Burg Zeltingen, Medieval castle ruin in Zeltingen-Rachtig, Germany
Burg Zeltingen is a castle ruin standing on a hilltop among vineyards overlooking the Moselle River and valley below. The stone remains sit in the Bernkastel-Wittlich district of Rhineland-Palatinate.
The castle was built in the 12th to 13th centuries and served for centuries as a customs station collecting ship taxes on the Moselle. French forces destroyed it in 1794 during their occupation of the region.
The castle bore multiple names such as Kunibertsburg and Rosenburg, reflecting its ties to the Archbishopric of Cologne and regional noble families across the centuries. These names remain visible in local records and memories today.
You reach the ruins by walking paths that wind through surrounding vineyards with views across the Moselle Valley. The trails are marked, though the terrain becomes steep in places.
The castle was designed with defensive features to protect against attacks from higher ground positions, similar to Ehrenfels castle near Rüdesheim. This distinctive construction method shows how builders adapted fortifications to the specific landscape of the Moselle region.
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