Lichteneck
Weilheim-Hepsisau, The county of Esslingen
Height: Circa 615 Meter
At first glance, there is not much left of the former Lichteneck castle besides the castle hill in the forest halfway up the Albtrauf. However, some walls remain and bear witness to the once important castle.
The castle, whose name refers to a detached and strongly illuminated castle, was most possibly built in the 13th century by the Lords of Neidlingen or rather Randeck. Then, the Albtrauf was not wooded. The first inhabitant of Lichteneck was the knight Marquard of Neidlingen, who was a servant to the Dukes of Teck and from 1289 onward called himself Marquard of Lichteneck. After his death in 1317, the castle was divided among his four sons, who were called Kraft, Hermann, Merklin II and Henry. Between 1395 and 1397 Merklin III, who was the son of Merklin II, succeeded in buying back some parts of the castle from his relatives. The last person to live in Lichteneck was Jacob of Lichteneck in 1452, after which it was described as a Burgstall in 1504, referring to a dilapidated and abandoned castle.