Château du Nideck

The ruins of Château du Nideck crown a rocky spur above the Haselbach valley in the Alsatian Vosges, the castle having been built around 1250 and abandoned by the 17th century. The fortress changed hands several times among the bishops of Strasbourg and local nobility before falling into disrepair. It gained wider literary fame through Adelbert von Chamisso's 19th-century ballad 'Das Riesenfräulein von Nideck', which set a giant-folklore tale in its crumbling walls and cemented the ruin's romantic reputation. Classified as a French historic monument, the site is reached via hiking trails from the village of Oberhaslach, rewarding visitors with standing tower remnants and open views across the densely forested Vosges slopes.