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The Rhine Valley and the Castle Reichenstein |
The Rhine Valley between Bingen
and Koblenz, who does not think of sagas and legends, knights and
robbers, ghosts, fortresses and castles?
Hardly another region in Germany is so rich in history and shows
so many "witnesses" of the past. One of the most
remarkable and largest castles high up is Reichenstein, situated
in the wine producing village of Trechtingshausen, which can be
reached from Bingen by car, boat or rail, a mere 5 km away. The
almost 1000 year old history of the castle and the magnificent
collections of the many and unique museum artifacts have made
Reichenstein a tourist magnet. This guide presents the history of
Reichenstein and of its inhabitants, shows the fate of the old
defense and living quarters and offers review on the rich content
of the castle museum. It provides the visitor with a lasting
impression of the culture and history in the Rhineland, of the
robber knights via the "hunter of Kurpfalz" to the
heyday of the Hunsrücker iron dynasty.
The History of
Reichenstein
The Robber Knights Nest
It is difficult to say exactly how old Reichenstein really is.
The oldest building indications date the foundations from the
early 11th century: Reichenstein is almost 1,000 years old. At
that time the region belonged to the distant abbey
"Kornelimünster" near Aachen which was received as a
gift from Ludwig, the Pios. The Abbey appointed bailiffs for the
administration and for the safeguard of its rights. One of these
bailiffs for was the knight Rheinbodo (1151-1196) and his
descendants. Gerhard of Rheinbodo who resided in the castle raged
as robber-knight through the region and demanded goods violently
from the travelers and shipmen. In 1213, he was disposed of. The
first documentary writings of the castle originate from that
year. Knight Philipp became his successor. He came from the
powerful family "von Bolanden." In 1218 his son Werner
took the name "von Reichenstein," but since he died
without an heir, the castle feared robber-knights of his time. He
did not follow the instructions of his feudal lords in
Kornelimünster and overpowered more and more tradesmen who were
traveling the Rhine River Valley. IN 1253, the archbishop of
Mainz and the army of the town association conquered and
destroyed Reichenstein. Philipp von Hohenfels had surrendered and
promised good conduct so that he could live. He used the
following period to rebuild Reichenstein stronger and more
defensive than ever before. He carried on with robbing during
these politically unstable times and ascended to the high office
of Imperial Vicar and began to steal church property. As a
consequence the Archbishop of Mainz banned him from the church.
All this happened during the times of "Interregnum,"
and came to an end when the imperial power was once again
strengthened. The times of robber knights on the Rhine was over.
In 1282 the new king besieged the castle. Nevertheless he did not
succeed to storm the stronghold, but forced the garrison to
surrender by means of starvation. These battles were better
fights, raging during the 13th century around Reichenstein. Many
arrow points have been found on the castle grounds and can be
seen in the museum. Contrary to the legend, Dietrich of Hohenfels
was not decapitated, but actually escaped. His companions were
hung on the trees in the valley by order of Rudolf von Habsburg.
The castle was burnt down in 1290. The king had forbidden that
Reichenstein and the neighboring fortress (also a nest of robber
knights) be rebuilt, but both were restored. Reichenstein was
know property of the Count Palatines, who quarreled over the
rights with the Archbishop of Mainz. IN 1344, the emperor Ludwig
IV awarded the castle to Mainz. Mainz leased the castle several
times until 1361, also to Kuno von Falkenstein, a successor of
those gentlemen von Bolanden who 150 years before had been
bailiffs there. Restless time followed in 1396, when Gottfried
von Leiningen, the contra-bishop, found refuge in the castle and
also had it granted by the bailiff Nikelaus von Stein. Only after
long negotiations it was achieved that Gottfried resigned, and
further battles for Reichenstein were avoided.
Collapse and New Beginnings
The short Mainz period lasted to the end of the 19th century. The
old castle, originally built as a defense structure, lost more
and more of its military value after the invention and
development of firearms. It started to deteriorate. The cathedral
chapter leased it to 4 families in Trechtingshausen, including
the right to grow wine grapes on the surrounding plots. These
families later became proprietors of the ruins. It was only a
question of time until the old walls would be overgrown and
collapse. But the 19th century was a turning point, seen from the
background of the cultural tendencies of that time: the epoch of
romanticism lead to a new interest in the middle ages, gothic
churches and cloisters, old castles. The life of the knights
inspired the imagination of educated circles of the nobility and
the middle classes. In this way, General Baron Franz Wilhelm von
Barfuss became interested. He bought the ruin and began restoring
it. He discovered several nesting towerfalcons in the walls and
therefore named the castle "Falkenburg." This old name
appears sometimes in the old descriptions of those days. An heir
of General Barfuss, the baron von Rehfuss, bought the castle in
1877 and installed a small flat there. IN 1899, there followed
another proprietor, the Mexican Consul Chosodowsky. The decisive
step for the castle, as it stand today, was taken in 1899, when a
new buyer appeared: the Rheinböller Ironindustrialist Nicolaus
Kirsch-Puricelli, whose wife is a direct descendant of the famous
"hunter from Kurpfalz."
Reichenstein an Inhabited
Castle: the era Kirsch-Puricelli
The family Puricelli (Olga Kirsch-Puricelli's family) owned the
"Rheinböller Hütte" since the 18th century, one of
the biggest and oldest ironworks of the Hunsrück. Olga's great
Grandfather, Giacomo Antonio Puricelli, born in 1917, had come
from lake Como in Italy to Germany. His son, Carl Anton Puricelli
married Margarethe Utsch, daughter of Friedrich Wilhelm Utsch,
who owned the works and who was renowned to be the famous
"Jäger aus Kurpfalz." Through this marriage the
Rheinböller Ironworks came into the Puricelli family. They
became one of Germany's richest families in the 19th century and
donated a list of welfare institutions in the Rhine-Nahe region,
such as the home for the blind in Bingen, a hospital in Bad
Kreuznach and the orphanage in Rheinböllen. Nicolaus
Kirsch-Puricelli, himself originating from Luxemborg and the
Luxemborg's Ambassador in the German Reich started to re-build
castle Reichenstein with the help of his wife Olga, between 1899
and 1902. The Regensburger architect Strebel, who was in charge
of the restoration, based his ideas on old foundation drawings
and on views of the castle form the 17th and 18th centuries. In
this way, the reconstruction of the main building was authentic.
Nicolaus and Olga Kirsch-Puricelli had the necessary historical
and artistic interest. Without their enthusiasm, the castle would
and it complete museum collection would be non existent. Baroness
Olga collected paintings, engravings, sculptures, vases,
furniture and musical instruments. She herself was a musician and
painted a few pictures which are exhibited in the museum. Many of
the art objects originate from Italy, the family origin of
Puricelli. Beside being a brother of Baron Nicolaus, the teacher
Paul Kirsch was Prelate for many years at the Holy Chair in Rome.
He often brought gifts back form Italy when he visited the
Reichenstein family. Slowly the family collected almost 200 cast
iron oven and Takenplates and established one of the biggest
collections of this king in Germany, including plates spanning 4
centuries. Baron Nicolaus' passion for hunting led to a
collection of 1200 hunting trophies from Europe, Asia, Africa and
North America. Amongst them are numerous rare pieces, such as
hart with three horns, mooses with mighty antlers, Asian Axi's
and Sika hart - antlers, etc. Weapons as well as amour were also
collected. When Baron Nicolaus died in 1936 (his wife Olga died
the previous year), the living quarters were given up by their
children; it had become too expensive to keep 40 servants at
times (coachmen, stable boys, gardeners, kitchen staff,
chambermaids, etc.). The heir Baron Dr. Paul Kirsch-Puricelli,
kept the castle open as a museum. His nephew, Baron con
Schorlemer-Lieser followed his footsteps. Only at the beginning
of 1987, after almost 90 years in the family, the castle received
a new proprietor with gastroname "Egon Schmitz."
Usage of the Castle Today
In the outer castle there is a hotel with 50 beds, which enables
the "normal citizen" accommodations within the castle
walls. Also in the outer castle there are various Restaurants:
the "Ritterstube" as a middle class restaurant for all
the family, the Gourmet-Restaurant "Jägerstube" and
the rustical beerbar "Pferdestall." The cafe-terrace
offers you a leisurely afternoon with historic views of the
Rhine. Around the castle there is a beergarden from which a
magnificent view over the Rhine and Morgenbach valley can be
enjoyed. For bigger events a marquee for several hundred persons
can be easily erected on the "Tunierplatz," just above
the castle. In this way one has created an economically sound
basis around the center piece of the building which is the
museum. So it has been made possible to enjoy the collections and
art treasures as well as benefit the public.
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