Zwingenburg Castle (German: Burg Zwingenberg), also called Zwingenburg or Schloss Zwingenberg, stands on the right bank of the River Neckar where it cuts through the Odenwald hills in central Germany. The castle is located in the municipality of Zwingenberg in the state of Baden-Württemberg.

The spur castle was built on a hill spur in the triangle formed by the confluence of the steep Wolfschlucht gorge with the Neckar valley and lies about 50 metres above the river.

The castle was probably built in the 13th century by the Hohenstaufen ministerialis, William of Wimpfen. The first record of it dates to the year 1326. A nephew of William of Wimpfen called himself von Zwingenberg. Because the Zwingenbergs were robber knights, in 1363 they were driven from the castle and it was slighted in the name of the emperor. In 1403, the Lord of Hirschhorn was enfeoffed with the Zwingenburg and had it rebuilt. After his line had died out, ownership switched between the Electorate of Mainz, Electorate of the Palatinate and the Grand Duchy of Baden. The lord of the castle today is Louis (Ludwig), Prince of Baden (born 1937), a descendant of Grand Duke Charles Frederick of Baden.

Above Zwingenberg Castle are the remains of Fürstenstein Castle.

Zwingenberg Castle

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Die Vorderburg, auch Landschadenburg genannt, ist eine mittelalterliche Höhenburg auf 155 m ü. NN bei Neckarsteinach im Landkreis Bergstraße in Hessen. Sie ist die drittälteste der vier Burgen Vorderburg, Mittelburg, Hinterburg und Schwalbennest.

Geschichte

Um 1200 wurde die Burg von Ulrich I. von Steinach, Sohn des Minnesängers Bligger II. von Steinach, erbaut. Die Burg war jeweils zur Hälfte Lehen des Bistums Speyer und des Bistums Worms. Nachdem 1268 die ältere Linie der Herren von Steinach mit Bligger V. ausgestorben war, kam die Burg an die jüngere Linie der Landschad von Steinach. 1393 wurde der Speyerer Anteil (Steinernes Haus mit halbem Turm) an Henne Triegel von Daudenzell und dessen Sohn Hans entlehnt. 1427 wurde ein Burgfrieden zwischen dem Teil der Landschad und dem Triegelschen Teil geschlossen, jedoch erscheint alsbald im Speyrer Teil ein Eberhard von Angelach als Speyrer Amtmann und Lehensträger sowie bald darauf Weiprecht III. von Helmstatt, der auch Anteile an der Hinterburg und der Mittelburg besaß. 1474 erscheinen die Landschad wieder als Besitzer der gesamten Vorderburg, die überwiegend als Sitz der von Hans IV. († 1571) begründeten Hansischen Linie benutzt wurde und nach dem Tode seines Enkels Dieter VIII. 1625 an Friedrich Landschad von Steinach kam, mit dem 1653 das Adelsgeschlecht erlosch.

Nach dem Aussterben der Landschad zogen die Stifte Worms und Speyer den früheren Lehensbesitz (Hinterburg, Vorderburg und halbe Mittelburg) wieder ein, unterstellten ihn kurz der Selbstverwaltung und übertrugen ihn 1657 Wolf-Heinrich von Metternich zu Burscheid als Lehen. Dieser erwarb im selben Jahr von Dieter VIII. Landschads Tochter Eva Elisabeth auch den früheren Landschad-Allodialbesitz und ebenso die restliche Hälfte der Mittelburg von den Freiherren von Venningen, so dass ab der späten Mitte des 17. Jahrhunderts der Besitz der vier Burgen wieder in einer Hand vereinigt war. Nach dem Aussterben der Metternich-Linie 1753 wurden die früheren Lehen und sogar der früheren Allodialbesitz von den Stiften Speyer und Worms eingezogen. 1803 kam der gesamte Besitz im Rahmen der Mediatisierung an das Land Hessen, das die Vorderburg einem Dr. Wegerich verkaufte. Nachdem der Erbe des Allodialbesitzes, Freiherr von Dorth, durch einen Vergleich mit dem Land Hessen die als Amtssitz benutzte Mittelburg auch die Ruine der Hinterburg erhalten hatte, erwarb er auch die Vorderburg von Dr. Wegerich. 1910 verzichteten die Herren von Dorth auf die Ruine der Hinterburg, die darauf wieder an den hessischen Staat fiel. Mittel- und Vorderburg gelangten beim Tode des letzten Freiherrn von Dorth, Ludwig, im Jahre 1925 an den Sohn seines vor ihm verstorbenen Adoptivsohns Alexander, Boemund Freiherr von Warsberg-Dorth, dessen Nachfahren die Burgen bis heute besitzen.



Vorderburg (Neckarsteinach)

Dilsberg Castle (German: Bergfeste Dilsberg) is a castle on a hill above the River Neckar in Neckargemünd, Germany. The castle was built by the counts of Lauffen in the 12th century. In the 13th century it became the main castle for the counts. In the 14th century it became part of the Electorate of the Palatinate and received town rights in 1347. During the Thirty Years' War, the castle was considered impregnable until Imperial forces under Tilly took the castle in 1622 after a long siege. In 1799, French forces tried and failed to storm the castle. A 46-metre-deep well helped keep the defenders supplied during this assault. In the 19th century the castle fell into ruin and was used as a quarry. Today the castle and its town are a tourist attraction and are administered by the Staatliche Schösser und Gärten Baden-Württemberg, attracting thousands of visitors.

Dilsberg Castle

Hornberg Castle (German: Burg Hornberg) is a partially ruined castle located on a steep outcrop above the Neckar valley above the village Neckarzimmern, between Bad Wimpfen and Mosbach. It is the largest and oldest of the castles in the valley.

The original castle was built in the 11th century. It is notable as the stronghold of Götz von Berlichingen, who bought it in 1517 and died there in 1562. The castle was bought by Reinhard of Gemmingen in 1612 and remains in possession of the Gemmingen-Hornberg family today. It was uninhabited from 1738 and left to decay until 1825, when it was partially restored. It has housed a museum since 1968.

It also housed students from the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point College of Natural Resources for an annual summer exchange program.

Hornberg Castle (Neckarzimmern)

The Hinterburg is part of a series of four castles in a string along the Neckar River, just to the east of Heidelberg and near the village of Neckarsteinach.  These also include the Vorderburg ("Forward Castle"), Schadeck, also called the "Schwalbennest," or Swallows Nest, and the Mittelburg.  Hinterburg literally means "Behind Castle," but is more aptly translated as the "Concealed Castle."  It is indicative of its location and purpose, being essentially an advanced fortification to protect Neckarsteinach from the west and not readily visible from a distance.

The castle was started in the 1100s by the von Steinach family, and was the oldest of the four, serving a strategic purpose in allowing the lords to observe the Neckar and Steinachtal.  One of the earliest records mentions Bligger von Steinach, c 1160.  His son, Bligger II, who was also a famous minstrel of the time, added much of the outer wall that helped drastically improve the castle's defensive posture.  At one time it also had a dry moat with a drawbridge.  The castle continued to be used up until the 1600s, largely in the service of the Elector Palatine.   Afterwards it began to decay from neglect as it lost its importance in the era of cannon.  There is no indication that it was ever seriously besieged.  

To the right, two views of the castle from below, showing the defensive posture.  Placing the castle on a hill naturally made an assault difficult, but the Hinterburg was vulnerable from behind. 

Below, a view of the main entrance to the castle, with the tower beyond.  This entrance takes you into the outer ward, where there is another gate before you can enter the inner ward.

Below, left, the entrance to the inner ward.  The walls here are not too thick and are not designed to withstand bombardment.  However, they could deter a basic attack by brigands or an angry mob. 

Below, the same entrance but seen from above, at the walkway entrance to the tower.  An examination of the wall at the right indicates there was at least one additional story here, with the Gothic windows providing natural light for the lower story.  The lower wall facing the river was also thicker than that facing the outer ward (on the left).  The wall for the upper story is clearly quite thin, being only about a foot thick.

The castle has some interesting semi-underground passages that lead to various defensive battlements.  These provide an interesting glimpse into life in a medieval castle (dark and damp!) and how they were defended.  In this case, the loophole below is small and narrow, and does not provide much windage for the use of a crossbow or arblast.  Therefore, it was probably designed more for observation than as a fighting position.

http://castlesingermany1.homestead.com/


Hinterburg
(Alt-Schadeck)

Guttenberg Castle is considered one of the last undamaged Staufer castles in Germany. It was founded around 1180, is today over 800 years old and has a correspondingly eventful history. It has always been inhabited and has been completely preserved to this day. It has been owned by the Barons of Gemmingen for over 560 years.

The first documentary mention of Guttenberg Castle dates from the late 13th century – the Chapel of St Nicholas below Guttenberg Castle is mentioned in 1296. At that time the Lords of Weinsberg owned the castle. They remained until the middle of the 15th century. Most recently, the royal hereditary treasurer Conrad von Weinsberg was the lord of the castle. Since Conrad von Weinsberg lent considerable sums of money to the king, which he did not get back, however, and thus he himself came into financial distress, he felt compelled to sell the castle.

On St. Andrew’s Day in 1449, Hans “the Rich” of Gemmingen bought Guttenberg Castle from the heirs of Conrad von Weinsberg, who had died almost two years earlier, for 6,000 Rhenish guilders. Hans von Gemmingen was also set by the wedding with the wealthy Katharina Landschädin von Steinach in the position not only to buy the castle, but also to expand it extensively. An important milestone in the history of the castle.

At the end of 1521 the Lords of Gemmingen joined the Reformation. In later Baden the family thus belonged to the first followers of the teachings > Martin Luther. Guttenberg was spared the destruction during the Peasant War and the Thirty Years’ War by fortunate circumstances, for already in 1622 a great battle raged at Wimpfen, which resulted in numerous lootings and destruction. In 1689 Guttenberg also escaped the French troops who cremated Heidelberg and many of the Neckar castles.

With the proclamation of the Grand Duchy of Baden in 1806, the Lords of Gemmingen lost their ruling function. But they remained owners of the castle and its lands. In the early 19th century, the history of the castle was connected above all with the stay of the poet Wilhelm Hauff, who was the tutor of a family member.

Today the castle is the centre of the family estate and one of the most popular excursion destinations in the region, as it has been opened to the interested public.


https://burg-guttenberg.de