Burgreste Bräunisburg

The remains of Bräunisburg stand on a narrow ridge called the Bräunisberg, 852 metres above sea level, above the Ursental valley west of Mühlheim an der Donau. Built in the 12th or 13th century by the lords of Wartenberg, the site passed to the Fürstenberg family in the early 15th century. By 1394 it was already described as a ruin, and only earthworks and scattered stones remain today. The ruins cover 3,400 square metres, split into a small inner ward of 300 square metres and a much larger outer ward. A curved earthen rampart 110 metres long still rises 3.5 metres on the outer side and 1.6 metres inside, ending in a steep drop on the southeast and a half-circle ditch on the north. Within the outer ward a low circular stone wall about four metres across marks the site of the old cistern. The inner ward occupied the rocky tip of the ridge and a lower terrace now used as a viewing point. Fragments of masonry along the inner edge of the half-circle ditch suggest the remains of a curved shield wall or round tower. The whole spur commands wide views over the surrounding countryside.