Eselsburg Castle

Eselsburg Castle was built around 1200 as the ancestral seat of a ministerial family who served the Counts of Dillingen. Documentary mentions from 1244 onwards attest to the presence of figures such as Gerwig von Eselsburg. The castle changed hands several times, including Rudolf von Eselsburg, who served Count Ulrich II von Helfenstein in 1270. After being sold by the Eselsburg family in 1343, the complex came into the possession of Wilhelm von Riedheim in 1385. Heinrich von Bopfingen acquired the lordship in 1414, which was elevated to an imperial fief around 1441. In 1444, Rudolf von Bopfingen sold his half of the castle to Heinrich Krafft from Ulm, who acquired the other half a year later. In 1453, the emperor released the fortress from his feudal sovereignty. The castle was burned down in 1462 during the Imperial War against the Duchy of Bavaria.