Rifnik Castle, Castle ruin in Šentjur, Slovenia

Rifnik Castle is a ruin on a strategic hilltop in Šentjur, rising above the Savinja region in eastern Slovenia. The site offers wide views of the surrounding landscape and still shows remains of the historical fortification.

Rifnik Castle is first documented in 1281, when Gebhard III of Žovnek renounced it and the Ploštajn knights took over its administration. In 1326 it appears as "vest Reichenekk" in a deed by which Viljem Vrbovški received a tower at Rifnik upon marrying Leopold Ploštajnski's daughter. From 1359 the Counts of Celje held it in fief and acquired it outright from the bishops of Krško in 1400. It was already largely ruined in Vischer's 17th-century topography.

Local tradition holds that rebellious peasants ravaged the castle in 1635, though no document confirms it. Other sources say the castle once held jails where rebellious subjects and other prisoners awaited their fate. The castle below the hill, with six small houses and a mill, is mentioned repeatedly between 1403 and 1458.

Visiting requires good footwear and plenty of water, as the uneven terrain makes walking difficult. It is important to move slowly and be careful on the rough surfaces.

Local tradition holds that rebellious peasants devastated the castle in 1635, but no document confirms this. By the second half of the 17th century it was already abandoned; in Vischer's topography it appears largely as a ruin. Some sources also say the castle once held prisons for rebellious peasants and other convicts.