Burg Beyernaumburg

The Burg Beyernaumburg stands on a spur of land 270 metres above sea level behind the present Schloss Beyernaumburg in the village of Beyernaumburg. It is a partly preserved hilltop castle protected as a monument. The site overlooks the surrounding countryside from its elevated position. The castle was first recorded in the 9th century as castellum Nivanburg. Over the centuries it passed through many noble families and was rebuilt several times.

The castle is worth visiting for its dramatic history and surviving structures. In 1308 the Templars of the Harz region took refuge here when ordered to be seized. Archbishop Burchard III of Magdeburg laid siege, even converting nearby churches into military posts. The standoff ended only when the Halberstadt bishop placed the archbishop under papal ban, forcing the siege to be lifted. The 16th-century gatehouse and the 30-metre-high keep still stand today.

Visitors find the tall keep standing on an eight-by-eight-metre base in the outer ward. The inner castle was once surrounded by a ring wall, with a ditch separating it from the outer ward. A landscaped park contains family graves of the von Bülow line. The stonework and earthworks show how the fortress controlled the valley below.