The Reichenfels Museum is located on the grounds of Reichenfels Castle ruins in Hohenleuben. From the ruins, the panoramic view stretches far across the Triebestal valley. If you would like to combine your visit with a route, a described trail from the market square leads to the marked Weißer Stein viewpoint. This offers a choice of different focuses: the museum and local history on the one hand, and the viewpoint and waypoints on the other.
Reichenfels Museum: Collections and guided tours
The museum opened in 1950. Since then, historical collections and a library have been preserved and displayed in a purpose-built building on the grounds of the castle ruins. The holdings include the collections of the Vogtland Antiquarian Research Society, founded in Hohenleuben in 1825. The Natural History and Local Heritage Museum also features a wide range of historical exhibits.
As an out-of-school learning venue, the museum offers engaging guided tours that complement classroom teaching. Their topics range from the prehistory and early history of Thuringia and the region to regional wildlife, geology and legends. If you would like to explore one of these subjects in greater depth, the tours provide a thematic framework; if you would first like to look around, you can use the historical exhibits as a guide. The breadth of topics shows that a visit to the museum is not limited to a single era.
The history of the castle grounds also includes a small garden laid out between the walls of the former castle. It focuses on traditional medicinal plants and plants associated with customs. In this way, the garden complements the collections by highlighting the significance of plants in medicinal and customary traditions.
Castle Ruins, Weißer Stein and Waypoints
For scenic views, Reichenfels Castle ruins themselves are a landmark: from there, you can enjoy a panorama across the Triebestal valley. On the described route from the market square in Hohenleuben, you will reach the marked Weißer Stein viewpoint at an elevation of 441 m after just under 1.4 km. There is a seating area directly behind it.
A path to the Weinbergbruch natural monument branches off about 100 m before Weißer Stein. Two separate distances help you navigate this route: the distance of just under 1.4 km refers to the path from the market square to the viewpoint; the turn-off for Weinbergbruch is about 100 m before it. This makes it easy to distinguish the viewpoint from the turn-off without confusing the distances given for each.
Culture in the broader destination of Greiz
The broader destination of Greiz also offers its own cultural and historical attractions. The permanent exhibition “From the Land of the Vogts to the Principality of Reuss of the Elder Line” has been housed in the Upper Castle in Greiz since 2010. It covers the history of the Vogts, lords, counts of the Holy Roman Empire and imperial princes of Reuss, as well as the associated culture of small-state residences. This is a different historical focus from the collections and history of the society in Hohenleuben.
The Lower Castle in Greiz houses a museum and a textile demonstration workshop. The workshop has been operating since 1998 and showcases the production and history of the Greiz textile industry; children and adults can take part in the manual production process. The Summer Palace in Greiz adds another architectural highlight: it was built as a summer residence for the princes of Reuss of the Elder Line and is one of the earliest Neoclassical buildings in Central Germany. The broader destination therefore offers a range of experiences: museum and society history in Hohenleuben, alongside the history of residences and textiles and Neoclassical architecture in Greiz.
Discover more destinations: Großebersdorf, Weida, Harth-Pöllnitz, Auma-Weidatal, Münchenbernsdorf, Hain, Hilbersdorf, Langenwetzendorf
See the overview of the broader destination: Greiz.
