The largest and best preserved moth in Europe
The Motte Aldeberg is a run-off hill-top castle of the high and late Middle Ages and is located in the Helpensteiner Bachtal between the towns of Arsbeck and Dalheim-Rödgen. The complex consisted of a mighty hill and a large outer bailey. Beech trees grow today on the grounds. Not much is known about the early history of the moth. It is believed that it was built in the late 12th century.
The castle lay on a promontory projecting into the wetland of the Helpenstein creek. Until the late 14th or early 15th century it was a major manor responsible for local dispute settlement and jurisdiction, tax exemptions and horse breeding. Later, the estate lost importance and was finally abandoned.
Werewolves and brownies
The mighty old and gloomy castle in the middle of the dense forest gave rise in the following centuries to many wild stories and legends about werewolves and brownies. There was also a local religious intercession cult on the hill of Moth. In the 19th century, the local pastor initiated the construction of a chapel on the hill, which fell into disrepair again and was cut to the ground in the 1970s.
Today, the Motte as a Bodendenkmal a sensitive ensemble.