Kropstädt Castle

During the GDR era, the building was used as a children's home and a home for mothers and babies until 1991. After reunification, the castle was privatized and used as a hotel after 2001 and as a registry office until 2016 (?). The continuing vacancy of the fairytale castle Kropstädt is sad to see and probably no happy ending in sight. The castle is surrounded by a ten-hectare landscape park, which was probably created in 1850 and today has a valuable stock of trees.

The Liesnitz moated castle was built by the Lords of Liesnitz in 1150 on the site of today's castle. It was stormed and destroyed by citizens of Wittenberg in 1358. In 1567 the castle was rebuilt by Moritz von Thümen. From 1550 to 1650 the property was called Haus Grobstätt. In 1855 and 1856 it was renamed Haus Kropstädt by the owner at the time.
In 1842 the castle was demolished and requested again between 1855 and 1856 by the then owner Friedrich Adolf Karl von Leipzig according to plans by the architect Friedrich Hitzig in the English-classical style. The palace was expanded from 1908 to 1909. The interior was lost over the years. The castle was owned by: Lords von Liesnitz, Otto von Düben around 1358, Moritz von Thümen around 1567, the von Leipzig family in 1790, the von Arnim family until 1945, the Wittenberg district until 1998. In 1945 the owners were expropriated. During the DDF period, the castle was used as a children's home and mother and baby home until 1991. After the fall of the Wall, the castle was privatized again and after 2001 it was used as a hotel and registry office by an educational institution. The core of the castle is a late Classicist brick building on a basement with two unequal projections. On the narrow sides and to the manor there are arenas. During my hike I could not really see the palace, as the access was blocked from all places where it is otherwise possible.

Unfortunately, Kropstädt Castle can no longer be reached. All access roads are either broken or blocked. Since the chateau was sold to its new owner, it has been unused, unheated and left to its own devices. That was sad to see. The park all around is fantastically beautiful and makes up for this disappointment.