Schloss Schambach, Medieval château in Straßkirchen, Germany

Schloss Schambach is a moated castle between Plattling and Straubing featuring two hexagonal towers on the west side and a spiral staircase tower at the main entrance. A water moat surrounds the structure for protection.

Schloss Schambach was first mentioned around 800, possibly as a wooden manor. In the Middle Ages a brick castle with oak posts and a moat was built; the watchtower at the east entrance was demolished in 1318. Around 1550 the Trenbach family rebuilt it as a two-winged complex, and the early Renaissance arcades added then are still visible.

The castle's name comes from the village of Schambach, and it serves as the village's landmark. The lower court judges of the Hofmark Schambach, who held the castle, had the right to imprison and try offenders but not to condemn them to death; nevertheless, knives and skeletons found in the northwest tower suggest secret executions took place there.

The castle stands in the village of Schambach, part of the municipality of Straßkirchen, between Plattling and Straubing. The moat now runs all around the building, and a wooden bridge replaces the former drawbridge as the entrance. The former restaurant on the castle square has been demolished, so there are no on-site visitor facilities.

In the northwest tower, knives and skeletons were found, indicating secret executions: the lords of Schambach held low jurisdiction but apparently also put prisoners to death, and inconvenient people disappeared into the Hunger or Knife Tower. A tunnel about four kilometres long is said to have linked the castle with Schloss Moosdorf; a survey confirmed it, but it is no longer passable.