Burgstall Edelburg

The Burgstall Edelburg, also known locally as the Hodlenburg, stands on a hilltop at 510 metres above sea level in the Gärtringen valley. It once guarded a small roadside fortress, built on a round site about twenty metres wide. Only the central mound and a circular ditch remain, the ditch still four metres deep, with fallen masonry inside the earthworks. The first written record appears in 1468 under the name Odlerholtz in the Herrenberg treasury book. By the 15th and 16th centuries the Harder family owned the site. From 1583 to 1640 the village of Gärtringen held it, before the castle was probably abandoned later in the 16th century. Visitors today walk up the gentle slope to the mound and look into the deep circular trench. Inside the ring of earthworks lie scattered stones that once formed walls. The view stretches across the valley, where the old road once passed below. The quiet hilltop carries only the wind and the memory of medieval watchmen.