As many residents leave the Grand Duchy during the summer months, it can sometimes be the best time to explore Luxembourg’s lesser known hidden treasures, including its castle ruins.
Whilst there are more castles per square metre in Luxembourg than most other EU countries, only a handful have been restored or preserved.
Those that lie in ruins are often overlooked but have their own stories, legends and history to tell.
We pick five castle ruins you can visit in summer, combined with a walk or museum visit, and free to access. Read a little about the history and legends in this article before you set out to explore them.
You can find out about restored castles open to the public in the article below.
Also read:Explore these enchanting castles in Luxembourg
Brandenbourg Castle
Not far from Vianden, the substantial ruins of this castle are located on a hill in a forest clearing. If they seem familiar, that’s because they were used during the filming of 2004 Hollywood movie George and the Dragon.
Brandenbourg castle has a strategic location 70 metres above the village of the same name, overlooking ancient crossroads, and the roads from the River Sûre into the Ardennes and from Bourscheid to Vianden.
Passing from the Brandenbourgs to the Counts of Vianden and various other noble families, this castle was once the site of great feasts © Photo credit: Gerry Huberty
A simple wooden fort some 1,000 years ago, stone buildings were erected in the 13th century, including the 11.9 metre castle keep which enabled the dwellers to watch out for invaders. The keep once had four floors, but only three now remain.
Over the centuries the castle expanded as towers, defensive walls, and a chapel were added in the 14th century. During the 15th and 16th centuries, the castle, a bailey, two towers, vaulted cellars and curtain walls were added.
In its heyday you would pass through a courtyard before entering the central castle with its ceremonial hall, the site of many grand feasts.
At the end of the 13th century the Brandenbourg dynasty died out and the cast went to Thierry von Neuerbourg, linked to the Counts of Vianden. After that the castle was held in the hands of various noble families from the Lords of Haraucourt and the houses of Salm, Kitzingen, Stassin and Blochausen.
In 1687 French troops destroyed the external walls of the castle but the castle was inhabited in the 18th century before being abandoned and falling into ruin in the 19th century.
Today it is owned by the family Du Fays-Van Delft, who signed a lease to permit Luxembourg’s state to take care of it and conduct archaeological excavations.
You can explore the impressive remains freely, including the keep and subterranean rooms to get some great views of the surrounding forests in the Eislek region and there are information panels to give you more details.
You can take the TA 4 circular walk which takes in the castle but also great vistas of it at the Kinneksknäppchen viewpoint but is quite steep in places along the 8.2km route.
Alternatively this easier 6.4km circular route also takes in the castle ruins.
You can find more information on visiting times here.
Mont St John Castle
Mount St John is a spiritual site and pilgrimage stop, the ruins of which also hide Gallo-Roman structures beneath the Medieval fortifications.
Located in Dudelange, the mount was the seat of the Order of the Bretheren of St John of Jerusalem from 1464 to 1542. The church was dedicated to St John the Baptist.
Despite its destruction, it remained a holy place, which hosted processions in honour of St John which drew large numbers of pilgrims, and St John’s Day (24 June) remained an important holiday into the 16th century where it is described by Jean Bertels who later became Abbot of Echternach.
Restoration of Mount St John Castle was completed in 2015 with information panels giving the history of the various owners and the fort © Photo credit: LW Archives
The pilgrimage day was accompanied by a market, which is why many coins and fragments of pottery were found near the site.
The first castle belonged to the Lords of Gymnich but was destroyed by the Duke of Bar in 1400. The construction of the present castle began in the 15th century, when in 1412 Wynemar and his brother Erhard expanded the fort adding towers.
In 1464, Jean de Boulay and his wife, Marguerite d’Autel, inherited the castle and created a hospital for the poor.
In 1542, it was attacked by French forces and the following year François I stayed at the castle on his way to Luxembourg.
The castle was largely destroyed in a fire in 1552, lit by Luxembourg Governor Pierre-Ernest de Mansfeld.
The ruins were used as a quarry by nearby villages but the site was excavated and restored in the 1970s, when the foundations of the palace, towers, stables and other buildings were uncovered. The moat is also still visible.
It was restored in a 14-year project that began in 2001 and the tower in the southwest corner was built in the 1980s based on drawings from the castle.
A walk from the forest leads to the summit where the partly restored ruins also have information panels on the history and architecture of the castle. Legend says that the Virgin of Mount St John was transformed into a snake. Every seven years she awaits her saviour.
The departure point for the walk to the castle is Rue du Chateau Fort and the panoramic tower is open from May to September Monday to Friday from 7.00 to 19.00 and at weekends from 10.00 to 19.00.
Some of the artefacts found at the Mount are housed in the town’s municipal museum including pottery, coins, firearms and brooches. The museum is free and located at 5 rue du Commerce. It’s open Monday to Saturday from 13.00 to 17.00, although when we visited last year, it remained closed despite the opening times displayed on its website.
Schorels Castle
Located on the Schuerelserknupp at a height of 425 metres in the forest near Eschette sit the remains of Schorels or Schuerelser Castle.
It’s northwest of where the Bresterbach and the stream from the Redengshof converge and is privately owned but freely accessible.
You can reach it via a dirt road that starts at the end of Rue du Chateau near the Chapel of Ischst, which after 1.5km turns into a forest path. You’ll pass the streams and then you can take a narrow path that leads up to the ruins.
You can peak inside the main residential area inside the castle tower, the windows of which were partially restored in the 1980s. The outer walls are up to 3.5 metres thick.
A double wall runs from the high plateau to the rocky promontory and you can see the remains of a moat, a shield wall, a small tower, and outer wall made from slate.
There are no known historical documents about the castle but according to a local historian from the previous century, Jean-Pierre Koltz, the Lords of Useldange purchased it in 1292, possibly as a refuge if they needed to escape danger and as a shelter during hunting.
You can find out more here.
Esch-sur-Sûre Castle
Esch-sur-Sûre is dominated by the ruins of a castle that date back to 927, set high atop a steep hill.
The first reference to Esch Sauer is given in the third year of Charlemagne’s reign, written around 773. The site was acquired by Meginaud (aka Maingaud) in a deal with Stavelot Abbey which owned the land and he erected a square residential tower and some buildings for agricultural use.
The castle was expanded by the last two counts of Esch, with territories including 19 hamlets and villages.
The remnants of the castle overlook the town, with houses actually built against the original perimeter wall © Photo credit: Nadine Schartz
The first buildings of the castle were constructed during the Romanesque and Gothic periods, with a defensive system added in the 15th century including the round tower. The village was also surrounded by a 450m long and 1.5m high rampart with two defensive towers.
Unfortunately the castle declined from the mid-16th century, although the ramparts were not fully destroyed because private houses were built against them (which you can still see in the lane next to the town hall).
From the mid-19th century, ordinary folk resided in the castle and when Victor Hugo visited it in the summer of 1871 there were several families living there. The chapel was restored in 1906, but the rest of the castle has remained in ruins.
You can download the Visit Eislek app which includes an audio guided tour “Mysterious Esch-sur-Sûre” which also takes in the dam, located downstream a kilometre from the village. In addition to providing historical information, it takes in sights including the Loch Chapel, the ring wall, the rock staircase and the castle garden.
Legend says that the chapel is home to a ghost from the 11th century. In 1096 when Henry of Esch and his knights joined the crusade to the Holy Land, his wife Joan of Wiltz gave him a ring.
A year passed with no news of Henry and his knights, but one evening knights bearing a white cross appeared in the chapel, and in their midst was Henry, wounded and wrapped in a blood-soaked sheet.
When Joan rushed towards him, he and the knights disappeared but he left behind the ring. News of his death followed in the next fortnight. It’s believed that on 14-15 July the ghosts still haunt the chapel.
You can find more information here.
Koerich Castle
Located in this charming village in western Luxembourg and also known as Gréiweschlass, this castle has been extensively restored in the past few decades and is the site of music and medieval festivals, in addition to theatre performances.
It’s a typical example of a lowland castle with an impressive tower and walls in a square shape. It was started by Wirich I, Lord of Koerich, in the late 12th century, and the ‘witches tower’ is of late Romanesque style. Although now only 11 metres high, it was originally an imposing 20 metres in height.
Today only the south-west tower remains from that period, and the chapel dedicated to St Michael.
Gréiweschlass in Koerich has undergone extensive restoration and hosts music concerts in summer and a Medieval Festival in September © Photo credit: Pierre Matgé
Today only the south-west tower remains from that period, and the chapel dedicated to St Michael.
In 1728 the southern wing was rebuilt in Baroque style but the castle was no longer inhabited after 1750 and villagers took stones and timber to build their own houses.
The state bought the castle in 1985, and Käercher Schlassfrënn (Friends of Koerich Castle) was formed by people in the village to repair and restore it.
The outer walls, keep on the east side, the south-west corner tower and the chapel have all been preserved, with support given using stainless steel rods.
Legend says that the devil walked through the valley of the River Eisch carrying a bag of seeds. The bag sprung a leak and the seeds that scattered turned into castles. Seven castles are now spaced 24km apart in this region.
Koerich, Mersch, Schoenfels, Hollenfels, Septfontaines and the two castles of Ansembourg are considered to be these castles today and you can take a hike a 32 km trail passing by them all.
If you visit Koerich, you should also walk up the hill to the striking St Remy church with its onion-domed roof. Built in Baroque style in 1748, it contains furniture crafted in Luxembourg and some beautiful paintings.
You can find more information and visiting times here.