Schmiedelfeld Palace (Schloss Schmiedelfeld)

Architecture, patrimoine et histoire · Landkreis Schwäbisch Hall

Perched about a hundred metres above the confluence of the Eisbach and the Kocher, at Sulzbach in the municipality of Sulzbach-Laufen, Schmiedelfeld Castle occupies a spur overlooking the valley. A first castle was built there in the 12th century by the lords of Schmiedelfeld, Staufer ministeriales attested from 1172 to 1245. After passing to the counts of Oettingen and then to the Hohenlohe, the site came around 1400 to the cupbearers (Schenken) of Limpurg. A branch of this family made it their residence in 1557 and built a Renaissance palace next to the old fortress, replaced in 1739 by a Baroque building. Sold in 1781 to Duke Charles of Württemberg, the lordship became an administrative seat, and in 1832 the estate was ceded to the municipality, which converted one wing into a brewery. The present palace, horseshoe-shaped around a courtyard, retains only a long wall from the medieval period. Bought in 1994 by the local history and culture association, it has been restored; the former Renaissance castle church, with its organ of 1610, has served as a cultural venue since 2001.