Meßkirch Castle

Since the last additions around 1700, there have been no significant changes to the basic structure. The castle lacked the necessary structural maintenance, and over time, serious structural damage occurred. The city of Meßkirch, which acquired the castle and its court garden from the Fürstenberg princely house in 1961 for the symbolic purchase price of one German Mark, was for a long time unable to change anything.

When a monument preservation priority program of the Baden-Württemberg state government began towards the end of the 1970s, Meßkirch Castle was one of the most urgent objects. In 1984, it was recognized as a monument of particular national cultural importance, and in 1985, work began with the repair of the roofs and portals.

In January 1986, extensive coffered ceilings from the Renaissance period were discovered in three wings, and three barrel vaults with frescoes by Joseph Franz Wegscheider were uncovered in the former castle chapel. It features magnificent stucco ceilings.

From 1991 to 1995, the "Schlössle" and the coach house were renovated. With assistance from the monument utilization program and funds from the European Union, the exterior facade was simultaneously repaired in 1993. From 1998 to 2001, the interior renovation of the town wing, the renovation of the inner courtyard, and the cellar rooms took place. In 2005, the renovation of the valley wing finally began.

The west wing still needs to be renovated. However, since it is a protected monument, this requires enormous financial efforts that cannot be managed in the coming years.

The small castle hall features Renaissance arcades. In the former prince's apartment, the original stucco ceilings can be found. The impressive roof truss dates from the 16th century. The complex also houses 19th-century official rooms.

The administrative center, even during the Fürstenberg era, was Meßkirch Castle, built by the Barons of Zimmern, the former residence of the Princes of Fürstenberg. Until the transition to Baden, the Fürstenberg Oberamt (district office) was also established there. After 1806, the Baden district office was housed there until it was dissolved in 1936 as part of an administrative reform decreed by the National Socialists, and the Meßkirch district was incorporated into the Stockach district. The last Fürstenberg authority, the Princely Fürstenberg Forestry Office, remained in the castle, and until the district reform in 1973, the district court was also located there. The notary's office still has its domicile in the castle today. The Allgemeine Ortskrankenkasse (AOK) of the Stockach district and various schools also found a home there for years, such as the Ursuline Women's School, later the Women's Vocational School and the Aufbaurealschule, a boarding school for the Benedictine Sisters of Saint Lioba (a branch school of the Kloster Wald boarding school, until its relocation to Wald in 1977). However, secondary school and middle school classes also temporarily used the rooms in the castle until the building complex was renovated. In 1983, the music educator couple Ludwig and Wilma Fischer-Schwaner operated a private music school in the castle.

Since its renovation, the building complex has been primarily used by the Martin Heidegger Archive. Its banquet hall is available for cultural events, conferences, and representative occasions of the city.

District Gallery

Since 2006, the castle has housed the District Gallery Meßkirch Castle, a district-owned art collection of the Sigmaringen district, on two floors and a total area of approximately 450 square meters in the south wing of the castle complex, the so-called valley wing. In contrast to the open banquet hall, the south wing is divided into small room units for static reasons. The art objects are owned by the district or were acquired by the Oberschwäbische Elektrizitätswerke. In 2009, the number of visitors increased from 3,500 to 4,000.

Classic Car Museum

The Meßkirch Classic Car Museum displays a collection of old automobiles and motorcycles.

Martin Heidegger Museum

In 2002, a permanent exhibition on the life and work of the philosopher, the Martin Heidegger Museum, was opened on the ground floor of the east wing. In addition to a life chronicle and stages of Heidegger's philosophical development, the themes "Heidegger as a son of Meßkirch" and "Heidegger and art" are also presented. His working library is located in the Martin Heidegger Archive.

The court garden, planned in 1735 as an architectural landscape garden with straight avenues, water basins, and plants shaped by garden shears, was never realized. Its builder, Froben Ferdinand zu Fürstenberg, died during the planning. Froben Christoph von Zimmern had already planned to create the garden as an orchard.

The smaller version of today's court garden was laid out in 1736 as a castle park in the French style according to plans by Johann Caspar Bagnato and planted with over 300 lime trees, of which 44 still stand today. In December 1985, 25 trees had to be felled. Of the total of 300 trees in the court garden, 57 are 200 years old or older. The special feature of the old tree population lies, on the one hand, in the high number of very old lime trees, which is unique regionally, and on the other hand, in the good health of the trees. Generally, all trees are hollow inside. However, most of them have enough residual wall thickness to ensure life-sustaining supply. In general, a large maintenance backlog and a very high incidence of deadwood can be observed throughout the area. For about 50 percent of the trees, growth training with pruning, crown securing, and shortening is overdue to maintain the vitality of the trees in the long term. In the past, trunk damage has repeatedly occurred due to lawn mowing in the court garden. In 2011, the city will begin with crown securing.

The fountain with a jet in a paved basin in the court garden was once donated by the Dual company. The park with its baroque structure was once a private garden with paths and sightlines, as well as parterre areas. The court garden changed over the decades with the demands of the public.

For the 750th anniversary of the city of Meßkirch in 2011, the court garden is to present itself anew as a collaborative design project by the city, citizens, and landscape planners. For this purpose, a citizen workshop was held in 2009 and 2010. The redesign will include enlarging the children's playground and changing the course of the Mettenbach stream.

In April 2010, surveys were carried out in the court garden for a park maintenance plan, with the aim of registering it in the monument register. So far, the court garden and castle together have ensemble protection. In the meantime, it has been declared a natural monument. The entry in the monument register and the creation of a maintenance plan are basic prerequisites for the recognition of the court garden as a "cultural monument of particular importance."

The richness of species and individuals in the court garden is significant: 44 bird species occur in the court garden, including 31 breeding bird species and three strictly protected species on the Red List of endangered species (Merlin, Green Woodpecker, and Kestrel), as well as 16 on the pre-warning list (such as Willow Warbler, Tree Sparrow, and Common Crossbill). Regional peculiarities include the Common Crossbill, a starling colony, and a colony of Fieldfares. Among beetles, a total of 40 species of wood beetles occur in the park and the orchard. Of particular importance is the Great Oak Jewel Beetle, which is among the critically endangered species. It has a unique refuge here between the Swabian Alb and the Alps and inhabits 27 lime trees, especially in the peripheral area of the court garden. For bats, the court garden is a very valuable area. The park, orchard, and adjacent open land are an ideal hunting habitat.

Meßkirch Castle Festival

The Meßkirch Castle Festival takes place annually around the castle, in the inner courtyard, and in the court garden. The festival is jointly organized and carried out by the city of Meßkirch, the Hofmann siblings, Meßkirch associations, and restaurateurs. In May 2008, the 4th Meßkirch Castle Festival was entirely dedicated to the 20th stage anniversary of the Hofmann siblings and attracted thousands of visitors to Meßkirch.

Meßkirch Castle Christmas

Since 2006, the Meßkirch Castle Christmas, a Christmas market in the castle courtyard that attracts hundreds of visitors, has taken place every first Advent weekend. The organizer is the Handels- und Gewerbevereinigung (HGV) from Meßkirch, which organizes the catering for the stalls together with local associations and businesses.

Classic Car Meeting

Since 2007, the largest classic car meeting in Upper Swabia has taken place every two years in the court garden, castle courtyard, and castle, attracting hundreds of classic vehicles and thousands of visitors. For the meeting on July 4-5, 2009, there was a special classic motorcycle meeting on Saturday for the first time. On Sunday, there was a general classic car meeting for all types of classic cars built up to 1975.