SPOOKY PLACES IN REGENSBURG AND THE SURROUNDING AREA!

We recently discovered the book “Of witches, ghosts and criminals” by chance. It was a good coincidence, as we were actually planning to write an article on the spookiest places in Regensburg for Halloween anyway. Instead, we simply interviewed the two experts: author Julia Kathrin Knoll and photographer Christian Greller describe a tour of the spookiest places in Regensburg and the surrounding area in their book.

St. Peter’s Cathedral Regensburg (Photo: Christian Greller)

The dark side of Regensburg…

In her book, Julia Kathrin Knoll takes the reader into the world of sagas, ghost stories and dark legends. Many a medieval wall is said to be haunted by ghosts and demons… A brief insight into historical criminal cases rounds off the spooky experience. The texts are impressively illustrated with photos by Christian Greller, who also took all the pictures in this article.

We asked author Julia Kathrin Knoll and photographer Christian Greller a few questions:

RegensburgNow.de: Regensburg is better known for its beautiful houses than for scary stories. How did you come up with the idea of publishing a book about spooky places in and around Regensburg?
Julia Kathrin Knoll: When working on the book, it was indeed a certain challenge to convey that such a picturesque place as Haidplatz, for example, should be eerie. You can no longer tell that there used to be an execution site there. Personally, however, I have always found Regensburg particularly fascinating because the city has two sides. The wonderful Mediterranean flair in summer, but also the autumnal clouds of mist and dark alleyways. As I was fascinated by legends, myths and legends even as a child, I was of course immediately on board when the publishing house came up with the idea of writing a book about eerie places in Regensburg. Christian Greller: Regensburg is a beautiful city. For me, it’s actually the most beautiful place on this planet. But like any old city, Regensburg has its legends and sagas, but also its real crimes and creepy incidents. For years, I have been visiting Regensburg and the surrounding area to capture this special spooky atmosphere with my camera. When I was asked by the publisher whether I would like to contribute pictures to a new book by Julia Knoll on the subject of “Eerie Regensburg”, I immediately agreed, especially as Gietl-Verlag and I had been planning a joint book project for some time.

Cemetery angel Dreifaltigkeitsberg (Photo: Christian Greller)

The title of your book is “Of Witches, Ghosts and Criminals”. Can you give us a creepy example as a foretaste of the book?
Julia Kathrin Knoll: One of my favorite places in the book is Weichs Castle. It’s in an idyllic location on the Danube and doesn’t actually look scary from the outside. However, the sinister knight Heinrich von Guttenstein, who was murdered by his brother in the 16th century, is said to haunt the old walls. You can rent vacation apartments in the castle today, and some of the guests have probably already had supernatural encounters. Christian Greller: I find the story of the “Klogmuada” of Pentling particularly eerie. A gruesome figure that is said to have walked the streets of the village at midnight. It was only when a skeleton was found in front of the Pentling chapel during roadworks in the 1970s that the haunting stopped.

Royal Villa Regensburg (Photo: Christian Greller)

Which place in Regensburg is the scariest for you?
Julia Kathrin Knoll: Definitely the Fragstatt in the Old Town Hall. There are no ghost stories about it, but what people can do to other people is still the scariest thing of all for me. And I think hardly anyone can escape the oppressive atmosphere there. Christian Greller: I almost can’t decide, but I think I was most creeped out when taking photos in the Historische Fragstatt in the Old Town Hall. There is also a very eerie atmosphere around the enchanted Pürkelgut Castle. It’s a shame that it’s being allowed to fall into disrepair.

Pürkelgut Regensburg (Photo: Christian Greller)

This book is perfect for Halloween. Are you actually a Halloween fan?
Julia Kathrin Knoll: Absolutely! Halloween has a bad reputation here because it was supposedly adopted from the USA. But the festival actually goes back to the Celts. I particularly love Celtic mythology and therefore always look forward to Halloween. Christian Greller: Oh yes! I read a lot of horror literature, especially the classic horror stories by Edgar Allan Poe or H. P. Lovecraft, I have a large horror movie collection and so I look forward to Halloween like a little kid every year. In contrast to summer, I generally love the fall and the dark season.

Regensburg Anatomy Tower (Photo: Christian Greller)

Your book not only contains gruesome sagas and terrifying legends, but also real criminal cases. Which criminal case particularly captivated you?
Julia Kathrin Knoll: I found the case of the Regensburg butcher Friedrich Lößel, which took place in the 18th century, particularly fascinating. One Good Friday night, Lößel had a nightmare in which he murdered his cousin. The next day he got terribly drunk, got into a fight with his cousin and killed him. So the dream had come true. Lößel was beheaded for his deed, and the case must have caused quite a stir in Regensburg at the time.

Thank you very much for the interview!

The book “Von Hexen, Geistern und Verbrechern” costs €17.90 and is published by
MZ Buchverlag (Battenberg Gietl Verlag).

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