Schloss Hinnenburg

Schloss Hinnenburg stands on a 282-metre hilltop near Brakel in the Höxter district. It is a three-winged castle with a round bergfried, the oldest part at the south-west corner. Built around 1600 as a three-storey late Weserrenaissance structure, it later gained baroque outbuildings. Inside are rooms with fine 18th-century rococo stucco work. A byzantine-style octagonal chapel was added in 1658, and the mausoleum beside it holds the family vault. The castle began as a knight’s residence in 1237 for Berthold von Brakel. The Brakel family held it until the late 13th century, when it passed to the Asseburgs through inheritance. In 1793 an heiress carried it to the von Bocholtz family, who became the counts of Bocholtz-Asseburg. After their line died out in 1985, it went to an adopted son from the Asseburg-Falkenstein-Rothkirch line. Two fires, in 1910 and 1934, damaged the outbuildings and the grand hall. Today the castle remains in private hands and is closed to visitors. Public footpaths wind around the outer walls, offering views across the surrounding countryside. The hilltop site preserves the medieval layout while showing later baroque and renaissance additions. Nearby Brakel is a small town with its own historic centre. The contrast between the private interiors and the open landscape paths makes the hilltop a quiet place to walk and look out over the region.