Burg Adorf, Medieval castle ruins in Adorf, Germany

Burg Adorf is a vanished water castle in the centre of Adorf, of which only a few remnants of the ring wall survive. The site was secured by moats fed from the Wirme stream, and the castle estate later comprised a manor house, a distillery, a brewhouse, barns, stables, a kitchen garden and a fish pond within the ring wall.

The site began as a stone house (Kemenate) with water ditches fed by the Wirme, built in the 13th century by the Lords of Athorpe. In 1368 the Lords of Dalwigk owned it; in 1468 the Counts of Waldeck bought it from Johann von Huck. In 1816 the moats were filled and the fortifications demolished for a new manor house.

The name Adorf derives from the castle and the noble family that took its name from it: Hermann von Adorf, mentioned in 1326, and his brothers were the first of the von Padberg line to call themselves after Burg and village Adorf. The village itself was first documented in 1120, when Count Erpo von Padberg granted his property to Archbishop Frederick of Cologne as a fief.

The site is located in the center of Adorf and is easily accessible on foot from the town center. The ruins are open to visit at any time, and walking through the grounds allows you to explore the different foundation areas and get a sense of the layout.

The moats were fed by the Wirme stream, not a river. In 1816 Carl von Vultée sold the castle to Heinrich Christian Graubner, who had the moats filled in and the fortifications and castle house demolished; a manor house was built in their place.