Castle Rock Forest

Szczytna, Poland, Poland

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Castle Rock Forest, known as Zamek Leśna Skała or Forest Rock Castle, is a striking neo-Gothic structure in Szczytna, southwestern Poland, perched on the rocky Szczytnik hill in the Table Mountains overlooking the town.

Built in 1831-1837 by Major von Hochberg on the site of a small 1790 Prussian fort designed by Major von Rauch—which was partially demolished by French troops in 1807—it mimics a medieval fortified castle with a rectangular plan, four corner towers (one cylindrical), defensive walls, a dry moat, knight's hall, and chapel featuring bronze pipe bells.

Attributed to architect Karl Schinkel, it hosted Prussian King Frederick William IV and passed through noble owners like the Nostitz and Rohrbach families before being acquired in 1929 by the Congregation of the Holy Family Missionaries for a missionary school. 

Nationalized by the state in the 1950s, it returned to the congregation in 2006 and now stands open to visitors as a romantic ruin-like landmark with panoramic views.