Burgruine Ulmen

The lower castle has completely disappeared. Remnants of the ring, which was connected to the lower castle and the city wall of Ulmen, can still be seen, along with a two-story outer wall of the palace, a cistern, and a few foundational walls of other buildings. The old part of the castle in Ulmen was built around 1074 AD and probably rests on the remains of a Roman settlement. In the Middle Ages, the castle in Ulmen was further expanded and divided into the upper castle, whose wall remains are still present, and the lower castle, which extended to the shore of the Maar. Two knightly families inhabited the castle, which is believed to have never been attacked or destroyed due to its size until 1673. It was only the troops of the Sun King who accomplished this. It was rebuilt, only to fall again in 1689 during the War of the Spanish Succession. However, this time the Ulmener castle was rebuilt as well, but the city wall was abandoned. The invasion of Napoleon's soldiers also made Ulmen French and later Prussian. The unoccupied castle, whose last descendant died in 1801, was auctioned off to a merchant from Cochem, who marketed it as a quarry. When a devastating fire burned down Ulmen in the 19th century, the Ulmeners rebuilt their houses using stones from the castle. Therefore, one can still see a coat of arms on some barns today. It was not until the early twentieth century that the Ulmener castle was placed under monument protection and became the property of the local community of Ulmen. The castle is freely accessible at all times.