Eller Castle

The origins of Eller Castle date back to the Middle Ages, when Eller Castle was first documented in 1309 as "castrum Elnere." The Lords of Elnere, a knightly family, had been known since 1151 and owned land in the region. After disputes over territorial sovereignty, the castle was conquered in 1424 by Duke Adolf of Jülich-Berg. In 1448, the Lords of Eller sold their ancestral seat to Knight Adolf von Quade, who expanded the complex into a moated castle by 1469. After the Quade line died out in 1599 and a legal dispute, ownership passed to Johann von Harff in 1621. In 1710, Baron Josef Clemens von Weichs exchanged the castle with Elector Johann Wilhelm for Haus Schönforst. The complex subsequently fell into disrepair and became Prussian property in 1815. In 1823, Baron Carl von Plessen acquired the castle and had it demolished to erect the present-day neoclassical castle building by 1826.