Useldange Castle is a medieval castle, now mainly in ruin, located in the village of Useldange

Useldange

Useldange is a commune and small town in western Luxembourg, in the canton of Redange., the town of Useldange, which lies in the east of the commune, has a population of 622. Other towns within the commune include Everlange, Rippweiler, and Schandel....

 in western Luxembourg

Luxembourg

Luxembourg , officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg , is a landlocked country in western Europe, bordered by Belgium, France, and Germany. It has two principal regions: the Oesling in the North as part of the Ardennes massif, and the Gutland in the south...

. The site can be visited throughout the year with special arrangements for poorly sighted visitors.

Location

The castle stands on a small hill in the centre of the village overlooking the River Attert. The ruins present a reasonable picture of the medieval castle, especially the outer wall and one of the round towers. A bridge over the former moat, 10 metres wide, provides access to the castle. The keep, 25 metres tall, stands at the centre of the site.

History

The castle appears to date from the 12th century when the lordship of Useldange was created. One of the early lords was Théobald d'Useldange. After the dynasty died out in the middle of the 13th century, Jean de Rodemacher became the legitimate proprietor in 1415 by marriage with Irmgard de Boulay. In 1479, Maximilian I

Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor

Maximilian I , the son of Frederick III, Holy Roman Emperor and Eleanor of Portugal, was King of the Romans from 1486 and Holy Roman Emperor from 1493 until his death, though he was never in fact crowned by the Pope, the journey to Rome always being too risky...

 confiscated the property and charged Christopher of Baden

Christopher I, Margrave of Baden-Baden

Christopher I of Baden was a Margrave of Baden-Baden in 1475–1515.Christopher was the eldest son of Charles I, Margrave of Baden-Baden and Katharina of Austria, a sister of Frederick III, Holy Roman Emperor. He built the New Castle and moved there in 1479. In 1515 he divided his possessions...

with its upkeep. As a result of the war between France and Burgundy, the castle and its chapel were seriously damaged. William of Nassau-Vianden, who inherited the castle, sold it to François-Sébastien Bauer of Everlange in 1674. The castle fell increasingly into disrepair and the chapel was desroyed in 1903.

In 1924, American immigrant Mrs Kuhn-Wolff, originally from Useldange, returned to buy the ruined castle. After consolidating the walls in 1934, the family went on to build a modern property over the ruins of the castle's palace. It has now become the town hall. The castle is being restored by the State of Luxembourg.

The castle today

The castle is open to visitors throughout the year. Special arrangements have been made to allow handicapped and weakly sighted visitors to experience the site.