Barbarossaburg Castle

The settlement of the castle grounds dates back to the 6th century BC, as evidenced by Linear Pottery culture finds. A farmstead probably emerged here in the 7th century, mentioned in 830 as the Carolingian Villa Luhtra, and later passed into the possession of the Salian dynasty. A 1.40-meter-thick defensive wall from the 10th century already protected the complex in the late Salian period. Between 1152 and 1158, Emperor Frederick Barbarossa had the palace rebuilt as a royal residence and administrative center. In 1162, he appointed Gotfried von Lutra as administrator. The palace was regularly visited by rulers, including Barbarossa himself and his grandson Emperor Frederick II, who had the complex redesigned in 1215. In 1269, King Richard of England married his bride Beatrix von Valkenburg in the castle's double chapel. After 1305, when 13 nobles were appointed as castlemen, the complex passed to John the Blind in 1322 and to the Electoral Palatinate in 1357. In the 16th century, Count Palatine Johann Casimir had a Renaissance castle built in the immediate vicinity. Both the Imperial Palace and the castle suffered damage in wars in 1635 and 1688. In 1703, French troops blew up the castle.