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Wildenstein Castle today

Germany · Still standing

Wildenstein Castle

Burg Wildenstein

Burg Wildenstein is a fortified spur castle sited on a limestone cliff above the Danube breakthrough in the Swabian Alb near Leibertingen, Baden-Württemberg. Built in the High Middle Ages, the castle today houses a youth hostel and retains its compact cluster of defensive ranges and curtain walls.

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Photograph via Wikimedia Commons

Its prime

1250

Today

Still standing

As it stood in 1250

What Wildenstein Castle looked like in its prime.

Perched on a sheer limestone spur above a wooded Danube valley, the castle is a compact group of white‑washed stone ranges and a continuous curtain wall hugging the cliff edge. Steep red clay tile roofs form a stepped gabled roofline with dormers; one small polygonal/stair turret with a conical roof projects above the wall. The complex opens onto an enclosed cobbled courtyard; the outer faces of the walls rise directly from the rock with a battlement/parapet walk at the top.

Its story

The story of Wildenstein Castle.

Burg Wildenstein is a fortified spur castle built between 1200 and 1300, set on a limestone cliff above the Danube breakthrough in the Swabian Alb near Leibertingen, Baden-Württemberg.

The castle survives intact, a compact cluster of defensive ranges and curtain walls, and now functions as a hostel of the German Youth Hostel Association, the Deutsches Jugendherbergswerk.

Step inside

6 places to explore in 1250.

The record describes 6 distinct spots at Wildenstein Castle, including 1 interior: main building interior with the sigenot wall painting. Create your own photoreal reconstruction and explore every one, more scenes means more rooms, more angles, and more of the place to stand in.

Framed approach from the forested valleyView from the foot of the limestone cragOuter gate and entrance rangeBattlement walk along the curtain wallCentral cobbled courtyardMain building interior with the Sigenot wall painting

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Castle Siege

Play Castle Siege at Wildenstein Castle.

A strategy game played on Wildenstein Castle’s real ground plan: the same surveyed walls shown in the archive below. Post your finite garrison on the battlements between assaults, then hold out as rams, siege towers, trebuchets and sappers arrive in ever-worse waves.

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From the archive

Wildenstein Castle on paper: the measured plan and period views.

The survey plan and photographs below are the ground truth this page's reconstructions are checked against, drawn and photographed while the castle was still a working garrison. Every image is public-domain or openly licensed, with its source named.

Leisnig. Schloss Wildenstein, Wildenstein Castle

Leisnig. Schloss Wildenstein

· Deutsche Fotothek (via Europeana)

Public domain

Leisnig. Schloss Wildenstein, Wildenstein Castle

Leisnig. Schloss Wildenstein

· Deutsche Fotothek (via Europeana)

Public domain

Leisnig. Schloss Wildenstein und Schlossberg, Wildenstein Castle

Leisnig. Schloss Wildenstein und Schlossberg

· Deutsche Fotothek (via Europeana)

Public domain

Questions about Wildenstein Castle

What is the history of Wildenstein Castle?

Wildenstein Castle was built in the 13th century as a fortified spur castle on a limestone cliff above the Danube breakthrough. In the 16th century, Gottfried Werner von Zimmern converted it into an early modern fortress, adding Renaissance decoration to the residential buildings. It later passed to the Fürstenberg family, was used chiefly as a prison, and was renovated between 1804 and 1806 after a period of decline.

What is inside Wildenstein Castle?

Inside Wildenstein Castle are Renaissance wall paintings from 1538 to 1540, including large paintings with floral scrolls and bird motifs. A picture cycle presents the entire Sigenot saga, and the main building contains the Sigenot wall painting. The main and outer castles stand on artificially steepened rocks and are reached by bridges.

Does anyone live at Wildenstein Castle now?

Wildenstein Castle is now used as a hostel by the German Youth Hostel Association. It is not described as a private home or current residence, while its present hostel use is explicitly stated.

Where is Wildenstein Castle?

Wildenstein Castle is in the Swabian Alb above the Danube breakthrough, near Leibertingen in Baden-Württemberg. It stands on a steeply falling rock a few kilometres downstream from Beuron, about 200 metres above the Danube.

When was Wildenstein Castle built?

Wildenstein Castle was built between 1200 and 1300, so it belongs to the 13th-century building period. Ceramic finds indicate that the castle at its present location arose in the 13th century, although the site's first-raised year is not recorded.

Was Wildenstein Castle ever attacked or besieged?

Wildenstein Castle was attacked during the Werdenberg feud and captured in 1642 by troops from Hohentwiel after an infiltration, although Bavarian troops later repelled storm attacks. A siege then led to an honourable capitulation, and on 4 September 1642 the fortress came under Bavarian control, remaining in Bavarian hands until 1649. Earlier, Werdenberg troops had entered the first gate through the gatekeeper's betrayal but were thrown back.

What did Wildenstein Castle look like in its prime?

In its prime, Wildenstein Castle was a compact group of white-washed stone ranges enclosed by a continuous curtain wall along a sheer limestone spur. Steep red clay-tile roofs create a stepped, gabled roofline with dormers, while a small polygonal stair turret with a conical roof rises above the wall. The enclosed courtyard is cobbled, and the outer walls rise directly from the rock.

Is Wildenstein Castle still standing or is it a ruin?

Wildenstein Castle is still standing and is described as intact. Its exterior remains almost unchanged from the condition reached in 1554, after the rebuilding begun in 1514, although the castle suffered damage from a 1911 earthquake and earlier fires and lightning strikes.

Can you visit Wildenstein Castle?

Wildenstein Castle can be visited as a youth hostel, but the supplied material does not establish general public access. It is operated as a hostel by the German Youth Hostel Association, and no opening information is provided.

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