Top 12 Castles around Birgel

In 1670 the castle was badly damaged by a lightning strike in the Powder Tower. It was occupied by the French on July 6, 1691, but was recaptured on August 5 of the same year. Gerolstein is destroyed in the process. In 1840 the castle was also known as Jungkernburg. The remaining remnants of the wall were partially demolished in the 18th century and further destroyed in the Second World War. Today only a few remains remain, but they have been restored. Excerpt from Wikipedia

The complex consists of the privately inhabited front castle and the ruins of the main castle behind it, accessible via a wooden bridge, from which there is a good view of Gerolstein and the rocks of the Munterlay.

A very beautiful castle above a great little town. Restorations are already well advanced. Definitely worth a visit

A beautiful ruin with an interesting past, which unfortunately has been demolished for building material.

Even if the castle cannot be visited because it is privately owned, its location high above the village of Kerpen is very impressive and gives the beautiful village a certain charm. Kerpen Castle is a so-called spur castle, which lies on a rock or mountain spur, but below the hilltop or the mountain peak, unlike the summit castle, and thus steeply above the valley. It is characterized by a terrain formation that slopes steeply on at least two sides. The place is practically at the feet of the castle. The former owner and famous Eifel painter Fritz von Wille was buried on a hill behind the castle in 1941. For a long time afterwards, it served first as a training center and finally as a rural school center; from 2016 to 2018, refugees were accommodated here. The castle currently belongs to an entrepreneurial family from Bonn and has since been used only for private residential purposes.

Gerolstein Castle, also known as Löwenburg, Gerhardstein Castle or Junkernburg, is the ruin of a hilltop castle in the town of Gerolstein in the Vulkaneifel district in Rhineland-Palatinate. The Löwenburg was first mentioned in a document in 1115, when Gerhard von Blankenheim moved his seat of power to Gerhardstein Castle, which he had built (which is probably where the place name of Gerolstein derives from). In the 13th century, Gerhard IV expanded the castle into a fortified castle with a front and back castle. After the Blankenheimers died out, Gerhardstein Castle passed to the House of Loon-Heinsberg in 1423 and to Dietrich III, Count von Manderscheid in 1468. He divided his property between his three sons in 1488, with the second, Johann, inheriting the county of Blankenheim, Jünkerath, Gerolstein Castle and parts of the Mechernich lordship, and founding the Manderscheid-Blankenheim-Gerolstein line. In 1486 the castle was supplemented by two chapels. In the 16th century the shield wall was built with a thickness of two meters. In 1670 the castle was badly damaged by a lightning strike in the powder tower. On July 6, 1691, it was occupied by the French, but was recaptured on August 5 of the same year. In the process, Gerolstein is destroyed. In 1840 the castle was also known as the Jungkernburg. The remaining remains of the wall are partially removed in the 18th century and further destroyed in the Second World War. Today only a few remains stand, but they have been restored.

<< Löwenburg Castle Ruins >> "High above Gerolstein lies the ruins of the medieval hilltop castle. This is also known as Löwenburg or Gerhardstein Castle, and is named after Gerhard VI of Blankenheim (1314 - 1350). The castle was first mentioned in documents in 1115 and was expanded in the 13th century by Gerhard IV to become a fortified castle with an outer and rear castle. After the Blankenheim family died out, Gerhardstein Castle passed to the House of Loon-Heinsberg in 1423 and to Dietrich III, Count of Manderscheid, in 1468. He divided his property between his three sons in 1488, with the second, Johann, inheriting Gerolstein Castle, among other things, and thus establishing the Manderscheid-Blankenheim-Gerolstein line. The Löwenburg was destroyed in the Palatinate War of Succession in 1691 and was not rebuilt. Today, the 11 m high shield wall and the remains of Residential buildings are a reminder of the castle's once great importance as a ruler's seat. Located close to the Eifelsteig and the Vulkaneifelpfad Keltenpfad, the castle ruins offer a great panoramic view of Gerolstein, the Gerolstein Dolomites and the Kyll Valley." https://www.geopark-vulkaneifel.de/eifel/landschaft/burgen-und-schloesser/burgruine-loewenburg.html

The ruin offers a fantastic view over Gerolstein and the surrounding mountains of the Eifel.