Allerburg, Medieval castle in Dautphetal, Germany

Allerburg, also called Alte Schanze, is a suspected vanished spur castle on the Hünstein promontory at about 503 m above sea level, a few dozen metres north of the Allerberg, southeast of Holzhausen in the municipality of Dautphetal. It is thought to have been built in the Middle Ages within the prehistoric Hünstein ring wall; traces of a neck ditch are still visible. No excavations have been carried out, so the site remains archaeologically unexplored.

The Allerburg is a presumed vanished spur castle on the Hünstein, a promontory at about 503 m above sea level north of the Allerberg, southeast of Holzhausen in Dautphetal. It was probably built in the Middle Ages within the prehistoric Hünstein ring wall; traces of a neck ditch remain. According to tradition, Landgrave Heinrich II of Hesse began a fortress here in the 14th century after the Dernbach feud, but the Lords of Nassau destroyed it soon after. No archaeological findings exist, so the site remains unexcavated.

The name Alte Schanze, "old rampart", refers to the wall-and-ditch line recorded here; Georg Wilhelm Justin Wagner noted in the 19th century that it forms an obtuse angle. The Allerburg is equated with the Hünstein, also called Hünsteinklippe or Hunnenstein, since Georg Landau's 1858 work. A neck ditch of the presumed castle is still traceable in the ground.

The ruins are accessible via marked hiking trails that lead through forest paths from Dautphetal. It is wise to wear sturdy footwear and be mindful of the uneven terrain around the site.

The Allerburg is not on the Allerberg but a few dozen metres north of it, on the Hünstein at about 503 m above sea level. It sits inside the prehistoric Hünstein ring wall, and a neck ditch is still visible. No excavations have ever been carried out here, so archaeologists call the area a blank spot.