Palace Staufeneck, Medieval castle in Piding, Germany

Palace Staufeneck is a fortified castle at the foot of the Hochstaufen above the Mauthausen district of Piding. Archbishop Leonhard von Keutschach had it enlarged and fortified between 1503 and 1513, giving it its defensive appearance. Above the entrance portal are his coat of arms with the turnip and an inscription naming him and the year 1513.

The fortress was founded in the 12th century by the Burggrafen von Staufeneck and later rebuilt under Archbishop Leonhard von Keutschach. Between 1365 and 1805, it served as an administrative seat under the rule of the Salzburg Archbishopric.

Since 2005 a medieval market has been held around the castle every August, with stalls set up on the grounds below the walls. The castle itself is privately owned and inhabited, so the market is the occasion when the public comes to it. The building also appears as a station on the Reichenhaller Burgenweg, a roughly 30 km circular trail linking 17 castles and fortifications in and around Bad Reichenhall.

The castle is privately owned and inhabited, so it cannot be visited inside; the grounds and the outer walls are seen from the surrounding paths. It is a station on the Reichenhaller Burgenweg, a roughly 30 km circular hiking trail linking 17 castles, palaces and fortifications in Bad Reichenhall and neighbouring municipalities.

The castle was long an administrative center of a border region between Bavaria and Salzburg. This role as a control point between two principalities shaped its development across centuries.