German royals in Romania

We had parked on a forest road and thought this place would be undisturbed. I couldn‘t believe it when I heard car noise at 5 (!!!) in the morning. That car even stopped right in front of us. Some guys checked the electric lines. Maybe, there had been a power outage due to the thunderstorm during the previous night.

We were a little early in Sinaia. The castles were still closed. We had to get some cash in the city anyway. In a local café, we were allowed to use the restroom. When I offered money, the owner rather suggested us to buy some cake and pralinés instead. We happily followed her invitation.

Some other pretty building next to the castle:

Apparently, there are 5 castles in Sinaia. We followed the recommendations of the couple from the dinner last night in Craiova and focused on Peles Castle.

Courtyard:

The castle was a summer residence for King Carol I and Queen Elisabeth – German royals who were invited to reign in Romania to keep the fighting people together. He ruled the country from 1866 until his death in 1914. The former emperor had given up.

Inner courtyard and hallways:

Peles Castle was built and extended between 1873 and 1914 – in the beginning based on the plans of two German architects later by the Czech architect Karel Liman.

The royal couple only had one daughter. But she died at an age of 4 due to scarlet fever. Later, the couple adopted their nephew Ferdinand from Germany. Him and his wife Marie had 6 kids and during summer, they lived in Pelisor Castle, right next door.

The huge castle had around 15 servants for cleaning, cooking etc. They slept under the roof. An area that we couldn‘t visit. Nowadays, historic objects are stored there.

The queen had 3 ladies-in-waiting. They each had a small room on their own with a loft wardrobe that could be reached via a spiral staircase.

The castle already had running water and a heating system. Hot air was produced by burning wood in the basement. It was conducted to every room of the castle, making hardly any additional ovens necessary.