Four castles in one spot? It sounds unreal, yet here in Heroldsberg, it is a reality. These aren’t scattered around five villages. All four castles cluster near St. Matthew Church. This church started as a military church in the 11th century. Each castle gets its name from its shutter color. You will see the White Castle. Then, the Green Castle, the Red Castle and finally the Yellow Castle.
Heroldsberg’s story dates back to the 11th century. The first mention came in 1225. In 1387, the Geuder family of Nuremberg acquired the territory. They held lordship over Heroldsberg for 400 years. The family became imperial knights, known as Geuder von Heroldsberg. Later, they rose to Bavarian barons in 1822.
The Geuders grew rich through long-distance trade. They shipped spices and cloths to Cologne in the 14th century. They had businesses in Venice in the late 14th century. Also, they operated in Frankfurt am Main and Flanders in the early 15th century. Around 1418, they handled finances in Paris and invested in mining. The Geuders built the four manors. These are the green, red, white, and yellow castles. They also built the fortified church on the village’s market square.
Albrecht Dürer, the famous painter, was a friend of Martin Geuder III. Martin was a councillor and Schultheiß. Dürer created the first drawing of Heroldsberg in 1510. It featured Geuder’s new Red Castle. Geuder’s descendants still own it today.
From the 15th to 17th centuries, Heroldsberg had growth periods. But destruction came with the Margrave Wars and the Thirty Years’ War. In 1796, the Geuder family lost the fiefdom. The territory became Prussian. During the Napoleonic Wars, France administered it for four years. Since 1810, Heroldsberg has been part of Bavaria.
After World War II, around 1,700 ethnic Germans settled in Heroldsberg. They had been forced to leave their eastern-European home countries. Since 1978, the villages of Großgeschaidt and Kleingeschaidt have been part of Heroldsberg. Since the 1970s, Heroldsberg’s population has steadily grown. Today, it has about 8,852 residents.
Heroldsberg sits eleven kilometers northeast of Nuremberg. It is also 23 kilometers east of Erlangen. The town is the headquarters of Schwan-Stabilo. Heroldsberg lies in the Sebalder Reichswald. This forest is north of Nuremberg on a ridge. The Grüundlach, a Regnitz river tributary, flows through Heroldsberg.
The coat of arms features a golden lion’s head. Three silver stars surround it on a blue background. King Sigmund granted it to the village in 1417. He did so at Kunz Geuder’s request.
The White Castle once served as Heroldsberg’s Town Hall. There are plans to convert this former schloss into a museum. So, remember Heroldsberg. It is a place where history lives within colorful castles.