Friedrichsberg Castle

Friedrichsberg Castle is a former hunting lodge located in the municipality of Abtswind in the Lower Franconian district of Kitzingen. It was built at an altitude of 463 meters on the ridge of Friedrichsberg in the Steigerwald forest.

Originally, the forest around the castle was called "Am Mönchsberg" and was for a long time the property of the Cistercian monastery of Ebrach in the Steigerwald. Count Johann Friedrich exchanged the building site for several vineyards and some tree fields. The castle was built in the 18th century near the village of Abtswind on a hill of the Steigerwald escarpment, the builder was Count Johann Friedrich zu Castell-Rüdenhausen, and the Steigerwald hill has since borne the name Friedrichsberg. The building was erected in 1735 in the Baroque style. After the old line of Rüdenhausen died out, the new line of Castell-Rüdenhausen received the castle. It is still occasionally inhabited by the family. In the 20th century, further buildings were constructed around the castle, including a forester's house and a former excursion restaurant, which is no longer in use, as well as a viewing platform. The castle is listed as a monument by the Bavarian State Office for Monument Protection.