Urach Castle

Urach Castle is located in the town of Bad Urach in the district of Reutlingen, administrative region of Tübingen.

The current castle area consists of the gate tower, the professors' building, the gatekeeper's building, and the actual castle, a rectangular main building with a gabled roof, a west-facing extension with a hip roof, another tower-like rectangular extension, and the large south tower.

Inside the castle is the so-called Golden Hall, one of the most beautiful Renaissance banqueting halls in Germany. It is a flat-ceilinged hall illuminated on three sides. It is divided by columns with Corinthian capitals. The walls and columns are richly gilded. This explains the name of the hall.

As early as the mid-11th century, a moated castle was built in the valley in connection with the construction of Hohenurach Castle. It served as the town residence for the Counts of Urach. Militarily, its task was to monitor and, if necessary, block the valley. In 1264, the castle and its dominion passed to the Counts of Württemberg.

During the division of the country in 1442, Ludwig I of Württemberg chose Urach as his residence. In 1443, the old complex was largely demolished, and the new residential castle was built in its immediate vicinity. In 1474, Eberhard I of Württemberg had the castle extensively modernized on the occasion of his marriage to Barbara Gonzaga of Mantua.

After the reunification of the County of Württemberg in 1482, Urach lost its significance as a seat of government. The castle was subsequently used only as an alternative quarter or for festivities.

In 1546, the castle was occupied by Spanish troops of the Duke of Alba during the Schmalkaldic War and in 1634 by imperial troops during the Thirty Years' War.

In 1663/64, extensive renovation work was carried out under Duke Eberhard III of Württemberg. In 1790, the remains of the old moated castle were finally removed. The existing buildings, fundamentally renovated in 1960, date from the period after 1443.