Krenkinger Castle

Krenkingen Castle, also known as Krenkinger Schlössle, is a castle in Engen in the Baden-Württemberg district of Konstanz. It is located in the south of Engen's old town.

The first written mention is found in a 15th-century Hewener Urbar, which speaks of a "schloß Krenkingen" located near Engen. It is possible that a High Medieval predecessor building already stood on this site. Little is known about the early owners of the castle and a possible connection to the Lords of Krenkingen, who were based in Klettgau. Around 1494, Engen and thus also the castle fell to Heinrich V von Lupfen. Heraldic stones document extensive renovations between 1536 and 1555, during which, among other things, the stair tower was added and the south wing was raised. During the Thirty Years' War, the castle was set on fire in 1640 by Swedish and Hohentwiel soldiers, after which the north wing was rebuilt somewhat lower. On May 3, 1800, French troops plundered and devastated the castle, which was probably already in disrepair at that time. From 1814 onwards, there were plans to set up official rooms and prison cells in the castle. In the 1820s, the castle was the official residence of the princely Fürstenberg chief bailiff Carl Friedrich Eckhard, father of the later entrepreneur and politician Carl Eckhard, who was born in the castle in 1822. After being sold by the Lords of Fürstenberg in 1829, the castle served as a warehouse and summer inn for an innkeeper. In 1891, it was acquired by the Baden state, which had grand ducal offices set up here in the following two years. In recent years, the building housed the police station and a notary's office; after extensive renovation in 2001, it now houses the forestry office.