Willibald Castle

The Willibaldsburg is a spur castle built around 1353 in Eichstätt in Upper Bavaria. Until the 18th century, it was the representative castle and residence of the Prince-Bishops of Eichstätt.

The castle fortress is located west of the old town on an elongated mountain spur, the Willibaldsberg (see Willibald of Eichstätt), above the Altmühl Valley. The entire complex is about 420 m long and well secured by its location. The Altmühl makes a sharp bend here, and the resulting ridge was an ideal location for the medieval castle and later fortress.

Bishop Berthold's high medieval castle was located on the western spur of the castle hill. This first castle complex is said to have consisted of a large stone house, a tower, and a chapel, and to have been secured by ring walls and moats.

The first fortification on the castle hill is already mentioned in 1070. Under Bishop Berthold von Zollern, the expansion into a defensible residence for the Bishops of Eichstätt began around 1355; the old bishop's seat was in the city next to the cathedral. After the extinction of the Counts of Hirschberg in 1305, the bishop had to organize the military security of the diocese himself. The cathedral chapter initially opposed the expansion plans due to the high costs, but the bishop was able to prevail.

Bishop Friedrich IV von Oettingen (1383-1415) strengthened the fortification by adding a zwinger and had a "aestuarium magnum aestivale" built. This was probably a hall building, a summer house, as can also be found in other castles of this period.

Under Bishops Albrecht II von Hohenrechberg (1429-1445) and Martin von Schaumberg (1560-1590), the castle fortress was expanded and strengthened. The "Schaumberg building" created under the latter, together with the late Renaissance expansion, shaped the castle's appearance until the 19th century.

Under Bishop Johann Konrad von Gemmingen (1595-1612), the castle received, among other things, a botanical garden, the Hortus Eystettensis. Also under him, the construction of a representative Renaissance castle based on an Italian model began in 1609. The plans for this were provided by the Augsburg city architect Elias Holl. Together with Holl's Augsburg Town Hall, this princely castle, even in its reduced form, is considered one of the most important works of the German Renaissance. The two-towered facade was built from 1629 with the participation of Hans Alberthal and his successor Martin Barbieri.

Bishop Johann Christoph von Westerstetten (1612-1636) completed the new building, which nevertheless remained piecemeal, and initiated further alterations. The fortifications were strengthened by five modern bastions and the spacious outer bailey was laid out.

Nevertheless, the Swedes were able to capture the castle fortress in 1633 during the Thirty Years' War. However, the Catholic troops subsequently managed to recapture and successfully defend it. Bishop Marquard II Schenk von Castell (1636-1685) ordered the repair of the damage and had gun casemates installed in the bastions.

In 1725, the bishops moved their residence to the new city palace near the cathedral. The Willibaldsburg became the seat of several offices, later a hospital and prison. After the secularization of the Prince-Bishopric of Eichstätt, the Bavarian state sold the complex to private individuals. All usable furnishings disappeared from the rooms, and partial demolitions reduced the building fabric.

In 1829, Bavaria bought back the semi-ruin and provisionally repaired the fortifications. During this time, the onion domes were removed by one and a half stories and designed with battlements. Later, the huge complex served as a barracks for the Bavarian army.

Since 1880, the city of Eichstätt owned the castle. In 1900, it was acquired by the Bavarian state and placed under monument protection. Around 1900, the first efforts to preserve the substance began.

Between 1926 and 1934, a part of the Willibaldsburg was inhabited by the Congregation of the Oblates of St. Francis de Sales.

In 1962, the Bavarian Administration of State Palaces, Gardens and Lakes took over the Willibaldsburg, and extensive renovation measures began.

In 1976, the Jura Museum was opened in the Gemmingen building. In 1980, the Museum of Prehistory and Early History was opened to the public, and in 1998, the reconstructed bastion garden was inaugurated. After 2000, a circular path was laid around the entire complex and the rubble in front of the two main bastions was removed, so that the fortification concept can now be fully experienced.