Veldenz Palace, Medieval castle ruins near Veldenz, Germany.

Veldenz Palace is a castle ruin set on a wooded hilltop in Rhineland-Palatinate, near the village of Veldenz and the Moselle valley. The remaining walls, towers, and foundations spread across the summit and trace the outline of what was once a large medieval fortress.

The castle was founded in the 12th century by the Veldenz family, who controlled the surrounding territory in the Moselle valley. After their line died out, ownership changed several times, and the fortress gradually lost its role before being abandoned in the 17th century.

The name Veldenz comes from the Counts of Veldenz, who held the castle as a fief from the 12th century and made it the centre of their county. The German term Schloss in the name is misleading: the site is a ruin, and the word also distinguishes it from Burg Veldenz in Nohfelden. The castle is privately owned and not freely accessible; the renovated Rittersaal hosts castle festivals and guided historical tours.

The ruin is privately owned and not freely accessible; the Palas with its stepped gable now houses a restaurant, and the renovated Rittersaal hosts castle festivals and guided historical tours. The site lies on a steep hill spur about 1.5 km southeast of Veldenz, so access is by arrangement rather than open visiting.

The name Schloss is misleading: the site is a ruined spur castle, not a palace, and it is privately owned by the Haufs-Brusberg family, so it is not freely accessible. Its 15th-century size, the largest castle on the Central Moselle, explains the name. The bergfried in the east was never rebuilt, unlike the palas with its stepped gable.