Entenstein Castle () is a medieval castle surrounded by a moat situated in the center of the town of

Schliengen Schliengen is a municipality in southwestern Germany in the state of Baden-Württemberg, in the ''Districts of Germany, Kreis'' (district) of Lörrach (district), Lörrach. Schliengen's claim to international fame is the Battle of Schliengen (24 ...

. Schliengen is located in the district of

Lörrach Lörrach () is a city in southwest Germany, in the valley of the Wiese, close to the French and the Swiss borders. It is the district seat of the district of Lörrach in Baden-Württemberg. It is the home of a number of large employers, inclu ...

Baden-Württemberg Baden-Württemberg ( ; ), commonly shortened to BW or BaWü, is a states of Germany, German state () in Southwest Germany, east of the Rhine, which forms the southern part of Germany's western border with France. With more than 11.07 million i ...

, in the very south-west of

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

in the proximity of the Black Forrest. The origins of the castle can not be clearly dated. The first use of a building at this location can be traced to Walter of Schliengen in 821. By 1000 a

tower house A tower house is a particular type of stone structure, built for defensive purposes as well as habitation. Tower houses began to appear in the Middle Ages, especially in mountainous or limited access areas, to command and defend strategic points ...

might have been in use. In the 13th century, Rudolf von Üsenberg (1207-1231) was the owner of the castle. The name of the castle derives from the German words "Ente" and "Stein", which means duck and stone. By 1525, Entenstein belonged to the nobles of Nagel von der Alten Schönstein and was thus transformed to a more representative manor house. In 1725 Johann Conrad of Reinach-Hirtzbach, then

Prince Bishop A prince-bishop is a bishop who is also the civil ruler of some secular principality and sovereignty, as opposed to ''Prince of the Church'' itself, a title associated with cardinals. Since 1951, the sole extant prince-bishop has been the Bis ...

Basel Basel ( ; ), also known as Basle ( ), ; ; ; . is a city in northwestern Switzerland on the river Rhine (at the transition from the High Rhine, High to the Upper Rhine). Basel is Switzerland's List of cities in Switzerland, third-most-populo ...

, bought Entenstein castle and used it as the seat of the Upper Bailiwick of Schliengen. In 1805, Entenstein Castle became a district site of the

Grand Duchy of Baden The Grand Duchy of Baden () was a German polity on the east bank of the Rhine. It originally existed as a sovereign state from 1806 to 1871 and later as part of the German Empire until 1918. The duchy's 12th-century origins were as a Margravia ...

. After 1857 Entenstein Castle which was then in the possession of the counts of Andlau, an old German noble house, was reconstructed. In 1970 Entenstein Castle was purchased by the Community of Schliengen and renovated thereafter. Since 1975 it has functioned as city hall of the community of Schliengen.

References

{{Authority control Water castles in Germany City and town halls in Germany