Castles of Manderscheid

Manderscheid is a former Verbandsgemeinde ("collective municipality") in the district Bernkastel-Wittlich, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Its seat of administration was in Manderscheid. On 1 July 2014 it merged into the Verbandsgemeinde Wittlich-Land. The Verbandsgemeinde Manderscheid consisted of the following Ortsgemeinden ("local municipalities"):

The House of Manderscheid was the name of the most powerful family in the Eifel region of Germany for a considerable period of time in the 15th century. In 1457, Dietrich III von Manderscheid was made a Reichsgraf (Imperial count) by the Emperor (probably Frederick III). When Dietrich died on 20 February 1498, he had appointed his sons Johann, Konrad and Wilhelm as new rulers – the family property had been distributed in 1488. Each of the sons founded a powerful lineage: Johann started the Manderscheid-Blankenheim-Gerolstein line, William the Manderscheid-Kail line, and Konrad (Cuno) the Manderscheid-Schleiden line. Augusta von Manderscheid-Blankenheim was the last countess. She was married to a member of the Bohemian nobility, Count Philipp Christian von Sternberg (1732–1811).

Manderscheid (in Eifel dialect: Maanischd) is a town in the Bernkastel-Wittlich district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany, and also both a climatic spa and a Kneipp spa. Until 1 July 2014, when it became part of the Verbandsgemeinde Wittlich-Land, it was the seat of the former Verbandsgemeinde Manderscheid.

The Eckfelder Maar is a former volcanic lake, that was formed during the Middle Eocene around 44.3 million years ago and is thus the oldest known maar. It lies in the southwestern Eifel mountains near Manderscheid in Germany. It is also an important fossil site that contains numerous fossil remains of fauna and flora, some of them nearly complete state of preservation. It has been continuously scientifically researched since 1987. The large number of finds - to date 25,000 fossil specimens have been found - have enabled a very detailed reconstruction of the landscape. This maar, a low volcanic crater, along with research areas at the Grube Messel and the Geiseltal valley, is one of the foremost palaeontological sites for this geological epoch in Central Europe and worldwide.

Pantenburg (in Eifel dialect: Pahntebuasch) is an Ortsgemeinde – a municipality belonging to a Verbandsgemeinde, a kind of collective municipality – in the Bernkastel-Wittlich district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany.

Eckfeld is an Ortsgemeinde – a municipality belonging to a Verbandsgemeinde, a kind of collective municipality – in the Bernkastel-Wittlich district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany.

Windsborn Crater Lake (German: Windsborn-Kratersee) is a water-filled volcanic crater in the Eifel mountains in Germany. It is located near Bettenfeld in the county of Bernkastel-Wittlich and in the state of Rhineland-Palatinate, and belongs to a group of four craters known as the Mosenberg Crater Row (Reihenkrater Mosenberg), named after the village of Mosenberg.

Laufeld is an Ortsgemeinde – a municipality belonging to a Verbandsgemeinde, a kind of collective municipality – in the Bernkastel-Wittlich district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany.

Brockscheid is an Ortsgemeinde – a municipality belonging to a Verbandsgemeinde, a kind of collective municipality – in the Vulkaneifel district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It belongs to the Verbandsgemeinde of Daun, whose seat is in the like-named town.

Karl (in Eifel dialect: Koahl) is an Ortsgemeinde – a municipality belonging to a Verbandsgemeinde, a kind of collective municipality – in the Bernkastel-Wittlich district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany.

Oberöfflingen is an Ortsgemeinde – a municipality belonging to a Verbandsgemeinde, a kind of collective municipality – in the Bernkastel-Wittlich district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany.

Bettenfeld is an Ortsgemeinde – a municipality belonging to a Verbandsgemeinde, a kind of collective municipality – in the Bernkastel-Wittlich district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany.