Leuchtenburg Castle, Vadena, Italy

Leuchtenburg Castle (Castelchiaro) above Lake Caldaro towers into the sky in the surroundings of Castel Varco in the locality of Vadena. The castle was probably constructed in 1250 by the Lords of Rottenburg. The castle complex has been protected by a circular wall which protected the castle complex from assaults. Due to the fact that the position of the castle is not really well-protected it has presumably been constructed in order to impress.

Numerous castles of the Rottenburg leadership have been razed after the conflicts with Frederick IV, Duke of Austria, in 1410, but not Leuchtenburg, which was handed over to the sovereigns and in the following years was lent to officials of Caldaro. After 1610 Leuchtenburg remained uninhabited and started decaying.

Only in the 20th century the walls of the ruins were conserved. Leuchtenburg consists of a circular wall inside which there were several residential buildings. However, today these buildings could only be preserved to some extend. However, there are also well-preserved rests of the great hall with frescos dating back to the 15th century.

References:

suedtirolerland.it

User Reviews

David Zdeněk (2 years ago)
Wonderful and quiet place. Great hike and views, especially in winter

Sebastian Schultz (2 years ago)
The walk and the view are great, but you NEED to bring anti mosquito spray or long clothes. Went up there on 1st of July 2023 and there were literally swarms of these beasts. But totally worth it if you are prepared.

Siu Long (2 years ago)
Interesting ruins of and ancient castle. The path that gets you to the top of the hill it's not too difficult to climb but you definitely need mountain boots to do this safely. The walk takes about 30 minutes from the car park at the side of the road (It isn't really easy to spot it while driving).

Michael Georg Wittmann (3 years ago)
A good 30-minute walk from Lake Caldaro, east side, over a partly steep and rocky forest path. The ruin is, well.. a ruin. You can get inside via a small ladder and get an impression of the premises. There are traces of a wall painting, remains of the supporting beams of the false ceilings. The outer walls are largely preserved, as are some inner walls. The roof and any false ceilings are long gone. A must for ruin hunters staying in the region. The history of the castle can be read in many places.

Josef Lageder (4 years ago)
Beautiful ruin, very easy to get to.

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Photo from Flickr, copyright Zvonimir Hrvoj

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