Burgstall Löweneck: A High-Medieval Spur Castle in Germany
Site at a Glance
- Rating
- 4
- Popularity
- Very Low
- Country
- Germany
- Primary era
- Medieval
- Eras represented
- Medieval
- Civilizations
- Duchy of Bavaria, Holy Roman Empire
- Site type
- Military
- Remains
- Castle
On this page10 sections
History
Burgstall Löweneck is the ruined site of a high-medieval spur castle in Germany, at Stadtprozelten, established after 1250 under the Wittelsbach dynasty. Ceramic surface finds place its occupation broadly around 1300. The castle was held by ministeriales, medieval legally dependent nobles who served rulers in military, administrative, or estate-management roles, and belonged to the feudal sphere of the Bavarian dukes.
Foundation and ducal service
The first documented lord of Löweneck was Hugo of Löweneck. In 1277, he witnessed the sale of property to the Heilig Kreuz monastery in Regensburg and donated fields to the Katharinenspital, a religious institution in the same city. Hugo was married to Gertraud, and their children included Jutta, Eckardus, and Fridericus.
Löweneck occupied a position from which its lords may have controlled routes from Penk through the Penker Tal toward Pollenried and Nittendorf, as well as the continuation toward Etterzhausen and Regensburg. They also appear to have monitored a ducal crossing of the river near Etterzhausen. These possible functions placed the castle within the network of ducal authority in the region.
Gertraud of Löweneck donated the tithe from a vineyard at Mariaort to the Regensburg establishment of the Teutonic Order in 1285. Hugo transferred an estate at Nittendorf to Pielenhofen Abbey, a convent for nuns, so that his daughter Jutta could enter the religious house. Fridericus appears in a sale document from 1306, while Eckardus succeeded to Löweneck.
Sale, destruction, and prohibition of rebuilding
In 1306, Duke Stephan allowed Eckard of Löweneck to sell the castle, its dependants, and his allodial property, meaning land held as personal possession rather than as a feudal grant, to Pielenhofen Abbey or to another purchaser. Three years later, Dukes Rudolf and Ludwig gave the abbey permission to destroy the castle after Eckard’s death. The convent evidently regarded the fortress as a threat.
Eckard sold the castle, the village of Penk, and further fiefs in 1312 to Dietrich of Parsberg and the lords of Taxöldern. In 1316, King Ludwig the Bavarian, a Wittelsbach ruler of Bavaria and German king, ordered that Löweneck, described in the order as a fortress he had destroyed, must not be rebuilt. Dietrich of Parsberg later sold the castle site, Penk, and its associated possessions to Pielenhofen Abbey for 345 pounds of Regensburg pfennigs.
Ruins and modern protection
Maps produced by Philipp Apian and Weinerus in the second half of the sixteenth century still showed Löweneck as a ruin. Treasure hunting affected the site in the nineteenth century. During an intervention against treasure hunters in the 1820s, a constable shot and killed a farm boy who was attempting to flee.
Burgstall Löweneck is listed by the Bavarian State Office for Monument Protection as the medieval archaeological monument “Löweneck,” under monument number D-3-6937-0021. The site is also connected with the nearby Räuberhöhle, or Hohes Haus. Local tradition describes a secret passage between the cave and the castle, while the physical feature associated with the site is a watchtower above the cave that controlled the Naab valley. Its walls were later renovated.
Remains
The castle occupied the end of a west-northwest-running spur projecting from the Kühberg, about 430 metres above sea level and approximately 100 metres above the Naab valley. The northern side falls steeply toward the valley, with near-vertical cliffs in places. The southern slope descends into the Klingental ravine, while the western side leads toward the Penker Tal. The spur rises southeastward to the 457.1-metre summit of the Kühberg, leaving that side as the main approach and the least naturally protected edge. A neck ditch defended this landward connection.
Spur defenses and internal divisions
The two-part castle covered a roughly rectangular area about 45 metres long and up to 15 metres wide. A straight section ditch, running from southwest to northeast, divided the lower outer ward from the somewhat higher main ward. It remains about 2 metres deep on the outer-ward side and about 3.5 metres deep on the main-ward side. The neck ditch begins at the steep fall toward the Naab valley, runs southwest, turns 90 degrees northwest, and ends at a terrace on the slope. A low outer bank stands in front of it.
Castle wards
Outer ward
The outer ward lay at the tip of the spur rather than beside the principal approach. It measured approximately 25 by 15 metres and was slightly larger than the main ward. Its surface is very uneven, with foundations of stone-built structures beneath the ground. At the extreme tip, a square, probably tower-like building forms the clearest visible masonry. A surviving section of rubble wall contains a niche.
The northeastern side of the probable tower collapsed down the slope, apparently after stone robbing. Immediately southeast of the tower is a rubble-filled hollow, probably the former cistern. Treasure hunters reportedly uncovered the feature in the nineteenth century before it was filled again. The former entrance probably lay at the northwestern tip, directly below the tower. The steep approach may have been reached by a staircase that was still reportedly visible in 1804.
Main ward
The main ward is also uneven and contains mortar and limestone rubble. Its internal arrangement cannot be determined without archaeological investigation. The ground falls several metres almost vertically toward the north and southeast, while the southwestern side continues into a steep slope. Together with the section ditch and the natural cliffs, these features formed the main ward’s surviving defensive setting.
Watchtower above the cave
About 600 metres east of the castle, a watchtower stood above Räuberhöhle, also called Hohes Haus, on the highest northeastern elevation. Its position provided a view over the Naab valley and reflects the castle’s wider system of observation. The renovated remains of its walls survive to a height of up to 1 metre.
The castle site is now densely forested. Its visible remains consist of the neck and section ditches, a short stretch of wall, and several overgrown foundation remains. The castle itself survives as an archaeological site rather than as a standing structure.
Nearby sites
