Buy an ancient castle for a euro? It seems incredible, but that is what happened in Germany, where Ernst August of Hanover, Prince of the House of Welf, decided to sell the historic family residence "Marienburg Castle", a jewel of Gothic Revival architecture. The lucky buyer? None other than the German Nation, in the guise of Liemak Immobilien GmbH, a company controlled by the Federal government. The reason for selling is associated with the property’s poor condition; the prince decided to no longer support the high cost of maintenance and renovation. In this context, the Minister of Science and Culture, Björn Thümler, entered the scene, reaching an agreement with the Prince and setting a sale price at the symbolic sum of one euro. Under the agreement, the State will take over, starting in 2020, all costs of renovation and restoration, with figures around 30 million euros. The castle, 30 kilometers south of Hanover, was built between 1858 and 1867 as a birthday gift to King George V of Hanover and his wife Marie of Saxe-Altenburg. It currently houses 135 guest rooms and a restaurant. This was the work of one of the most influential architects of the time, Conrad Wilhelm Hase.