Bastion Schönborn

Hidden within the formidable walls of Mainz’s fortress history lies Bastion Schönborn. It’s not just a blockhouse, but a resurrected piece of history, part of the old federal fortress Reduit. Bastion Schönborn stands proudly on the right bank of the Rhine, a silent sentinel watching over the city. This bastion takes its name from a prominent figure in Mainz’s past, Johann Philipp von Schönborn. He was the Archbishop of Mainz who oversaw the construction of the original Mainz Schiffsbrücke, a vital bridge after the Thirty Years’ War. Bastion Schönborn wasn’t built in isolation. It emerged alongside the Reduit between 1830 and 1834. Its purpose was clear: to bolster the southeastern flank of the fortifications and protect the Schiffsbrücke. But Bastion Schönborn’s story doesn’t end with military strategy. It played a different, albeit brief, role starting in 1861. It became a temporary landing stage for the ferryboats of the Royal Railway Directorate Frankfurt. These ferries carried passengers between Mainz and the Kastel train station, connecting them to the Taunus Railway and onward to Frankfurt, before the Mainz Südbrücke was completed. Like many historical structures, Bastion Schönborn suffered damage during World War II. Yet, it was lovingly restored in the 1950s. The entire Reduit area found new custodians in 1998, the local history association “Gesellschaft für Heimatgeschichte Kastel e.V. (GHK)”. They have continued to develop and preserve the site. Since 1999, Bastion Schönborn has housed a restaurant with a terrace. During the summer months, it also hosts the “Kasteler Strand,” a beach area offering panoramic views of Mainz across the Rhine. Inside, another treasure awaits. The first floor houses the “Flößerzimmer,” a museum dedicated to the 400-year-old tradition of rafting in Kastel. Here, logs transported down the Main from the Steigerwald and Odenwald forests were combined with regional woods. These newly formed rafts were then sent down the Rhine. Bastion Schönborn embodies resilience. It tells a story of military might, transportation innovation, and a deep respect for local heritage.