Graues Castle

The Grey Castle is a former residential castle, built on the foundations of a medieval moated castle on the banks of the Werra river near Mihla in the Wartburg district in Thuringia. Its structural remains are located at an altitude of 190 meters in the west of the historic village of Mihla, directly on the banks of the Werra and the Lauterbach stream that flows into it here.

In the immediate vicinity of Mihla's St. Martin's Church was a medieval moated castle. It was inhabited by the Lords of Mihla, vassals of the Archbishops of Mainz and the Landgraves of Thuringia.

Conversion to a Castle

At the beginning of the 16th century, the conversion of this castle into a residential castle began by the Lords of Harstall, who were also based in Mihla. Immediately to the east, an extensive manor farm – the so-called White Castle – was built or expanded, of which outbuildings still exist today. As a third castle complex, the Red Castle, also owned by the Harstalls, was located across the Lauterbach stream on the road to Eisenach and Creuzburg.

Storming of the Castle in 1848

During the unrest in March 1848, manor and farm workers in Mihla also rose up to fight for the improvement of their living conditions. On March 13, 1848, the Grey Castle was stormed, and the then manor owner and lord of the court, as well as various village officials and even the Mihla pastor, had to sign prepared declarations of renunciation of taxes and interest burdens. On March 17, military forces requested from Eisenach stormed the occupied castles and the rectory and captured the leaders of the uprising. As a result, the most important outcome was the separation of properties, and at least some of the feudal burdens were abolished. A later amnesty by the state government led to the release of those arrested.