Burg Gretenstein

Burg Gretenstein was a small hilltop fortress near Villmar on the Lahn river. Built about 1350 by Philipp von Isenburg-Grenzau as a dowager seat for his wife Margaretha, it stood on a rocky spur above the water. The site lay close to the medieval Vogtei of the Abbey of St Matthias, which controlled the surrounding villages. The castle’s life was short. In 1360, during a feud with the Villmar vogts, troops led by Kuno of Falkenstein seized and demolished it. Philipp was captured and only released after giving extensive guarantees. No visible walls remain today, though earthworks and a neck ditch can still be traced on the slope. Visitors now walk a quiet woodland path beside the Lahn to the rocky outcrop. From the spur there are views downstream towards the König-Konrad memorial and upstream to the looping river. The place is marked by a single information board that names the vanished fortress and tells its story.