Ehrenbreitstein Fortress

Ehrenbreitstein Fortress
Festung Ehrenbreitstein
Aerial view
Ehrenbreitstein Fortress is located in Rhineland-Palatinate
Ehrenbreitstein Fortress
Ehrenbreitstein Fortress
Ehrenbreitstein Fortress is located in Germany
Ehrenbreitstein Fortress
Ehrenbreitstein Fortress
General information
TypeFortress
Town or cityKoblenz
CountryGermany
Coordinates50°21′54″N 7°36′54″E / 50.365°N 7.615°E / 50.365; 7.615
Part ofUpper Middle Rhine Valley
CriteriaCultural: (ii)(iv)(v)
Reference1066
Inscription2002 (26th Session)
Festung Ehrenbreitstein viewed from Koblenz (2011)

Ehrenbreitstein Fortress (German: Festung Ehrenbreitstein, IPA: [ˌfɛstʊŋ ˈeːʁənbʁaɪtʃtaɪn] ) is a fortress in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate, on the east bank of the Rhine where it is joined by the Moselle, overlooking the town of Koblenz.

Occupying the position of an earlier fortress destroyed by the French in 1801, it was built as the backbone of the regional fortification system, Festung Koblenz, by Prussia between 1817 and 1828 and guarded the middle Rhine region, an area that had been invaded by French troops repeatedly before. The Prussian fortress was never attacked.

Since 2002, Ehrenbreitstein has been part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site Upper Middle Rhine Valley.