Burgstall Leonegg

The Burgstall Leonegg stands on a steep-sided ridge south-west of Katzensteig, a hamlet near Hattenweiler in the municipality of Heiligenberg. The spur rises to 670 metres above sea level and is separated from the main plateau by a well-preserved neck ditch. Two nearly rectangular enclosures lie within the site, divided by a shallow hollow, while a deep and wide ditch guards the south-western tip. The first written mention of the Leonegg family comes from 1100, when Gothefridus de Leonegge witnessed a donation. By 1209 Hartnid von Leonegg held the vogtei of Altheim, and Heinrich von Leonegg appears in the 1257 Johanniter commandery at Überlingen. The last male member of the family, Burkhard von Leonegg, served as commander of the commandery at Rheinfelden in 1311. After passing through several noble and monastic hands, the site was already called a Burgstall in 1614 and later quarried for stone, leaving no visible buildings above ground. Visitors today walk along the ridge where the neck ditch once marked the entrance. The two rectangular enclosures show where buildings once stood, while the deep south-western ditch remains impressive. Sand extraction and modern tracks have disturbed parts of the earthworks, but the overall layout is still clear. The surrounding farmland and distant views across the Bodenseekreis give a sense of the strategic position the castle once held.