History

A settlement on the Haigerloch rock ridge is first mentioned in 1095 In a first period of prosperity, Haigerloch received its town charter, and the castle of Haigerloch above the Eyach was the centre of many celebrations and tournaments. But by 1381, the Dynasty of Hohenberg was deep in debt and was therefore forced to sell its property to the Austrian Dynasty of Habsburg. About a hundred years later, Haigerloch became property of the Hohenzollern family, and a successful time of development began for the town and its citizens.

In 1580 Graf Christoph von Hohenzollern-Haigerloch, started building the castle church. He also had converted the medieval fortress into a renaissance residence and made it the centre of his dominion. From 1745 Prince Friedrich had the castle church converted into a baroque church. Furthermore he had built the church of St. Anna.

After the death of the prince the residence was shifted back to Sigmaringen, and the glory of Schloss Haigerloch faded. In the 20. Century, towards the end of Word War II the physicist Heisenberg took advantage of the remoteness of the town and established in 1945 the so called Nuclear Basement laboratory. After the war the castle was mainly used as an agricultural and administrative school. In 1975 the local entrepreneur Paul Eberhard Schwenk bought the castle which is now, after extensive and careful renovations a modern and comfortable conference hotel and has thus regained its old splendour.

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