Rammenau Castle was built between 1721 and 1735 by architect Johann Christoph Knöffel for Ernst Ferdinand von Knoch, chamberlain of king Augustus II the Strong. As Knoch went bankrupt with the immense costs of this project, Franz Josef von Hoffmann purchased it in a foreclosure auction in 1744. In 1879 it was sold to the von Posern family, with the last owner, Margarete von Helldorff née von Posern, being expropriated by the communists in 1945.
Today it is owned by the State Palaces, Castles and Gardens of Saxony and open to the public, housing a museum with period furniture.
Saint-Émilion is a picturesque medieval village renowned for its well-preserved architecture and vineyards. The town and surrounding vineyards was made a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1999, owing to its long, living history of wine-making, Romanesque churches and ruins stretching all along steep and narrow streets.
An oppidum was built on the hill overlooking the present-day city in Gaulish times, before the regions was annexed by Augustus in 27 BC. The Romans planted vineyards in what was to become Saint-Émilion as early as the 2nd century. In the 4th century, the Latin poet Ausonius lauded the fruit of the bountiful vine.
Because the region was located on the route of the Camino de Santiago, many monasteries and churches were built during the Middle Ages, and in 1199, while under Plantagenet rule, the town was granted full rights.