Bubenstein Castle (Ruine Bubenstein), also called Neu-Falkenstein, is a ruined spur castle on the northern side of the Höllental valley, about 500 metres west of Old Falkenstein Castle above the village of Falkensteig in the municipality of Buchenbach in the southwest German state of Baden-Württemberg.
The castle was built by Walter of Falkenstein in the 13th century and in 1266 its residents were recorded as the lords of Falkenstein. In 1328 the lords of Staufen were named as its occupants. In the 19th century, part of the castle rock was blown up for the railway line and in 1960 the castle was dismantled due to its poor state of repair.
The bergfried of the castle measured 10 by 10 metres, and the neck ditch was 5 metres deep and 8 metres wide. Of the old castle only wall remains and the neck ditch survive.
References:The Château du Haut-Koenigsbourg is situated in a strategic area on a rocky spur overlooking the Upper Rhine Plain, it was used by successive powers from the Middle Ages until the Thirty Years' War when it was abandoned. From 1900 to 1908 it was rebuilt at the behest of the German kaiser Wilhelm II. Today it is a major tourist site, attracting more than 500,000 visitors a year.
The first records of a castle built by the Hohenstaufens date back to 1147. The fortress changed its name to Koenigsburg (royal castle) around 1157. The castle was handed over to the Tiersteins by the Habsburgs following its destruction in 1462. They rebuilt and enlarged it, installing a defensive system designed to withstand artillery fire.
The fortification work accomplished over the 15th century did not suffice to keep the Swedish artillery at bay during the Thirty Years War, and the defences were overrun.