The Witch's Eye is the section of an imposing keep destroyed under the orders of Louis XIV
The Witch's Eye is the section of an imposing keep destroyed under the orders of Louis XIV. The first mention of the castle dates back to 1234 when King Henri VII confered the confiscated belongings of Louis le Féroce (the murderer of his son Frédéric II), to the bishop of Bâle. The latter gave the castle as a fiefdom to Ulrich II de Ferrette in 1251.
It would suffer greatly in the Thirty Year War. Having changed occupant seven times (just like the town) between 1633 and 1639 it was in a pitiful state, and it fell to the cardinal of Mazarin in 1658. With the peace treaty of Westphalia, the frontier was pushed back from Vosges-sur-le-Rhin and this castle bore no more strategic interest; so Louis XIV gave the order to destroy Engelbourg in 1673.
This task was carried out by the miners of Giromagny. On the third attempt, the big tower rose up, broke into several parts and one of these fell down to form "L'œil de la Sorcière".
http://www.high-vosges-of-alsace.com/en/visits-discovery/religious-and-architectural-heritage/item/the-ruins-of-engelbourg-castle-in-thann.html
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