Gleichenstein Castle (Wachstedt)

Gleichenstein Castle, formerly also known as Velseck or Felseck, is a castle on the 459-meter-high Schlossberg (Castle Hill) between the municipality of Wachstedt and the district of Martinfeld in the municipality of Schimberg in the Eichsfeld district in Thuringia.

History and Layout
The hilltop castle, formerly Velseck Castle, was built by the Lords of Gleichen (formerly also of Velseck) in the 12th century and destroyed in 1234. From 1241 to 1246, the castle was rebuilt as a replacement for the old Velseck Castle under the name Gleichenstein Castle and mentioned in 1287. From 1294, it was owned by the Archbishops of Mainz. In 1632, the castle was conquered by Swedish troops under Bernhard of Weimar, razed in 1643, and completely destroyed in 1648. In 1650, the castle was rebuilt, came under Prussian rule in 1802, to the Thuringian district of Mühlhausen in 1816, and to the district of Worbis in 1952. In 1967, the castle was renovated.

The castle complex features a core castle around a triangular courtyard with a palas in the south, a late Gothic pointed arch portal in the west, and remnants of the outer bailey walls. Formerly, the castle was surrounded by three moats. Until 2005, it housed a castle restaurant and a falconry. The building is currently vacant.