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A Virtual Tour through Mediaeval and Renaissance Gdańsk / Danzig
After the history lesson below, let's now have a little walk through Gdańsk / Danzig. Most of the famous landmarks are situated not in the Old Town, but in the - much older - Rechtstadt (Town of the...
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Lithuanian History: Troublesome Cousins - Jogaila Algirdaitis and Vytautas...
I mentioned the union of Poland and Lithuania under Władysław Jagiełło of Poland, formerly Jogaila of Lithuania, only briefly in my post about the history of Gdańsk. Of course, the process, and the...
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Eastward Bound - My Spring Tour 2019
I'll be off until Easter visiting Prague and Cheb (Eger) in the Czech Republic, and Krakow and Wrocław (Breslau) in Poland, plus some planned detours to castles and other sites of interest. Let's see...
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Prague and More - My Spring Journey 2019, Part 1
I'm back from my tour through the Czech Republic and Poland, and I did indeed manage to visit some other places, besides the major towns. Here is part 1 of the customary overview posts.Prague seen from...
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Krakow and Wrocław - My Spring Journey 2019, Part 2
The second post of my Travel Return Booty will present the places I visited in Poland.Krakow, Easter market on the Market Square, seen from the balcony of the Cloth Hall(St.Mary's Basilica in the...
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From Political Movement to Bronze Figures - The Wrocław Dwarfs
Well, some of the Wrocław Dwarfs - impossible to find all of the 163 official dwarfs (krasnale) spread over the town, plus the 150+ additional inofficial ones. The tourist office offers a map to help...
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Decorative Bones - The Sedlec Ossuary (Czech Republic)
Sedlec is today a suburb of the Czech town Kutná Hora, about an hour's drive from Prague. The place has become popular with tourists due to a somewhat morbid and scary attraction: the Ossuary of...
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Adventures of a Future King - Henry Bolingbroke and the Siege of Vilnius 1390
When I was researching the Teutonic Knights and the forging of the union between Władysław Jagiełło of Poland and Vytautas of Lithuania (see this post), I came across a paragraph mentioning that one of...
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To Drink the Waters since the Middle Ages - The Spa Town Karlovy Vary / Karlsbad
I only took a brief walk through the centre of Karlovy Vary (Czech Republic). The town has a lot of pretty, and even splendid, buildings of the Neo-Classicist, Art Déco and Art Nouveau styles that have...
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A Cursed Count and a Fallen Stone - The Meteorite of Loket
Once upon a time there was an evil burgrave, Puta of Illburk, who resided in Loket Castle (1). He was a harsh man who demanded socage far beyond his rights and collected taxes without any concern about...
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Richmond Castle - Later History of the Castle and its Architecture
I've detailed the history of Richmond Castle in the context of the Honour of Richmond in two posts (here and here). But with some more photos and information left, there is material for a final post...
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Pretty Porvoo - A Mediaeval Town in Finland
I'm not only collecting new travel destinations and lots of photos, I still have an archive full of material from former tours. So here's one of the places I've visited during my Baltic Sea Cruise in...
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A Hansa Town under the Rule of Denmark and the Teutonic Knights - The History...
Tallinn, the capital of Estonia, had not always been known by this name. The 13th century chronicler Henry of Livonia called it Lindanisia and the surrounding country Revelia. The latter name would...
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A Lovely Place in Wrocław - The Botanical Garden
Just some pretty flowers and trees today. I took the photos in the Botanical Garden in Wrocław in spring. Entering the Botanical Garden WrocławThe Botanical Garden in Wrocław, situated on the Cathedral...
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A Hansa Town between the Archbishop of Riga and the Teutonic Knights - The...
Archbishopric, seat of the Teutonic Knighs, and member of the Hanseatic League - Riga's Old Town has plenty of churches, a castle, and lanes and squares with pretty old houses. I spent a day there and...
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Nano Again
It is almost November again which means I'm going to participate in the National Novel Writing Month and won't update my blog. Unfortunately, there won't be a plugin in the sidebar where readers can...
View ArticleMediaeval Stronghold, Renaissance Residence, Film Set - A Virtual Tour of...
I got another filming location for you. The Witcher series, a Netflix production based on the novels of the Polish author Andrzej Sapkowski and starring Henry Cavill in the lead role, will launch...
View ArticleThe History of Ogrodzieniec Castle, Part 1: Beginnings unto the Boner Family
After the virtual tour of Ogrodzieniec Castle in Poland I posted in December, let's have look at the history of those fascinating ruins. Regular readers will know that I always try to fnd out details...
View ArticleRecreating Historical Land Use - Wood Pasture with Heck Cattle and Exmoor...
Wood pasture was a way of using the resources of deciduous or sometimes mixed coniferous forests since settlements developed in wooded areas, and it lasted in parts until the 18th century. Forests...
View ArticleA Former Wood Pasture Turned Jungle - Old Forest near the Sababurg
After the visit to the Hutewald in the Solling which is an example for a recreated and working wood pasture, let’s have a look at a former wood pasture that has been allowed to grow on its own without...
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