The Trifelsstube
Trifels Castle near Annweiler was the most important imperial fortress in the Palatinate during the High Middle Ages. The imperial regalia were kept there for a time. The paintings by Karl Graf (1902–1986) and contemporary artist Helga Mehringer from Landau show various views of the castle in this room.
In this small, cosy room with its view of the beer garden, history and the present come together: the power of a medieval imperial fortress, captured by one of the great Palatinate painters of the 20th century, and reinterpreted by a contemporary artist who finds quiet beauty in the Palatinate landscape.
Trifels Castle – Heart of the Medieval Empire
Trifels Castle near Annweiler was far more than just a fortress. Between 1113 and 1310, this imperial stronghold ranked among the most powerful centres of the Holy Roman Empire. Perched atop a triple-cleft red sandstone crag – hence the name “Trifels”, meaning “triple rock” – it safeguarded the emperor’s most precious possessions: the imperial regalia. Crown, sceptre, orb and sword lay protected here in the castle chapel, guarded by monks from Eußerthal Abbey. A medieval proverb put it plainly: “Whoever holds Trifels, holds the Empire.”
The castle also served as a state prison for high-ranking political captives. Its most famous inmate: Richard the Lionheart, King of England, held here in 1193 until a vast ransom bought his freedom. From this hilltop fortress, 494 metres above Annweiler, the Hohenstaufen emperors controlled one of the Empire’s most prosperous regions – shaped by viticulture, forestry and trade.
Karl Graf – Painter of the Palatinate
Some of the paintings in this room are by Karl Graf (1902–1986), arguably the foremost painter of the Palatinate landscape. Born in Rothenburg ob der Tauber, he found his artistic home in the Palatinate and became known as the “Painter of the Wine Route”. After studying in Nuremberg and Berlin, he devoted himself entirely to the Mediterranean soul of his adopted homeland – its vineyards, almond blossoms, distinctive villages and iconic castles such as the Trifels group.
Graf was a founding member and long-serving chairman of the Palatinate Artists’ Cooperative. His wine motifs served for years as templates for award certificates. For his life’s work, he received the Order of Merit First Class and the Max Slevogt Medal. His paintings hang in the State Galleries of Munich and Dresden – and here, in the Trifelsstube, where his views of Trifels bring the castle’s historical significance to life in warm, expressive colours.
Helga Mehringer – Silent Worlds
Other works in this room are by Helga Mehringer from Landau, an internationally acclaimed painter who received the European Art Prize in Prague in 2001. Mehringer, who works between Landau and Prien am Chiemsee, is known for her “Silent Worlds” – gouaches in harmonious colour families that radiate a particular sense of calm.
Her paintings show no people, yet the viewer never feels alone. They create atmosphere through omission, through concentration on the essential. Her views of Trifels complement Karl Graf’s historical perspective with a modern, more contemplative gaze upon a castle that still invites pause and reflection – perhaps now more than ever.