Marquardt II von Grumbach, Vogt of Neustadt Abbey built a 'hunting lodge' on the hill where the Rothenfels castle stands today. Around 1200 the castle was rebuilt and the bergfried made form large bunter blocks on a square plan added. Construction of the new castle wall also started with large blocks but was finished with quarrystone.
In the 16th and early 17th century Rothenfels faced hardships, e.g. during the German Peasants War (1525) when the insurgents occupied and burned the castle. The Thirty Years' War brought another period of destruction: the castle was repeatedly occupied by passing armies and sacked.
Today Rothenfels Castle is associated with the Catholic youth movement 'Quickborn', and serves as a Christian education and conference centre. The castle is also a German Youth Hostel Association (DJH) youth hostel.
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.