Everyone who visits rushes to the spot to which the city owes its world renown: the ‘Deutsches Eck’ headland. It’s here that the Moselle flows into the Rhine. On the opposite bank of the Rhine, a mighty, historic edifice draws in visitors’ gaze: the fortress of Ehrenbreitstein. At 118 metres above the river, it unites examples of traditionally heavily fortified constructions to form a complete fortress complex. Ehrenbreitstein was erected by the Prussians between 1817 and 1828 as the geographical centre of a line of fortresses stretching from Wesel to Rastatt.
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Ehrenbreitstein Fortress in Koblenz
The hilltop on which the complex sits has been inhabited since prehistoric times. Celts, Germanic peoples and Romans all lived here. There followed around 800 years of the bishops and prince-electors of Trier, and finally came the Prussians. Their impressive defences sit as the latest witness to countless layers of civilisation dating back to Neolithic times.
The fortress of Ehrenbreitstein is Europe’s largest fortress complex after Gibraltar. It is also a place that uncovers man’s impact on history across countless generations.
This is undoubtedly one of the reasons why there are two UNESCO World Heritage Sites on this spot: Germanic Rhaetian Limes and the http://www.welterbe-mittelrheintal.de/index.php?id=318&L=0Upper Middle Rhine Valley cultural landscape. Koblenz National Museum, with its technical and historical collection, along with an exhibition of archaeological finds reflecting the Middle Rhine region’s long cultural history, are also housed here. Click here to find out more about the cultural history of Ehrenbreitstein Fortress.
Click here to find out more about the cultural history of Ehrenbreitstein Fortress.