Hilltop fortresses of Europe
11 European hilltop fortresses — each mapped, dated and ready to explore.
Château de Chinon
France's long ridge fortress on the Loire, linked to Joan of Arc and the Plantagenets
Rocca Calascio
Italy's highest fortress, a mountaintop ruin in the Apennines of Abruzzo
Loarre Castle
Spain's great Romanesque fortress, among the oldest castles in Europe
Château de Castelnaud
France's Dordogne hilltop fortress, a rival stronghold in the Hundred Years' War
Edinburgh Castle
Scotland's clifftop royal fortress, grown on a volcanic crag since the 1100s
Marksburg Castle
The only Rhine hilltop castle never destroyed, rising in stacked terraces
Spiš Castle
One of Europe's largest castle complexes, sprawling over a Slovak ridge
Dunnottar Castle
Dramatic clifftop fortress that hid the Honours of Scotland from Cromwell
Karlštejn
Bohemia's Gothic crown-jewel castle, founded by Emperor Charles IV in 1348
Tantallon Castle
Mighty red curtain-wall fortress on a cliff facing the Bass Rock
Stirling Castle
Great hilltop royal fortress of the Stewart kings, above the River Forth