Saga of The Hostile Brothers

The castles Liebenstein and Sterrneberg, situated on the long stretch of peaks above Bornhofen are among the most popular on the Rhine.

The best-known version of the legends tells of the two sons of a count, whose names were von Sterrenberg and von Liebenstein, who cheated their blind sister when they divided up their father’s inheritance.

When it came time to apportion the gold pieces with a scoop, they turned it upside down when it was the sister’s turn to measure her share. While it felt like the scoop was filled to the brim, in fact only the bottom was covered. The blind woman used her share to have the cloister built at the foot of the castles.

The wealth acquired through treachery brought the brothers nothing but trouble. They became such enemies that they had a wall built to separate their castles.

One day, when the rich inheritance had been wasted, they tried to put their differences behind them. On that occasion, they agreed to meet for a hunting expedition early in the morning. The one who woke first was to waken the other by shooting an arrow at the other’s window shutters. And so it happened. At the very moment when the arrow was shot into the air, the targeted shutter opened and the bowman was horrified to see the arrow pierce his brother’s heart. The unintended killer of his own brother could find no peace; he travelled to the Holy Land and died there.