Harburg Castle
A castle never taken by force, held by one family since 1299 and largely unaltered since the seventeenth century.
Updated 19 October 2026
AI illustration
Harburg stands on a rock above the Wörnitz on the edge of the Ries crater, first recorded in the twelfth century and held by the Oettingen family from 1299, when King Albert I pledged it to them, to the present, which is unusually continuous ownership. It was never captured, and because the family moved their residence elsewhere in the eighteenth century the castle was not modernised, so the walls, six towers, gatehouse, chapel and prison survive substantially as built. The Oettingen-Wallerstein art collection, once housed here, includes works now largely in Augsburg. A bridge below carries the road across the river beneath the walls.
History
Harburg first appears through Kuno of Harburg, half-brother of Berengar of Sulzbach, founder of Berchtesgaden monastery, around the year 1100, and the castle itself is first mentioned in 1150, when the 13-year-old Henry Berengar, son of King Conrad III, wrote that he was staying here, then a Staufen imperial castle, during the battle of Flochberg. King Conrad IV lived at Harburg in 1239, and in 1299 King Albert I pledged it to the Counts of Oettingen, whose ownership Emperor Sigismund confirmed in 1418; in 1731 it passed from the extinct Protestant Oettingen-Oettingen line to the Catholic Oettingen-Wallerstein line, and since 2000 it has belonged to a cultural foundation of the princes of Oettingen-Wallerstein (Wikipedia, Harburg Castle).
The main sights
- The six towers - a complete circuit of walls and towers on the rock.
- The unaltered fabric - a castle not modernised after the 1700s.
- The chapel and prison - interiors shown on the guided route.
- The river setting - the Wörnitz and its bridge below the walls.
When to go
April to October; the castle closes for winter and visits are by guided tour at set times. It is on the Romantic Road and busiest at midday in summer.
Good to know
Entry is only on a guided tour with fixed departures. Much of the interior is bare. It closes entirely for several winter months.
Nearby
Nördlingen lies north; Donauwörth is south.
Key facts
Source: Wikidata, item Q1012188, read on 18 October 2026.
What to pack for Harburg Castle
Chosen from what this place is for. Tap a kit for the full checklist.
- Comfortable walking shoes - Sightseeing means kilometres of pavement and cobbles daily. Find on Amazon
- Modest clothing - Shoulders and knees covered - the single most common requirement. Find on Amazon
- A slim anti-theft daypack - Zips that close properly; keep it in front in crowds and on transit. Find on Amazon
- A scarf or shawl - To cover the head or shoulders on entry; women especially at mosques. Find on Amazon
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