Burg Schwarzenstein

En un regard

Le château en bref

The ruins of Schwarzenstein stand at an altitude of about 1,173 m on a narrow rocky ridge overlooking the steep drops down to the Vorderrhein valley, in the municipality of Obersaxen Mundaun (Graubünden). Invisible from the Obersaxen terrace but easy to reach, the castle offers a view of the valley and, on the opposite side, of Breil/Brigels. Built around the middle of the 13th century, probably for the barons of Rhäzüns, who were then extending their influence over the plateau, it is the largest of the four fortresses that controlled access to it. It is first mentioned in 1289, when Hartwig von Löwenstein was ordered to return it to Heinrich Brun of Rhäzüns, and it is recorded as abandoned in 1468, at a time when the Walser were appointing their own bailiffs. The rubble masonry, rather roughly finished, is organised around two building blocks, to the west and to the east, which flank a large courtyard; the access, of a daring design, remains passable. No noble family bore the name Schwarzenstein.