Living in a castle is probably the coolest thing ever. Literally. It’s the perfect living situation. You’ve got high walls to keep out the neighbors and various invading armies, you’ve got exposed brick and stone walls in every room, and you have a moat (sometimes). What’s not to love?
Sadly, castles are just not in style these days. Because of that, many around the world have fallen into various states of disrepair. That makes it even more pricey for you to live the dream of owning a castle.
So in lieu of that here are 10 of the coolest looking ruined castles in the world. Just wait until you see #6.
1.) Hammershus Castle, Denmark – In the 1300’s this was Europe’s biggest castle. It’s located on an island near Sweden and Denmark. Over the years the island and its castle changed hands many times between the two countries in bloody wars.
2.) Clonony Castle, Ireland – This amazing Irish castle has a rich history of love, death, and betrayal. It’s located in County Offaly.
3.) Eilean Donan, Scotland – This castle doesn’t have too much of a special history, except that it looks really creepy.
4.) Leap Castle, Ireland – This is allegedly the most haunted castle on Earth.
5.) Ross Castle, Ireland – This is one of the few castles to survive Oliver Cromwell’s conquest of Ireland in 1649.
6.) Wonderland, China – While not exactly a full on castle, you’d still totally want to live in this place. It’s part of an old amusement park called “Wonderland.”
7.) Kenilworth Castle, England – In 1266 this castle survived the longest siege in English history.
8.) Cloughanover Castle, Ireland – There’s sadly not much left of this once beautiful castle.
9.) Bannerman Castle, New York – Francis Bannerman’s castle on a small island in the Hudson River was sadly never completed. There were several freak accidents during the building process and it was eventually abandoned.
10.) Chateau Miranda, Belgium – This castle was built by French nobility who were fleeing the revolution in their home country. During and after World War II it was home to various institutions before being abandoned in 1980.
(Via: All Day)
Now I’ve got ten more places to visit on my next vacation. I wonder if anyone has ever thrown a castle party?
