Schauenburg Castle, Medieval castle ruin in Oberkirch, Germany.
Schauenburg Castle is a medieval ruin in Oberkirch, Baden-Württemberg, made up of two residential towers, a gate tower, and the remains of defensive walls. The ruins sit on a wooded hill above the Rench valley and can be reached on foot along a marked trail.
Duke Berthold II of Zähringen built the castle in the late 11th century to control passage through the Rench valley. In the early 15th century, it became the subject of a dispute between the lords of Schauenburg and Bernhard von Baden, and the site was later abandoned.
The name Schauenburg comes from a Middle High German word meaning "to look out," which fits the wide view the site commands over the Rench valley. A small museum in the former chapel cellar displays objects found at the site, giving a tangible sense of daily life there.
The path up to the ruins is steep and uneven in places, so sturdy footwear makes the walk more comfortable. The small museum in the former chapel cellar is not always open, so it is worth checking ahead before visiting.
Stones from this ruin were later reused to build Gaisbach Castle, where the writer Hans Jakob Christoffel von Grimmelshausen lived and wrote his most famous novel. This means the two sites share more than a region: one was literally built from the remains of the other.
The community of curious travelers
AroundUs brings together thousands of curated places, local tips, and hidden gems, enriched daily by 60,000 contributors worldwide.
