Heistard Castle, Burg in Nordrhein-Westfalen, Deutschland
Heistard Castle, also called Wasserburg Holzheim, is a water castle in Mechernich with a rectangular shape surrounded by a wide moat. Today, parts of the original structure remain standing, including the ring wall and a striking round tower made of rough stone, about 14 meters high with four floors.
The castle was first mentioned in records from 1333, though the ruins visible today mostly date from the late 15th century. Over the centuries it was renovated and expanded multiple times, with the main house rebuilt in the 15th and 16th centuries and new residential and farming structures added in later periods.
The name Holzheim comes from old woods nearby and means "from the clearing of the young forest". The village maintains a strong community with groups for carnival, theater, and other activities that organize celebrations throughout the year.
The castle is in private hands and used as a farm, so visitors can only see the exterior from nearby roads. The interior is not open to the public, so plan to view the outer structure and surrounding landscape from a distance.
A tunnel once connected the castle to the nearby Lambertuskirche church but it is now filled in. This hidden passage shows how closely the castle and church were linked and reveals the practical ways residents moved between these two important places.
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