The Hmeljnik Castle is situated on a stone slope above the village of Karteljevo close to Novo mesto, dominating the views from the valley and from the road Ljubljana - Bregana. The castle was first mentioned in 1217. Its original masters are not known - they were probably the Lords of Višnja gora, possibly also the Lords of Hopfenbach or Hmeljnik whose family line was terminated in the 14th century. The castle has subsequently been owned by the Auerspergs for at least three hundred years; the castle had many masters since the times of the Auerspergs, including the Wamboldts that resided in it until the World War II.
The original Hmeljnik Castle from the late 12th century is a typical vaulted castle with two Roman palazzos and a staircase tower. In the Gothic period, the southwest tower and its east wing as well as the castle chapel of Saint Pancras were added. A double fortress wall with circular towers was built during the times of Turkish attacks, and a Renaissance archway was added, flanking the inner courtyard - this structure was demolished after World War II. The castle was burnt down in 1942 and its remains subsequently detonated. In the late 1950s, the ruins were slowly rebuilt, gaining a new roof structure and static consolidation.
References:Saint-Georges de Boscherville Abbey is a former Benedictine abbey. It was founded in about 1113 by Guillaume de Tancarville on the site of an earlier establishment of secular canons and settled by monks from the Abbey of Saint-Evroul. The abbey church made of Caumont stone was erected from 1113 to 1140. The Norman builders aimed to have very well-lit naves and they did this by means of tall, large windows, initially made possible by a wooden ceiling, which prevented uplift, although this was replaced by a Gothic vault in the 13th century. The chapter room was built after the abbey church and dates from the last quarter of the 12th century.
The arrival of the Maurist monks in 1659, after the disasters of the Wars of Religion, helped to get the abbey back on a firmer spiritual, architectural and economic footing. They erected a large monastic building one wing of which fitted tightly around the chapter house (which was otherwise left as it was).