Schloss Großheppach

Schloss Großheppach stands in the Remstal valley near Stuttgart. Built in the 16th century as a small Renaissance palace, it has grown over four centuries through successive owners. The main building began as a square house with a prison in one gatehouse, and later wings were added in the 18th and 19th centuries. The castle’s long history is tied to remarkable figures. Martin Aichmann, Württemberg’s chancellor, started the first section in 1593. Later owners included the Gaisberg family, who gave the estate its alternative name, and Johann Friedrich Stockmayer, whose descendants still hold part of the property. The site once covered most of the village and its vineyards around 1800. Visitors walk through a landscaped park with a historic mammoth tree planted in the 19th century. The gatehouses, walls and outbuildings survive in Biedermeier and neo-Gothic styles. The main house remains a private home, while the archive and public events open parts of the grounds. Guided tours and open-air theatre performances bring the castle’s story to life.