The Haichenbach hilltop castle is located at an altitude of 450 meters above sea level on the ridge that forms the so-called Schlögener Schlinge on the Danube.
The first documented mention of Haichenbach dates back to 1160. At that time, Otto and Wernher de Eichenbach are mentioned as representatives of the ministerial noble family that derived its name from the castle. In 1273, the castle must have burned down for unknown reasons, as Rueger von Haichenbach documented in Schlägl in 1274 that he allowed the use of his forests in exchange for accommodation in the monastery hospital, during the time Haichenbach was being rebuilt.
After 1529 Haichenbach Castle was abandoned. Since 1984, restoration measures have been undertaken by the Working Committee for Homeland Care Hofkirchen; the castle ruins can now be safely visited.
The Château du Lude is one of the many great châteaux of the Loire Valley in France. Le Lude is the most northerly château of the Loire Valley and one of the last important historic castles in France, still inhabited by the same family for the last 260 years. The château is testimony to four centuries of French architecture, as a stronghold transformed into an elegant house during the Renaissance and the 18th century. The monument is located in the valley of Le Loir. Its gardens have evolved throughout the centuries.