Reichsburg Cochem

Reichsburg Cochem dominates the Moselle skyline above the wine town of Cochem. The original 12th-century imperial castle built under King Conrad III was an important Hohenstaufen fortress controlling the Moselle river trade route. It was destroyed by French troops under King Louis XIV in 1689 during the War of the Grand Alliance and lay in ruins for nearly 180 years until 1868, when it was purchased by Berlin businessman and art collector Louis Ravene. Ravene commissioned the reconstruction in the neo-Gothic style then popular with German nobility and the bourgeois elite, transforming the ruin into a habitable historicist castle. The architect Hermann Nebel designed the reconstruction, completing the main building in 1877. The interior reflects the historicist taste of the 19th century with the knights hall, the hunting room with antler chandeliers, a Renaissance-style bedroom, a dining room, and a remarkable kitchen with original glazed tiles. The castles towers offer panoramic views over the Moselle valley, its vineyards on the steep slopes of the Cochemer Krampen, and the loop of the river around the town. Cochem is a popular stop on the Moselle wine route, reachable by regional train from Koblenz in about 40 minutes.