Lower Castle

Welcome to the Unterschloss. More precisely, to the "Schicksaal" (fate hall). Its name already gives an idea of the fateful topics that were discussed here in the past and the fateful encounters that may have taken place here...

Thanks to the porte-cochère, the castle entrance, carriages could drive directly into the castle. Even when it rained, ladies and gentlemen were able to enter the castle without getting their feet wet. Or, if necessary, leave the castle unseen...

This was probably also useful during the peasant uprisings in 1848. At that time, the castle courtyard was the scene of a revolt against the manorial system. Documents from the baronial archive were destroyed in the process.

One special gift from that period did not fall victim to the flames and is still safely stored in the castle today: a lock of Napoleon's hair. The lady-in-waiting Francisca Amalie Henriette von Adelsheim received it from Princess Josephine von Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen. She was the daughter of Stéphanie de Beauharnais, an adopted daughter of Napoleon.

The lower castle rises in the middle of the old town of Adelsheim. A Baroque jewel, it was built in 1738 by master builder Johann Jakob Rischer after a fire destroyed the old moated castle. Friedrich Leopold von Adelsheim had the new building constructed on the foundation walls and with remnants of the medieval fortifications: the round castle tower, parts of the old foundation, and traces of the moat still bear witness to this today.

He had an English-style garden laid out around the castle, with a winding watercourse, a tuff grotto, and gentle landscapes that came into fashion in the 18th century. Thanks to Baron Louis Ferdinand von Adelsheim and his father Baron Joachim, the historic lower castle has been preserved in its splendor to this day. Once a year, during the atmospheric "Adelsheim leuchtet" (Adelsheim shines) event, the gates to the spacious garden are opened and the castle shines in a very special light.