Petit-Arnsberg Castle

Petit-Arnsberg Castle, locally known as Château du Petit-Arnsberg, lies above the village of Obersteinbach, in the Bas-Rhin department in France. This area is also known as the Northern Alsace or the Northern Vosges.

When Petit-Arnsberg Castle was built is unknown. It was first mentioned in 1316 when it was owned by the Wasigenstein family for the Abbey of Wissembourg. Because the lords of the castle had become robber knights it was successfully besieged in 1335 after which Frédéric de Wasigenstein had to sign a peace treaty with the city of Strasbourg. His castle was taken from him and from 1360 it was used by the Ochsenstein family.

In 1400 the castle passes to Frédéric de Than, who mortgages half of it to Louis de Lichtenberg in 1420. At the end of the 15th century it fell to the Counts of Zweibrücken-Bitsch, who restored it in 1494. During the 16th century it was owned by the Counts of Hanau-Lichtenberg. In 1635, during the Thirty Years' War, the castle was destroyed. It was never rebuilt.

Waldeck Castle was built upon 2 rocks separated by a crevice. There are several rooms carved out of the sandstone rock and the ruin of a keep on the south rock. It is freely accessible. A very nice, small castle ruin.

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