Albeck Castle

Albeck Castle is located within the historic center of Albeck, a district of Langenau in the Alb-Donau-Kreis in Baden-Württemberg. It stands in a commanding position on the southern edge of the Flöz valley north of Ulm.

Presumably between 1081 and 1100, Duke Friedrich I of Swabia built Albeck Castle to secure the border area with Ulm, which at that time was owned by the Welfs. Relatives Berangar and Adalbert von Stubersheim were enfeoffed. It is documented that Berangar called himself "von Albeck" from 1107/1108. As an inheritance, the castle and lordship passed to Margrave Heinrich von Burgau in 1245 and to Count Rudolf von Werdenberg-Sargans in 1289. Around 1300, extensive expansion measures were carried out on the complex. Additionally, the hamlet was walled. In the War of the Cities, Ulm conquered the castle in 1387. Count Konrad von Werdenberg sold it to Ulm in 1383 for 6830 gold guilders.

During the Princes' Revolt in 1552, Albeck was subjected to a "Brandschatzung" (extortion of protection money) of 10,000 guilders by the Margrave of Brandenburg because the castle's garrison did not surrender. In the Thirty Years' War, imperial troops occupied the castle on July 17, 1635, after a siege, unlike the village of Albeck, undamaged. In the 17th century, extensive new construction and repair measures were carried out. The castle and village were destroyed - after two unsuccessful attempts in July 1704 - by Bavarian and French troops during the War of the Spanish Succession. Already in 1712, partial reconstruction as a castle took place under the responsibility of master builder Heinrich Hacker, to serve as an official residence from then on. In the years 1787/1877, the castle bridge was rebuilt and the cattle shed was demolished. From 1802 to 1810, the castle was the seat of a Bavarian district court and rent office. The court servant's house with prison cells in the southern corner tower was built in 1805. After passing to Württemberg, the castle was the seat of a senior official from 1810 to 1819. After 1819, it became a Württemberg forestry office and was sold into private ownership in 1841. Around 1900, it was converted into a country estate, and the southern corner tower was raised and plastered. The southern part of the castle was bought by Württemberg in 1934 and finally sold again to private owners in 1956. From 1966 to 1969, extensive renovation measures were carried out. Today, the castle serves as a residential building, and parts of the premises are rented out.