Ronneburg Medieval Festival

   First mentioned in 1258, Ronneburg Castle subsequently changed hands on numerous occasions.  Over the course of time it served as a haven for religious refugees, gypsies and Jews, a sanctuary for monks, a staging point for knights and residence for counts and aristocratic families. 

The castle presently houses a restaurant, a museum and a falconry center. 

We took this site in largely due to an annual medieval festival occurring at the castle this weekend.  This proved to be another worthwhile venture.  People from every walk of life were represented in traditional dress.  They apparently are all members of a club who travel to different local festivals. They led us on a procession through the marketplace up to the central court of the castle.  Once there, they engaged the spectators in shows designed to humor the crowds.

In addition to the music, there were small booths and kiosks selling an assortment of products, a number of which were clearly attempting to capture the flavor of the medieval period they were representing.  This picture is of an active group of musicians, who robustly played their assorted instruments with an enthusiasm which was contagious.  

The kids would have loved this. 

Ninety percent of those present were dressed in every variety of era appropriate costume.  I felt a little out of place in blue jeans; even the little children were dressed up.

This event is kind of like our fall fair with a notable leaning to the fun part.

We took the time to explore the castle.  This site was probably characteristic of actual life and living conditions of the middle ages.  The rooms were functional with little in the way of adornment. simple chests, armoirs and furnishings with little of the intricate woodwork and carvings typical of the palaces and more notable castles. Huge pots, heavy tables, benches and solid chairs were the norm in a number of rooms.

We walked to the top of the Keep and took in a view of the court yard and the surrounding countryside, with the first signs of fall colours in the trees below.  We could see the skyscrapers of Frankfurt off in the distance.  

The person in the brown peaked cap kept us amused with his facial contortions and slap stick antics. Of course it was in German, but the body language and facial expression provided sufficient entertainment for those of us less linguistically proficient. The variety of costumes made me wonder if there was indeed any where near the diversity I was seeing here.