Hohenecken Castle Ruins, Kaiserslautern, Germany

The exact date of the foundation of the Hohenecken castle is unknown. Whilst older sources often plump for a construction date immediately following the building of the Barbarossaburg in Kaiserslautern in 1156, more recent sources tend to lean towards a date about 50 years later. The pentagonal bergfried and the massive shield wall in particular point to a construction date of around 1200.

In the first half of the 13th century the castle was enfeoffed to a Kaiserslautern family of ministeriales, the descendants of Reinhard of Lautern, the knight. In 1214, they were awarded the right of patronage of Ramstein by the king, Frederick II, who would later become emperor. From then on the castle's owners called themselves von Hohenecken. A barony belonged to the castle, which covered several villages. Castle and barony were an imperial fief for centuries.

At the beginning of the early modern period, Hohenecken Castle went into decline. In the German Peasants' War of 1525 it was captured by rebellious peasants. In 1668 there was a lengthy siege by Prince-Elector Charles Louis of the Palatinate, which ended in the partial destruction of the castle. In 1689, during the War of the Palatine Succession, the castle was blown up by French troops.

Including the outer ward, moat, upper and lower wards, the castle measures about 50 by 9 metres in area. It has a mighty shield wall (25 m wide, 11 m high) and a pentagonal bergfried. The castle is considered by experts to be one of the best examples of castles from the Hohenstaufen period. Today it is a popular attraction and offers extensive views.

References:

Wikipedia

User Reviews

Alyssa K (3 years ago)
Nice walk and easy to find. Nice trails in the area to go with your dog. Easy parking.

LadyJ Nelms (3 years ago)
Great place hike or bike lovers the hills. Beautiful view. Some people took their blankets and lunch up. The winds were very strong, not sure if that's a norm for the altitude. I suggest protecting contact lens if you were them.

Hailey Smart (3 years ago)
Great castle for a hike. Easy to get to with multiple trails to explore. Even brought the fur babies to explore

Calin Tackett (4 years ago)
Park nearby and make the small hike to the beautiful castle ruins. Pack a lunch and eat at the picnic tables and enjoy the view! Not stroller friendly but an easy hike for kids, we brought our 18 month old and loved it!

KC Mitch (4 years ago)
Great castle for a hike. Has a lot of character and nooks to look at. Great area for a hike up hills. Had a blast exploring. Got here early with cloud cover and made for an awesome experience.

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Hohenecken Castle Ruins

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