Strahlenburg Castle

The Strahlenburg, also known as Strahlenberg Castle, is the ruin of a hilltop castle in Schriesheim in the Rhein-Neckar-Kreis in Baden-Württemberg. The castle ruin is privately owned.

The ruin, with a castle restaurant, is located on a flank of the Ölberg, which is also called Schriesheimer Schlossberg. The town is directly below. From the castle, a large part of the Rhine plain with towns located on the Neckar and Rhine can be overlooked; in good weather, the view extends to the Palatinate Forest and in very good visibility even to the Donnersberg. The valley of the Kanzelbach, which originates in Altenbach, cuts into the Odenwald on the side of the Ölberg.

Conrad I von Strahlenberg began construction of the Strahlenburg around 1235 as the ancestral seat of the Strahlenbergers. In 1240, he is first mentioned in documents as Vogt of Schriesheim. Due to the ownership structure, the castle was a fief of Ellwangen Abbey. The originally 30-meter-high keep and the inner part of the complex date from this period. The palas was probably not built until the 14th century.

In 1329, payment difficulties prompted Rennewart von Strahlenberg to pledge the castle and the village to Hartmut von Cronberg. Until his death in 1338, Hartmut initiated extensive renovation and expansion measures. In 1346, a purchase agreement was concluded between Mainz and a son of the Kronbergers, but it was not executed because Rennewart von Strahlenberg was able to raise the money for redemption. Already in 1347, he sold the castle to Ruprecht the Elder. In 1468, the Veldenzers under Ludwig von Veldenz gained possession.

When exactly the Strahlenburg was destroyed has not yet been definitively clarified scientifically. Two historical events are used as explanations.

From May 6, 1470, Vogt Simon von Balshofen of Heidelberg Elector Friedrich I besieged the castle. The cause of this was a feud between Ludwig von Veldenz and the Elector, which arose due to the Weissenburg Feud between the Elector and Emperor Friedrich III. After eight days of siege, the Strahlenburg was captured. The garrison, 19 nobles and 30 footmen, were taken prisoner; 16 defenders, because they were Palatinate, were drowned in the Kanzelbach. The castle was set on fire by the victors and the fortifications were torn down. Thereupon, Schriesheim lost its town rights.

The period around 1500 is considered a second possible time of destruction. The castle was possibly set on fire by Hessian troops during the Landshut War of Succession. These troops moved through the region in 1504, devastating towns and villages.

In 1733, the demolition of the ruin began when the use of the castle stones for the construction of vineyard walls was officially approved. The Counts of Oberndorff became hereditary tenants in 1784 and owners of the ruin in 1828. They secured the visible remains against further decay.