In the Swabian Jura region of southern Germany, there is a privately held G

Heritage Places, Castles & Architecture

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10-Nov-2025 11 pm

In the Swabian Jura region of southern Germany, there is a privately held Gothic Revival castle called Lichtenstein Castle. Its moniker, shining stone or bright stone, refers to its Carl Alexander Heideloff-designed aesthetic. The castle has a view of the Echaz valley, which is close to Honau in Reutlingen, Baden-Württemberg. The 1840–1842 construction of the present castle was motivated by the 1826 novel Lichtenstein by Wilhelm Hauff. A couple of hundred metres away are the remnants of an older mediaeval fortress. On the cliff above the origin of the river Echaz, a fortress that belonged to a family of ministerial of the counts of Achalm and afterwards the counts of Württemberg was built starting approximately 1100 A.D. Due to their hostility toward the Free Imperial City of Reutlingen, the castle and the lords of Lichtenstein who lived there were frequently attacked. The original castle was demolished twice: initially during the 1311 A.D. imperial civil war and once between 1377 and 1381 A.D. by Reutlingen residents. A second castle was erected around 1390, about 500 metres from the remnants of the old one. The location chosen was the same as for the existing building. it was One of the finest defences of the Late Middle Ages. The castle lost its status as the ducal seat in 1567 A.D. and fell into decay despite characteristics like early casemates that rendered it virtually impenetrable. After the death of the very last descendant of the Lichtenstein family in 1687 during the Great Turkish War, it was seized by the Tyrolean line of the Habsburgs during the Thirty Years War period i.e. 1618– 1648 A.D. The Hallway of the castle still houses the coat of arms of the family, which is a pair of golden angel wings on a blue backdrop. The castle was taken over by King Frederick I of Württemberg in 1802, who levelled it down to its very foundations and built a hunting lodge in its place. Johann Georg Rupp oversaw the construction of the New Lichtenstein Castle, which got under way in 1840. With a curtain wall and courtyard to complete the castle complex, this building, whose design was profoundly affected by Count Wilhelm, stood up to three stories tall on the 1390 underpinnings of the ancient castle. In 1857, a barbican and a sizable outer bailey with corner bastions and towers were built. When the castle was finished in 1842, the king was present for its dedication. It was the official residence of the Dukes of Urach starting in 1869. #History #Architecture #Castles

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