Ruins of Freudenburg Castle

At the end of a long rocky promontory, the triangular castle sits beyond the associated medieval town of Freudenburg. On a narrow strip some 50 m long, it was built in 1337 by John the Blind, Count of Luxembourg and King of Bohemia. It was part of a system of fortifications that protected the frontier of his territory. In 1346 the agricultural settlement (Ackerbürgerort) that belonged to it was described as a “town”.

The town was fortified with walls and towers, and acted as a kind of outer bailey. From it the path from the north-west led over a bridge to the castle gate. 16 m and impressively wide, the ditch was cut into the bedrock. Directly behind the gate was a gatehouse to the left and the palas (great hall), with three rooms on the ground floor and the hall above. On the right of the gate the round tower of the keep secured access and the weakest side of the castle.

After frequently changing hands between the Counts of Luxembourg and the Bishops of Trier, in 1589 the Abbey of St Maximin in Trier acquired the castle and rebuilt it, together with a new palas. Only a few years later, in 1646, the castle was finally destroyed by the Bishop of Trier in a conflict with St Maximin.

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Moselsteig-Seitensprung "König-Johann-Runde"

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