Germany · Restored
Katzenstein Castle
Katzenstein Castle is a hilltop medieval castle in the Dischingen borough of Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is one of the older Hohenstaufen-era castles and today is open to visitors and used in part for hospitality (dining and guest rooms).
First raised
1099
Its prime
1250
Today
Restored
As it stood in 1250
The shape it held in its prime.
Compact hilltop castle set above a small valley, dominated by a tall, square stone bergfried (keep) that rises noticeably above the surrounding buildings. A long rectangular residential block with steep red-tiled roofs and regularly spaced dormer windows abuts the keep; a lower outer curtain wall and an elongated service wing with small slit windows extend along the crest. Walls are pale grey stone; the complex sits on a grassy, tree-scattered slope above village roofs.
Its story
The story of Katzenstein Castle.
The Lords von Cassenstein are first mentioned in 1099 — a ministerial, unfree knightly family in the service of the Count von Dillingen — and Katzenstein counts among the oldest remaining Hohenstaufen castles in Germany. In 1262 the Edlen von Hürnheim were listed as owners of the castle, when it was sold by Hermann von Hürnheim-Katzenstein.
Ownership changed again in 1354, when the Count von Oettingen acquired the castle; the inheritance of the Westerstetten family was later sold back to the von Oettingen family. Privately owned since 1939, the hilltop castle in the Dischingen municipality of Baden-Württemberg is open to visitors and contains several dining rooms as well as hotel rooms.
Step inside
7 places to explore in 1250.
The record describes 7 distinct spots at Katzenstein Castle — including 2 interiors: dining rooms / great hall, st laurentius chapel (frescoed). Create your own photoreal reconstruction and walk through every one — more scenes means more photos, more angles and more rooms of the immersive experience.
Create History
Recreate Katzenstein Castle with AI to explore it.
The artist rebuilds it as it stood in 1250 — a photoreal walk that belongs to you alone. Pay with coins, no subscription needed.
Recreate Castle to Explore →Whose castle
Clans who held Katzenstein Castle.
The families that held Katzenstein Castle for a decade or more across its history — follow a name to its clan.
Cassenstein
The Lords von Cassenstein, ministeriales in the service of the Count von Dillingen, are first mentioned in 1099.
Hürnheim
The Edlen von Hürnheim were listed as owners in 1262, when Hermann von Hürnheim-Katzenstein sold the castle; held until 1354.
Oettingen
Acquired by the Count von Oettingen in 1354; the Westerstetten inheritance was later sold back to the von Oettingen family.
