Dautenstein Castle, Medieval castle in Seelbach, Germany.

Dautenstein Castle is a former water castle near Seelbach in the Ortenaukreis. The original Staufer-period lowland castle had a rectangular plan with four round corner towers, but the current complex dates from a 19th-century rebuild and occupies only part of the former site.

A Staufer-period Tiefburg with a rectangular plan and four round corner towers, probably built around 1235 by the Reichsministerialen von Dautenstein and forming a fortress line with Schwanau and Lahr. Destroyed in the Peasants' War, it was bought in 1584 by Jakob von Hohengeroldseck and rebuilt until 1599 as a Late Renaissance residence. Jakob died childless in 1634; two years later Graf von Gallas burned it down, and it stayed a ruin for decades until Philipp Carl Schmidt acquired and rebuilt it in 1812.

The castle serves as a local landmark that attracts visitors interested in medieval architecture and preservation efforts. Its location provides hikers with a good starting point to explore the countryside around Seelbach.

The site sits on elevated ground and is accessible on foot, with paths around the castle grounds being easy to traverse. Visitors should wear comfortable shoes as the terrain is hilly and there is no direct access to the interior of the building.

The castle's name appears in four spellings: Dautenstein, Tutenstein, Duttenstein and Dutenstein. In 2005 the Badische Heimat association named it a "Kulturerbe des Landes" (cultural heritage of the state). The present complex, privately owned, dates from a 19th-century rebuild and covers only part of the original site.