Westerburg (Verbandsgemeinde)

Westerburg (German pronunciation: [ˈvɛstɐˌbʊʁk] ) is a small town of roughly 6,000 inhabitants in the Westerwaldkreis in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. The town is named after the castle built on a hill above the medieval town centre (Burg is German for “castle”)

Schloss Westerburg, first recorded in 1192, but probably built earlier, is situated in the town of Westerburg in the forested hills of the Westerwald and is on the site of an older castle dating to the 12th century. The latter belonged to the counts of Leiningen but was transferred to the House of Runkel as the result of the marriage of Siegfried III of Runkel to a daughter of the House of Leiningen in the early 13th century. In the first half of the 13th century the castle was the seat of the lords of Westerburg, who had split off from the House of Runkel by 1288 with Henry I of Westerburg.The castle was considerably expanded and remodelled over the course of time and, for a long time was the residence of a branch of the counts of Leiningen-Westerburg. The northeast corner and the north front of the site are probably the oldest surviving sections. They include the castle chapel and probably date to the early 13th century. The building that contains the great hall was built between 1476 and 1483. The remaining parts of the site date to the 18th century when it was expanded to a schloss.Schloss Westerburg is in private ownership and houses a restaurant, and a dental institute.

Westerburg station is a junction station on the currently closed Herborn–Montabaur railway (also called in German the Westerwaldquerbahn, Cross Westerwald Railway) and the still operated Limburg–Altenkirchen railway (also called the Oberwesterwaldbahn, Upper Westerwald Railway). It is in Westerburg in Westerwaldkreis, in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate.

Gershasen is an Ortsgemeinde belonging to the city of Westerburg, Germany.

Hergenroth is a municipality in Westerwaldkreis district, Rhineland-Palatinate, in western Germany. People named "Hergenröther" may well have come from this town.

Willmenrod is an Ortsgemeinde – a community belonging to a Verbandsgemeinde – in the Westerwaldkreis in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany.

Halbs is an Ortsgemeinde – a community belonging to a Verbandsgemeinde – in the Westerwaldkreis in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany.

Stahlhofen am Wiesensee is an Ortsgemeinde – a community belonging to a Verbandsgemeinde – in the Westerwaldkreis in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is not to be confused with Stahlhofen, another community in the same district, but in the Verbandsgemeinde of Montabaur.

The Wiesensee (German pronunciation: [ˈviːzənzeː]) is an artificial lake, dammed up in 1971, in the Westerwald low mountain range. The lake covers about 80 hectares and lies in the area of Stahlhofen am Wiesensee's various centres on the lake's west shore, and Pottum on the north shore in the Westerwaldkreis. The community of Winnen borders on the lake to the southeast. The lake is a nature conservation area, and only parts of the water surface are open for recreational use. It is a holiday and tourist destination. Several hotels, a luxury hotel and golf course lie near the shore. Many leisure facilities in the winter and summer make the Wiesensee attractive for athletes, young families and youth. Around the lake runs a roughly 6.5-km-long hiking path loop.

The Kranstein is a rock formation which is designated as a natural monument in the German mountain range of Westerwald. It is situated by the district road, Kreisstraße 95, between Willmenrod and Weltersburg. It is registered as number "ND-7143-507" in the list of natural monuments of the state of Rhineland-Palatinate and is a geotope in the Westerwald-Lahn-Taunus Geopark. The basalt summit of the Kranstein has been exposed by a basalt quarry. After work started on northwestern side of the large quarry, basalt columns were found that leaned in on one another like logs in charcoal pile. This geological feature is like a section through a volcanic pipe. Minerals transported to the surface when the volcano erupted gave clues as to the composition of the Earth's crust which is up to 30 kilometres thick. Kranstein is one of the most impressive basalt outcrops in the Westerwald. There are hardly any geological publications or reports on the Westerwald that do not mention the Kranstein. In 1984, the Kranstein was placed under protection by the county of Westerwaldkreis and added to the list of natural monuments in the state of Rhineland-Palatinate. The Kranstein lies within the municipality of Weltersburg at a height of about 364 m above sea level (NN).

Kölbingen is an Ortsgemeinde – a community belonging to a Verbandsgemeinde – in the Westerwaldkreis in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany.

Winnen is an Ortsgemeinde – a community belonging to a Verbandsgemeinde – in the Westerwaldkreis in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany.