Since the beginning of the human life on the lovely planet, the man has raised numerous synthetic improvisations in different patterns. Architecure and engineering both have attained the key importance in every era and this has resulted the construction of many radical and state of the art buildings. The designs of the architecture and the styles of the elevations have gone through tremendous developments and modifications with the passage of time. However, the sense of the conservation of the common heritage has also been equally developed, because the architecture of different ages is the main source of understanding the life styles, customs and cultures of their respective nations.

In the middle ages, in different parts of the world, especially in Europe the royal class started the tradition to raise a fortified construction in order to protect their personal properties. These type of constructions are usually called as castle and  timber, clay and stones were the basic raw materials used in their constructions. In the following, we have tried to bring before you some wonderful images of the lovely castles of the lovely planet ;

1- Royal Palace of Brussels in Belgium

The Royal Palace of Brussels in Belgium ( Joachim Thieren's Image )

2- Windsor Castle of Berkshire, England

Windsor Castle of England. Jussi Kangasharju's Image

 3- Limousin Castle of France

Limousin Castle of France ( An Image by Quim Bahi )

 4- Quaitbay Castle in Alexandria, Egypt

Quaitbay Castle in Alexandria, Egypt ( An Image by Ahmed Samir Habib )

 5- Templar Castle of Ponferrada in Spain

Templar Castle of Ponferrada, Spain ( Image By ribizlifozelek )

 6- Ranikot Fort in Sindh, Pakistan

Ranikot Fort in Sindh, Pakistan ( Image: Tanwir Jogi )

 7- Gulbarga Castle in Karnataka, India

Gulbarga Castle in Karnataka,India ( Image: Mejroxy )

8- Bangalore Castle of India

Bangalore Castle of India ( Image By Nina Maaninka )

9- Rayen Castle of Iran

Rayen Castle of Iran ( Photo by Mahdi Kazzazi )

10- Karak Castle of Jordan

Karak Castle of Jordan in Amman

11- Sorooca Castle of Moldova

Soroca Castle of Moldova ( Am Image by Groundhopping Merseburg )

12- Mongol Castle in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia

Mongol Castle in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia ( An Image by Ariunbold P )

 13- Duwisib Castle of Namibia

Duwisib Castle of Namibia ( Image : Bill Dutfield )

14- Doorwerth Castle in Gelderland, Netherlands

Doorwerth Castle in Gelderland, Netherlands ( Image: Toon van den Einde )

 15- Akershus Castle in Oslo, Norway

Akershus Castle in Oslo, Norway ( Image by Don César )

16- Masyaf Castle of Syria

Masyaf Castle of Syria ( Image: Richard Avis )

17- Chapultepec Castle in Mexico City, Mexico

Chapultepec Castle in Mexico City, Mexico ( Image: Pulpolux )

18- Nuovo Castle in Naples, Italy

Nuovo Castle of Italy Castel ( A Flickr Image by ScubaJo)

19- Rumelihisarı Castle in Istanbul, Turkey

Rumelihisarı Castle in Istanbul, Turkey ( Image By Rob.Mcgonigle )

 20- Hohenzollern Castle of Germany

Hohenzollern Castle of Germany (An image by til213 )

21- Hame Castle in Hameenlinna, Finland

Hame Castle in Southern Finland ( Image By MEhokie04 )

 22- Ivangorod Castle in Narva, Estonia

Ivangorod Castle of Estonia ( Image By t.devinney )

23- Old Castle of Tripoli, Libya

Old Castle of Tripoli in Libya ( Image: By aymen_tawil )

24- Egeskov Castle – Funen, Denmark

Egeskov Castle - Funen Denmark ( Image: Jim Trodel )

 25- Taman Sari Water Castle of Indonesia

Taman Sari Water Castle of Indonesia ( Image : Fazlie Shamsuddin )

Liechtenstein is a small principality of Europe which is bordered by Switzerland and Austria. The capital city of Liechtenstein is Vaduz and whole territory of this small but magnificent country lies within the Alps. Vaduz is an ancient town which dates back to the thirteenth century. Vaduz has some phenomenal features, one of which is the landmark structure of the Vaduz Castle which is named after this city. Vaduz Castle is also the royal residency of the Prince of Liechtenstein.

Vaduz Castle of Liechtenstein ( By Yuriy Nezdoiminoga )

The location of the Vaduz Castle of Liechtenstein is on a beautiful highland from where the view of the whole city is possible. Since the Vaduz Castle has become the royal residency, this place is closed for the general public. A marvelous and lush green walk way leads towards the Vaduz Castle from the city. The massive tower of the Vaduz Castle is erected upon a piece of ground of about 12 x 13 m which has a wall density on the ground floor of up to 4 meters. The building of the Eastern part of the Vaduz Castle consists of the most historic and ancient constructions. The western portion of the Vaduz Castle was expanded on by Count Kaspar van Hohenems (1613–1640).

A beautiful view of Vaduz Castle , Liechtenstein ( Image : Matthew Fredrickson )

Vaduz Castle of Liechtenstein was undergone an ultimate restoration and rehabilitation work between 1905 and 1920. Vaduz Castle of Liechtenstein is open to the general public on 15^th of August which is the national day of Liechtenstein. The people get a chance to view the royal collection of paintings, furniture, antiques and the wine cellars. These cellars offer to the visitors a wide variety of 300 European wines and the fantastic festive evening full of amazing fireworks and splendid illumination.

Kuressaare is a small city of the Saaremaa island of Estonia which is situated on the coast of Riga Gulf. This is a historic city which was emerged on the world map around twelfth century B.C. The most prominent place is obviously Kuressaare Castle which architecture of the medieval style and the main city has also flourished around the Kuressaare Castle.

Kuressaare Castle of Estonia is an important monument in whole of the Baltic region as this building has not undergone many amendments in its structure. In fact, the Kuressaare Castle has restrained itself to its original monumental beauty so its aesthetic significance is doubled.

Kuressaare Castle of Estonia

According to the historians, the reason to build the Kuressaare Castle was the war of the Estonians with the German feudals as a result of which the Saaremaa surrendered to the German crusaders. And this area was converted into a German Feudal state. But the complete domination of the Germans over the Estonians was not possible and there were frequent uprising and rebellions. So the construction of the Kuressaare Castle might would had been started at that time. However the first documented data about the Kuressaare castle originate only from 1380s.

The outside wall of the Kuressaare Castlel

The structure of the Kuressaare Castle was kept of convent type due to its function as it was the administrative centre of the district and to establish a proper shelter place for maximum people in case of a war. The Kuressaare Castle remained the residence for the bishops of Saare-Lääne Bishopric until the beginning of the Livonian War.  Many cannon towers and higher walls were built during this time. In the middle of the sixteenth century the Kuressaare Castle was sold to the Danes who further modernized the defense system of the Kuressaare Castle. On the ground of Brömsebro peace treaty in 1645, Sweden took possession of Saaremaa and the Swedish improved the fortification system of the Kuressaare Castle. On September 15, 1710 the Swedish Army surrendered to the Russian army without any resistance. The Russian garrison left in the spring of 1711. However, the Kuressaare Castle remained no more important for Russia especially after the division of Poland when the Russians built Bomarsund castle in the vicinity of Stockholm. Finally, the Kuressaare Castle was purchased by the Knighthood of Saaremaa and the building was renovated.

However, the proper rehabilitation of the Kuressaare Castle was initiated in 1968 which lasted for almost one decade. The fortification walls, classical floors, windowpanes, cannon towers and the defense gallery were restored in their medieval patterns. Lots of renovation activities were also started in order to give the Kuressaare Castle of Estonia a pure look of a Middle Ages construction.

The Dune and Bulb region of Holland is world famous for Keukenhof which is situated between Amsterdam and the Dutch capital The Hague. Keukenhof (The Garden of Europe) is the world largest flower garden with an annual growth of seven million flower bulbs on an area of 32 hectares.

Keukenhof, The Garden of Europe - Image from wonders-of-nature.net

The estate on which Keukenhof is a hunting area from the 15th century.  This area was popular for the collection of Herbs for the kitchen (keuken) for Jacqueline, Countess of Hainaut‘s castle. So the name Keukenhof is also derived from it. The garden was created on this historic area of Lisse in 1949 by the then-mayor of Lisse. The main purpose was to promote the unique Dutch flower industry and to invite the floral cultivators from all over Netherlands and Europe to come up and display their hybrids. So ultimately the small town of Holland, Lisse also became known to the world for Keukenhof. Keukenhof is open for the public every year in the last week of March to mid-May. The ideal time to visit is considered in April; however it also depends on the suitable weather conditions.

Keukenhof Tulip Gardens, Image from t-gardenblog.blogspot.com

In the blooming season Keukenhof is filled with hundreds of thousands of blooming tulips, hyacinths, daffodils and other spring bulbs. For whole nine weeks Keukenhof becomes the center of the interest for hundreds of  growers, and breeders who exhibit  their best foot forward to the a large numbers of visitors and tourists. In this annual floral exhibition of Keukenhof all these tremendous and awesome verities of tulips and other flowers are shown in various pavilions in a very artistic manner. The environment of Keukenhof is so inspirational and enriched with nature that it amuses the visitors of every age. This massive floral garden consists of 15 kilometers of footpaths.

Tulip Flowers of Keukenhof, Image from koningshof.co.uk

The famous castle of Keukenhof is also adjacent to this park. Although Keukenhof is opened every year on its specific schedule yet the grounds of Castle Keukenhof are opened every time which are often used for conducting cultural festivals and musical events.

Castle of Keukenhof

In the tenth century, the Countess of Galicia, D. Mumadona Dias built the fabulous fort known as Guimaraes Castle in order to safeguard the city of Guimaraes against the attacks of the Normans (The Vikings) and the Arab invaders (Moors).In the 11th century when Count Henrique attained the government of the province from King D. Alfonso VI of Leon, Guimaraes Castle was further extended with additional towers and the original wall was made wider. The castle became the official royal residence in 1139, when Portugal got freedom from the Kingdom of León, until circa 1200.

Guimaraes Castle of Portugal

But after this, castle of Guimaraes was affected by many battles and deteriorated by the Spanish intruders for their vanity to keep the Portuguese under their influence. The castle was relinquished time and again. Guimaraes was used as a prison, barn, and quarry.

Castle of Guimaraes

On 19 March 1881, the Diário do Governo listed the Guimaraes Castle as the most unusual historic monument of the whole region of Minho.

Restoration work was started in 1930 when the Portuguese government declared Guimaraes Castle as the symbol of nationality. It, in fact, represents the birth of the nation and is featured as the ‘Cradle of the Nation’ because it is the birth place of D. Afonso Henriques who designed the wars for the freedom of the Portugal province during the 12th century, and became the first Portuguese king.

Today Guimaraes Castle is the most fabulous historic site of Portugal. The castle has been classified as one of the New Portuguese Seven Wonders. And it is also a world heritage site declared by UNESCO.