Plön Castle

The origins of the castle grounds date back to the 10th century, when a Wagrian fortress named Plune stood on Olsborg Island in Lake Plön. After its destruction in 1139, the castle was rebuilt under Count Adolf II of Schauenburg and Holstein and moved to its current location on Bischofsberg in 1173. Plön developed into a market town in the 12th century and received town rights in 1239. From 1290 to 1390, the hilltop castle served as the seat of the Schauenburg line of Holstein-Plön before falling to the Danish royal house. In 1534, the castle was burned down during the Count's Feud, and a larger new building was subsequently erected. Duke John the Younger received Plön and the castle in 1564, leading to an economic boom for the town and its complex. After his death in 1622, the Duchy of Schleswig-Holstein-Plön was established, and its first Duke, Joachim Ernst, had the old castle demolished in 1632 to build the current Renaissance castle. It served as the residence of the Dukes of Plön, experienced a Baroque flourishing under Friedrich Karl from 1729, and was expanded with additional buildings. After Friedrich Karl's death in 1761, the Duchy reverted to Denmark. The castle later served as a widow's residence, official seat, and residence for Peter Friedrich Wilhelm of Oldenburg. From 1833, it housed a grammar school and from 1840 became the summer residence of Danish King Christian VIII. After the German-Danish War in 1864, the castle came into Prussian possession and was used as a cadet institution from 1868, where the sons of Emperor Wilhelm II were also educated. After World War I, military schools were banned by the Treaty of Versailles, and from 1920, the castle served as a State Educational Institution, and from 1933, as a National Political Educational Institution (Napola). After World War II, which the castle survived undamaged, a state boarding school was established in 1946, operating until 2001. Due to necessary renovations and a lack of state funding, the castle was sold to the Fielmann Academy in 2002 and, after extensive restoration, transformed into a modern training and qualification center for opticians.

Plön Castle is located in the town of Plön in the district of Plön, Schleswig-Holstein, Germany, at an elevation of approximately 49 m above sea level.

Today, Plön Castle can be visited and serves as a training and qualification center for the Fielmann Academy Schloss Plön for the optical industry.

• Witwenpalais zu Plön (residence), approx. 0.2 km away
• Prinzenhaus zu Plön (castle), approx. 0.4 km away
• Gutshaus Tramm (manor house), approx. 1.6 km away
• Gutshaus Wittmoldt (manor house), approx. 2.9 km away