Schloss Benkhausen, Noble castle in Espelkamp, Germany.

Schloss Benkhausen is a moated castle west of Gestringen, a district of Espelkamp, north of the Mittellandkanal. The core building was erected between 1657 and 1683 and has largely kept its form. The roughly five-hectare estate includes a historic park with old trees such as a copper beech, a Dutch lime and an American walnut. A glass connector links the manor house to the former Maidenheim, and the barn now houses the German Slot Machine Museum.

Gut Benkhausen arose in 1510 from the division of the Ellerburg estate among heirs of the von Münch family. The present castle was built between 1657 and 1683 and kept essentially that form. In 1773 Philip Münch bequeathed it to Philipp Clamor von dem Bussche, who took the name von dem Bussche-Münch; the line died out in 1878 and the estate passed to the Freiherren von dem Bussche-Ippenburg. In 1945 the British occupation authority seized the house as headquarters of the British Army of the Rhine, returning it in 1955.

The name Benkhausen goes back to the 1510 division of Gut Ellerburg among the heirs of the von Münch/Monick family. In the former barn of the outer bailey, the German Slot Machine Museum shows the Gauselmann family's private collection of more than 1,800 coin-operated machines, described in the sources as the largest museum of its branch worldwide. Christmas markets, an art week and civil weddings are still held on the estate.

The castle is open to visitors and offers guided tours of the grounds as well as hotel accommodations. It is recommended to check opening hours in advance since the property is also used for private events.

In a barn of the outer bailey stands the Deutsches Automatenmuseum, showing the Gauselmann family's private collection of more than 1,800 coin-operated machines, described as the largest museum of its industry worldwide. The roughly two-kilometre circular trail opened in June 2018 crosses an alder swamp and the renaturalised Flöthe stream twice before reaching the Mittellandkanal and a boat landing.