Confessions of a Castleholic

Have you ever stumbled over a castle without meaning to? That's pretty much the story of Schoss Ahorn near Coburg and yours truly. I'm still not sure whether my navigation system simply got confused on the way from Schloss Hohenstein to Schloss Callenberg or if it has picked up on my love for castles instead and wanted to do me a favour. Because Schloss Ahorn is not along the most direct route between those two places but still it is where the GPS led me to go past - and after spotting this castle on the side of the road, I couldn't help but make a quick stop. Schloss Ahorn is located in a small village by the same name. While today's castle dates back to the 16th and 17th centuries, previous buildings located on the same site go back as early as the 11th century. It was actually part of the dowry of the Queen of Poland, born Richeza of Lotharingia. She inherited the estate from her own mother, Matilda, one of the daughters of Holy Roman Emperor Otto II and...