From a strategic point of view the mighty Dömitz fortress could hardly have been built in a better location: It protected the south-western border of Mecklenburg and the Elbe crossings. Furthermore, duties could be levied on the Elbe.
The pentagon-shaped Renaissance fortress was erected between 1559 und 1565 under Duke Johann Albrecht I. The architect was Francesco a Bornau, an Italian. From the 18th century on, the fortress served as a prison. The most famous prisoner was the Mecklenburg author Fritz Reuter, who had to spend some years here in the 19th century.
The Dömitz Fortress survived the centuries without appreciable destruction. In the year 1975 it was declared a protected monument.
Today many parts of the fortress are accessible to visitors. From the ramparts you can overlook the entire complex. In the casemates you can imagine how the prisoners in the fortress felt. The exhibitions in the gun powder magazine and in the commander’s house tell about the history of the fortress and the town of Dömitz.
References:Rosenborg Palace was built in the period 1606-34 as Christian IV’s summerhouse just outside the ramparts of Copenhagen. Christian IV was very fond of the palace and often stayed at the castle when he resided in Copenhagen, and it was here that he died in 1648. After his death, the palace passed to his son King Frederik III, who together with his queen, Sophie Amalie, carried out several types of modernisation.
The last king who used the place as a residence was Frederik IV, and around 1720, Rosenborg was abandoned in favor of Frederiksborg Palace.Through the 1700s, considerable art treasures were collected at Rosenborg Castle, among other things items from the estates of deceased royalty and from Christiansborg after the fire there in 1794.
Soon the idea of a museum arose, and that was realised in 1833, which is The Royal Danish Collection’s official year of establishment.