Nordenau Castle (Ruin)

Around 1200, the noble lords of Grafschaft erected this castle on the Heidenstraße, which connected Cologne with Kassel. They moved their ancestral seat to Nordenau but, as hereditary bailiffs, retained authority over the area around Grafschaft Abbey. In 1298, the brothers Kraft and Widekind von Grafschaft sold the castle to Count Otto von Waldeck but received it back as a fief. This marked the beginning of a partial Waldeck rule. Financial difficulties of the Grafschafter led to conflicts, and in 1343, a long dispute began between Cologne and Waldeck, which included sieges of the castle. In 1364, an agreement was reached, and the castle became the joint property of the Archbishop of Cologne and the Count of Waldeck.