Burg Eschweiler

Burg Eschweiler once stood in the centre of Eschweiler as a water-filled stronghold with six round towers and a square keep. Its first known occupant was Wilhelm von Eschweiler, the Cologne cathedral chapter’s local representative, recorded in 1145. By the 17th century the site belonged to the Hompesch family, who built a new manor called the ‘Kaffeemöll’ in 1845. In 1858 the Catholic parish bought the grounds to create a hospital, which later replaced most of the medieval walls.

The old fortress measured 197 by 93 metres, surrounded by a two-metre-thick curtain wall. Archaeologists found the castle dungeon beneath the south-east tower after its demolition around 1800. Three of the original towers survive today, standing beside the modern hospital buildings. The parish added a chapel in 1892 and a large extension in 1926, both now part of the medical complex.

Visitors can still walk around the three preserved round towers and the remaining stretch of curtain wall. The south tower once housed a pump room, while the south-east tower served as the hospital morgue until the 1980s. A local ghost story tells of a white figure leading a bold owner to buried treasure beneath the site. The legend recalls three sisters who hid gold and jewellery in a locked cellar, only revealed when their restless spirit found a willing follower.