Burg Bechthal, Castle ruin in Raitenbuch, Germany

Burg Bechthal is a ruined spur castle on a ridge above the Anlauter Valley, about 500 metres southeast of Bechthal in Middle Franconia. Its surviving elements include a slender square keep about 30 metres high, with sides of 5.5 metres and walls 1.5 metres thick, built of local limestone. The main castle plateau measures roughly 30 by 35 metres and is cut off by a rock-cut neck ditch up to 10 metres deep.

The high-medieval castle was the ancestral seat of the Lords of Pechthal, first recorded in the mid-12th century and described as ministeriales of the Eichstätt bishopric. In 1353 Konrad the Pechthaler had to transfer half his own fortress to Konrad von Heideck and received it back as a fief. In 1544 and 1557 the bishopric acquired both halves; Nuremberg chroniclers report final destruction by Swedish artillery in 1633.

The name Bechthal may derive from earlier pitch (Pech) production in the area, and the castle was the ancestral seat of the Lords of Pechthal, first recorded in the mid-12th century. In the 19th century the ruin was called "Burg Waldeck", a name not found in historical records, probably inspired by its wooded corner setting.

The ruins sit roughly 500 meters southeast of Bechthal village with parking available nearby for visitors. Exploration requires care as the structures show their age and visitors should move cautiously through the site.

The keep's walls are 1.5 metres thick, built from small, block-shaped limestone quarried locally. Its entrance sits high on the west side, opening into a vaulted second upper floor. In the 19th century the ruin was called "Burg Waldeck", a name coined for its romantic setting on a wooded corner rather than any historical record.