1804 - Data Points by Date/Period

Staffelter Hof, nestled in the small town of Kröv within the Bernkastel-Wittlich district of Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany, operates as a family-owned establishment encompassing a winery, distillery, and guest house. It boasts the distinction of being the oldest running winery globally and stands as the sixth oldest continuously operating company worldwide. The origins of Staffelter Hof trace back to 862, associated initially with a wine-producing abbey. This historical legacy places it among the oldest companies globally. Records of the abbey's existence are documented in an original artifact housed in the city archives of Liège, Belgium. Lands stretching from the Carolingian dynasty to Kröv, among other regions, were donated to the abbey, serving as a source of revenue until the advent of the Napoleonic Code in 1804. In 1805, Peter Schneiders acquired the Kröv land for 1773 Taler, initiating a lineage that spans seven generations, currently led by Jan Matthias Klein, who succeeded his father, Gerd Klein, in 2005. The present-day operations encompass various facets: 1. Guest House: Established in 1960, the guest house, overseen by Hildegunde (Gundi) Klein, wife of Gerd Klein and mother of Jan Klein, offers accommodation comprising four double rooms and six apartments. 2. Distillery: Originating post-1890 under Kilian Klein, Gerd's grandfather, the distillery produces schnaps annually using ingredients like trester or marc, hefe (yeast lees), mirabell, cherries, apples, pears, plums, and homemade liqueurs. 3. Wine Production: Staffelter Hof manages 12 hectares of vineyards spread across Paradies, Kirchlay, Letterlay, Steffensberg, and Dhron Hofberger in Neumagen-Dhron. The estate transitioned to organic viticulture between 2011 and 2014, earning organic certification in 2014. 4. Grape Varieties: The winery predominantly focuses on white grape varieties, constituting 90% of the total production, including Riesling (75%), Rivaner (formerly Müller Thurgau) (11%), Sauvignon Blanc (3%), and Gelber Muskateller (1%). Red grape varieties, accounting for the remaining 10%, encompass Pinot Noir (45%), Regent (30%), and Frühburgunder (15%). 5. Wine Tiers: Staffelter Hof offers three tiers of wines—Wappenwein (Heraldic Wines), Signatureweine (Signature Wines), and Motivweine (Wolf Wines), catering to various tastes from dry to sweet, sparkling (inclusive of hand-remuaged traditional method Sekt), rose, white, and red wines.

Porto Palermo Castle was built by Ali Pasha Tepelena in the early 19th century. The island on which the castle is situated used to be isolated from the land. Later the island was connected to the mainland to facilitate communication by a narrow strip of land filled with stones. The bay of Porto Palermo used to be one of the main harbors of the ancient world, known as 'Panorma Bay'. On the plaque above the main gate (which is currently missing), carved in Greek alphabet, among others was written, '...Ali Pasha Tepelena built the castle in 1804 with the help of French military engineers....'. The legend goes that the engineers were killed by the Pasha right after its construction. The Porto Palermo Castle features a triangular shape with three powerful pentagonal towers at the corners. Materials used in the construction of the tower was limestone. The walls were built with regularly set stone blocks. The surrounding walls are 3.2-3.5 meters thick. The only entry located on the southern side leads you through the interior premises covered by a stony archway. The spaces served to shelter the military garrison. On the ground floor is the prison, centrally built and oriented towards the sea. This space is surrounded by a passageway where the guards used to patrol. In the terrace there are five survey towers covered with domes. There are also the gun loopholes. On the eastern part of the island there is the Saint Nicol's Church. During and after World War II, the castle was used as a prison and as shelter for the military units.

The Monastery of Ardenica is located at the highest point of a range of hills stretching across the great plain of Myzeqea (Myzeqe). Over the centuries this monastery has been an important historical, cultural, and spiritual center of the Orthodox Church. The monastery was situated close to the important road, Via Egnatia, which joined Western and Eastern Europe and continued all the way to Constantinople. In the monastery itself, several mile-marker stones from the Via Egnatia can be found. Because it was located on this major artery, the monastery drew many people to its gates. The monastery is dedicated to the Nativity of the All-Holy Theotokos and celebrates its feast-day on September 8th, when a great number of the faithful gather from all over Albania. Some scholars say that the initial core of the monastery, The Church of the Holy Trinity, has its beginnings in the 10th century. According to tradition, the monastery itself was founded in the 13th or 14th century during the time of the Epirius Despotism. The central Church of the Nativity of Theotokos was built in 1743, with funds from merchants of Voskopoja, who were scattered across Europe. It is said that this church replaced an older church, which was destroyed together with the entire monastery at the end of the 17th century, perhaps from a fire or earthquake. Its restoration was due in large part to the abbot of the monastery Nektar Terpo from Voskopoja, a renowned personality and preacher of the Church at that time. Two years after the building of the church, Abbot Andoni wrote a letter to the donors requesting their continued economic help in order to rebuild the monastery. The funds gathered from these efforts made possible the gradual completion of the monastery's buildings. Now, though they have been repaired several times, most of the buildings at the monastery - the cellars, kitchen, bakery, cells, welcoming rooms, and especially the oil mill - are in their original form and rank among the best preserved buildings for monasteries of the 18th century. The inside walls of the monastery church are completely covered with frescoes. The murals are the work of Konstandin and Athanas Zografi, who were brothers from Korca; they date back to the year 1744. All of the words, including those on the frescoes, are written in old Greek. Some of the more notable frescoes can be found on the northern part of the western-facing wall, where visitors will find icons of the seven saints who evangelized the Slavs as well as St. John Kukuzeli of Durres, a notable Byzantine musician of the 12th century. It is also worth noticing the group of frescoes devoted to the sufferings of Christ on the fourth level of the murals. A majority of the icons on the iconostasis were made in 1744 by another famous iconographer of the 18th century, Konstandin Shpataraku (from the regions of Shpati near Elbasan). He signed his name Hierodeacon Konstandin. Among the icons on the iconostasis was also an icon of St. John Vladimir; the Albanian Prince, Karl Topia, is also pictured there in miniature. This icon is now housed in the Medieval Art Museum in Korca. The iconostasis structure itself was also carved around the year 1744 and repaired in 1804. The Episcopal throne, the amvon, and the icon stand were also carved during the same period. All the wood carvings are painted with gold. Flora and fauna are a significant element found carved in these pieces and each has symbolic meaning. They rank among the most beautiful carved pieces of these regions. Inside the church are also a number of silver adornments with floral motifs, such as the lampadas of the iconostasis which date back to the years 1725 and 1745. Many of the liturgical and historical artistic objects of the Monastery - icons, silver pieces, the holy stole, and various documents - are preserved in archival and private museum collections, both local and foreign, in at least five other European countries: Greece, Italy, Austria, Hungary, and Poland.

1804 (3)

Other Dates/Periods

1209

15-03-2008

26-01-2002

02-07-1906

1918

Helpful Links

Read Now

Currently Analyzing