Ruin to visit
Wineck Castle
Markers
Presumably founded on a property of the Counts of Eguisheim around 1200, the little castle then passed to the Count of Ferrette, who donated it to the Bishopric of Strasbourg in 1251. Entrusted to the Knights of Wineck, it was owned by the Habsburgs and then the Rathsamhausens before being destroyed in the 15th century. The vestiges have undergone archaeological excavations and restoration work of the keep, under the joint leadership of the Friends of Wineck Association ‘Les amis du Wineck’ and the Society for the Restoration and Conservation of Katzenthal Castle.
History
According to legend, the small valley of Katzenthal, meaning ‘valley of the cats’, takes its name from a certain Baron Kaze who had established his hideout in Wineck Castle. Since then, on arriving in the village, you had to exclaim in Alsatian: "Heb d'r Katz d'r Wadel uff, drno bisch in Katzethal": (Lift the cat's tail and there you are in Katzenthal!)
Key points
Its 21-metre-high square keep, surrounded by a shield wall and a horseshoe-shaped enclosure; also worth seeing are the remains of wall-walk, the medieval garden and an archaeological exhibition retracing the stages of the site's renovation.
Practical informations
- Address
-
68230 Katzenthal - Access
- Free parking in front of the castle or further down in the village of Katzenthal. Access is then via a marked walk (green disc) through the vineyards for 10 to 15 minutes.
- Walk time from car park
- 1 min
- Nearest tourism office
- Office de Tourisme de la Vallée de Kaysersberg
39 Rue du Général de Gaulle, 68240 Kaysersberg-Vignoble
03 89 78 22 78 - @vallee.de.Kaysersberg
Facebook @vallee.de.Kaysersberg
www.kaysersberg.com - Conservation association
- Les amis du Wineck - 03 89 47 85 63
- GPS coordinates
- Lat.: 48.10980959 - Long.: 7.27597475
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