Avila Spain is a very attractive
town, with very friendly people. The town is situated high in the mountains
of Spain, and is said to be the highest city in all of Spain. The walls
run around the town for miles, and form a very beautiful backdrop with
this town situated on a rise.
This is the front door of the
castle I lived in while in the US Army. The castle had once been run by
the German Army during the 30's and forties. When the U.S. Army took
it over in 1945 they stationed Army troops there much as the Abwehr had
done. The Army is now gone from the castle, and the buildings now house
immigrants from Eastern Europe.
This castle is situated on a very steep hillside overlooking the scenic Neckartal, (Neckar valley).
This castle was invaded long ago,
the attackers blasted the front of the main entrance away. Otherwise there
would be a scenic turret with a large gate inset. I am resting against
the remains of the wall which now litter the front of the castle. Explosives
made castles obsolete. Careful examination of the entrance shows how invaders
would face a corridor in which they would run uphill while defenders shot
at them through slits along the corridor. Invadors would then encounter
another gate at the top of the incline. This makes defense of the structure
easier.
This is another example of a turret
blasted away. In this case the French were attacking this fine and majestic
castle. The French scored a 'lucky hit' into this turret which was used
to store the castles gunpowder. The resulting explosion actually seperated
the wall from the interior, the wall blasted away leaned over to one side
and now can be seen laying mostly in one piece along the ground.
Heidelberg Germany has one of
the most impressive fortified castles I have ever seen. There are walls
here 100 feet in height. A most worthwhile visit to be sure.
This decorative yet functional element is representative of many of the works comissioned by 'Mad' King Ludwig of Bavaria. He had several castles built one of which is Neuschwanstein the beloved 'fairy tale' castle well known throughout the world. This castle is deep in a canyon and richly decorated with expensive embellishments like this. Gold, ivory and marble richly ornament the interior. This was something of a hide-away for King Ludwig and his lover.  |