Travel tips
Castle Pillnitz, Dresden
Schloss Pillnitz, photo by quinet
One of the most beautiful castles in the Elbe Valley is Augustus the Strong’s Castle Pillnitz. Why is Augustus called “the Strong”? He was 176 cm tall and weighed 135 kg on the scales. Augustus made Pillnitz his summer residence and while there attended various weddings. This is how we know his his exact weight; before each wedding, the noble guests were weighed and if they did not weigh more after several weeks of celebration they were no longer invited – his presumption being that the food was not to their taste. Augustus the Strong always had a good appetite!
Besides the beautiful East Asian paintings in the castle, the courtyard is especially popular where you will find the largest camellia tree in Europe. In 1776 it was imported from Japan via England. Now, in order to protect it from the cold of winter, a glass house with mobile computer-assisted air conditioning was fitted over it. (What would Augustus the Strong have made of that?)
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