Ranzenburg

The Ranzenburg is a ruined hilltop castle on the western edge of Neufra, a district of Riedlingen in the Biberach district of Baden-Württemberg. It was built by the Lords of Neufra in the late 12th century and mentioned in records from that time. By 1405 the fortress had already been destroyed. The Lords of Wichsler later became owners of the site. Today nothing remains of the old walls or towers. Historians regard the Ranzenburg as an important early example of Hohenstaufen military architecture in the region. Its brief active life shows how quickly castles could rise and fall in the 13th and 14th centuries. The site lies on a gentle slope above the Danube valley, giving it a strategic view over the surrounding countryside. Visitors walk across grassy mounds that mark the former baileys and curtain walls. A low stone plinth is all that shows where the keep once stood. The view from the crest stretches north-west towards the Swabian Alb and south-east across the Danube floodplain. A farm track now crosses the site, linking Neufra’s vineyards with the river meadows.