Germany > Lower Saxony > The ruins of the royal palace of Werla (Königspfalz Werla)
The ruins of the royal palace of Werla (Königspfalz Werla)
N 52°2.268', E 10°33.227'
2024-03-03
https://www.kaiserpfalz.schladen-werla.de/
Our rating: 4.80
Overall rating: - Rate this place - 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
In Roman times, rulers travelled extensively around their country and stayed overnight in special palaces, the Pfalz, which were located about 30 km away from each other. The most famous and preserved such palace is in Goslar. In Werla, it has hardly been preserved, but nevertheless we stopped here, as it is a good place to just walk in nature.
The ruins of the royal palace of Werla (Königspfalz Werla) ©Yuriy Buriak
The ruins of the royal palace of Werla (Königspfalz Werla) ©Yuriy Buriak
The earliest buildings of the complex date back to the 9th century. At that time, a kind of fortified cattle yard was built. A ring wall surrounded several simple wooden buildings. At the beginning of the 10th century the complex was transformed into a fortified palace. The first written records date back to 924 or 926 when King Henry I stayed here. Between 924 and 1013, at least 14 visits by various kings are recorded. On several occasions the succession to the throne was decided in Werla.
The ruins of the royal palace of Werla (Königspfalz Werla) ©Yuriy Buriak
Traces of settlement can be found up to the fourteenth century, but by 1550 at the latest Werla had fallen into disrepair. There was even a chapel until 1817, although its origins were no longer known to the locals. With the disappearance of the last visible walls, the memory of the royal palace disappeared for a while. That is, it turned out to be a situation when the palace was known from written sources, but its location was lost. The palace was searched for decades and finally found in 1875. The first excavations began in 1934, and in those years, as you remember, the country's leadership was very fond of various archaeological sites. Therefore, the help of the army aviation was even obtained, which for the first time in history used stereophotography. At that time, the results were considered sensational, as the photographs revealed a complex measuring 600 by 600 metres.
The ruins of the royal palace of Werla (Königspfalz Werla) ©Yuriy Buriak
The archaeologists were in a hurry and made a number of dating errors because of the enormous pressure exerted on them by the National Socialists, who deliberately called Werla ‘the cradle of the First Reich’. Indiana Jones is already somewhere close. Since 2010, the archaeological park has been open to the public and the excavations have been officially completed.
The ruins of the royal palace of Werla (Königspfalz Werla) ©Yuriy Buriak
The ruins of the royal palace of Werla (Königspfalz Werla) ©Yuriy Buriak
The ruins of the royal palace of Werla (Königspfalz Werla) ©Yuriy Buriak
The ruins of the royal palace of Werla (Königspfalz Werla) ©Yuriy Buriak
The ruins of the royal palace of Werla (Königspfalz Werla) ©Yuriy Buriak
The ruins of the royal palace of Werla (Königspfalz Werla) ©Yuriy Buriak
Getting there: parking 52.038389, 10.540667 , then 1 km on foot.
Tags, Germany: ruins Tags, all countries: ruins
- Rate this place -
Location : ------------ 1 - Far beyond the settlements, you must spend minimum a day 2 - Near the small town, you need to walk long distance 3 - Can be reached only by car 4 - A small town with a poor public transport 5 - Outside the settlements, but with excellent transport links 6 - A small town with excellent transport links 7 - Medium-size city 8 - Suburb of the capital or major city, the ability to reach by public transport 9 - Big city 10 - Capital
Impressions : ------------ 1 - No point in visiting 2 - Boring, wasted time 3 - You can visit, if you have a lot of free time and nothing better to do 4 - A lot of things, but not so interesting 5 - It seems to be interesting, but hard way to spoil the impression 6 - There is something interesting, but the rest is not worth the attention 7 - Probably interesting, but for everybody 8 - Very cool, but difficult to see everything and long-distance trails 9 - Very cool, but there are similar facilities in other locations 10 - Very cool, this is not anywhere else
Number of tourists (weekend afternoon) : ------------ 1 - Crowds, impossible to see everything normally 2 - A lot of tourists, a long wait 3 - A lot of tourists, the organization is lame 4 - A lot of tourists, but good organization 5 - There are many tourists, but they are concentrated in one place and you can walk freely 6 - Many tourists everywhere, but the large space is compensated 7 - The average number of tourists. To photograph, you must wait 8 - Tourists are, but they do not interfere 9 - There are few tourists 10 - You are alone
State : ------------ 1 - Only title left 2 - Dull ruins 3 - On restoration 4 - The picturesque ruins 5 - Have not been restored, the state is poor 6 - Partially destroyed, but the rest of the normal state 7 - Have not been restored, good condition 8 - OK, but it is possible to make better 9 - Looks good from the outside, partial repair inside or without repair 10 - In excellent condition, well-groomed area
Picturesque (for the photographer) : ------------ 1 - - 2 - - 3 - Horrible background, normal pictures only from the top 4 - wires and cars do not allow make normal photo 5 - Interfere with foreign objects 6 - In the city, but more or less normal photo can be made 7 - Beautiful, but you can take pictures with just one point 8 - Very nice, but you can only shoot at a certain time 9 - Very nice, but hard to get to the good weather or permanently interfere with tourists 10 - Very nice, but occasionally interferes with the weather or tourists
* - Note: Description of the evaluation is not always appropriate for a particular object, it's just a little help
Our rating - 4.80
Location : ------------ 1 - Far beyond the settlements, you must spend minimum a day 2 - Near the small town, you need to walk long distance 3 - Can be reached only by car 4 - A small town with a poor public transport 5 - Outside the settlements, but with excellent transport links 6 - A small town with excellent transport links 7 - Medium-size city 8 - Suburb of the capital or major city, the ability to reach by public transport 9 - Big city 10 - Capital
Impressions : ------------ 1 - No point in visiting 2 - Boring, wasted time 3 - You can visit, if you have a lot of free time and nothing better to do 4 - A lot of things, but not so interesting 5 - It seems to be interesting, but hard way to spoil the impression 6 - There is something interesting, but the rest is not worth the attention 7 - Probably interesting, but for everybody 8 - Very cool, but difficult to see everything and long-distance trails 9 - Very cool, but there are similar facilities in other locations 10 - Very cool, this is not anywhere else
Number of tourists (weekend afternoon) : ------------ 1 - Crowds, impossible to see everything normally 2 - A lot of tourists, a long wait 3 - A lot of tourists, the organization is lame 4 - A lot of tourists, but good organization 5 - There are many tourists, but they are concentrated in one place and you can walk freely 6 - Many tourists everywhere, but the large space is compensated 7 - The average number of tourists. To photograph, you must wait 8 - Tourists are, but they do not interfere 9 - There are few tourists 10 - You are alone
State : ------------ 1 - Only title left 2 - Dull ruins 3 - On restoration 4 - The picturesque ruins 5 - Have not been restored, the state is poor 6 - Partially destroyed, but the rest of the normal state 7 - Have not been restored, good condition 8 - OK, but it is possible to make better 9 - Looks good from the outside, partial repair inside or without repair 10 - In excellent condition, well-groomed area
Picturesque (for the photographer) : ------------ 1 - - 2 - - 3 - Horrible background, normal pictures only from the top 4 - wires and cars do not allow make normal photo 5 - Interfere with foreign objects 6 - In the city, but more or less normal photo can be made 7 - Beautiful, but you can take pictures with just one point 8 - Very nice, but you can only shoot at a certain time 9 - Very nice, but hard to get to the good weather or permanently interfere with tourists 10 - Very nice, but occasionally interferes with the weather or tourists
* - Note: Description of the evaluation is not always appropriate for a particular object, it's just a little help
Visitor's rating - 0.00
Location : ------------ 1 - Far beyond the settlements, you must spend minimum a day 2 - Near the small town, you need to walk long distance 3 - Can be reached only by car 4 - A small town with a poor public transport 5 - Outside the settlements, but with excellent transport links 6 - A small town with excellent transport links 7 - Medium-size city 8 - Suburb of the capital or major city, the ability to reach by public transport 9 - Big city 10 - Capital
Impressions : ------------ 1 - No point in visiting 2 - Boring, wasted time 3 - You can visit, if you have a lot of free time and nothing better to do 4 - A lot of things, but not so interesting 5 - It seems to be interesting, but hard way to spoil the impression 6 - There is something interesting, but the rest is not worth the attention 7 - Probably interesting, but for everybody 8 - Very cool, but difficult to see everything and long-distance trails 9 - Very cool, but there are similar facilities in other locations 10 - Very cool, this is not anywhere else
Number of tourists (weekend afternoon) : ------------ 1 - Crowds, impossible to see everything normally 2 - A lot of tourists, a long wait 3 - A lot of tourists, the organization is lame 4 - A lot of tourists, but good organization 5 - There are many tourists, but they are concentrated in one place and you can walk freely 6 - Many tourists everywhere, but the large space is compensated 7 - The average number of tourists. To photograph, you must wait 8 - Tourists are, but they do not interfere 9 - There are few tourists 10 - You are alone
State : ------------ 1 - Only title left 2 - Dull ruins 3 - On restoration 4 - The picturesque ruins 5 - Have not been restored, the state is poor 6 - Partially destroyed, but the rest of the normal state 7 - Have not been restored, good condition 8 - OK, but it is possible to make better 9 - Looks good from the outside, partial repair inside or without repair 10 - In excellent condition, well-groomed area
Picturesque (for the photographer) : ------------ 1 - - 2 - - 3 - Horrible background, normal pictures only from the top 4 - wires and cars do not allow make normal photo 5 - Interfere with foreign objects 6 - In the city, but more or less normal photo can be made 7 - Beautiful, but you can take pictures with just one point 8 - Very nice, but you can only shoot at a certain time 9 - Very nice, but hard to get to the good weather or permanently interfere with tourists 10 - Very nice, but occasionally interferes with the weather or tourists
* - Note: Description of the evaluation is not always appropriate for a particular object, it's just a little help