Top 20 Castles in Landkreis Neumarkt in der Oberpfalz

Hohenfels Castle Ruins The Knights of Hohenfels are a branch of the Raitenbuch family. They had their ancestral castle in the hamlet of Hausraitenbuch and were ministerials of the Bishop of Regensburg. At the end of the 12th century, the Raitenbuch family moved their headquarters to nearby Hohenfels and called themselves "von Hohenfels" ever since. They owned their castle in Hohenfels as independent property, and later they were also found in Falkenstein and Helfenberg. One Hohenfelser even achieved international fame: On December 28, 1250, Konrad von Hohenfels attempted to murder King Konrad IV on behalf of the Bishop of Regensburg, but had to flee after the failed assassination attempt. King Konrad IV had the castle destroyed, but the attack initially did little harm to the Hohenfelsers: another Konrad even became mayor of the imperial city of Regensburg in 1258. They owe their downfall to another, less spectacular development: the impoverishment of the knights at the end of the 14th century. During this time they repeatedly tried to improve their finances with feuds and raids. In 1366 they placed their rule under the Bohemian king as a fief. The corresponding document speaks of the castle and town of Hohenfels, so the place at the foot of the castle had developed well. Nevertheless, money was still lacking. In 1375 the Hohenfelsers mortgaged their castle to the Palatinate. In 1383 they had to sell it for good: Count Palatine Ruprecht paid them 17,700 guilders. In 1393 the last Hohenfelser Hilpolt died. The castle was occupied by the Palatinate Wittelsbachs with guardians. In 1427 it was destroyed by the Hussites. It was rebuilt, but subsequently lost all practical significance. In 1804 the Hohenfels guardianship was dissolved, the intact castle was sold for demolition and used as a quarry. The 100-meter-long Romanesque castle complex had two keeps. The round keep, built on a rocky peak on the east side to protect the castle entrance, with a high entrance made of quarry stone at a height of over 10 meters, is the only castle building that has survived. Several square castle buildings from the period between 1250 and 1427 were grouped around the square keep, which protected the entrance to the main castle. A Gothic vault that was found in the rubble probably comes from the castle chapel. Source: Excerpts from www.burgenseite.de / www.wikipedia.de

Helfenberg Castle Ruins Finds suggest that there was a fortification on the mountain at an early stage. The medieval castle was first mentioned in 1198 as the property of the Counts of Velburg. In 1217, the last Count Ulrich ceded his rights to the Bishop of Regensburg, who enfeoffed Wirnto von Plankenstein. After Wirnto's death, he passed them on to his ministerials in Hohenfels in 1232 in exchange for Falkenstein Castle, who then called themselves "von Helfenberg". However, they later ran into financial difficulties and had to sell their property. In 1373, a new owner, Hans Ehrenfelser, pawned the castle to Count Palatine Ruprecht, who from then on occupied it with caretakers. It is said to have been destroyed in the Landshut War of Succession. In 1624, the badly neglected Helfenberg Castle and the Upper Palatinate came to Bavaria, and Elector Maximilian gave it, along with Breitenegg Castle, to his general Tilly. His descendant, Count Lorenz Tilly, had a new baroque castle built between 1696 and 1707 by the then Italian star architect Viscardi, and the paintings were done by Hans Georg Asam, the father of the famous Asam brothers. After the Battle of Deining in 1796, the castle was plundered and burned by defeated French revolutionary troops. Sold for demolition in 1807 for 2,200 guilders, it was largely dismantled and used for new buildings in the area. Parts of the interior are said to still be found in the surrounding villages today. The castle ruins have been renovated since 2019, the wall sections secured and the vegetation removed. The Free State is contributing almost 500,000 euros to the work, which is being led by the support association founded in 2003. The appearance of the castle can only be guessed at from the historical view; you can see an oval ring wall, a round keep with a later onion dome, a residential building, a gate tower and a small chapel outside. Nothing of this can be seen today. Some parts of the outer bailey wall and the mighty substructures of the castle have been preserved from the once magnificent castle. These in particular give an idea of how large this building once was. A picture of the castle can now be found in the high altar panel of the church in Lengenfeld - the painting comes from the castle chapel. Perhaps the renovation will soon make the remains of the castle recognizable again. Source: www.burgenseite.de

From the south the view of Lupburg is beautiful

The municipality has a number of highlights to offer. Within walking distance, you can admire the juniper heaths and dry grassland slopes, karst rocks give the valley a rough feel and the hospitable town centre invites you to feast.

The castle houses the district court. However, a stroll along the castle through the park is still very worthwhile.

Beautiful round, would love to come again. Wonderful places

Beautiful round, would love to come again. Wonderful places

Neumarkt's landmark, visible from afar, towers 150 meters above the city. The castle was first mentioned in a document in 1283, but the complex is certainly much older. The castle area had fallen into disrepair since the beginning of the 17th century, and excavations and renovation work began in 1997 by the Wolfsteinfreunde Neumarkt association.