Ranis Castle

Castle Ranis ( German: Burg Ranis ) is a medieval castle located in the German city ​​of Ranis in the federal state of Thuringia .

Castle
Ranis Castle
him. Burg rananis
A country	Germany
Federal state , city	Thuringia , Ranis
First mention	1084 year
Established	XI century
Status	state property, museum
condition	completely preserved
Website	thueringerschloesser.de/...

The complex of castle buildings located on a rocky elevation is divided into groups grouped around a spacious courtyard:

• the upper castle in the western part with a round main tower adjoining it - the so-called bergfried ,
• massive southern weather vane with its typical forceps and
• covering the east side of the forburg with the main gate and outbuildings.

Although the exact time of the founding of the castle is unknown, presumably, the first fortifications on a rock above the modern city of Ranis were erected in the 11th century. In 1084, the castle, first written in writing as lat. castrum Ranis , was transferred by Henry IV to his associate Viprecht von Groich - the future Margrave of Meissen and Lausitz . After the suppression of the von Groich clan, the castle was under the control of various imperial ministers , being one of the pillars of the royal power in eastern Germany.

Under Emperor Otto IV, Ranis was laid to the Counts von Schwarzburg , passing into their possession in 1220 under Frederick II . It was during this period that almost all the existing buildings were erected; their modern appearance dates back to the 17th century, when the castle was rebuilt after a major fire.

In 1389, the castle was sold to the Wettins . However, already in 1463, Wilhelm the Bold , who at one time used the castle as his side residence, handed it over to his wife's brother - Heinrich von Brandenstein ( German: Heinrich von Brandenstein ). The debtor's heirs were forced to sell it to the family von Breitenb (a) uh ( German Herren von Braitenb (a) uch ), in whose possession the castle remained until 1942, when it was bought by the German Red Cross .

Currently, the Ranis castle, in whose premises the museum was opened (since 1956), is state-owned and managed by the Thuringian Castles and Parks Foundation ( German: Stiftung Thüringer Schlösser und Gärten ).