Ruine Ehrenfels bei Rüdesheim

 Germany > Hesse > Rheingau-Taunus-Kreis > Rüdesheim am Rhein

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Castle Ehrenfels (Burg Ehrenfels) - one of the castles of the middle Rhine valley, rises above the city of Rüdesheim, stands on a steep slope on the east bank of the Rhine. Around the castle are vineyards, where a strictly defined variety of grapes is cultivated, named after the castle - Ehrenfels. The castle was built in 1212 and belonged to the Archbishop of Mainz. Ehrenfels was of great defensive importance - at that time the archbishop had the appearance of an imperial vicar - actually the regent of the Holy Roman Empire - Henry V. Since the middle of the 13th century, the castle was also used as a customs post, like the Mouse Tower, located on an island nearby on the Rhine. Like many other castles of the Rhine, Ehrenfels was badly damaged during numerous sieges during the Thirty Years War. The castle was finally destroyed during the War of the Palatinate Succession, during the siege of Mainz in 1689.