Burgstall Landeck

The Burgstall Landeck stands on a wooded hilltop in the Southern Franconian Jura, 700 metres north of Thalmässing’s St Gotthard church. The hill rises 504 metres above sea level and drops steeply on three sides to the valleys of the Thalach and Schwimbach. A gentle saddle links it to a lower summit to the north-east. The old plateau sits about 100 metres above the surrounding land. Built of wood around 1150 to 1200, the castle was first destroyed in 1309 by the future Emperor Henry VII. After rebuilding, it passed from the Thalmässing lords to Burggraf Friedrich IV of Nuremberg in 1372. The Bavarian war of 1460 ended the site when Duke Ludwig the Rich burned it down. Later the stones were taken for roadworks and the last remains were cleared in 1828. Visitors now see a broad, partly levelled plateau and the old ditch that once defended the inner ward. A hollow way marks the outer bailey on the opposite side of the ditch. A small modern hut perches on the hill, and the crest of Thalmässing still shows a tiny crenellated tower recalling the lost fortress.