The exact history of the Wolfenstein Castle is unclear. The archaeological excavations have dated the construction to the mid-12th century. The first written document dates from 1283 when Gottfried von Sulzbürg changed his name Wolfenstein and started the nobility. Hans von Wolfenstein died childless in 1462 and the castle was moved to the possession of Bohemian (Czech) king. Wolfstein lost its importance in the 16th century after been damaged in War of the Succession of Landshut in 1504. The castle was abandoned and fell into disrepair.
Today, the ruins of Wolfenstein are in good condition. It went through extensive excavations and renovations in the 1990s.
References:The Pilgrimage Church of Wies (Wieskirche) is an oval rococo church, designed in the late 1740s by Dominikus Zimmermann. It is located in the foothills of the Alps in the municipality of Steingaden.
The sanctuary of Wies is a pilgrimage church extraordinarily well-preserved in the beautiful setting of an Alpine valley, and is a perfect masterpiece of Rococo art and creative genius, as well as an exceptional testimony to a civilization that has disappeared.
The hamlet of Wies, in 1738, is said to have been the setting of a miracle in which tears were seen on a simple wooden figure of Christ mounted on a column that was no longer venerated by the Premonstratensian monks of the Abbey. A wooden chapel constructed in the fields housed the miraculous statue for some time. However, pilgrims from Germany, Austria, Bohemia, and even Italy became so numerous that the Abbot of the Premonstratensians of Steingaden decided to construct a splendid sanctuary.