Burg Friedberg

The Burg Friedberg stands above Oppenau in the Ortenau valley. A spur castle built around 1300, it once protected the nearby Allerheiligen monastery. The bishops of Strasbourg took over in 1319 and used it as an administrative centre. By the late 16th century a vogt lived here after the buildings were renewed in 1574. A fire in 1615 destroyed both castle and town, after which a new manor-like house rose on the old foundations and still stands in private hands. The ruins form a rectangular enclosure with the remains of a round, elongated keep at its core. Two deep neck ditches once guarded the approach, though today houses cover them. The keep’s remnants show the thickness of the walls built to withstand attack. Visitors can walk around the outer walls and see where the inner courtyard once lay. From the site there are wide views over Oppenau and the surrounding Black Forest valleys. The stonework shows the hand of medieval masons who shaped the rock to fit the spur. A modern house now occupies part of the old plan, yet the outline of the medieval fortress remains clear. The contrast between ruin and inhabited building gives the place its quiet character.