Forndorf Castle

The Burgstall Forndorf stands on a plateau just north-east of the crossroads in Forndorf, a village now part of Wieseth in Mittelfranken. Once a medieval castle, it later became a small Renaissance palace. The site lies between 125 and 225 metres from the junction, looking out over the gently sloping Rotbach valley. Its owners changed many times: the Reichsküchenmeister von Nordenberg in 1352, then Heinrich Marschalk von Pappenheim in 1364. The Schenk zu Geyern family took over in 1422, followed by the Ehenheim family in 1435 and Apel von Seckendorff-Birkenfels in 1529. After a fire in 1565 destroyed the castle and local records, Markgraf Georg Friedrich built a new palace in 1590 which has since vanished. By the early 19th century the ruins were sold, divided and covered by farm buildings. Today three farmsteads occupy the plateau, but traces remain. A low rampart and ditch can still be seen on the north-west side. The Rotbach valley, four metres below, once formed the eastern defence line. The scattered walls and the memory of successive owners are all that link the modern fields to the castle’s vanished past.