Burg Regenpeilstein

Burg Regenpeilstein stands on a rocky spur 35 metres above the Regen valley near Roding in the Upper Palatinate. The medieval spur castle was built in the 12th century and first recorded in 1270 as castrum Peilstain. It belonged to the lords of Peilstein, a family whose name appears from 1135 until 1339. Later owners included the Satzenhofers, Heinrich von Preysing and the Zenger family. The Thirty Years’ War left parts of the castle in ruins. The core castle has two baileys dating from the 13th century. A 28-metre-high square keep once stood at its centre, surrounded by a great hall and curtain wall. The inner bailey’s gate tower and wall were demolished in 1922. Remains of a 16th-century fireplace and tiled stove show later alterations to the great hall. After the war, the western curtain was rebuilt between 1638 and 1640 and the inner courtyard was roofed over. A Baroque chapel of St James the Elder, built in the 18th century, holds a painted figure of the saint as a pilgrim with staff and flask. The castle probably served as a waypoint for pilgrims heading toward Rome or Santiago de Compostela. Visitors today see the ruined keep, remnants of the curtain walls and the chapel’s interior. The site overlooks the winding river valley and the surrounding countryside.