Germany · 13th century
Wittringen Castle ranks #5,678 of 9,040 worldwide in the atlas's castle fame ranking, and #494 of the 714 mapped in Germany. Founded 1263, it is older than 66% of the atlas's dated landmarks, one of 1091 atlas entries founded in the 13th century. 13 more atlas landmarks stand within 25 km. The nearest day-trip guide is Essen, 12 km away. See how Germany compares in the castle statistics.
Wittringen Castle or Wittringen House (German: Schloss Wittringen or Haus Wittringen) is a moated castle in Gladbeck, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany.
The noble family von Wittringen was first mentioned in an official document from 1263. Knight Ludolfus de Witteringe is today believed to have erected the castle around that time. The exact date is, however, unclear. Another document from 1394 mentions Heinrich von Brachtbecke as the castle's owner. The three Wolfsangeln of Brachtbecke's family crest were later also included in the crest of the city of Gladbeck.
In 1438, the Herzog of Cleves granted the von Oeffte family enfeoffment of 50 percent of Wittringen. The family later acquired the other half and was thus the castle's sole possessor for the next 150 years. In the mid-sixteenth century, Wittringen was given to the family of the Knights von Capellen as a betrothal gift. During the Thirty Years' War, it was plundered by Hessian troops in 1642.
In 1922, Freiherr Vittinghoff-Schell, then the owner of Wittringen, sold the castle to the city of Gladbeck. In the following years, it was extensively overhauled, using historic maps and plans. The manor house was re-modelled in its original style of the Dutch Renaissance. Since 1928, Wittringen has been home to the museum of Gladbeck (Museum der Stadt Gladbeck) and today it also hosts a restaurant. The castle is surrounded by spacious forests, parks and the Gladbeck Stadium.
Text adapted from “Wittringen Castle” on Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0.
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