Castle Ruin Schauenburg

The ruins are located at the northeast end of Dossenheim. The remains are at an altitude of approximately 275m on the “Sporenkuppe” at the southwest hillside of the “Ölberg” (oil mountain) atop the former quarry. From there one has a beautiful view above the countryside of the upper Rhine-plain.

The existence of the castle is first testified by the nobleman Gehard von (Wolfsölden-) Schauenburg.

During the war of 1460 the castle was destroyed on the order of count palatine Fridrich. Over the course of the centuries the ruins advanced to be a welcome source for cheap building material for the people of Dossenheim.

After its first archeological digging in 1902 big parts of the pre-castle fell victim to the mining of the porphyry stone.

Currently the castle ruins are taken care of and restored by the AG Schauenburg and its volunteers. The group garnered the attention of the federal government of Baden-Württemberg and received the award for exemplary communal citizen reaction in 1989.

Hours

The ruins are freely accessible by a small stroll starting from the city center.

Directions

The hiking car park is located above the road loop at the crossing of the streets “Oberer Burggarten” and “Schauenburgstraße”. From the car park underneath the “Schlossbruch” (castle quarry) it’s now only a few minutes by foot up to the ruins. If one chooses the path into the “Kalkofental” (Direction East) one has to keep to the left. The walk will be approximately 15 minutes.

Local Museum

Rathausplatz 47 (City Hall/Town Hall Square 47)
Hours: Every third Sunday each month from 2 p.m. till 5.pm.

Trivia

• The ruins of the “Schauenburg” are under monumental protection and remain from the 13th till 15th century. During its history the original castle was often a plaything between the Palatine Counts of “Wittelsbach” and the archdiocese Mainz.
• Findings from the ruins and castle as well as a model of the former castle are exhibited in the permanent exhibition of the local museum in Dossenheim.