Froeschwiller Castle

The village of Froeschwiller was held as a fief by the Eckbrecht de Durckheim family on behalf of the Bishop of Strasbourg from the 14th century. The castle, attached to the local church, originally consisted of a main building flanked by two towers and outbuildings accessed through a gate set in a vaulted passage. Behind it stretched a garden and a park. Around 1850, Ferdinand de Durckheim, prefect of Haut-Rhin and cousin of the Durckheim-Montmartin branch, acquired the property and transformed it into a large rectangular villa featuring a balcony supported by pillars. His son, Albert, commissioned architect Emanuel von Seidl in 1890 to enlarge and modify the building. Von Seidl gave it its current appearance with a mansard roof pierced by pedimented dormer windows and a tower topped with a belvedere. A second residential building was constructed nearby, connected to the main building by a first-floor walkway supported by a lowered arch. The outbuildings still bear the Durckheim family coat of arms and the date 1891. Today a private property, the castle is only open to the public during the European Heritage Days. It is also available for rent for events and receptions.