Steinsches Schloss, Nassau, Germany

The Steinsches Schloss is a town palace located in the center of Nassau. It served as the residence of the noble family vom Stein and was, among others, where the Prussian reform minister Heinrich Friedrich Karl vom und zum Stein grew up.

The predecessor of the castle was a tithing farm (Zehnthof), which the vom Stein family had owned since the 14th century. At the outset of the Thirty Years' War, the now prosperous and influential family relocated their seat from the Steinsche Burg outside Nassau to this complex. Over the ensuing centuries, the former farm was transformed and expanded into a castle.

By 1621, the main building was completed in the style of Late Renaissance. In 1755, two Baroque wings were added. Heinrich Friedrich Karl vom und zum Stein commissioned the Wiesbaden architect Christian Zais and later, in 1818, the master builder Johann Claudius von Lassaulx for an expansion to commemorate the Wars of Liberation. In 1815/16, an octagonal Neo-Gothic tower was added. A source indicates that during the 19th century, stained glass windows from the St. Kastor Church (Dausenau) were 'relocated' to the tower.

Following preliminary investigations in the years 2011-2012, the tower was extensively restored with funds from the state of Rhineland-Palatinate by 2018. In the ground floor, the marble baths intended for ritual cleansing before entering the memorial were restored, and a chapel originally planned there was established after 200 years. The Baron's study on the middle floor, with its walk-in library shelves, and the cult site on the upper floor, with sculptures of the three monarchs Friedrich Wilhelm III, Franz I, and Alexander I by Christian Daniel Rauch, were returned to their original condition.

The castle is owned by the female descendants of the vom Stein family, the Counts of Kanitz. The Castle Cappenberg, where Baron vom und zum Stein lived for many years and which he chose as his retirement residence, is also owned by the Counts of Kanitz through inheritance.

Bengtskär Lighthouse

Towering 52 meters above the sea, Bengtskär lighthouse is the tallest one in Scandinavia. The building started in in 1905 after the shipwreck of S/S Helsingfors and was completed in 1906. The lighthouse was designed by architect Florentin Granholm. On December a special petrol lantern, designed and built in Paris, was brought to Bengtskär and installed atop the tower.

German fleet bombarded Bengstkär in the First World War in 1914. Since the Gulf of Finland was heavily mined, it was not until 1919 that the surrounding seas were declared safe for shipping, that the light was lit again.

After the war the military value of Bengtskär increased as part of the defence system of independent Finland. In Second World War (1941) Soviet Union made a suprise attack to island. After a bloody battle, the small Finnish garrison emerged victorious. Intermittent repairs to the facility continued during the post-war period.

Jördis Königs (2 years ago)

MANNI (5 years ago)
Closed only by telephone agreement and only with groups ?? the old town is still alive the explored ??

Klaus Tonn (6 years ago)
Unfortunately it was not accessible. A pity.

Klaus Schröter (6 years ago)
Baron Heinrich Friedrich Karl vom und zum Stein was born here in 1757. The castle is even older and dates mainly from the 17th century. The octagonal tower was built by order of the baron. The castle is privately owned. The tower can be visited by groups by prior arrangement with the count's administration.

Detlef Neidhöfer (7 years ago)
Always beautiful

Steinsches Schloss

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