Upper Castle
The Upper Castle was built as a moated castle by the Lords of Schmidmühlen. From the middle of the 12th century, these can be traced here, starting with Ernst von Schmidmühlen (1166-1170). Georg Hausner von Winbuch (1595-1614), caretaker of Regenstauf, was the builder of the present castle. The year 1600 can be found on one of the magnificent door jambs of the knight's hall.
The Upper Castle is a three-storey, plastered solid building with a gable roof. An octagonal stair tower and another extension to the west are attached. In this chateau there was also a small chapel on the ground floor, but it was filled up and walled up a long time ago. At the top of the tower is a round plafond, painted with flowers and rosettes, supported by a graceful wooden column. The entire second floor is one of the most interesting parts of the German Renaissance due to its furnishings. The profane wall paintings located there are reminiscent of those of the ducal Trausnitz Castle in Landshut.
During and after the Second World War, the Upper Castle suffered severely from billeting by the occupying forces. A valuable ceramic oven was destroyed on the second floor. In 1937 the castle became the property of the market town of Schmidmühlen. Since the post-war period, the castle has served the Schmidmühlen market as the town hall. A thorough restoration took place between 1977 and 1980, during which the palace and the palace gardens changed their appearance. The renovation was finished in 2003. The home and club museum of Schmidmühlen is also housed in the castle.
In front of the castle there is a cast image of a Morris dancer on the fountain and reminds of the Schmidmühler sculptor Erasmus Grasser, who created the famous late Gothic Morris dancers for the ballroom in the Old Town Hall in Munich.
Source: Wikipedia