Cochem, Germany and Reichsburg Castle

We departed Koblenz late that evening and started up the Mosel River to Cochem. We passed through three locks that raised the boat since we were going upstream. Unfortunately, we did not see much along the way other than village lights as it was dark.

The next morning we awoke to this. Looking out the window of our cabin at the smooth as glass Mosel River we got our first look at Cochem and beautiful Reichsburg Castle towering over the town. We knew we were in for another special day.

Our tour guide met us at the boat and we walked across the bridge from Cond, where the boat had docked, into Mosel. The two towns were not connected with a bridge until the Skagerrak Bridge was built in 1927.

A panoramic view of the castle, town and bridge. 

A view of the town from the bridge. The castle dominates the view of the whole valley while the onion domed Church of St. Martin towers over the town.

Left is Endert Gate, the largest of the three city gates that were built in 1332. This gate has the gatekeepers house, jail and the home of the wall master. On the right is Alte Thorschanke, a half-timber house that was built in 1625 and one of the few buildings in the town to survive the French attack in 1689.

A look through the Endert Gate shows how thick the fortification was. 

The town had several floods (hochwasser) during the 20th century. 

Cochen dates back to 886 when it was settled by Celts and Romans. The beautiful Geschiedenis Monument mosaic tower wall tells the history of the town from then to the 1960's. The town was called by many names through the years, though they all had a similar spelling.  

Cafes and shops along the river front promenade getting ready for the lunch crowd.

Rick, Denise and Nanc prepare to sneak into the town through this low narrow entrance.

The onion spire of St. Martin.

We got a look inside and were treated to a beautiful array of colors with the bright sun shining through the windows.

The Market Plaza was surrounded with many beautiful half-timber buildings. Most of them were rebuilt in the old style after the city was heavily damaged during WWII. 

This half-timber building is one that survived the war with very little damage.

Walking the narrow streets of the town we saw many beautiful old buildings, some that were businesses but many that were homes. This one seems to have settled a bit over the years.

Zom Stuffje is a unique little bar and restaurant. There is not much seating inside but there are picnic tables along the narrow alley.

Not a very big veranda, but they don't have to cut grass.

Tribute to Rhichsburg Castle.

We walked up to Balduin's Gate where there were vans waiting to take us the Reichsburg Castle.

The gate into Reichsburg Castle, the largest on the Mosel. Construction of the castle began in 1000 as the home of Palatinate counts. It was built as a defense fortification that was said to have housed up to 40,000 knights.

Looking down on the Mosel River, Cochem and Cond. Click on the picture to make it bigger and in the top left corner you can see a roller coaster that is on top of the hill. You can see how narrow the river is here. This is where our boat had to back down the river to a spot that was wide enough to turn around that I wrote about in an earlier post.

The mosaic on the castle tower is of St. Christopher.

From 1151 to 1294 the castle was the residence of the royal Stauffen family. It was then loaned to the Archbishop of Trier and was expanded during the 14th century.

In 1689 the castle was captured by the French under the Sun King, Louis XIV. He destroyed the fortifications and the building soon crumbled into ruins. The gates today are only to control the people waiting for their tours. 

In 1868 the castle was purchased by Berlin business man Louis Ravene who reconstructed it in the Neo-Gothic style we see today. 

A timeline of the history of the castle through the years. 

One of the courtyards.

An up close look at the towers. 

The well in this courtyard went all the way down to the river level so they could get water during a siege.

The leaded stained glass windows were beautiful.

The Great Dining Hall.

They must have really been into symmetry. There was a door on the left into the next room so on the right they put in a door that opens to a wall. 

The view from inside the castle of the river and towns below.

The ceiling of the spiral staircase was beautiful.

There are many stained glass windows throughout the castle.

One of many grand fireplaces.

The Knight's Hall had a couple suits of armor. This was one giant knight. There was another one that Nanc could have fit in.

Looking upstream from the castle. The river takes a huge turn at this point but we did not go that way as we turned around and headed back to the Rhine when we departed.

The castle today is used as a wedding and party venue. They have several different tours including a Medieval Knight's dinner, a ghost tour and special wine and Christmas events.

The pastel painted houses were very neat.

Some of the street art in Cochem. The man is a nobleman and the lady is said to be a local busybody.

In the afternoon we did a wine tour in Cond at the H.H. Hieronimi Weinkeller. Our guide was the sixth generation owner of the winery.

Some of the old time wine making equipment.

Barrels in a cave where the wine is aged. 

Nanc enjoying some fine Germany Riesling white wine. We did buy a couple bottles to bring home.

The boat left Cochem at 5:00 heading back to the Rhine in Koblenz and then on to Cologne. Not a great picture but it shows you don't need to be outside to watch the passing landscape as they have it on the TVs in the lounge and cabins.

The first of three locks we passed through on our way to the Rhine. This one had a big lock for big boats and a much smaller one for pleasure boats. 

Another beautiful little town and vineyards along the Mosel River. As with everyday so far we were very busy all day and were looking forward to a relaxing evening.