Château du Girsberg
France · Europe
About
The Château du Girsberg (also Guirsberg, formerly named Petit-Ribeaupierre) is one of three castles (with the Château de Saint-Ulrich and the Haut-Ribeaupierre) which overlook the commune of Ribeauvillé in the Haut-Rhin département of France. It stands at an altitude of 528 m.
The Lords of Ribeaupierre built the castle, then named Stein (La Roche), in the 13th century. They rebuilt it after a fire caused by lightning in 1288. In 1304, they gave it to their vassals, the knights of Guirsberg, from whom the castle took its name. The Guirsbergs kept it until they died out in the 15th century. It was abandoned in the 17th century.
The remains currently visible date from several epochs:
It has been listed since 1841 as a monument historique by the French Ministry of Culture.
Adapted from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA)。Photography via Wikimedia Commons.