Mouse Tower, Bingen am Rhein, Germany

The Mouse Tower (Mäuseturm) is a stone tower on a small island in the Rhine. The Romans were the first to build a structure on this site. It later became part of Franconia, and it fell and had to be rebuilt many times. Hatto II, the Archbishop of Mainz, restored the tower in 968. The story of how it came to be called the 'Mouse Tower' comes from a folk tale (Hatto was being eaten alive by mice in a tower). In 1298 the structure became an official customs collection tower. It was destroyed by a French army in 1689, then rebuilt in 1855 as a Prussian signal tower.

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User Reviews

Mark McLain (9 months ago)
As has been noted, the Rhine River is very low during the fall of 2018 allowing folk to walk out to what is normally an island. The Mouse Tower was the toll station for the larger ruined castle of Burg Ehrefels directly over above on the north side of the Rhine. You can tour inside the Tower with guides from the city of Bingen which costs something like 10+ euros. The tower and the castel were both controlled by the Bishop of Mainz. The Mouse Tower got its name from 'Mausheturm' toll tower. Legend has it that one Bishop of Mainz - Hatto II - was eaten alive by mice out here after treating the locals in a rather rude manner. You can walk out here from the Park am Mauseturm in the fall if the water is low enough. Otherwise, you book your passage through the City tourist bureau.

Markus Bechthold (9 months ago)
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Volker Klein (10 months ago)
Low water 2818/10/26

Jens Thomas (2 years ago)
Very picturesque tower when cruising by on a ship.

E&C Cox (2 years ago)
Always a beautiful sight from either side of the Rhine or from a boat. I don't know if there are any tours that take you to the little island.

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