Features
As a Renaissance Castle, Uhuburg has twelve towers, one turret, three gatehouses, an eight story lookout tower, 1600 ft² Great Hall, 1300 feet of castle walls with rampart and lower walkways, ten guest chambers, two apartments, a master chamber, tropical atrium, grotto, and two acres of courtyard gardens. Situated on a mountain knoll, the Castle has spectacular views from each of the walls and towers.
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Naming the Castle
Uhuburg is named for the mascot of philosophy & wisdom:
the owl
Specifically, Uhuburg is named for the largest owl in the world, the Eurasian Owl. In German, this owl is named Uhu, and uhu translates to Eagle Owl in English. Burg is the German word for castle. Thus, the English translation of the German term Uhuburg is Eagle Owl Castle.
Eurasian Eagle Owl
bubo bubo
Eagle Owl Castle
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uhu - eagle owl ᆞ burg - castle
An Owl Aviary for our mascot and other raptors will provide a dynamic educational opportunity to understand the unique characteristics of owls.
Planned for 2025
Design Inspiration
A Renaissance castle was chosen for Uhuburg to reflect the Scientific Age and Enlightenment values of truth, beauty and wisdom. This is the era when Nicolaus Copernicus published De revolutionibus orbium coelestium (Revolutions of the Heavenly Spheres) in 1543, which became a milestone for the scientific approach.
As a Citadel of Epistemology, Uhuburg champions the Renaissance virtues of reason, knowledge, beauty, and truth in understanding life.
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Embracing Appalachia
Uhuburg is not a copy of another castle but has many of the features of European design. It is intended to be uniquely characteristic to the southern Appalachia Mountains and decorated with the local animals and fauna, and recognize local customs and music as much as is possible.
Construction
Milestones
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2008 - Land is cleared
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2009 - Cornerstone laid in the East Gatehouse slab
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2012 - North & East Gatehouses enclosed
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2014 - Main structure of perimeter castle wall and South Gatehouse are completed
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2015 - Power lines are laid and Main House begins
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2016 - Castle walls are finished, Main House is built through second floor
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2017 - Great Hall roof is framed in, Main House third floor completed, septic tank installed
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2018 - Main House roof features & attic are done & 7th floor spiral staircase is set in the Tower
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2019 - Roof set for Main House, gardens roughed in, greenhouse set, murals begin, cisterns buried
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2020 - Pools and fountains set
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2022 - Finish & furnish interiors, pave driveway, continue murals and garden landscaping & development
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2022 - Summer - Uhuburg Institute Limited Board of Directors established
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2023 - Welcome Gatehouse built near lower level parking
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2023 - Grand Opening Year!
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2025 - Owl Aviary
Uhuburg construction began in 2008 and the "two year" project continued over the following 15 years. Situated on 45 acres at the top of a wooded mountain, the first year was dedicated to cutting the road to the top and building retaining walls along the way.
The 2 story, triangle shaped perimeter wall was constructed over the next several years. The castle walls have large gates at each of the three corners with guest rooms, apartments, offices, and structures for various utilities such as food processing.
The recent years up to the current progress are focused on the main building in the center of the walled grounds. This structure includes the Great Hall, atrium, eight story lookout Tower, commercial kitchen, night sky observation deck, and residence.
