Nürburg Castle

The Nürburg is a ruined hilltop castle in the German Eifel Mountains near the village of Nürburg south of Adenau in the district of Ahrweiler in the state of Rhineland-Palatinate. It stands within the famous North Loop, or Nordschleife, of the Nürburgring racing course at a height of 678 metres on a volcanic basalt cone. It may be visited for a fee.HistoryThe site was first mentioned in the records in 1166 as Noureberg or Mons Nore, but it is probable that it was already used as a signal station in Roman times to protect the important Roman road that ran through the Eifel.The actual instigator of the Nürburg was Count Ulrich, who, is named in a document from 1169, although his father, Dietrich I of Are had already started the construction of a refuge castle on the mountain. Ulrich's descendants called themselves the lords of Nürburg and Are and were vassals, who from then on was to represent their interests.