Look out West; this microstate claims to have nearly 1500 years on most constitutions and thus is the oldest surviving sovereign state and constitutional republic in the world. It’s certainly not the largest, though; as of 2012 the republic boasted a population of around 32,000.
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Translating in German as the Emperor’s Mountain, Kaysersberg’s illustrious name matches its equally regal wines. Often considered the most beautiful city in the Alsace wine route, Kaysersberg’s wino legacy dates all the way back to the 1500s, when Hungarians brought the first vines to the region.
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In this photo, 17-year-old Marina Ginèsta (of the Juventudes communists or communist youth) presents a vision of Barcelona that’s as uncertain as its politics. In that year, 1937, the Mediterranean city would be embroiled in violence, blood and despair known as May Days, or the times in which factions of the Republican side of the war clashed with one another.
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If this 12th century castle looks like something straight out of a movie, that’s because it is–or at least probably. Rumor has it that parts of Segovia’s alcazar served as inspiration for Walt Disney’s own castle in the Magic Kingdom.
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Despite the squat visions a troll connotes, Norway’s Trollveggen couldn’t present a more different reality. The tallest vertical rock face in Europe, the Troll Wall represents the height of athletic ambition for climbers and base jumpers alike.
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If human memory is an unreliable record keeper of the hazards of war, nature certainly is not. Following a deluge of artillery fire on behalf of the British and inordinate amounts of rain, the German defensive proved successful–albeit with quite a bit of struggle. It was the bodies of Brits, and the Belgian landscape, however, that were left in ruins.
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Nestled around 90 kilometers away from Marseilles, Aigues-Mortes is a medieval commune presently home to a little over 8,000 people. While considered by many a magnificent display of architecture of that epoch, the goings-on within the walls weren’t always so savory. For example, in 1686 the Constance tower converted into a prison for Huguenots who refused to convert to Catholicism following Louis XIV’s revoking of the Edict of Nantes. Past that, the tower transitioned once again and became a penitentiary exclusively for women reported to be Huguenots.
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While the Holy Roman Empire kept itself together for over 800 years, the region was never able to achieve the same kind of unity found in other republics, like France. While its decentralized monarchy granted the empire an ample opportunity to expand, it also greatly contributed to its 1806 demise.
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While Paris was first dubbed the “City of Light” to recognize its status as a haven for the enlightened, the moniker took a more literal turn when the city began lighting the Champs-Elysées with gas lamps in 1828. As Paris was the first city in Europe to do so, its nickname, “La Ville-Lumière” assumed a new meaning.
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Every now again, it’s nice to swap the sweatpants and boxed wine for a bit of decadence and luxury. A quick–but not always economical–fix? Throwing a majestic and mysterious Masquerade Ball. Dating back to the 14th and 15th centuries, the Masquerade Ball began as part of Europe’s carnival season. Less high society and more cirque du célébration, villagers would gather in masks and costumes to take part in elaborate pageants and glamorous processions.
Source: Wikipedia
Quickly spreading across France like wildfire, some of the most notorious balls of the day would be held to celebrate Royal Entries: the grand occasion of welcoming kings and queens into their cities. In fact, so audacious were the masked balls that in 1393, Charles VI of France held the first ever “Bal des Ardents”. Translated as “Burning Men’s Ball”, the event transformed the more orthodoxly decadent costume ball into a night of intrigue and risk.
In celebration of the marriage of the queen’s lady in waiting, King Charles and five of his bravest courtiers dressed in masks and flax costumes and danced the night away as wildsmen of the woods. The only catch was that if your sashaying edged you too close to one of the many flaming torches that lined the dance floor, your look would be smoking–and not for the right reasons.
Source: Walks Of Italy
Source: The Dreamstress
Contrary to popular belief, it wasn’t until much later in the 16th century Renaissance period that masquerade balls became associated with Italy, but that never deterred masked members of the Venetian aristocracy from taking full advantage of a scandalous night of anonymity as if it were their own creation. Tied with the Venetian Carnival celebrations, the balls were rife with decadence, gluttony and a large amount of lust. Sadly their reign was rather short-lived, and after the fall of the Venetian Republic in the 18th Century, the masquerade balls began to shrink from the ballrooms of Venice until they were nothing more than a sequined memory.
Source: WordPress
Source: WordPress
Thankfully, the fall of the Venetian Republic didn’t put the kibosh on masquerade balls for all of Europe and after some reworking by a Swiss Count, the masquerade ball transformed yet again into a fashion frenzy. The balls became popular in 18th Century England after John James Heidegger, the Count in question, brought costumes from Venetian balls to public dances in gardens across London.
Heidegger set about transforming the night of sin synonymous with unescorted ladies and drunkards into an occasion for “The Man of Taste”. And while some disputed the immorality and influence of the masquerade ball, particularly in colonial America, the pomp of the glamorous dances once again saw the masquerade ball grace some of the finest halls in the world.
Source: Tumblr
While most of Europe waltzed their evenings away in bliss, some of the masked nights of mystery took on a much more sinister edge throughout the 18th Century and the glamorous balls transformed into gruesome affairs. Gustav III, Sweden’s King from 1771, was an outspoken opponent of his parliament’s reforms and after seizing power in a coup d’état, he set about restoring royal autocracy.
Source: Blogspot
However, his methods gained him many powerful enemies and he danced his last dance at one of his own masquerade balls. A disgruntled nobleman used the masks to fatal effect after he snuck into the ball and do-si-doed close enough to assassinate the King. From this point, the simple masquerade ball was associated with an ultimate night of risk, inspiring operas and plays alike.
Unfortunately, in today’s modern age, the masquerade ball has slipped into something of a novelty. While you can still find masks lining the canals of Venice during the carnival and the occasional grand ball in the dance halls of France, the fall of the aristocracy hit the masquerade hard and night clubs gradually took the prized place of the costumed balls. But who knows; maybe one day the masquerade ball will return and we’ll all be waiting to waltz again, mask in hand.
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Despite being banned under Soviet occupation, Estonia’s rich Christmas-time traditions have re-emerged entirely unscathed. To Estonians, the holiday blends the religious, secular, modern and old, as it is the day of Christ’s birth as well as the culmination of late autumn festivals. Unlike most Western states, the Christmas tree tradition is relatively new, and was an important from 19th century Germany.
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Greece, Spain, Italy. All are dream travel destinations, all are relatively hellish dead ends for its denizens. This past year, Spain and Greece’s unemployment rates soared to over 25 percent.
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The Scottish capital city is celebrated as much for its rich cultural offerings as it is its wealth of natural sights. Many of the islands surrounding the city are dubbed “seabird cities”, as they are home to hundreds of thousands of, you guessed it, sea birds.
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At the tail end of World War Two, Germany was in financial, political and physical ruins. The war wiped out around 11% of its population, took from it 25% of its territory, and reduced its agricultural productivity levels to a fraction of what they were before the war. To the dismay of some of its beneficiaries, Marshall Plan funds were disbursed to West Germany from 1949 to 1952, where it received $1.45 billion in economic and technical aid. Proving that the definition of an enemy is inherently situational, when the Cold War began to heat up in the 50s, NATO allowed West Germany to join its ranks. Total recovery soon followed suit.
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Taken over the course of two years, one Taiwanese family canvassed the Old Continent with two cameras. 200,000 images and 20 terabytes of data later, they made this video.
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Berliners show their children the other side of the wall as it begins construction in 1961.
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The Eastern European city has seen a host of wars, occupations and conflicts, and yet its beauty has remained largely in tact. Presently, Budapest is home to around 1.75 million people and some of the world’s most fantastic geothermal springs.
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A living shrine to the marvels of the Renaissance, if Florence’s cultural relics don’t seduce you, its natural scenery certainly will.
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With fewer than 2,500 people wandering about the streets of this scenic Swiss village, Lauterbrunnen is the perfect place for those who want to take a break from the hustle and bustle of the city. The town is nearly 800 years old, and the nearest city is Bern, which is about an hour’s drive away.
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The place? Barcelona. The medium? Film. The method? Flow motion — or an incredibly fast-moving short film. Hop from the opera to the Sagrada Familia to the Gothic quarters in seconds. As exhilarating as it is technically immaculate, this video cannot disappoint.
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