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The remains of the Upper Castle(1)
The remains of the upper castle (“Burgruine”, “Obere Veste”) have been beautifully restored and are well worth a visit.
From the look-out tower you get a magnificent view of the ruins and the town at its feet, which was built on the foundations of the old residential tower.
In the first half of the 12th century a castle with a residential tower made of stone and several courtyards were built on the spur of a mountain west of Treuchtlingen. Its founders were probably local gentry who lived in a solid stone house at the Altmuehl since the 10/11th century. Only in 1340 were the masters of Treuchtlingen able to buy the upper castle of all external rights.
In the following decades the Treuchtlingen knights reached the climax of their power. They had become masters of the town with rights to the market and ownership of two castles and lands surrounding the town. However, in 1422 the knights’ lineage came to an end. In the middle of the 15th century the knights’ heirs sold both their castles and authority to the marshals of Pappenheim who let the upper castle fall to ruin at the end of the 15th century.
