The ruin of Madenburg Castle is one of the biggest and oldest castle complexes in Rhineland-Palatinate

Rhineland-Palatinate

Rhineland-Palatinate is one of the 16 states of the Federal Republic of Germany. It has an area of and about four million inhabitants. The capital is Mainz. English speakers also commonly refer to the state by its German name, Rheinland-Pfalz ....

, Germany

Germany

Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

. The castle was built on a cliff on the outskirts of the Palatinate Forest towards the Rhine rift. The ruin that is surrounded by forest lies on 458m overlooking Eschbach

Eschbach, Südliche Weinstraße

Eschbach is a municipality in the Südliche Weinstraße district, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany....

.

Despite their power of resistance, the castle was destroyed during the War of the Grand Alliance

War of the Grand Alliance

The Nine Years' War – often called the War of the Grand Alliance, the War of the Palatine Succession, or the War of the League of Augsburg – was a major war of the late 17th century fought between King Louis XIV of France, and a European-wide coalition, the Grand Alliance, led by the Anglo-Dutch...

 by the troups of Joseph de Montclar

Joseph de Montclar

Joseph de Pons-Guimera Baron de Montclar, ,French cavalry generalCommander in chief of the Alsace, he was an implacable executioner of the orders of Louis XIV and Louvois. In 1676 the king ordered the destruction of Haguenau, which he accomplished in January 1677...

. The castle was never rebuilt.

External links

• Pictures from Madenburg Castle on historische-orte.de