Hohengeroldseck Castle

Around 1260, the hilltop castle was built by Walther von Geroldseck on the Schönberg. Following the division of the land in 1277, it became the center of the “Upper Lordship” of Hohengeroldseck, which existed until the end of Geroldseck rule in 1634. This territory included Lahr, Mahlberg, Schiltach, and the monasteries of Schuttern and Ettenheimmünster. In 1442, Margrave Jakob I of Baden acquired half of the Lordship of Lahr and Mahlberg for 30,000 guilders. In 1486, the castle fell to the Electoral Palatinate after Count Palatine Philipp conquered it, remaining under their control until 1534. At the end of the 16th century, specifically in 1599, the Geroldsecks relocated their main residence to the converted Dautenstein Castle in Seelbach. In January 1689, the castle was destroyed by French troops during the Nine Years' War. Since 1697, the ruin has belonged to the House of von der Leyen.