Schloss Guteneck, Castle and archaeological site in Guteneck, Bavaria, Germany

Schloss Guteneck is a medieval castle set on a hill above the village of Guteneck in the Upper Palatinate region of Bavaria, Germany, built in stone with remains from several construction phases. The site includes a tower, outer walls, and partial foundations that show how the layout evolved between a residential manor and a fortified structure.

Guteneck and Weidenthal formed one estate from the 13th century; the Weidenthaler family is documented in Weidenthal from 1147, and the Murach family appears around 1300. Wolff Albrecht von Murach sold Guteneck and Weidenthal in 1593 to his brother-in-law Hans Adam von Kreith after failing to clear his debts. Soldiers ravaged both places during the Thirty Years War, and the Lutheran Kreith family was barred from the land. The childless Countess Franziska von Kreith sold the castle with its estate in 1894 to her brother Franz von Spreti.

Guteneck and Weidenthal formed one estate from the 13th century, and the Murach family held Guteneck for about three hundred years until Wolff Albrecht von Murach sold it in 1593. In 1694 the Kreuth owners gained the title of Imperial Count, styling themselves Counts of Guteneck, Weidenthal and Gleiritsch. The castle now hosts a Christmas market.

The site sits on a hill with uneven ground, so sturdy footwear makes the visit much easier and safer. Visiting on a clear day also helps, as the tree cover can make the paths harder to follow when wet.

Archaeological finds beneath the walls point to human activity on this hill long before any castle was built here. This means the site was used across several different periods, making it layered in a way that goes far beyond its visible medieval remains.