Heidelberg Castle – one of the most important Renaissance structures north of the Alps. The earliest part of the castle dates from before 1214,
later expanded into two castles around 1294. The upper castle was destroyed by lightning in 1537. The castle was enlarged by 1650 before damage
by later wars and fires. Lightning again destroyed part of the castle in 1764. Since then, only the main building, the Friedrich Building,
has been reconstructed, in 1897-1900. Describing Heidelberg Castle, Mark Twain commented that “A ruin must be rightly situated, to be effective".
This one could not have been better placed.