Once upon a time in 1613, Heidelberg was part of the Holy Roman Empire. It's ruler, Prince Friedrich the Fifth was to marry Princess Elizabeth Stuart from England to solidify an alliance between the two powers. Even though the marriage was arranged, the prince and princess grew to love each other and they moved to a beautiful castle at the top a hill, in the middle of a green forest, looking over a river. The people of London and Heidelberg had many festivals to celebrate the marriage!
For many years, Friedrich and Elizabeth lived happily in Heidelberg, and the people were very fond of their new queen, who they called "Lisolette" as a sweet nickname. For his wife's birthday, the king built a gate, a garden, and an entirely new wing to the castle. He had the architect engrave many small flowers and birds into the gate. It sounds just like a fairytale, right?
But the king of France, Louis the Fourteenth, was not happy—he wanted to rule the Holy Roman Empire and set his sights on destroying the Heidelberg Castle. The Nine Years' War began and the French troops stormed into Heidelberg in 1693. They set the town on fire and blasted the castle 38 times! When I heard the story of how the castle was destroyed, I was so sad that war could ruin something so old and so beautiful.
