The Willenburg, also called the ''Schlössle'', is a

ruined Ruins () are the remains of a civilization's architecture. The term refers to formerly intact structures that have fallen into a state of partial or total disrepair over time due to a variety of factors, such as lack of maintenance, deliberate ...

hill castle A hill castle or mountain castle is a castle built on a natural feature that stands above the surrounding terrain. It is a term derived from the German ''Höhenburg'' used in categorising castle sites by their topographical location. Hill castles a ...

near

Schiltach Schiltach is a town in the district of Rottweil, in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is situated in the eastern Black Forest, on the river Kinzig, 20 km south of Freudenstadt. Geography Schiltach lies on the eastern side of the Black Forest ...

in the county of

Rottweil Rottweil (; Alemannic: ''Rautweil'') is a town in southwest Germany in the state of Baden-Württemberg. Rottweil was a free imperial city for nearly 600 years. Located between the Black Forest and the Swabian Alps, Rottweil has over 25,000 ...

in the German state of

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 ...

Location

The castle lies around 2 kilometres outside Schiltach at above the old pass road to

, the so-called '' Schiltacher Steige'', in the direction of

Aichhalden Aichhalden is a municipality in the district of Rottweil, in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. Geography Geographical location Aichhalden is located in the east of the Black Forest. It's around 640 to 720 meters above sea level. It borders on S ...

in the

Black Forest The Black Forest ( ) is a large forested mountain range in the States of Germany, state of Baden-Württemberg in southwest Germany, bounded by the Rhine Valley to the west and south and close to the borders with France and Switzerland. It is th ...

History

The ruin is the remnant of a

high medieval The High Middle Ages, or High Medieval Period, was the periodization, period of European history between and ; it was preceded by the Early Middle Ages and followed by the Late Middle Ages, which ended according to historiographical convention ...

castle that had been forgotten, but was rediscovered in 1959 by the

Friends of Nature Friends of Nature (international abbreviation: NFI, for German: Naturfreunde International) is a non-profit organisation with a background in the social democratic movement, which aims to make the enjoyment of nature accessible to the wider commu ...

from Schiltach following speculation of its existence. It was probably built around 1100, its owners initially being either the first

dukes of Teck Duke of Teck () is a title which was created twice in Germanic lands. It was first borne from 1187 to 1439 by the head of a cadet line of the German ducal House of Zähringen, known as the "first House of Teck". The seat of this territory was Cas ...

, who were a side line of the House of Zähringen, or even the dukes of Zähringen, themselves. Willenburg Backofen

The Willenburg was built to cater for travellers. Road tolls were raised here as the old transport route over to Rottweil was monitored here. So the Willenburg may also be seen as the predecessor to the castle and town of Schiltach, which took on these functions in 1250. A town with its associated castle was able to carry out these tasks more effectively. From that time the Willenburg fell into decay. So in the

Late Middle Ages The late Middle Ages or late medieval period was the Periodization, period of History of Europe, European history lasting from 1300 to 1500 AD. The late Middle Ages followed the High Middle Ages and preceded the onset of the early modern period ( ...

it was already being referred to as the Willenburg ''

Burgstall A ''burgstall'' is a German term referring to a castle of which so little is left that its appearance cannot effectively be reconstructed.

'', which indicates a lost or levelled castle.

Description

During excavations between 1959 and 1970 the foundations and wall sections of a castle were uncovered whose dimensions were 36 by 20 metres. Pieces of pottery were also found that enabled the castle to be dated. Today the wall remains, ramparts and a 30.3-metre-deep

castle well A castle well was a water well built to supply drinking water to a castle. It was often the most costly and time-consuming element in the building of a castle, and its construction time could span decades. The well – as well as any available ci ...

are visible. The ''Museum am Markt'' in Schiltach has an exhibition about the excavations on the Willenburg.

Literature

* Friedrich-Wilhelm Krahe: ''Burgen des deutschen Mittelalters – Grundriss-Lexikon''. Sonderausgabe, Flechsig Verlag, Würzburg 2000, , p. 670; {{Authority control