Burg Fischhausen, Moated castle in Wangerland, Germany

Burg Fischhausen is a medieval water castle in Wangerland featuring a sophisticated double moat system that surrounds the main structure. The waterways create natural barriers that have protected the fortress over centuries.

The fortress was founded around 1400 by Matthias von Fischhausen and served as a residence for East Frisian chiefs. The complex with its stone house and defensive tower became a center of local power for generations.

The sandstone portals at the entrance display carved details, with the tower gateway bearing the Fischhausen coat of arms. This was long a seat of East Frisian leaders who shaped the region's political structure.

The castle is in private hands and closed to the public, so it can only be seen from the road. The double moat, about 12 m wide, and the roughly 1.5 m high inner rampart can be traced from outside; on the north and west sides the ditch is partly filled with rubble. The surrounding area has been a nature reserve since 1980.

The moat system measures up to 180 by 160 metres, with ditches about 12 metres wide and a surviving inner rampart roughly 1.5 metres high. On the north and west sides the ditch is partly filled with building rubble. The surrounding area became the Fischhausen nature reserve in 1980.