Castle Badenburg, Medieval castle in Gießen, Germany

Badenburg is a lowland castle on the bank of the Lahn, just above the river's rapids, in the Wieseck district of Gießen. It began as a small fortified storehouse and refuge, and its buildings now house the Badenburg Ritterkeller tavern. The car-free riverside path past the castle is a popular shortcut on the Lahntal cycle route.

Around 1356 Johann von Weitershausen genannt von Bleichenbach rebuilt the Badenburg on the Lahn as a lowland castle. From 1356/58 he held the residence am Rain am Badenberg as a joint fief of Hesse and Nassau. After destruction in the Thirty Years' War the castle decayed and from 1760 served as an inn.

The name Badenburg comes from the lords of Badenburg, who from the 14th century controlled a riverside path between Lollar and Gießen. From 1760 the castle housed a well-known inn frequented by Gießen students; Georg Büchner and republican revolutionaries, including Friedrich Ludwig Weidig and Karl Minnigerode, met here in 1834, leading to the Press Society. Today the building houses the Badenburg Ritterkeller restaurant.

The castle stands on the bank of the Lahn just above the rapids, and the riverside path that once linked Lollar and Gießen is closed to cars but open to walkers and cyclists; the unpaved stretch is a popular shortcut on the Lahntal cycle route. The site now houses the Badenburg Ritterkeller restaurant.

The Badenburg is a lowland castle on the bank of the Lahn, not a hilltop fortress. From the 14th century its lords controlled a riverside path that remained the main link between Lollar and Gießen until the 19th century; today this car-free route is a popular shortcut on the Lahn Valley Cycle Path.