You’ve heard of Castle Frankenstein, it’s one of the most famous castles in all the world. In fact, many think the castle located in Darmstadt, Germany, is the influence for Mary Shelley’s book of the same name. But this is just a myth, and no one knows if the castle in Darmstadt is the actual castle or even the location for that matter.
In fact, there’s another Castle Frankenstein, also in Germany, and it’s not too far away from Darmstadt.
The other Castle Frankenstein (12th century) is located above a town also named Frankenstein. It’s in the German state, Rheinland Pfalz, located approximately 100km away from Darmstadt. It’s not unreasonable to think the Rheinland Pfalz Frankenstein is the castle, or the town even, that influenced Mary Shelley.
There are many reasons why the Pfalz Frankenstein could be Mary Shelley’s inspiration for the name. In this post, I’ll give you a major reason and it’s in the picture below.
I took the above picture when I was hiking up to the castle.
I was fascinated by a church at the base of the hill and especially the graveyard situated next to the church. I couldn’t miss it because it was directly on the path leading up to the castle.
The reason I became so fascinated by the graveyard is that the moment I looked up to the castle in the background I thought to myself how scary this sight must look at night, or especially on an overcast day and hundreds of years ago!
It would be perfect for… a…
Horror story!
The church on the hill dates back to 1722, making it much younger than the castle itself. But the date is perfect timing for Mary Shelley because she was traveling in the general area in 1814, just 4 years prior to the first publishing of her horror fiction.
What if she happened along and saw this frightful looking place while perhaps traveling the main trading road that goes through the town? And what if she happened out of her carriage to take a closer look? Now, that, my friends, is inspiration!
I am not jesting.
There is no definitive proof that Mary Shelley was influenced by the more well-known Castle Frankenstein in Darmstadt. There’s only loose speculation.
I’ve visited both castles and the view from the graveyard in the photo above is unique only to the actual town of Frankenstein in the Pfalz.
And frankly, the castle overlooks the town of Frankenstein in the most creepy, perfect way if you’re thinking of writing about a mad scientist in a secluded castle with a little town beneath him to use as he wishes, not to mention a graveyard with fresh corpses very conveniently located.
I think this little-known Frankenstein Castle has been disregarded for too long. The name Frankenstein is twice used, both for the town and the castle, and as discussed, the castle’s foreboding position above the town can’t be discounted.
Of course, this is all supposition, but it doesn’t mean I’m wrong.
In fact, it could mean I’m right!
I’ll give you one final piece of evidence from the first picture.
If you travel to the town of Frankenstein, go to the little church on the hill (you can’t miss it from the main road), and when you walk the trail that takes you up to the castle you will come to the gravestones in the picture. Now, if you look close enough, what you’ll find under the names of the people who were from the town of Frankenstein is:
Von Frankenstein.
Which, when translated means, from the town of Frankenstein. Or in the case of a gravestone, lived in the town of Frankenstein. In simpler meanings, it simply means, of.
(As an aside, I’ve always found it interesting how one German word can often take many English words to explain it.)
Below is the actual gravestone from the first picture, cropped to respect the name of the deceased:
What does this mean?
Well, the protagonist in Mary Shelley’s 1818 novel is Victor Frankenstein, but he’s also been referred to as Victor von Frankenstein. So, you have to ask yourself, if Victor lived in Darmstadt, wouldn’t he be referred to as Victor von Darmstadt instead? But that never happens. In fact, Darmstadt was never mentioned at all.
Or it could also be that Shelley saw a gravestone with the letters “O” and “N” worn off, as it is on other stones, showing only the “V” and then Frankenstein, which may have given her the idea for Victor. Or perhaps there was a gravestone with the name Victor on it? Ah, then you’d have it, Victor von Frankenstein.
Either way, when you stand there looking up to the castle from the graveyard it becomes obvious where Shelley could’ve gotten the inspiration and name for her book, von Frankenstein.
From the town of Frankenstein.
But I will say, the church, the graveyard, the castle looming over all of it, including the town, certainly is splendidly forboding.
Well, there you have it!
That was fun, all in the vein of good-natured speculation!
Okay, so I didn’t originally intend to write this article about which Frankenstein castle (or town) is the inspiration for Mary Shelley’s story. I wanted to write about my exploration of the castle when I got sidetracked by this idea I had while standing at the graveyard and I felt the need to explore it. I hope you enjoyed the hypothesizing as much as I did. And, who knows, maybe I’m right.
Thank you for reading and indulging me. I’ll write about my strange, possibly paranormal, experiences I had at the castle next. You don’t want to miss those pictures!
Oh, and if you’re wondering if it’s haunted. Well, I think you’ll want to stay tuned (subscribe!), I have a lot to share with you.
For now, view the photo of the interior of Castle Frankenstein below and let me know if you ‘feel’ or ‘sense’ anything in the lower doorway. There’s the strangest surprise about this ‘door’ that shocked me, which I’ll reveal in this 3 part series of Castle Frankenstein in the Pfalz.
I’ll give you a hint:
It’s what nightmares are made of.
Go to Part 2 here.
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