Schloss Erolzheim

Schloss Erolzheim stands on a partly wooded hill in the centre of Erolzheim, a village on the edge of the Iller valley in Oberschwaben. Its oldest walls probably belong to a medieval castle built by the local lords, the Herren von Erolzheim, who held the estate from the 12th to the 16th century. In 1594 Konrad XI. von Bömmelberg bought the place, which remained a free imperial estate until 1803. After changing hands several times in the 19th century, the main block was given a neo-Gothic makeover and a brewery once stood on the north side. The present building is a compact three-storey plastered structure with four corner towers and a stair-tower in the middle of the south wall. A steep tiled roof with gables on the west and east crowns the core. To the west and north, two-storey wings with sharp angles enclose the courtyard, and on the south wing a small bell-tower rises above the roofline. The north wing is guarded by two polygonal turrets, and a double-leaf gate leads through to the courtyard, where a stone lion’s coat of arms marks the last private owners, the von Kienlin family. After a fire in 1945 destroyed the interior under French occupation, the exterior was restored to recall its 16th-century appearance. Today the castle houses workshops and private flats, but the courtyard and gatehouse remain visible reminders of its past. The surrounding hilltop site offers views across the Iller valley, linking the modern village with the layered history of the estate.