburg Castle there are 24 history paintings. Of them there are 13 left. These show portraits of German emperors and important historical events - but let us convince you for yourself;) What I really liked: The light in the stairwell comes from stained glass windows on the east wall. These are also the only original stained glass in the castle.

If you go up the stairs, you get to the hunting and breakfast room. At that time it served as a daily dining room.
And then comes the reception room:
The reception hall of Drachenburg Castle was the entrance to the chateau's social rooms. It lies between the dining room and the drawing room. The room is very large, I would say it can be compared to a salon. The seating furniture is one of the most important features of the entire room.
The room used to be much darker. The daylight comes in only dimly. It used to be particularly popular if you lived in a dark room. Hence the dark wood and the colored walls.

Next up is the dining room: it is very impressive because the walls here are decorated with paintings. Hunting motifs are predominantly found here. Only the east wall (and not the whole) is almost an original. The remaining paintings have been lost since the Second World War.
Then there is a Nibelungen room, an art gallery, a pub room, a hunting and billiard room, a library, a bedroom for strangers, a music room (!) And private rooms. I hope you enjoyed this little tour very much and you were able to gain a little insight into the interior, even without photos. I'm looking forward to my next post :) See you then!