View allAll Photos Tagged UNESCOWelterbe
Notre-Dame de Reims / Reims / Champagne / France
Album of France (the north): www.flickr.com/photos/tabliniumcarlson/albums/72157713208...
Darstellung der fünf Schutzpatrone des Speyerer Doms über dem Westportal, von links: Erzmärtyrer Stephanus, Erzengel Michael, Maria, Johannes der Täufer und Bernhard von Clairvaux.
Der Speyerer Dom ist seit 1981 Bestandteil des UNESCO-Weltkulturerbes.
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Speyer Cathedral, part of the UNESCO World Heritage List, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany
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Dieses Foto ist urheberrechtlich geschützt. Jede Verwendung ist nur mit ausdrücklicher schriftlicher Genehmigung meinerseits zulässig. Dies gilt auch für die Nutzung auf privaten Homepages.
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Please Note: This photo ist (C) Copyrighted & All Rights Reserved. Do not use this image in any form without my written permission.
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Pier Head / Liverpool / Merseyside / England / UK
Album of the British Islands: www.flickr.com/photos/tabliniumcarlson/albums/72157626176...
Ein Rast in der Messnerhütte, Tiers, Südtirol lohne sich immer. Weiter geht es dann zur Kölner Hütte, zum Tschager Joch, nach Vaiolet, zum Grasleitenpass und durchs Tschamintal wieder zurück.
Hotel Darmstädter Hof, Bad Ems
Bad Ems has been inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2021 (ref. 1613)
Reims / Champagne / France
Album of France (the north): www.flickr.com/photos/tabliniumcarlson/albums/72157713208...
Please don't use this image on websites, blogs or other media without my written permission.
© Toni_V. All rights reserved.
www.swissinfo.ch/ger//Specials/UNESCO-Welterbe_der_Schwei...
Please don't use this image on websites, blogs or other media without my written permission.
© Toni_V. All rights reserved.
Quedlinburg, Schlossberg "Klippen"
UNESCO-Welterbe. Mit einem historisch bebauten Stadtkern, der sich über mehr als 80 ha erstreckt, gehört Quedlinburg zu den größten Flächendenkmalen in Deutschland.
3 exposures -2/0/+2, Photomatix, Photoshop
Un parc archéologique antique exceptionnel inscrite au patrimoine mondial de l'Unesco, Ein antiker außergewöhnlicher archäologischer Park, im Welterbe von Unesco eingeschrieben.
Devi Jagadambi Temple / Khajuraho / Madhya Pradesh / India
Album of India: www.flickr.com/photos/tabliniumcarlson/sets/7215762599872...
Terracotta warriors in Pit 3 ("The Command Centre").
Mausoleum of the First Qin Emperor Qin Shi Huang, Xi'an.
The Palácio da Pena (in English: "Pena Palace"), viewed from one of its terraces, Sintra, Portugal
Some background information:
The Palácio da Pena is a Romanticist castle in São Pedro de Penaferrim, in the Portuguese municipality of Sintra, located about 30 kilmetres (18.6 miles) to the northwest of the Portuguese capital city of Lisbon. The castle stands on the top of a hill in the Sintra Mountains above the town of Sintra, and on a clear day it can be easily seen from Lisbon and much of its metropolitan area. It is a national monument and constitutes one of the major expressions of 19th-century Romanticism in the world. The palace is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of the so-called Seven Wonders of Portugal. It is also used for state occasions by the President of the Portuguese Republic and other government officials.
The castle's history started in the Middle Ages when a chapel dedicated to Our Lady of Pena was built on the top of the hill above Sintra. According to tradition, construction occurred after an apparition of the Virgin Mary. In 1493, John II, accompanied by his wife Leonor of Viseu, made a pilgrimage to the site to fulfill a vow. His successor, Manuel I, was also very fond of this sanctuary, and ordered the construction of a monastery on this site which was donated to the Order of Saint Jerome. For centuries Pena was a small, quiet place for meditation, which housed just a maximum of eighteen monks.
In the 18th century, the monastery was severely damaged by lightning. However, it was the 1755 Lisbon earthquake, occurring shortly afterwards, that took the heaviest toll on the monastery, reducing it to ruins. Nonetheless, the chapel escaped without significant damage. For many decades the ruins remained untouched, but they still astonished young Prince Ferdinand. In 1838, as Ferdinand II, King of Portugal, he decided to acquire the old monastery, all of the surrounding lands, the nearby Castle of the Moors and a few other estates in the area. Ferdinand II then set out to transform the remains of the monastery into a palace that would serve as a summer residence for the Portuguese royal family.
The commission for the Romantic style palace was given to the German mining engineer and architect Wilhelm Ludwig von Eschwege. The construction took place between 1842 and 1854, although it was almost completed in 1847. King Ferdinand and Queen Maria II intervened decisively on matters of decoration and symbolism. Among others, the King suggested vault arches, medieval and Islamic elements to be included, and he also designed an ornate window for the main façade.
After the death of Ferdinand the palace passed into the possession of his second wife Elisa Hensler, Countess of Edla. The latter then sold the palace to King Luís, who wanted to retrieve it for the royal family, and thereafter the huge building was frequently used by the family. In 1889 it was purchased by the Portuguese State, and after the Republican Revolution of 1910 it was classified as a national monument and transformed into a museum. The last queen of Portugal, Queen Amélia, spent her last night at the palace before leaving the country in exile.
The palace quickly drew visitors and became one of Portugal's most visited monuments. Over time the colors of the red and yellow façades faded, and for many years the palace was visually identified as being entirely gray. By the end of the 20th century the palace was repainted and the original colors restored. In 1995, the palace and the rest of the Cultural Landscape of Sintra were classified as a World Heritage Site by the UNESCO.
The Palácio da Pena has a profusion of styles much in accordance with the exotic taste of the Romanticism. The intentional mixture of eclectic styles includes the Neo-Gothic, Neo-Manueline, Neo-Islamic and Neo-Renaissance. Much of this has been evident since major renovations in the 1840s. References to other prominent Portuguese buildings, such as the Belém Tower, are also present.
The Palácio da Pena is completely surrounded by the Pena Park, a vast forested area spreading for over 200 hectares of uneven terrain. The park was created at the same time as the palace by King Ferdinand II, who was assisted in this task by the barons von Eschwege and von Kessler. The exotic taste of the Romanticism was applied to the park as it was to the palace.
The King ordered trees from diverse, distant lands to be planted there. Those included North American sequoia, Lawson's cypress, magnolia and Western redcedar, Chinese ginkgo, Japanese Cryptomeria, and a wide variety of ferns and tree ferns from Australia and New Zealand, concentrated in the Queen's Fern Garden (Feteira da Rainha). The park has a labyrinthic system of paths and narrow roads, connecting the palace to the many points of interest throughout the park, as well as to its two gated exits.
Well, usually I obstain from stating my own opinion about a location, but this time, I have to: The Palácio da Pena is truly a great sight, but was it worth the trip? No, not at all: 1) The palace is in rather poor condition, with the colour peeling off from the walls and the interior being in desperate need of restoration. 2) The incredible rush of visitors made it one of the most constricting experiences, I ever underwent. And although visitors have to book a time slot for their visit, I couldn’t avoid the impression that all time slots were absolutely overbooked. In my opinion, just a quarter of the visitors would still have been too much.
3) Because of that, visitors have to queue up for quite a long time to get inside and afterwards walk in single file through the palace, always being in physical contact with each other. And 4) the signposting in the gardens is a complete disaster and practically non-existent. So be careful, as you might get lost in the park. All in all, I can only give you the advice, to forgo the Palácio da Pena. For me and my wife, it was a rather bitter disappointment.
Das Schweriner Schloss ist das Wahrzeichen der Stadt Schwerin und war bis 1918 die Residenz der mecklenburgischen Herzöge und Großherzöge. Das auf der Schlossinsel im Schweriner See gelegene Bauwerk gilt als ein bedeutendes Beispiel des Historismus in Deutschland. Seit 1990 dient es als Sitz des Landtages von Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. Das heutige Gebäude entstand durch einen tiefgreifenden Um- und Neubau des seit etwa 1500 entstanden alten Schlosses in der Mitte des 19. Jahrhunderts. Es entstand nach Plänen der Architekten Georg Adolf Demmler, Gottfried Semper, Friedrich August Stüler und Ernst Friedrich Zwirner. Für die von 1844 bis 1857 errichteten neuen Baukörper im Stil der Neorenaissance dienten unter anderem französische Renaissanceschlösser als Vorbild.
Schloss Schwerin ist UNESCO-Weltkulturerbe
Please don't use this image on websites, blogs or other media without my written permission.
© Toni_V. All rights reserved.
www.swissinfo.ch/ger//Specials/UNESCO-Welterbe_der_Schwei...
Siena è un comune di 54.391 abitanti della Toscana centrale, capoluogo dell'omonima provincia.
La città è universalmente conosciuta per il suo patrimonio artistico e per la sostanziale unità stilistica del suo arredo urbano medievale, nonché per il suo famoso Palio; il centro storico è stato infatti dichiarato dall'UNESCO patrimonio dell'umanità nel 1995.
Siena fu fondata come colonia romana al tempo dell'Imperatore Augusto e prese il nome di Saena Iulia.
All'interno del centro storico senese sono stati ritrovati dei siti di epoca etrusca, che possono far pensare alla fondazione della città da parte degli etruschi.
Il primo documento noto in cui viene citata la comunità senese risale al 70 e porta la firma di Tacito che, nel IV libro delle Historiae, riporta il seguente episodio: il senatore Manlio Patruito riferì a Roma di essere stato malmenato e ridicolizzato con un finto funerale durante la sua visita ufficiale a Saena Iulia, piccola colonia militare della Tuscia. Il Senato romano decise di punire i principali colpevoli e di richiamare severamente i senesi a un maggiore rispetto verso l'autorità.
Dell'alto Medioevo non si hanno documenti che possano illuminare intorno ai casi della vita civile a Siena. C'è qualche notizia relativa alla istituzione del vescovado e della diocesi, specialmente per le questioni sorte fra il Vescovo di Siena e quello di Arezzo, a causa dei confini della zona giurisdizionale di ciascuno: questioni nelle quali intervenne il re longobardo Liutprando, pronunziando sentenza a favore della diocesi aretina. Ma i senesi non furono soddisfatti e pertanto nell'anno 853, quando l'Italia passò dalla dominazione longobarda a quella franca, riuscirono ad ottenere l'annullamento della sentenza emanata dal re Liutprando. Pare, dunque, che al tempo dei Longobardi, Siena fosse governata da un gastaldo, rappresentante del re: Gastaldo che fu poi sostituito da un Conte imperiale dopo l'incoronazione di Carlo Magno. Il primo conte di cui si hanno notizie concrete fu Winigi, figlio di Ranieri, nel 867. Dopo il 900 regnava a Siena l'imperatore Ludovico III, il cui regno non durò così a lungo, dal momento che nel 903 le cronache raccontano di un ritorno dei conti al potere sotto il nuovo governo del re Berengario.
Siena si ritrova nel X secolo al centro di importanti vie commerciali che portavano a Roma e, grazie a ciò divenne un'importante città medievale. Nel XII secolo la città si dota di ordinamenti comunali di tipo consolare, comincia a espandere il proprio territorio e stringe le prime alleanze. Questa situazione di rilevanza sia politica che economica, portano Siena a combattere per i domini settentrionali della Toscana, contro Firenze. Dalla prima metà del XII secolo in poi Siena prospera e diventa un importante centro commerciale, tenendo buoni rapporti con lo Stato della Chiesa; i banchieri senesi erano un punto di riferimento per le autorità di Roma, ai quali si rivolgevano per prestiti o finanziamenti.
Alla fine del XII secolo Siena, sostenendo la causa ghibellina (anche se non mancavano, le famiglie senesi di parte guelfa, in sintonia con Firenze), si ritrovò nuovamente contro Firenze di parte guelfa: celebre è la vittoria sui toscani guelfi nella battaglia di Montaperti, del 1260, celebrata anche da Dante Alighieri. Ma dopo qualche anno i senesi ebbero la peggio nella battaglia di Colle Val d'Elsa, del 1269, che portò in seguito, nel 1287, alla ascesa del Governo
dei Nove, di parte guelfa. Sotto questo nuovo governo, Siena raggiunse il suo massimo splendore, sia economico che culturale.
Dopo la peste del 1348, cominciò la lenta decadenza della Repubblica di Siena, che comunque non precluse la strada all'espansione territoriale senese, che fino al giorno della caduta della Repubblica comprendeva un terzo della toscana. La fine della Repubblica Senese, forse l'unico Stato occidentale ad attuare una democrazia pura a favore del popolo, avvenne il 25 aprile 1555, quando la città, dopo un assedio di oltre un anno, dovette arrendersi stremata dalla fame, all'impero di Carlo V, spalleggiato dai fiorentini, che cedette in feudo il territorio della Repubblica ai Medici, Signori di Firenze, per ripagarli delle spese sostenute durante la guerra. Per l'ennesima volta i cittadini senesi riuscirono a tenere testa ad un imperatore, che solo grazie alle proprie smisurate risorse poté piegare la fiera resistenza di questa piccola Repubblica e dei suoi cittadini.
Dopo la caduta della Repubblica pochi senesi guidati peraltro dall'esule fiorentino Piero Strozzi, non volendo accettare la caduta della Repubblica, si rifugiarono in Montalcino, creando la Repubblica di Siena riparata in Montalcino, mantenendo l'alleanza con la Francia, che continuò ad esercitare il proprio potere sulla parte meridionale del territorio della Repubblica, creando notevoli problemi alle truppe degli odiati fiorentini. Essa visse fino al 31 maggio del 1559 quando fu tradita dagli alleati francesi, che Siena aveva sempre sostenuto, che concludendo la pace di Cateau-Cambrésis con l'imperatore Carlo V, cedettero di fatto la Repubblica ai fiorentini.
Lo stemma di Siena è detto "balzana". È uno scudo diviso in due porzioni orizzontali: quella superiore è bianca, quella inferiore nera,con la Lupa che allatta Senio e Ascanio. Secondo la leggenda, starebbe a simboleggiare il fumo nero e bianco scaturito dalla pira augurale che i leggendari fondatori della città, Senio e Ascanio, figli di Remo, avrebbero acceso per ringraziare gli dei dopo la fondazione della città di Siena. Un'altra leggenda riporta che la balzana derivi dai colori dei cavalli, uno bianco ed uno nero, che Senio e Ascanio usarono nella fuga dallo zio Romolo che li voleva uccidere e con i quali giunsero a Siena. Per il loro presunto carattere focoso che, si dice, rasenta la pazzia, anche i senesi sono definiti spesso "balzani".
Siena (em português também conhecida como Sena) é uma cidade e sede de comuna italiana na região da Toscana, província do mesmo nome, com cerca de 52.775 (ISTAT 2003) habitantes. Estende-se por uma área de 118 km2, tendo uma densidade populacional de 447 hab/km2. Faz fronteira com Asciano, Castelnuovo Berardenga, Monteriggioni, Monteroni d'Arbia e Sovicille.
Siena é universalmente conhecida pelo seu património artístico e pela notável unidade estilística do seu centro histórico, classificado pela UNESCO como Património da Humanidade.
Segundo a mitologia romana, Siena foi fundada por Sénio, filho de Remo, e podem-se encontrar numerosas estátuas e obras de arte mostrando, tal como em Roma, os irmãos amamentados pela loba. Foi um povoamento etrusco e depois colónia romana (Saena Julia) refundada pelo imperador Augusto. Era, contudo, uma pequena povoação, longe das rotas principais do Império. No século V, torna-se sede de uma diocese cristã.
As antigas famílias aristocráticas de Siena reclamam origem nos Lombardos e à data da submissão da Lombardia a Carlos Magno (774). A grande influência da cidade como pólo cultural, artístico e político é iniciada no século XII, quando se converte num burgo autogovernado de cariz republicano, substituindo o esquema feudal.
Todavia, o esquema político conduziu sempre a lutas internas entre nobres e externas com a cidade rival de Florença. Data do século XIII a ruptura entre as facções rivais dos Guibelinos de Siena e dos Guelfos de Florença, que seria argumento para a Divina Comédia de Dante.
Em 4 de Setembro de 1260, os Guibelinos apoiaram as forças do rei Manfredo da Sicília e derrotaram os Guelfos em Montaperti, que tinham um exército muito superior em armas e homens. Antes da batalha, toda a cidade fora consagrada à Virgem Maria e confiada à sua protecção. Hoje, essa protecção é recordada e renovada, lembrando os sienenses da ameaça dos aliados da Segunda Guerra Mundial de bombardearam a cidade em 1944, o que felizmente não veio a acontecer.
Siena rivalizou no campo das artes durante o período medieval até o século XIV com as cidades vizinhas. Porém, devastada em 1348 pela Peste Negra, nunca recuperou o seu esplendor, perdendo também a sua rivalidade interurbana com Florença. A Siena actual tem um aspecto muito semelhante ao dos séculos XIII-XIV. Detém uma universidade fundada em 1203, famosa pelas faculdades de Direito e Medicina, e que é uma das mais prestigiadas universidades italianas.
Em 1557 perde a independência e é integrada nas formações políticas e administrativas da Toscana.
Siena também deu vários Papas, sendo eles: Alexandre III, Pio II, Pio III e Alexandre VII.
Os dois grandes santos de Siena são Santa Catarina (1347-1380) e São Bernardino (1380-1444). Catarina Benincasa, filha de um humilde tintureiro, fez-se irmã na Ordem Terceira dominicana (para leigos)e viveu como monja na casa dos pais. É famosa pelo intercâmbio interior com o próprio Cristo, que num êxtase lhe disse: "Eu sou aquele que é e tú és aquela que não é". Apesar da origem modesta, influenciou papas e príncipes com sua sabedoria e seu exemplo, conseguindo inclusive convencer o papa de então, contra a maioria dos cardeais, a regressar a Roma do exílio de Avinhon na França. Quanto ao franciscano São Bernardino, ele é célebre por ter sido o maior expoente, no Catolicismo, da via espiritual de invocação do Nome Divino, que encontra similares em todas as grandes religiões, do Budismo (nembutsu) ao Islã ([[dhikr]]) e ao Hinduísmo (mantra). Os sermões que Bernbardino fez na praça central de Siena provocaram tal fervor religioso e devoção ao nome de Jesus que o conselho municipal decidiu colocar o monograma do nome de Jesus (composto pelas letras IHS, significando "Jesus salvador dos homens")na fachada do prédio do governo. Do mesmo modo, muitos cidadãos o pintaram sobre as fachadas de suas casas, como até hoje se pode ver na cidade.
Siena also widely spelled Sienna in English) is a city in Tuscany, Italy. It is the capital of the province of Siena.
The historic centre of Siena has been declared by UNESCO a World Heritage Site. It is one of the nation's most visited tourist attractions, with over 163,000 international arrivals in 2008.[1] Siena is famous for its cuisine, art, museums, medieval cityscape and the palio.
Siena, like other Tuscan hill towns, was first settled in the time of the Etruscans (c. 900–400 BC) when it was inhabited by a tribe called the Saina. The Etruscans were an advanced people who changed the face of central Italy through their use of irrigation to reclaim previously unfarmable land, and their custom of building their settlements in well-defended hill-forts. A Roman town called Saena Julia was founded at the site in the time of the Emperor Augustus. The first document mentioning it dates from AD 70. Some archaeologists assert that Siena was controlled for a period by a Gaulish tribe called the Saenones.
The Roman origin accounts for the town's emblem: a she-wolf suckling infants Romulus and Remus. According to legend, Siena was founded by Senius, son of Remus, who was in turn the brother of Romulus, after whom Rome was named. Statues and other artwork depicting a she-wolf suckling the young twins Romulus and Remus can be seen all over the city of Siena. Other etymologies derive the name from the Etruscan family name "Saina," the Roman family name of the "Saenii," or the Latin word "senex" ("old") or the derived form "seneo", "to be old".
Siena did not prosper under Roman rule. It was not sited near any major roads and lacked opportunities for trade. Its insular status meant that Christianity did not penetrate until the 4th century AD, and it was not until the Lombards invaded Siena and the surrounding territory that it knew prosperity. After the Lombard occupation, the old Roman roads of Via Aurelia and the Via Cassia passed through areas exposed to Byzantine raids, so the Lombards rerouted much of their trade between the Lombards' northern possessions and Rome along a more secure road through Siena. Siena prospered as a trading post, and the constant streams of pilgrims passing to and from Rome provided a valuable source of income in the centuries to come.
The oldest aristocratic families in Siena date their line to the Lombards' surrender in 774 to Charlemagne. At this point, the city was inundated with a swarm of Frankish overseers who married into the existing Sienese nobility and left a legacy that can be seen in the abbeys they founded throughout Sienese territory. Feudal power waned however, and by the death of Countess Matilda in 1115 the border territory of the Mark of Tuscia which had been under the control of her family, the Canossa, broke up into several autonomous regions.
Siena prospered as a city-state, becoming a major centre of money lending and an important player in the wool trade. It was governed at first directly by its bishop, but episcopal power declined during the 12th century. The bishop was forced to concede a greater say in the running of the city to the nobility in exchange for their help during a territorial dispute with Arezzo, and this started a process which culminated in 1167 when the commune of Siena declared its independence from episcopal control. By 1179, it had a written constitution.
This period was also crucial in shaping the Siena we know today. It was during the early 13th century that the majority of the construction of the Siena Cathedral (Duomo) was completed. It was also during this period that the Piazza del Campo, now regarded as one of the most beautiful civic spaces in Europe, grew in importance as the centre of secular life. New streets were constructed leading to it, and it served as the site of the market and the location of various sporting events (perhaps better thought of as riots, in the fashion of the Florentine football matches that are still practised to this day). A wall was constructed in 1194 at the current site of the Palazzo Pubblico to stop soil erosion, an indication of how important the area was becoming as a civic space.
In the early 12th century a self-governing commune replaced the earlier aristocratic government. The consuls who governed the republic slowly became more inclusive of the poblani, or common people, and the commune increased its territory as the surrounding feudal nobles in their fortified castles submitted to the urban power. Siena's republic, struggling internally between nobles and the popular party, usually worked in political opposition to its great rival, Florence, and was in the 13th century predominantly Ghibelline in opposition to Florence's Guelph position (this conflict formed the backdrop for some of Dante's Commedia).
On 4 September 1260 the Sienese Ghibellines, supported by the forces of King Manfred of Sicily, defeated the Florentine Guelphs in the Battle of Montaperti. Before the battle, the Sienese army of around 20,000 faced a much larger Florentine army of around 33,000. Prior to the battle, the entire city was dedicated to the Virgin Mary (this was done several times in the city's history, most recently in 1944 to guard the city from Allied bombs). The man given command of Siena for the duration of the war, Bonaguida Lucari, walked barefoot and bareheaded, a halter around his neck, to the Duomo. Leading a procession composed of all the city's residents, he was met by all the clergy. Lucari and the bishop embraced, to show the unity of church and state, then Lucari formally gave the city and contrade to the Virgin. Legend has it that a thick white cloud descended on the battlefield, giving the Sienese cover and aiding their attack. The reality was that the Florentine army launched several fruitless attacks against the Sienese army during the day, then when the Sienese army countered with their own offensive, traitors within the Florentine army killed the standard bearer and in the resulting chaos, the Florentine army broke up and fled the battlefield. Almost half the Florentine army (some 15,000 men) were killed as a result. So crushing was the defeat that even today if the two cities meet in any sporting event, the Sienese supporters are likely to exhort their Florentine counterparts to “Remember Montaperti!”.
The limits on the Roman town, were the earliest known walls to the city. During the 10th and 11th centuries, the town grew to the east and later to the north, in what is now the Camollia district. Walls were built to totally surround the city, and a second set was finished by the end of the 13th century. Much of these walls still exist today.[2]
Siena's university, founded in 1240 and famed for its faculties of law and medicine, is still among the most important Italian universities. Siena rivalled Florence in the arts throughout the 13th and 14th centuries: the important late medieval painter Duccio di Buoninsegna (1253–1319) was a Sienese, but worked across the peninsula, and the mural of "Good Government" by Ambrogio Lorenzetti in the Palazzo Pubblico, or town hall, is a magnificent example of late-Medieval/early Renaissance art as well as a representation of the utopia of urban society as conceived during that period. Siena was devastated by the Black Death of 1348, and also suffered from ill-fated financial enterprises. In 1355, with the arrival of Charles IV of Luxembourg in the city, the population rose and suppressed the government of the Nove (Nine), establishing that Dodici (Twelve) nobles assisted by a council with a popular majority. This was also short-lived, being replaced by the Quindici (Fifteen) reformers in 1385, the Dieci (Ten, 1386–1387), Undici (Eleven, 1388–1398) and Twelve Priors (1398–1399) who, in the end, gave the city's seigniory to Gian Galeazzo Visconti of Milan in order to defend it from the Florentine expansionism.
In 1404 the Visconti were expelled and a government of Ten Priors established, in alliance with Florence against King Ladislas of Naples. With the election of the Sienese Pius II as Pope, the Piccolomini and other noble families were allowed to return to the government, but after his death the control returned into popular hands. In 1472 the Republic founded the Monte dei Paschi, a bank that is still active today and is the oldest surviving bank in the world. The noble factions returned in the city under Pandolfo Petrucci in 1487, with the support of Florence and of Alfonso of Calabria; Petrucci exerted an effective rule on the city until his death in 1512, favouring arts and sciences, and defending it from Cesare Borgia. Pandolfo was succeeded by his son Borghese, who was ousted by his cousin Raffaello, helped by the Medici Pope Leo X. The last Petrucci was Fabio, exiled in 1523 by the Sienese people. Internal strife resumed, with the popular faction ousting the Noveschi party supported by Clement VII: the latter sent an army, but was defeated at Camollia in 1526. Emperor Charles V took advantage of the chaotic situation to put a Spanish garrison in Siena. The citizens expelled it in 1552, allying with France: this was unacceptable for Charles, who sent his general Gian Giacomo Medici to lay siege to it with a Florentine-Imperial army.
The Sienese government entrusted its defence to Piero Strozzi. When the latter was defeated at the Battle of Marciano (August 1554), any hope of relief was lost. After 18 months of resistance, it surrendered to Spain on 17 April 1555, marking the end of the Republic of Siena. The new Spanish King Philip, owing huge sums to the Medici, ceded it (apart a series of coastal fortress annexed to the State of Presidi) to the Grand Duchy of Tuscany, to which it belonged until the unification of Italy in the 19th century. A Republican government of 700 Sienese families in Montalcino resisted until 1559.
The picturesque city remains an important cultural centre, especially for humanist disciplines
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Front view of the Château de Cheverny, Cheverny, Loire Valley, France
Some background information:
The Château de Cheverny is a stately home located at Cheverny, in the département of Loir-et-Cher in the Loire Valley. It is one of the châteaux of the Loire valley and a prime example of early Baroque architecture. The commune of Cheverny has more than 1,000 residents and is situated about 10 km (6.2 miles) southeast of the town of Blois.
In 1315, Henry Le Mareschau was the owner of Cheverny. He was a member of the low nobility under the count of Blois. In the late 14th century, Cheverny was sold to Jean Hurault with its "houses, presses and vineyards". His grandson Jaques gained the title, Seigneur de Cheverny, having served under the kings Louis XI, Charles VIII and Louis XII and gained the governorship of the county of Blois under king Francis I.
The château was built at the beginning of the 16th century either by Jaques or his son Raoul. In 1510, Raoul applied for permission of the king to fortify the new house. Later the lands were purchased by Henri Hurault, Comte de Cheverny, a lieutenant-general and military treasurer of Louis XIII, whose descendant, the Marquis de Vibraye, is still the present owner. Only a portion of the original fortified castle possibly remains in existence today. It is somewhat of a mystery, because to the present day there is no reliable way to prove whether or not a certain section is part of the original building. The interiors were completed by the daughter of Henri Hurault and Marguerite, Marquise de Montglas, by 1650, employing several craftsmen from Blois.
Lost to the Crown because of fraud to the State, it was donated by King Henri II to his mistress Diane de Poitiers. However, she preferred Château de Chenonceau as her place of residence and hence, sold the property to the former owner's son, Philippe Hurault, who rebuilt the château completely between 1624 and 1630. The reconstruction was conducted according to plans of the sculptor-architect of Blois, Jacques Bougier. His design at Cheverny recalls features of the Palais du Luxembourg in the French capital of Paris.
During the next 150 years ownership passed through many hands, and in 1768 a major interior renovation was undertaken. Required to forfeit much of their wealth at the time of the French Revolution, the family Hurault sold the property in 1802,but bought it back again in 1824, during the Restoration under Charles X, when the aristocracy was once again in a very strong political and economic position.
In 1914, the owners opened the château to the public, being one of the first families who took this then unusual step. The de Vibraye family still operates the Château de Cheverny, which has remained a top tourist attraction till this day. It is renowned for its magnificent interiors as well as its collection of furniture, tapestries and objets of art.
It is also wortth mentioning that the popular Belgian comic book authorr Hergé has memorialized Château de Cheverny in his famous comic book series "The Adventures of Tintin". In this series Hergé used Château de Cheverny as a model for his fictional "Marlinspike Hall" (in French: "Château de Moulinsart"), which is the country house and family estate of Captain Haddock, a main character in the comic books. In these books the two outermost wings are not present, but the remaining central tower and two wings of "Marlinspike Hall" are almost identical with the central tower and the wings of its model Château de Cheverny. Today, there’s even a Tintin exhibition in one of Château de Cheverny’s outbuidlings.
Since 2000, the Château de Cheverny belongs to the UNESCO Word Heritage Site "The Loire Valley between Sully-sur-Loire and Chalonnes" with its many breathtaking châteaux. Altogether there are more than 400 of them in the Loire region.
Corvey / Höxter (Weser Uplands, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany)
Schacht XII
Die Zeche Zollverein war ein von 1851 bis 1986 aktives Steinkohlebergwerk in Essen.
Sie ist heute ein Architektur- und Industriedenkmal. Gemeinsam mit der unmittelbar benachbarten Kokerei Zollverein gehören die Schachtanlagen 12 und 1/2/8 der Zeche seit 2001 zum Welterbe der UNESCO. Zollverein ist Ankerpunkt der Europäischen Route der Industriekultur.
aus Wikipedia
The Zollverein Coal Mine Industrial Complex (German Zeche Zollverein) is a large former industrial site in the city of Essen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It has been inscribed into the UNESCO list of World Heritage Sites since December 14, 2001, and is one of the anchor points of the European Route of Industrial Heritage.
The first coal mine on the premises was founded in 1847, mining activities took place from 1851 until December 23, 1986.
(from Wikipedia)
View from the terrace of the Palácio da Pena (in English: "Pena Palace") over the surrounding rocky and wooded landscape, Sintra, Portugal
Some background information:
The Palácio da Pena is a Romanticist castle in São Pedro de Penaferrim, in the Portuguese municipality of Sintra, located about 30 kilmetres (18.6 miles) to the northwest of the Portuguese capital city of Lisbon. The castle stands on the top of a hill in the Sintra Mountains above the town of Sintra, and on a clear day it can be easily seen from Lisbon and much of its metropolitan area. It is a national monument and constitutes one of the major expressions of 19th-century Romanticism in the world. The palace is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of the so-called Seven Wonders of Portugal. It is also used for state occasions by the President of the Portuguese Republic and other government officials.
The castle's history started in the Middle Ages when a chapel dedicated to Our Lady of Pena was built on the top of the hill above Sintra. According to tradition, construction occurred after an apparition of the Virgin Mary. In 1493, John II, accompanied by his wife Leonor of Viseu, made a pilgrimage to the site to fulfill a vow. His successor, Manuel I, was also very fond of this sanctuary, and ordered the construction of a monastery on this site which was donated to the Order of Saint Jerome. For centuries Pena was a small, quiet place for meditation, which housed just a maximum of eighteen monks.
In the 18th century, the monastery was severely damaged by lightning. However, it was the 1755 Lisbon earthquake, occurring shortly afterwards, that took the heaviest toll on the monastery, reducing it to ruins. Nonetheless, the chapel escaped without significant damage. For many decades the ruins remained untouched, but they still astonished young Prince Ferdinand. In 1838, as Ferdinand II, King of Portugal, he decided to acquire the old monastery, all of the surrounding lands, the nearby Castle of the Moors and a few other estates in the area. Ferdinand II then set out to transform the remains of the monastery into a palace that would serve as a summer residence for the Portuguese royal family.
The commission for the Romantic style palace was given to the German mining engineer and architect Wilhelm Ludwig von Eschwege. The construction took place between 1842 and 1854, although it was almost completed in 1847. King Ferdinand and Queen Maria II intervened decisively on matters of decoration and symbolism. Among others, the King suggested vault arches, medieval and Islamic elements to be included, and he also designed an ornate window for the main façade.
After the death of Ferdinand the palace passed into the possession of his second wife Elisa Hensler, Countess of Edla. The latter then sold the palace to King Luís, who wanted to retrieve it for the royal family, and thereafter the huge building was frequently used by the family. In 1889 it was purchased by the Portuguese State, and after the Republican Revolution of 1910 it was classified as a national monument and transformed into a museum. The last queen of Portugal, Queen Amélia, spent her last night at the palace before leaving the country in exile.
The palace quickly drew visitors and became one of Portugal's most visited monuments. Over time the colors of the red and yellow façades faded, and for many years the palace was visually identified as being entirely gray. By the end of the 20th century the palace was repainted and the original colors restored. In 1995, the palace and the rest of the Cultural Landscape of Sintra were classified as a World Heritage Site by the UNESCO.
The Palácio da Pena has a profusion of styles much in accordance with the exotic taste of the Romanticism. The intentional mixture of eclectic styles includes the Neo-Gothic, Neo-Manueline, Neo-Islamic and Neo-Renaissance. Much of this has been evident since major renovations in the 1840s. References to other prominent Portuguese buildings, such as the Belém Tower, are also present.
The Palácio da Pena is completely surrounded by the Pena Park, a vast forested area spreading for over 200 hectares of uneven terrain. The park was created at the same time as the palace by King Ferdinand II, who was assisted in this task by the barons von Eschwege and von Kessler. The exotic taste of the Romanticism was applied to the park as it was to the palace.
The King ordered trees from diverse, distant lands to be planted there. Those included North American sequoia, Lawson's cypress, magnolia and Western redcedar, Chinese ginkgo, Japanese Cryptomeria, and a wide variety of ferns and tree ferns from Australia and New Zealand, concentrated in the Queen's Fern Garden (Feteira da Rainha). The park has a labyrinthic system of paths and narrow roads, connecting the palace to the many points of interest throughout the park, as well as to its two gated exits.
Well, usually I obstain from stating my own opinion about a location, but this time, I have to: The Palácio da Pena is truly a great sight, but was it worth the trip? No, not at all: 1) The palace is in rather poor condition, with the colour peeling off from the walls and the interior being in desperate need of restoration. 2) The incredible rush of visitors made it one of the most constricting experiences, I ever underwent. And although visitors have to book a time slot for their visit, I couldn’t avoid the impression that all time slots were absolutely overbooked. In my opinion, just a quarter of the visitors would still have been too much.
3) Because of that, visitors have to queue up for quite a long time to get inside and afterwards walk in single file through the palace, always being in physical contact with each other. And 4) the signposting in the gardens is a complete disaster and practically non-existent. So be careful, as you might get lost in the park. All in all, I can only give you the advice, to forgo the Palácio da Pena. For me and my wife, it was a rather bitter disappointment.
Spanish mission church San Geronimo de Taos, Taos Pueblo, New Mexico.
Taos Pueblo in New Mexico is an ancient pueblo belonging to a Taos-speaking (Tiwa) Native American tribe of Puebloan people. Taos Pueblo is considered to be one of the oldest continuously inhabited communities in the United States and therefore has been designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Corvey / Höxter (Weser Uplands, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany)
St. Stephen's Basilica / Budapest / Hungary
Album of Hungary: www.flickr.com/photos/tabliniumcarlson/albums/72157711998...
Albert Dock / Liverpool / Merseyside / England / UK
Album of the British Islands: www.flickr.com/photos/tabliniumcarlson/albums/72157626176...
Corvey / Höxter (Weser Uplands, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany)
Blick in die halbkreisförmige Chorapsis des Doms in Speyer. Die Apsis schließt den Kirchenraum am östlichen Ende ab und ist der Ort, an dem der Bischof mit dem Domkapitel das Stundengebet verrichtet. Der Schatten stammt vom Triumphkreuz.
Der Speyerer Dom ist seit 1981 Bestandteil des UNESCO-Weltkulturerbes.
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Speyer Cathedral, part of the UNESCO World Heritage List, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany
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The Château de Villandry and its gardens, Loire Valley, France
Some background information:
The Château de Villandry is a large château located in the village of Villandry, in the French department of Indre-et-Loire. The palace sits in the Val de Loire in the former Touraine region, about 15 km (9.3 miles) to the southwest of the city of Tours. Both village and Château de Villandry are also situated on the Cher River Cher and Villandry is the last commune before the Cher River issues into the Loire River.
In medieval times, a stronghold named Colombier stood on the spot of today’s Château de Villandry. It was built in the 12th century and in 1189, it was that fortress, where the English King Henry II Plantagenet signed the Peace of Colombier after his defeat by King Philip II of France. In the early 16th century, the estate was acquired by the nobleman Jean Le Breton. He was the minister of finance of the then French King Francis I and also the Controller-General for War.
After having bought the lands, De Breton had the old Gothic castle torn down. Only the foundations and the former donjon from the 14th century remained. Around this keep the new palace and its gardens were built and finished in 1536. The Château de Villandry is one of the last châteaus in the Loire Valley that were constructed in the Renaissance style. Its architecture lacks both any Italian influence and decorative medival elements like turrets or murdering holes. Hence, the architectural style is very French, already foreshadowing the architecture of the châteaus d’Anet and Fontainebleau, which were built later during the reign of King Henry IV of France.
The mansion remained in possession of the family De Breton for more than two centuries, but in 1754, Michel-Ange, Marquis de Castellane, bought the estate. He had the palace rebuilt according to the standards of the 18th century and even the beautiful Renaissance gardens were converted into an English-style landscaped garden, which met the taste of the time.
As a consequence of the French Revolution, the Château de Villandry was confiscated. But at the beginning of the 19th century, the French Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte acquired it for his brother Joseph Bonaparte. In 1823, the estate was bought by the noble family Hainguerlot, who kept it for almost a century. In 1906, Joachim Carvallo purchased the property and poured an enormous amount of time, money and devotion into repairing it and creating what many consider to be the most beautiful gardens anywhere.
These formal Renaissance gardens, restored according to original plans, include a water garden, ornamental flower gardens, and also vegetable gardens. The gardens are laid out in formal patterns created with low box hedges. In 1920, both castle and gardens were opened to the public and in 1934, the estate was designated a national historic monument.
Today’s owner is Henri Carvallo, the great-grandson of Joachim Carvallo. Since 2000, the Château de Villandry and its gardens belong to the UNESCO Word Heritage Site "The Loire Valley between Sully-sur-Loire and Chalonnes" with its many breathtaking châteaux. Altogether there are more than 400 of them in the Loire region.
Liverpool / Merseyside / England / UK
Album of the British Islands: www.flickr.com/photos/tabliniumcarlson/albums/72157626176...
Leica M-P & Summilux-M 50mm
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© Toni_V. All rights reserved.
Europa, Deutschland, Brandenburg, Potsdam, Nauener Vorstadt, Kapellenberg, Russische Kolonie Alexandrowka, Alexander-Newski-Gedächtniskirche