Frauenberg Castle

Frauenberg Castle, locally known as Château de Frauenberg, lies on a ridge in the village of the same name in the Moselle department in France.

Frauenberg Castle was first mentioned in 1370 and was probably built earlier that century. It belonged to the Lords of Sierck, who depended on the Duchy of Lorraine, until 1471. After that, until the 16th century, it belonged to the Leiningen family, who were German nobles. In 1633, during the Thirty Years' War, the castle was taken by Swedish forces. Some years later it was dismantled on the orders of Cardinal Richelieu.

In 1681 the castle was given by France to the Lords of Leyen. Later it passed through the hands of Charles Gravier, Count of Vergennes and a Minister of Louis XVI. A fire partly destroyed the castle in 1786. At the end of the 18th century the castle housed 2 kilns of a pottery operated by Nicolas Villeroy, which later moved on to become the famous firm of Villeroy & Boch.

At present the site of Frauenberg Castle is fenced off and can thus not be visited, but it can easily be viewed from a small car park next to it. A nice castle ruin.

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