Top 15 Castles in Landkreis Straubing-Bogen

New Steinach Castle In 1901, August von Schmieder acquired Castle and Castle Estate Steinach from his friend and later father-in-law Carl von Lang-Puchhof and made it his residence after moving from Frankfurt a. M. Gabriel von Seidl, at that time the most famous architect in Bavaria, was commissioned with the planning of the "New Steinach Castle", Iwan Bartcky was entrusted with the construction management, and for the design of the large, almost 20-hectare park, August von Schmieder engaged garden director Paul Lorenz from Zwickau. The central part of the castle had an external length of almost 60 m with a depth of approx. 17 m, plus the west wing with external dimensions of 34 m x 15 m and the east wing with approx. 30 m x 15 m. In total, a living area of over 3,000 m² was calculated. The rooms are numbered on the plans, and taking the cellar rooms into account, the stately number of 200 rooms is reached. The large tower housed the 50 m³ water tank, a guest room, and at the very top the tower room with the magnificent view that can still be enjoyed from there today. On December 22, 1906, the topping-out ceremony took place, and on May 1, 1908, the completion of the New Castle was celebrated at the top of the Singberg. The castle was transferred to the Reichsautobahnen on February 7, 1939, for 440,000 RM; the largest motorway service area in Germany was to be built here on the motorway planned by Hitler from Regensburg to Passau to Vienna. From 1943, the castle served as an administrative office for the NSDAP in Lower Bavaria. On April 23, 1945, the main building was set on fire to destroy the party records stored there. The fire departments from the surrounding area were forbidden to attempt to extinguish the fire, and so the main building burned down. The outbuildings served as refugee accommodation after the end of the war. The ruin of the manor house was demolished in 1955. Since 1961, the castle and castle park have been privately owned. The outbuildings are partially rented out. The main building's tower, a listed building spared from destruction, is visible from afar. The largely untouched castle park has the enchanting charm of a sleeping Beauty castle and contains numerous old, exquisite solitary trees from various countries. Source: Excerpts from www.heimatgeschichte-steinach.de

The New Castle Steinach on the Singberg between Steinach and Münster was built from 1904 to 1908 according to plans by architect Gabriel von Seidl. The castle comprised 198 rooms over around 3800 square meters of living space. In 1939, the Reichsautobahnen bought the castle for 440,000 Reichsmarks. It was to be converted into Germany's largest motorway service area. But that did not happen. In 1943, the NSDAP took over the complex as the Niederbayern headquarters. On April 23, 1945, the main building was set on fire by SS troops to destroy the party records stored there. The burnt-out ruin was demolished in 1955. Only the outbuildings and the tower remained.

Only a few outbuildings and the tower remain of the original castle.

Currently unfortunately closed and covered for renovation;

Nice place, would love to come back.

Mitterfels Castle Mitterfels was an important administrative and defensive center of the Counts of Bogen. It was first documented in 1194 under Berchtholdus de Mitterfels. In 1242, the castle, along with the rich Bogen inheritance, passed to the Wittelsbach dukes. In 1280, Mitterfels was already mentioned in the ducal urbar as a regional court. In the following centuries, Mitterfels was expanded into a stronghold and manned by guardians. Little is known about the medieval history of the castle; it was apparently spared from the Hussite invasions around 1400 because it was over-fortified. During the Lower Bavarian knightly revolts of the Böckler and Löwler families, Mitterfels always fought on the side of the territorial lords. In 1634, Mitterfels was captured by the Swedes. In 1742, the castle was unsuccessfully besieged by Trenck the Pandur during the War of the Austrian Succession. Mitterfels lost all military importance in the 19th century, and its defensive structures gradually fell into disrepair. In 1812, the keep collapsed. Around 2000, the dilapidated medieval remains were excavated and secured with funds from the Free State of Bavaria. The castle lies at the end of a long mountain spur overlooking the Menach or Perlbach valley. The path to the castle leads over a three-arched bridge made of rubble and brick, which crosses the deep moat. According to an inscription, the bridge dates from 1791. The entrance to the inner castle was the keep, made of humped ashlars, which, judging by historical illustrations, also served as a gate tower. Today, most of the remains are covered by a prison. Adjacent to the keep stands the most clearly visible part of the medieval castle today: the high shield wall. To the left of the entrance area lies the stump of a wall tower and the Pflegschloss (Peasant Castle) and courthouse, which dates back to the 18th century and replaced the palace. Today, the town hall is housed there. Walking past the Pflegschloss, you descend over the former wall of the inner castle to a terrace in front. There you will find the castle's most impressive structure: the surrounding moat with its protruding round wall towers. This elaborate defensive structure probably dates back to the 15th century and was equipped with numerous loopholes. Source: www.burgenseite.de

Neurandsberg Castle Ruins The Ramspergs were originally ministeriales of the Counts of Bogen and were first mentioned in 1190. Their seat was in Altrandsberg, two kilometers north in the Cham district. In 1330, Friedrich the Ramsperg probably built the new castle on his own land. Many Ramspergs entered Bavarian service at the end of the 14th century as stewards, for example, in Saulburg and Mitterfels. In the Hussite Wars around 1430, the Ramspergs fought for the Bavarian duke, but soon became involved in military conflicts with him over compensation. This did not do them any good: in 1436, Duke Ernst had Neuramsperg Castle conquered by Haimeran Heuraus. Unlike nearby castles such as Neunussberg, Neurandsberg was never returned to its owners, but instead became a ducal manor. In 1461, Dukes Sigismund and John visited the castle. The dukes gave the castle to Jörg Heuraus, the guardian of Mitterfels, followed by Sattelbogen, Nussberger, and the Nothaft of Wernberg, among others. In 1582, a prison was established at the castle, but in 1615, it was moved to Mitterfels to serve as the district court. In 1633, the Swedes under Colonel Georg Christoph von Taupadell destroyed the castle, and it was never rebuilt. In 1689, guardian of the castle Erttl of Mitterfels asked Elector Max Emmanuel for permission to rebuild the wooden chapel below the castle, which was threatened by rubble. This was approved, and the castle ruins were used as a quarry. Upon entering the complex, the first thing that catches your eye is the well-preserved and elaborate Zwinger (mew). The entire castle is surrounded by it, and the walls are topped with several semicircular towers. The north side, opposite the entrance, is particularly elaborately constructed, with three towers and a wall with a battlement. The original access to the complex is no longer immediately recognizable. Access to the inner castle is, in any case, through a simple gateway in the south of the polygonal circular wall made of rubble stone. The interior of the inner castle is difficult to discern, revealing its structural layout. The buildings were likely leaning against the inner wall, some of which are still well preserved. The site is still being secured. Source: Excerpts from www.burgenseite.de

Super beautiful with a fantastic view, unfortunately currently cordoned off with a construction fence due to rockfall. Still nice to look at.