Rheinstein Castle

Together with its romantic gardens and terraces, the castle is situated opposite Assmannshausen on a rock outcrop, 90 metres above the Rhine. From there one has a picturesque view of the river. In the interior of the carefully and elaborately restored castle stained glass paintings from the 14th to 19th centuries can be admired. There are also magnificent wall and ceiling frescos with an ornate Gothic cornice from the 19th century. The furnishings are mainly antique furniture from the 17th and 19th centuries. The armour and armaments originate from the 15th century. A neo-Gothic chapel with the only Prussian crypt in the Middle Rhine region also belongs to the castle.

The castle was built by the Archbishop of Mainz at the end of the 13th century as a toll castle with the additional task of protecting the region against robber barons. The castle fell into ruin from the 17th century, until in 1823 Prince Friedrich Wilhelm of Prussia bought it as a ruin. He had it rebuilt by Schinkel and other famous architects and builders. In 1975 the opera singer Hermann Hecher bought the castle from the Hohenzollern dynasty. It is still in family ownership up to the present day.