Grand Est · Bas-Rhin, France

Château du Haut-Kœnigsbourg

A pink-sandstone eagle's nest at 750 metres on the Alsace wine route, ruined since 1633 and spectacularly rebuilt for Kaiser Wilhelm II by Bodo Ebhardt as a manifesto of German imperial romanticism — Alsace was then German. Returned to France in 1919, it is now one of the country's most visited monuments.

At a glance

Built: 12th century; rebuilt 1900–1908
Style: Medieval mountain castle, imperial reconstruction
Commissioned by: Hohenstaufen origins; rebuilt for Kaiser Wilhelm II
Signature feature: Complete 1900s reconstruction of a medieval mountain fortress
The Kaiser: Rebuilt 1900–1908 for Wilhelm II by architect Bodo Ebhardt
Position: c. 750 m above the Alsace plain, views to the Black Forest and Alps
Ownership: Collectivité européenne d'Alsace
Visiting: Open to visitors year-round