Burg Vlatten, Medieval castle in Heimbach, Germany

Burg Vlatten is the former water castle of Vlatten, now a district of Heimbach, consisting of the Oberburg and the Unterburg. Of the Oberburg, parts of the enclosing walls, towers of moderate height, a two-storey round tower and the barrel-vaulted basement of a short west wing survive. The Unterburg is attested in 1401 and only a wall fragment of a tower remains.

Johann I von Vlatten-Merode acquired the southern Oberburg in 1331, and his line took the name von Vlatten. In the 14th century a rectangular main castle with towers and an irregular outer bailey was built, surrounded by moats. After 1448 it was divided between the von Vlatten and von Schwarz-Bongard families, and the medieval main castle had fallen into ruin by the 18th century.

The name Vlatten comes from the noble family von Vlatten-Merode, who bought the southern castle in 1331 and later called themselves only von Vlatten. The upper castle has belonged to the von Gagern family since 1882; in 2020 Lydia and Oliver Freiherr von Gagern bought it back from the heirs. The lower castle is documented in 1401 and was probably created by a division of inheritance.

The castle is accessible from Alte Burgstraße where parking is available to start your visit. A walking path in the surrounding area allows you to explore the landscape and understand the fortress location within its natural setting.

The two castles of Vlatten stood a few hundred metres apart on the Vlattener Bach, north and south of the former Carolingian royal palace. Of the southern Oberburg, bought in 1331 by Johann I von Vlatten-Merode, parts of the perimeter walls, a two-storey round tower and a barrel-vaulted basement survive. The northern Unterburg, first documented in 1401, is reduced to the wall remnant of one tower.