The Altenburg Castle comprises the Baroque castle, the Gothic church, the two survived Romanic towers and the garden designed in the old English style. Basically the castle is worth visit because of two reasons:
- the Altenburg was historically the Saxony Dukes residence
- it houses the unique playing cards museum
The Castle resided the royal families of the Saxon Dukes during the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries. By those times it had seven towers two of which have only survived and are open for tourists now. After the Thuringia Land was recognized as a free land the castle was left by the Saxon Dukes and became the possession of the Thuringia. During the centuries the Castle was constantly being improved and rebuilt but managed to save its interior and even the Dukes’ everyday life accessories such as dishes, clocks etc. During the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries the castle area was enlarged by building the Gothic church and growing the wonderful garden with romantic arches, alleys and fountain.
Historically the Altenburg Castle is famous for the royal princes' kidnapping happened in 1455.
The Playing card museum is located inside the castle in the right wing. Particularly it presents the German national card game named Skat.
There is another museum in the castle area called Lindenau Museum which houses the medieval Italian and German modern expressionists' paintings of the twentieth century.
The Gothic church constructed in the eighteenth century is famous for its organ which was played by Bach. Now the church and the famous organ is open for public visits, the church tours are guided by documented stories of the Bach’s play and the church organ history.
The Altenburg Castle is up on the hill top and presents the wonderful view of the neighboring mountains and the city of Baden-Baden – the world-famous resort.
Click on "Show on map" button to see location of the castle
