Burg Parkstein

The Burg Parkstein once stood on the summit of a steep basalt cone in the village of Parkstein. It was one of the largest castles in the Upper Palatinate, dominating the surrounding countryside. Archaeologists have found traces of an earlier Bronze Age settlement on the same hill. The castle changed hands many times. Emperors, dukes and cities owned it, including Frederick Barbarossa and the counts of Sulzbach. For nearly three centuries it was run as a joint estate by Brandenburg and the Palatinate. After the Thirty Years War it fell into ruin and was gradually dismantled in the 18th century. Today only fragments remain on the slope of the basalt cone. At the top stands a small chapel built in 1851. Visitors can walk around the cone and see the scattered stones of the old walls. From the summit there are wide views over the gentle hills of the Upper Palatinate.