A drive up the Rhine Valley from Koblenz will take you past a series of fortified towns built in the shadow of imposing fortresses. Schloß Stolzenfels may be 19C, but the town of Boppard is in fact typically medieval. You will then go past St Go..

From the top of the pediment (107 steps) of Wilhelm I's statue, there is a view over the city and the right bank of the Rhine, dominated by the fortress of Ehrenbreitstein.

The original 10C fortress, which belonged to the archbishops of Trier, was destroyed by the French in 1799. The Prussians, who had ruled the Rhineland since 1815, built this powerful fortified stronghold between 1816 and 1832.

The former Jesuits' College (17C) is now the town hall. In the courtyard, the Schängelbrunnen (fountain) evokes the mischievous character of the street urchins of Koblenz.

This Romanesque church, remodelled during the 13C, was given a Gothic chancel in the 15C, and Baroque bells in the 17C. The ribs of the vault are decorated with sculpted keys. Note the fine modern stained glass windows designed by HG Stockhausen (199..

This Romanesque church was built on the original sanctuary in which the Treaty of Verdun, dividing up Charlemagne's empire, was signed in 843. The furnishings include two archbishops' tombs and 16 painted wooden panels.