Burgruine Rodersen, Medieval castle ruin in Niederelsungen, Germany

Burgruine Rodersen is a medieval castle on a hilltop near Niederelsungen with the remains of a square residential tower, outer walls, and a preserved moat. The tower foundations clearly show the structure of the former fortification.

Built around 1180–1200 under the Archbishop of Mainz to secure Mainz claims against the Ludowingers of Thuringia, the castle Roderikessen was destroyed around 1231 by troops of Landgrave Konrad of Thuringia. In the Thuringian-Hessian War of Succession it was finally destroyed around 1261 by Landgrave Henry I of Hesse; its stones are said to have been reused in the 1262 church tower of Niederelsungen.

The site is named after its hilltop location and today serves as a walking destination for local visitors. The ruins show how medieval people sought protection through elevated ground.

The ruins lie on a slope at about 220 m above sea level, directly east of the Erpe stream, on the Niederelsungen side. The nearest starting point is a car park on the L 3075 about 1.5 km south-southeast of Ehringen; from there a footpath of roughly 1.5 km leads to the site. The ground is uneven and the hilltop position makes the approach unsuitable for visitors with limited mobility.

In 2015, workers digging a drainage channel below the castle on the Erpe struck a layer of burnt house clay. Medieval sherds were then found, and aerial scanning revealed the ramparts of a 12th- or 13th-century settlement fortification, also called Rodersen, closely linked to the castle.