The Tiersteins' arrival

Partly destroyed following an initial siege in 1462, in 1479 the Habsburgs entrusted the castle to the Tiersteins, a noble family from what is now the Swiss Jura, in gratitude for their services.

They rebuilt and enlarged it, installing a defensive system designed to withstand artillery fire.

Over the course of the following century, the Sickingen family continued to modernise the castle at great expense, making it the most modern fortress in Alsace by the mid-16th century.

This was the heyday of Hohkoenigsburg (‘Hoh’ means... ‘High’!).

But the story doesn't end there...