Stickhausen Castle

The origins of Stickhausen Castle date back to around 1435, when the Hanseatic city of Hamburg had it built to protect its western trade routes. In 1453, the Hamburgers pledged the castle to chieftain Ulrich I, who expanded it as a replacement for the older border fortress Schlüsselburg in Detern. Around 1498, Count Edzard I had the still-preserved round tower built. During the Saxon Feud, the castle was conquered by a coalition of princes and occupied for three years. Countess Anna strengthened the complex in 1558 with a gun platform, the so-called Dwenger, using stones from Barthe Monastery and Uplengen Castle. Count Johann II continued construction and died at the castle in 1591. During the Thirty Years' War, Stickhausen was repeatedly contested: From 1622 to 1624, troops of Ernst von Mansfeld occupied the castle and reinforced it with outer works.