Festung [English translation]

On a hill, vaguely visible

It stands, covered in fog:

Towers with stairs, too steep to climb them,

Walls, too high to peer beyond them,

Glamour and greatness gone,

Moats that threateningly cross the grounds,

Never ever to be overcome,

Drawbridges that refuse passage,

Gates that unrelentingly1 block access,

Chains that sing in the wind.

Behind the gates paths lead inside;

They penetrate deep into the inside.

Armours stand in motionless rows;

Torches envelop them in a dim glow.

And I tread alone

Through the halls of stone

In my fortress.

And I tread alone

Through the halls of stone

In my fortress.

Paintings tell of a past time

In formerly vivid colours.

The bridges open, the gates were wide,

The castle, it was proud and sublime.

They danced animatedly, with music and wine,

Everyone joined in with the songs.

Today I tread alone

Through the halls of stone

In my fortress.

And I tread alone

Through the halls of stone

In my fortress.

When I force myself to walk the steps,

Up to the pinnacles,

I can dimly see them on the horizon:

Hundreds of fortresses that warn and beg.

Silent, as if abandoned, I see them standing there,

Yet I know that people still walk inside them.

And they tread alone

Through the halls of stone

In their fortress.

And they tread alone

Through the halls of stone

In their fortress.

And they tread alone

Through the halls of stone

In their fortress.

1. Lit.: eisern = made of iron; figuratively = firm, unrelenting