Burg Sotterbach, castle

Burg Sotterbach is a stone fortified farmhouse in Reichshof with walls roughly 80 centimeters (26 inches) thick and a sloped roof. The two-story building has eight window openings on its long sides and is painted bright yellow.

Sotterbach was first documented in 1141 as the seat of Olfiz von Sittinberg, a vassal of the Count of Berg. In 1583 it was one of six saddle estates held in the Eckenhagen parish by the lords of Bieberstein, Karthaus and Lixfeld. In the 17th century it passed to the noble Ley family; Anna Margarete von Ley brought it by marriage to Wilhelm Bernhard Hasenclever, judge and rentmaster of the Windeck office. In the later 18th century the organ-building Kleine brothers of Freckhausen owned it and left it to their son-in-law Sigismund Roetzel, also an organ builder. Billeting of French and imperial troops left it decayed, but its massive walls resisted collapse and it was restored in the 1970s.

The castle's metal anchors display inscriptions and initials that mark the families who lived and worked here over time. These visible marks connect visitors to the real people whose lives shaped this building.

The building is in private hands and not regularly open to visitors. Best to view it from the nearby walking paths that surround the site, where you can take in the architecture and countryside at your own pace.

Metal anchors on three sides of the building carry inscriptions and dates marking major renovations, such as 1739 on the north side. These details reveal that the structure was actively maintained and adapted over centuries rather than left to decay.