Top 20 Castles in the Märkischer Kreis

On the edge of the Balver Wald forest, Schloss Wocklum lies like a quiet ensemble of moats, courtyard buildings, and baroque facade. The traditional estate, with its old avenues and the nearby Luisenhütten area, appears as a calm counterpoint to the surrounding high-altitude trails. It is a good choice for an atmospheric stopover - steeped in history, rural, and wonderfully embedded in the Sauerland cultural landscape.

very hidden but worth seeing

The ruins of Rodenburg Castle in Menden (Sauerland) were built in the middle of the 13th century by the knight Goswin von Menden, a vassal of the Archbishop of Cologne. Built between 1246 and 1248, the castle served at a strategically important point. As early as 1276, Goswin had to cede the castle and the bailiwick of Menden to the Archbishop. After a brief change of control to the Margraviate of Brandenburg, the complex was destroyed in 1301 by the troops of the Count of Mark and not rebuilt. Over the centuries, the ruins were forgotten and overgrown by the forest. Only during test excavations in 1939 and later excavations in the 1950s under the direction of Robert Frese, a school principal from Menden, were parts of the remains rediscovered and uncovered. Today, the ruins, which are an important testimony to this short period of rule, can be reached via a 20-minute walk from the city center (Rodenberg/Kapellenberg). The visit is free of charge.

The oldest youth hostel in the world, set up by Richard Schirmann in 1909, is located at Altena Castle

Especially in autumn it's fun to discover everything in the area and take the autumn sun into your photos

"...Where Linnepe and Grebbecke flow together on the northern edge of the Lüdenscheider Mulde, a mountain promontory rises high. A mansion, Oedenthal Castle, sits enthroned on it. The property was first mentioned as Odincdala as early as 1160. It must have originally been a moated castle, complete with a drawbridge. But unfortunately nothing of this can be seen today, because a fire destroyed the moated castle in 1865. Only then were the buildings that you can still see here today built. The fact that the old foundations were reused can be easily seen from the irregular design. A massive tower is accompanied by two wings of different heights on the right and left. Remarkable details of Oedenthal Castle are the Tudor arch facing the street and all sorts of decorative elements on the facades, which can also be attributed to the Tudor style. If you are interested in this architectural style, you could also pay a visit to Hertreiben Castle near Arnsberg, which bears a clear similarity to Oedenthal Castle. The coat of arms of the von Holtzbrinck family can also be found on the aforementioned Tudor arch. In 1725 Georg Hermann von Holtzbrinck bought the castle at an auction. It remained in the family's possession for around 200 years before the property came into private ownership in 1931..." https://www.ich-geh-wandern.de/schloss-oedenthal

This castle is privately owned.

In 991, Archbishop Heribert of Cologne, Chancellor of Emperor Otto III, acquired the free property of the nobleman Benno and bequeathed it to the Benedictine Abbey of Deutz as an asset when it was founded in 1003. The documentary document shows that the "curtis Rothe" was already the focus back then of a manorial property association, which later owned property in the parishes of Lüdenscheid, Halver, Herscheid, but especially Kierspe. Over the centuries, House Rhade was pledged to a number of noble families, such as the Lords of Neuhoff, von Hatzfeld, von Heyden zu Schönrad and Bruch. The latter family buys the property. In 1725, Haus Rhade became the property of the family of Postmaster General von Holzbrinck, who sold it to the merchant Niehoff zu Dülmen in 1910. In 1916, the Düsseldorf manufacturer Johann Gottlieb Schwietzke acquired Haus Rhade, whose family still lives there today. https://www.hausrhade.de/geschichte/