Larochette Castle stands high above the town of Larochette in central Luxembourg. Dating from the 11th century, the castle was destroyed by fire at the end of the 16th century. Since its acquisition by the State of Luxembourg in 1979, some restoration work has been undertaken.
Location
The castle ruins are located on a promontory some 150 metres above the White Ernz which runs through the small town of Larochette. The access road crosses a large farmyard with fortified earthworks. The main building is surrounded by a wall, now partly destroyed. A deep ditch divides the castle into two parts. At the far end of the promontory, the remains of several manor houses attest to the high quality of the architecture and its rather pompous style.
History
The earliest references to the castle are from the end of the 11th century and during the 12th century when the lords of Larochette (Van der Feltz) were flag bearers for the counts of Luxembourg. The family proliferated leading to the construction of the five stately houses which are separate from the main structure. They include the Homburg Manor (1350) and the Créhange Manor (1385) both of which have now been restored. The Verlorenkost (literally Lost Food) watchtower also stands alone on the south side. The legend goes that the cook was carrying pots full of food when she stumbled, breaking everything.
The Créhange manor now contains period artwork. There is a well inside which also has its legend, telling how the lady of the castle jumped into the well with her child while the castle was under attack. After rescuing the brave woman, the invaders accused the steward of the castle of treason and threw him into the well. It is said that he reappears every Good Friday in the form of a dragon.
Visiting times
The castle is open to the public from Easter until the end of October, every day from 10 am to 6 pm.

Larochette Castle

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Meysembourg Castle is located some 2 km south-west of Larochette in central Luxembourg. While the site has a history dating back to the 12th century, today's castle was built in 1880 in Neo-Renaissance style and is privately owned.
History
The Meysembourg family is first mentioned in the 12th century when Dame de Meysembourg was in the service of Ermesinde, Countess of Luxembourg. Historic references show that Walter de Meysembourg was the propretor in 1176 and Eberhart de Maysembourg in 1296. In 1443, the castle was destroyed by Philip the Good but was rebuilt before 1500. It was again destroyed by Maréchal de Boufflers troops in 1683–84. All that remains of the former castle are the chapel, the moat and part of the outer wall. Custine de Wiltz, the last in line to inherit the property, fled during the French invasion in 1794. Following a public auction in 1798, the castle fell into the hands of the Lords of Fischbach, Cassal and finally Jean-François Reuter of Heddersdorf who occupied the village after expelling its inhabitants.
After buying the property in 1855, the Prince of Arenberg demolished it in 1880 and built a new castle in Neo-Renaissance style. In 1971, the State architect Charles Arendt carried out restoration work. In 1974 the property was sold to Alphonse Spiegelburg. After his death, important restoration work was carried out from 2014 to 2016, funded by the State. The castle and surrounding area is now in the property of the Clasen family.
The castle today
The castle is privately owned and is not open to visitors. However, the possibility exists, that the castle will be turned into a hotel.

Meysembourg Castle

Fischbach Castle is a castle in Luxembourg. It is situated near the town of Fischbach, in central Luxembourg.
History
Fischbach has the longest history of any of Luxembourg's castles. The Abbey of Echternach, the wealthiest institution in Luxembourg for centuries, was the first owner of the estate of Fischbach. Records show the first liege independent of the Church took possession of the castle in 1050. The castle underwent several renovations and alterations, including complete destruction in 1635, during the Thirty Years' War.
During the second quarter of the 19th century, industrialist and metallurgist Auguste Garnier owned the castle and turned the estate into an industrial centre by constructing blast furnaces there. Grand Duke William II was the first head of state to own the castle in 1847, when he bought the estate to consolidate his political control of Luxembourg and to placate the local populace after the Belgian Revolution. He immediately ordered the demolition of Garnier's blast furnaces.
In 1884, Duke Adolphe of Nassau, who would become Grand Duke of Luxembourg when the personal union of the Netherlands and Luxembourg ended in 1890, bought Fischbach Castle from Grand Duke William III.
During the Nazi occupation of the Second World War, Fischbach served as a rest home for German artists, calling it Künstlerheim Fischbach. Despite this designation, Fischbach did not avoid the looting of art and historic artefacts that befell other palaces in Luxembourg. However, unlike the other palaces, it was not renovated or partly demolished to suit the Nazis' intentions, leaving it habitable by Grand Duchess Charlotte upon her return from exile.
Due to the unsuitability of the other royal palaces, Charlotte continued to live at Fischbach after the war, and took a liking to the place. Even after the full restoration of Berg Castle and the Grand Ducal Palace, Grand Duchess Charlotte lived at Fischbach for the rest of her reign. Indeed, even after she abdicated, in 1964, she remained at Fischbach until her death in 1985. Two years after Charlotte's death, Prince Henri and Princess Maria Teresa moved into the castle, where they lived until Henri succeeded his father, Jean, as Grand Duke, in 2000. Grand Duke Jean lived at Fischbach until his death on 23 April 2019. Hereditary Grand Duke Guillaume and Hereditary Grand Duchess Stéphanie moved into Fischbach Castle in late 2019 upon returning to Luxembourg after living in London for one year.

Fischbach Castle

Beaufort Castle dating from the 11th century consists of the ruins of the medieval fortress and an adjacent Renaissance château. It is located in Beaufort in eastern Luxembourg.
History
It was probably in the 11th century that the castle began as a small square-shaped fortress on a large rock protected by a moat and a second wall above the valley. A reference from 1192 indicates that Wauthtier de Wiltz et Beaufort was its first lord. During the first half of the 12th century, a keep was added and the gate was moved and enlarged. In 1348, the property came into the hands of the House of Orley after Adelaide of Beaufort married William of Orley. The Lords of Orley made significant extensions overlooking the valley. In 1477, Maximilian of Austria transferred the castle to Johann Bayer von Boppard after Johann von Orley-Beaufort committed a breach in trust. In 1539, Bernard von Velbrück became Lord of Beaufort through marriage and added the large Renaissance wing with cross-framed windows on top of the medieval walls.
The castle then came into the hands of Gaspard de Heu who had married Velbrück's granddaughter. A partisan of the Dutch resistance and the House of Orange, de Heu was captured by the Spaniards, accused of heresy and treason, and publicly executed in Luxembourg's fish market in 1593. Philip II of Spain confiscated the property and entrusted it to Peter Ernst Graf von Mansfeld, the governor of Luxembourg. Through marriage, the castle became the property of Henri de Chalon and then Gaspard du Bost-Moulin who had to sell it after being ruined by the Thirty Years War. Acting on behalf of the Spanish king, Johann Baron von Beck, governor of Luxembourg, bought most of the property in 1639. He initiated the construction of the Renaissance castle in 1643 but after he died of injuries from the Battle of Lens in 1648, the work was completed by his son in 1649.
After various changes in ownership including Pierre de Coumont (1774) and Jean Théodore Baron de Tornaco-Vervoy (1781), the castle was abandoned, fell into disrepair and at the beginning of the 19th century was even used as a quarry. In 1850, it was listed by the State as a national monument. In 1893, the new owner Henri Even restored the new building and, in 1928, Edmond Linkels cleared the rubble away and opened the medieval castle to visitors. In 1981, the property was acquired by the State.
The castle today
The ruins of the medieval castle are open to visitors every day from Easter until 1 November from 9 am to 6 pm.

Beaufort Castle

Since its construction, over 360 years ago and apart from a few additions and modifications during the last centuries, Beaufort’s Renaissance Castle has never suffered any damage and has remained virtually unchanged.
It was built by a major Luxembourger, Jean Baron de Beck. Born in 1588 in Luxembourg-Grund, Jean Beck was the son of a riding messenger of the Luxembourg Provincial Council from Saarburg in Lorraine, France, and departed from a humble background to make a fantastic military career.
Today, the prestigiously furnished interiors as well as the flourishing gardens, the surrounding stables and the distillery are maintained  in the same condition as they used to be when its last owners and residents were still living in the castle.
Anne Marie Linckels-Volmer died on 8 August 2012 at the age of 97. After the death of her husband, she acted as the last veritable “chatelaine” of Beaufort for over 37 years. Anne-Marie Linckels-Volmer left “her” castle in perfect condition for the government and the public. All interiors remain as they had been during Madame Linckels-Volmer’s lifetime.
https://beaufortcastles.com/

Pettingen Castle is located in the village of Pettingen some 4 km north of Mersch in central Luxembourg. It is one of the best preserved fortified castles in the country.
History
In the 10th century the fortress was known as Pittigero Mazini but received the name of Pettingen in the 13th century. Towards the end of the Middle Ages, the Lords of Pettingen were important members of Luxembourg society. They were present at Ermesinde's wedding, at the coronation of Henri IV and at the signing of John the Blind's marriage contract.
At the beginning of the 14th century Arnold of Pettingen married Marguerite of Rousy, the great granddaughter of Ermisinde. He had a son, Arnold the Young, whose daughter Irmengard, by marrying Jean de Créhange, associated the Lords of Pettingen with his renowned family. Their grandson, also called Jean, fought for René, the Duke of Lorraine in the war against Charles the Bold, Duke of Burgundy. In revenge, Charles completely destroyed the Castle of Pettingen whose treasures were confiscated by the Governor of Luxembourg in 1494. However, as a result of a decree made at the Great Council of Mechelen in 1503, half of the treasures were returned and the castle was reconstructed in its present form. The four corner towers were added in 1571. In 1684 Louis XIV's troops bombarded the castle, leaving it as it stands today. The ruins, which belonged to the house of Créhange, were inherited by the Comtes de Lapérouse whose descendants sold it to the Duke of Arenberg in 1837. In 1910 his descendant, the Prince of Arenberg, removed everything of value from the castle. In 1920 the southern wall collapsed.
In 1947 the castle was acquired by the State of Luxembourg. Consolidation work was carried out on the walls and on the castle's two towers in 1950.
The castle today
The ruins are open to the public. The ramparts with two round towers on the north-eastern side still stand. The site forms a 30 by 30 metre square surrounded by a former moat 15 metres wide fed by the Weillerbach which flowed into the River Alzette.

Pettingen Castle

Mersch Castle in central Luxembourg is one of the castles belonging to the Valley of the Seven Castles. Located in the centre of Mersch, its history goes back to the 13th century. Today the castle houses the administrative offices of the local commune.
History
The castle was built in the 13th century by Theodoric, a knight in the service of Countess Ermesinde of Luxembourg. It was captured and burnt down by the Burgundians. In 1574, Paul von der Veltz transformed the building into a comfortable castle in the Renaissance style. The keep had large windows and the property was surrounded by a protective wall with seven towers. Finely vaulted ceilings were erected over the rooms on the ground floor and the first floor. The Knights' Hall on the second floor has a magnificent chimney. The arms of 16 noblemen decorated the walls. In 1603, the castle was again destroyed by the Dutch. In 1635, during the Thirty Years' War, the castle and the village were left in a sorry state. However, around 1700, it was once again repaired, this time by Johann-Friedrich von Elter who rebuilt the gate and appended his coat of arms. The chapel was restored in 1717 by von Elter. The altar bears the arms of the castle's heiress, Charlotte von Elter.
In 1898, the Sonnenberg-Reinach family sold the castle to a businessman called Schwartz-Hallinger. In 1930, restoration work was carried out by the owner M. Uhres. In 1938, a youth hostel was housed in a new building adjacent to the castle. From 1957, the commune acquired the building but sold it to the State of Luxembourg in 1960. As a result of an exchange agreement, the commune finally regained ownership in 1988 and undertook substantial renovation work for the needs of itse administrative services which now occupy the building.

Mersch Castle

Bourglinster Castle is located in the village of Bourglinster in central Luxembourg some 17 km (11 mi) to the east of Luxembourg City. Now housing a restaurant and facilities for business and cultural gatherings, the castle has a history stretching back to the 11th century.
History
The castle is first mentioned in 1098 as belonging to St Symeon of Trier. At the time it had a residential keep, a chapel and a wall. During the second half of the 14th century, the chapel was extended and a tower was added on the northern side. The lower castle with a moat and two defensive towers was built in the 15th century. Both castles were partly destroyed during the 16th century wars (1542–1544) but were soon repaired and a Renaissance wing was added (1548).
Parts of the lower castle were again destroyed by the French in the 1680s. In the early 18th century, a Baroque façade was built at the far end of the courtyard. After the castle was acquired by the Luxembourg State in 1968, the buildings were fully restored and, in 1982, opened for exhibitions, concerts, meetings and receptions.
Business and cultural facilities
The castle' s three banqueting halls with facilities for up to 200 people offer venues for business meetings, gala dinners and cultural events. La Distillerie, a restaurant on the castle premises, is considered to be one of the best in Luxembourg.

Bourglinster Castle

Berg Castle, also called Colmar-Berg, is the principal residence of the Grand Duke of Luxembourg. It is situated in the town of Colmar-Berg, in central Luxembourg, near the confluence of the Alzette and the Attert, two of Luxembourg's most important rivers.
History
The estate at Colmar-Berg first came into the possession of the Grand Dukes of Luxembourg in 1845. The Belgian Revolution had divided Luxembourg from the Netherlands, and also into two, undermining Dutch control of the fortress of Luxembourg City. Grand Duke William II sought to establish a suitable Grand Ducal residence in Luxembourg, hoping that a division of his time between The Hague and Luxembourg would placate the local, overwhelmingly Roman Catholic, population. To this end, the Grand Duke bought Berg Castle from the Pasquier estate. In 1848, it was recognised as the exclusive home of the Grand Duke by the newly promulgated constitution.
In 1890, the Royal house of the Netherlands and the Grand Ducal house of Luxembourg diverged, and the new Grand Duke, Adolphe, purchased Berg Castle the following year, in order to maintain the Grand Ducal estate at Colmar-Berg. In 1906, William IV had the old castle demolished and a new one constructed in its place, designed by the Munich-based architect Max Ostenrieder and the local Pierre Funck-Eydt. Work on the new castle began in 1907, and was completed on the 9th of september 1911, after which it became the primary residence of the Grand Ducal family.
During the Great Depression, the Grand Ducal family fell upon hard times. Grand Duchess Charlotte sought an agreement with the government of Luxembourg under which the Grand Duchy might divest personal properties to the government, which would then allow the Grand Ducal family to use them as official residences. In 1934, such an arrangement was reached on Berg Castle, with the castle changing hands (along with much of the Grünewald forest). The two properties changed hands for 40m francs, of which 20m francs were denoted for the castle; this was viewed by the government as an undervaluation (as was the price of the Grünewald), as they had assessed the castle as being worth 22m francs. Berg is now one of two properties covered by similar agreements (the other being the Grand Ducal Palace in Luxembourg City). The right of Grand Dukes to reside at these two residences is enshrined in Article 44 of the Constitution of Luxembourg.
During the Second World War, the castle was occupied by Nazi Germany. During this period, the most valuable works of art were stolen from the castle, and the building itself underwent major alterations to suit the Nazis' purpose of re-educating local girls. After the war, the restoration of the castle took several years, and it was only re-occupied by the Grand Ducal family in 1964, when Grand Duke Jean acceded to the throne. Until then, the Grand Duchess resided in Fischbach Castle, although this was mostly out of preference, rather than necessity.
Births
Three of the past four monarchs of Luxembourg were born at Berg Castle:
Grand Duchess Marie-Adélaïde (born 1894; reigned 1912–19)
Grand Duchess Charlotte (born 1896; reigned 1919–64)
Grand Duke Jean (born 1921; reigned 1964–2000)
Princess Marie Gabriele of Luxembourg (born 1925)
The current Grand Duke, Henri, was born at Betzdorf Castle, in eastern Luxembourg.

Berg Castle

Bettendorf Castle is located in the village of Bettendorf in eastern Luxembourg. While there appears to have been a castle from the 13th century, today's Baroque building dates from 1728 and was restored in 1962. The castle is privately owned and cannot be visited.
History
In 1931, Theodore “Teddy” Bettendorf immigrated to America from Luxembourg. Overlooking the town of Fox River Grove, he began building a castle that took over 36 years of dedication and hard work. As a boy, Teddy learned his masonry skills from watching a historic castle being rebuilt in his hometown of Vianden, Luxembourg. In his building of the castle, he collected stones from such places as local farmers’ fields, stone quarries, and the excavation of Lake Julian. In addition to the castle itself, there is a water-filled moat, a wishing well, a working drawbridge, an outside bathroom and sink, an outdoor fireplace, an observation tower,  and a courtyard. Since its completion, the Bettendorf Castle has been used as a honeymoon suite, for the filming of commercials, various civic events, and as a private residence.
http://www.bettendorfcastle.com/

Bettendorf Castle

The castle is one of the most important buildings in the municipality of Schieren, with cultural and architectural value.
Parts of the castle date back to the 13th century. Built by Gaspard-Florent de Breiderbach, the building was owned for years by the de Blochhausen family, including former Luxembourg prime minister Baron Félix de Blochhausen. He was born at the castle in March 1834 and died there in November 1915.
In the Second World War, the castle was used as a base for US troops. Since then the owners have changed frequently but always within the family, with 1990 members of the de Blochhausen family calling the castle home. It was loaned to a doctor from 1990 to 2002 - since then it has stood empty.
Following the death of the last official proprietor in 2018, a Luxembourg ONG inherited the castle and surrounding land. The government classed it as a national monument in January last year.
https://today.rtl.lu/