Schloss Emmendingen

The Markgrafenschloss in Emmendingen stands at the edge of the old town centre. It is a plain three-storey Renaissance building with a tall pitched roof and a striking octagonal stair-tower on its north side. Lower outbuildings surround the main block, and above the main door an abbot’s staff recalls its origins as part of Tennenbach Abbey’s estate. In 1588 Markgraf Jakob III of Baden-Hachberg bought the site and turned it into a residence for the margraves of Hachberg. After his death the castle served first as the seat of the landvogt and later as the burgvogtei. The castle’s history includes the Emmendingen Religious Colloquy of 1590, held in the chapter hall of a nearby building. In 1833 Mayor Carl Helbing arranged for the city to take over the property and converted it into a hospital. Today the building houses the town’s historical collection. The ground-floor cellar, with its cross-vaulted ceiling, now hosts a small arts stage and events. A thorough renovation in 2007 restored the ensemble. Visitors walk through the quiet courtyard past the octagonal stair-tower and the surviving Lenzhäuschen, the last outbuilding of the old residence. Inside, the stadtgeschichtliche Sammlung displays Emmendingen’s past. Below, the vaulted cellar provides an atmospheric venue for concerts and performances. The castle square itself is a small green space where the city’s history is quietly gathered.