Line #11 Main/BrightCastle


1	[[quoteright:312:[[WesternAnimation/BeautyAndTheBeast https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/beast_castle_uncursed.png]]]]
2	[[caption-width-right:312:Looks pretty nice when not cursed.]]
3
4	->''"Once upon a time, in a faraway land, a young prince lived in a shining castle."''
5	-->-- '''Narrator''', Disney's ''WesternAnimation/BeautyAndTheBeast''
6
7	A classic trope within {{Fairy Tale}}s, the Bright Castle is a beautiful structure usually owned by a monarch, magician or powerful creature. It is picturesque, but sometimes cursed or with a [[DarkAndTroubledPast dark secret]]. It can also be the home of the protagonist, who often must either leave the sanctuary, or save it from imminent doom. Expect to see lots of towers and turrets reaching for the sky, and fluttering banners, with not as much thought given to making it defensible. Odds are very good that it will be modeled on the real-life German castle of [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neuschwanstein_Castle Neuschwanstein]], which was itself built to be the epitome of a "fairy tale" castle.
8
9	The Bright Castle may also contain the priceless MacGuffin, or valuable DeusExMachina that the heroes need. It can also represent an ordeal or trap that they must overcome to better both themselves and their cause. May also be a BigFancyCastle. Often a feature of the ShiningCity.
10	----
11	!!Examples:
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13	[[foldercontrol]]
14
15	[[folder:Anime and Manga]]
16	* ''Manga/{{Berserk}}'': For Griffith, an ambitious commoner who dreams of winning his own kingdom, a beautiful castle on a hill is the emblem of the great heights he is trying to reach. Compared to other castles shown which are very military in design, the castle Griffith envisions looks more like something out of a fairytale with its vertically-oriented design and picturesque towers. In the Eclipse, the God Hand show him the castle shining in the distance beyond his reach, and call attention to the contrast between the purity of his dream and the mountain of dead bodies he's walked over in order to get closer to his goal.
17	* In ''TabletopGame/YuGiOh'', the Bright Castle was a (field) spellcard that affected light-based monsters.
18	** The [[Anime/YuGiOh anime]] also provides a more typical example in the form of the castle of Simlow, home of Princess Adina.
19	* The castle from ''Anime/RevolutionaryGirlUtena''. [[spoiler:As revealed late in the series, it's nothing more than an illusion projected from Akio's planetarium.]]
20	* The Kanejou family from ''Manga/BGataHKei'' lives in one. PlayedForLaughs, naturally.
21	* ''Manga/NurseAngelRirikaSOS'' depicts the home of its alien [[PrincessesRule sovereign princess]] SpiritAdvisor as an [[{{Arcadia}} idyllic land]] of green fields and fairytale castles. Until the villains show up and corrupt it, that is.
22	[[/folder]]
23
24	[[folder:Films -- Animated]]
25	* The castle on the Creator/{{Disney}} logo, which is, based on WesternAnimation/{{Cinderella}}'s castle, which in turn is based on the late 19th century [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neuschwanstein_Castle Neuschwanstein Castle]] in Bavaria, Germany. Almost ALL of the Franchise/DisneyPrincess films feature this to some extent.
26	** [[WesternAnimation/SnowWhiteAndTheSevenDwarfs Snow White's]] Prince whisked her off to one at the end of the film.
27	** As mentioned above, ''Cinderella's'' prince lives in one, which Cinderella fantasizes about and eventually goes to the famous ball there.
28	** ''WesternAnimation/SleepingBeauty'' lives within one; it is surrounded by a [[TheHedgeOfThorns Hedge of Thorns]].
29	** The Prince in ''WesternAnimation/BeautyAndTheBeast'' lives in this trope until the Enchantress appears and puts a curse on it. While it is still quite beautiful in many respects, there are signs of what happened there in the decor -- beast face-shaped doorknockers, gargoyles, etc.
30	** ''WesternAnimation/{{The Little Mermaid\|1989}}'' has ''two'': Triton's palace in Atlantica, and Eric's castle by the sea.
31	** ''WesternAnimation/{{Aladdin}}'' has the Sultan's palace
32	** Pride Rock from ''Franchise/TheLionKing''. Though not necessarily a castle in the human sense, it's a beautiful and imposing natural structure.
33	** Mount Olympus from ''WesternAnimation/{{Hercules}}''. Unique in that it's completely inaccessible to mortals unless special requirements are met.
34	** The Imperial Palace from ''WesternAnimation/{{Mulan}}''. Distinct in that this is the only palace that the movie's matching princess does not live in/has lived in/moved into.
35	** Kuzco's palace from ''WesternAnimation/TheEmperorsNewGroove''.
36	** Nedakh Palace from ''WesternAnimation/AtlantisTheLostEmpire''.
37	** ''WesternAnimation/{{Tangled}}'' has the royal castle of the Kingdom of the Sun.
38	** ''Film/{{Enchanted}}'', being an AffectionateParody of Franchise/DisneyPrincess films, of course has the castle of Prince Edward. Parodied in New York with the billboard castle.
39	** ''Franchise/{{Frozen}}'': Aside from the existing castle of Arendelle she and Anna grew up in, Elsa actually builds one from scratch using her ice powers in ''WesternAnimation/{{Frozen\|2013}}''. At the end of the film, Elsa gives the Arendelle castle roofs a coat of ice as part of a makeover.
40	** Inverted slightly in ''WesternAnimation/{{Wish\|2023}}''. The castle is painted as a bright castle ruled by a caring king. By all extents and purposes, the castle is bright, but the king inside is completely corrupted.
41	* Far Far Away Castle from the ''Franchise/{{Shrek}}'' sequels. The first film, being something of a TakeThat at Disney's RealLife corporate practices as opposed to their fairytale image, features Lord Farquaad's brightly lit and impressively large castle, which comes across as monolithic (rather than ornate) and kind of creepy (rather than cheerful).
42	[[/folder]]
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44	[[folder:Literature]]
45	* The castle in ''Literature/ABrothersPrice'' is this. Lots of windows, which would be expensive but doable in a culture with technology roughly equivalent to the early 1800s. It is also very nice and bright inside and offers a spectacular view of the city it overlooks from the cliff.
46	* Cair Paravel from ''Literature/TheChroniclesOfNarnia''.
47	* Minas Ithil and Minas Arnor from ''Literature/TheLordOfTheRings''.
48	* The Ivory Tower from ''Literature/TheNeverendingStory''.
49	* The Palace on Bright Water in ''Literature/TalesFromNetheredge''.
50	* The castle in Genua from ''Literature/WitchesAbroad'', which falls very definitely under LightIsNotGood.
51	* Caemlyn Palace in ''Literature/TheWheelOfTime''.
52	* Most of the castles in grim 'n' gritty ''Literature/ASongOfIceAndFire'' are fairly utilitarian in aesthetic (if very grand in [[SciFiWritersHaveNoSenseOfScale scale]]), which makes the Eyrie in the Vale stand out. Located at the top of a skyscraping mountain and near a misty waterfall, it's made of white stone and takes the form of seven tall, slim towers. Its fairytale appearance befits the detachment from both [[HiddenElfVillage the war]] and [[CloudCuckoolander reality]] of its ruler Lysa Arryn and her spoiled son Robert (they almost literally live in an ivory tower), as well as Sansa's running theme of learning the hard way that life is ''not'' a fairytale.
53	[[/folder]]
54
55	[[folder:Live-Action TV]]
56	* Seen in the first episode of ''Series/OnceUponATime'' (and occasional flashbacks since then). Snow White and Prince Charming were married in it, although oddly, we're never told whose castle it was.
57	* Camelot from ''Series/{{Merlin\|2008}}'', which is actually the real-life castle of Pierrefonds in France.
58	[[/folder]]
59
60	[[folder:Video Games]]
61	* Ipsen's Castle from ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyIX'' (as the McGuffin Storage Facility), and Alexandria Castle (as "home with a dark secret").
62	* The shining, Gothic Anor Londo in ''VideoGame/DarkSouls''.
63	* Princess Peach's castle from the ''Franchise/SuperMarioBros'' series games.
64	** Beanbean Castle in ''VideoGame/MarioAndLuigiSuperstarSaga''.
65	** Pi'illo Castle manages to come off as this in ''VideoGame/MarioAndLuigiDreamTeam'' despite being a ruin. It helps that, despite its original Pi'illo inhabitants being TakenForGranite for centuries, it's being preserved by Brocks and other races as a tourist destination.
66	* Hyrule Castle from ''Franchise/TheLegendOfZelda'' series games. Though it occasionally loses its luster when taken over by the BigBad, especially in ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaBreathOfTheWild''.
67	** It is implied in ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaALinkBetweenWorlds'' that Lorule Castle was this BeforeTheDarkTimes.
68	* Dark Beauty Castle in ''VideoGame/EpicMickey'', at least before the Blot Wars.
69	* The giant castle/church of Bevelle from ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyX'' probably qualifies.
70	* Castle Waxwane in ''VideoGame/Puppeteer2013'', though some of its luster has faded with the shattering of the Moonstone.
71	* In ''VideoGame/DisneyPrincessEnchantedJourney'', Gentlehaven Castle is abandoned due to a curse. After you beat the final boss, it's restored to its former glory.
72	* ''Franchise/KingdomHearts'' features many castles from the source materials, and it also has its own original ones:
73	** Radiant Garden's towering bastion in ''VideoGame/KingdomHeartsBirthBySleep''.
74	** Disney Castle is a cartoony take, with bouncy, exaggerated spires. It's also inspired by either the castle in the Walt Disney Pictures logo, Cinderella castle in the parks, or both.
75	* The royal castle in ''VideoGame/PanelDePon'' is a bright blue structure loosely resembling the Sultan's palace from ''Aladdin'' (as mentioned above under Film) build inside an enormous water lily.
76	[[/folder]]
77
78	[[folder:Web Videos]]
79	* ''WebVideo/EmpiresSMP'' Season 2: The reconstructed [=GlimmerGrove=] Castle is constructed out of a light and bright colour palette of whites, pinks, and purples. It's [[ZigZaggingTrope zig-zagged]] due to part of the Castle standing on [[DeathWorld the corrupted/cursed lands]], causing the Castle to be [[DualityMotif split down the middle]].
80	* ''WebVideo/PiratesSMP'': Ros spends most of her time on the series building an extravagant purple and white castle, which stands out as a landmark of the Faction Isles as construction on it is completed. [[spoiler:It also ends up poorly defended when "Captain Blondbeard" [[WeddingCrashers stages his attack on Water's wedding]] at the castle, easily firing cannonball after cannonball at the guests when his plan to assassinate the bride on her wedding day falls through.]]
81	[[/folder]]
82
83	[[folder:Western Animation]]
84	* Canterlot in ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic''.
85	* The Pocketville Castle in ''WesternAnimation/PuppyInMyPocketAdventuresInPocketville'' is both this and a BigFancyCastle, sporting bright colors and ornate rooms.
86	* The white, [[BigFancyCastle sprawling]] palace of Thundera in ''WesternAnimation/ThunderCats2011''
87	* ''WesternAnimation/LavenderCastle'', waiting, watching over the characters as they fly right past [[FailedASpotCheck within easy visual range]] several times, glowing its [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin characteristic colour]].
88	[[/folder]]
89
90	[[folder:Real Life]]
91	* Cinderella Castle (or Sleeping Beauty Castle or the Enchanted Storybook Castle, depending on which park you're in), the centerpiece of the "Magic Kingdom" Ride/DisneyThemeParks. The one in Paris boasts "Le Château de la Belle au Bois Dormant", another castle which bears a somewhat closer resemblance to the castle in ''WesternAnimation/SleepingBeauty''. Hong Kong used to have a slightly smaller version of Anaheim's castle until it got reworked and built up into the Castle of Magical Dreams.
92	* [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neuschwanstein_Castle Neuschwanstein Castle]], the TropeMaker.
93	* The Fairy Castle dollhouse at Chicago's Museum of Science and Industry is a miniature example.
94	* Most historical castles had layers of white wash back when they were actually functional. Because the castle was the home of a noble lord or king, they often stood as symbols of their power, and as such they would be painted or whitewashed in order to be highly visible. In addition, the interiors of many castles would be very bright, usually with layers of limestone rendering and bright white plaster, both to protect the stonework and also to reflect the light from interior illumination sources such as candles and fireplaces.
95	[[/folder]]
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Context Main / BrightCastle