Top 20 Castles in Amberg-Sulzbach

Upper Castle The Upper Castle was built as a moated castle by the Lords of Schmidmühlen. From the mid-12th century, they are documented here, starting with Ernst von Schmidmühlen (1166–1170). Georg Hausner von Winbuch (1595–1614), administrator in Regenstauf, was the builder of the present castle. The year 1600 is located on one of the magnificent door frames of the Knights' Hall. The Upper Castle is a three-story, plastered, solid building with a gable roof. An octagonal stair tower is attached, and another extension to the west. In this castle, there was also a small chapel on the ground floor, which, however, has long been filled in and walled up. At the top of the tower is a round ceiling, painted with flowers and rosettes, supported by a delicate wooden column. The entire second upper floor belongs, due to its furnishings, to the most interesting holdings of the German Renaissance. The profane wall paintings located there are reminiscent of those in the ducal castle Trausnitz in Landshut. During the Second World War and afterwards, the Upper Castle suffered greatly from billeting by the occupying forces. Thus, a valuable ceramic stove was destroyed on the second floor. In 1937, the castle came into the possession of the market town of Schmidmühlen. Since the post-war period, the castle has served the market town of Schmidmühlen as its town hall. Between 1977 and 1980, a thorough restoration took place, during which the castle and also the castle garden changed their appearance. The renovation was completed in 2003. The local history and association museum of Schmidmühlen is also housed in the castle. In front of the castle, on the well, stands the cast image of a Moriskentänzer, reminiscent of the Schmidmühlen sculptor Erasmus Grasser, who created the famous late Gothic Moriskentänzer for the festival hall in the Old Town Hall of Munich. Source: Wikipedia

An old hilltop castle, long used as a monastery by various religious orders. Today it houses the police academy. It lies on a dolomite spur above the valley. This is also where the "Hochholz Trail" begins, which is not to be missed.

The Kastl castle complex has towered over the Lauterach Valley since the 10th century. In 1098, it was decided to convert the castle into a monastery. Description: It was founded in 1103, and the choir and St. Egidius Chapel were consecrated in 1129. Construction of the monastery church was completed at the end of the 12th century. Through constant renovations and expansions, the church acquired its present appearance. In 1782, it became the property of the Knights of Malta. The basilica has been used as a parish church since 1808. A late Gothic main portal, a four-bay barrel vault, the alternating support of columns and pillars in the nave, and the Gothic stone tomb in the vestibule, which was once the tomb of the deceased Princess Anna, make the church a true gem. Princess Anna was the daughter of King Ludwig the Bavarian and died in 1319. The mummy of the one-and-a-half-year-old "Kastl Child" was preserved until the end of 2013 and can be viewed again. The antechamber also houses the sarcophagus of General Schweppermann. [ Source: https://www.ostbayern-tourismus.de/attraktionen/klosterburg-kastl-fd22a56fae ]

Very beautiful monastery castle currently serves as a police training center

Seems to be private, parking not allowed

Poppberg Castle Ruins It is difficult to determine from the sources when the castle was built. It is particularly unclear whether the mentioned castles and lords of the "Puchberg," "Puckberg," or "Pocksberg" are identical with the Poppbergs. A coat of arms of the "Pocksberg" appears in the Kastl monastery church in the row of founders' coats of arms on the south side of the nave. It can be assumed that the castle was founded to control the "high road" from Prague to Nuremberg, perhaps even under the Counts of Sulzbach, who ruled until 1188. In any case, the village of Poppberg is mentioned as belonging to the Fürnried parish as early as 1139. However, the castle's existing buildings show no signs of such an early foundation; they are more consistent with the period after 1300, when tower-like residential buildings became fashionable. The first truly confirmed reference to the castle appears in 1373, when the so-called New Bohemian Lands of Emperor Charles IV passed into the hands of the Bavarian duke. Poppberg was part of this Bohemian territory on Upper Palatinate soil, founded by Charles in 1353, but dissolved after his death. The Bavarian dukes pawned the castle to their Palatinate relatives in 1395, but redeemed the pledge in 1451. What seems odd is that two years later the castle is described as "deserted and desolate," meaning it was already abandoned. In 1505, after the Landshut War of Succession, Poppberg passed to the Duchy of Palatinate-Sulzbach, and in 1791 to Bavaria, but remained abandoned and fell into disrepair until the present day. The entrance to the castle is protected by a narrow tower on a pointed rock formation that forms the highest point of the castle. The upper part of the tower is occupied by a recently built, concreted shelter, which served as an air observation post during World War II. A circular wall adjoins the rock formation, forming a clearly visible edge of the terrain and extending extensively around the entire area. Traces of soil near the entrance suggest several utility buildings. The most impressive part of Poppberg is the residential building, a typical late medieval mixture of residential tower and palace dating from after 1300. The lower floor of the building probably served as a pantry and kitchen. The second floor is much more residential, with larger windows and two large entrances leading to the former battlements on either side. A third floor is suspected. Source: www.burgenseite.de

Small, privately owned castle located on the Neidstein. Was briefly owned by Nicolas Cage, the Hollywood actor. Unfortunately, it cannot be easily visited.

Great monastery castle with an amazing view - be sure to take the small juniper hiking trail!