Ellingshausen: Castle, Church and Bakunin Hut

Ellingshausen combines architectural history with a distinctive association venue: the castle, church and Bakunin Hut offer different historical perspectives. The village also has a direct route to Einhausen and further destinations in the wider Schmalkalden-Meiningen travel region.

Castle, Church and Medieval Defences

Ellingshausen Castle was built in 1605 and is a three-storey stone building with rendered walls. The church was built in 1775 on the site of an older church. Plain on the outside, it is a single-nave hall with a rectangular choir. Its year of construction, materials and form provide a concrete introduction to the village’s history.

Inside Ellingshausen Church, the altar area with its choir screen and pulpit altar, the gallery fronts and the side panels of the pews are decorated in a uniform style. Light-coloured Rococo-style carvings adorn wood stained either light or dark. The result is a contrast between a plain exterior and a harmoniously designed interior. If you would like to see inside, check in advance whether a visit is possible.

The castle’s curtain wall is also part of the village’s history. It is largely preserved; from the southern neck ditch and from the west in particular, it conveys an impressive sense of medieval defences. As its condition may change, it is advisable to check the current situation before visiting.

Bakunin Hut: History and Visiting Arrangements

The Bakunin Hut is located on the Hohe Maas in the Ellingshausen district. It was built as a wooden hut in the 1920s and later converted into a stone house. Its history thus traces a transformation from a wooden hut into the later stone house.

When planning a visit, it is important to distinguish between the grounds and the hut: the association’s grounds can be entered at any time, but the hut itself is usually locked. You can look inside the hut by arrangement with the association. The Bakunin Hut hiking association offers guided walks to or at the hut on request. Before travelling, check the association’s latest information and arrange a visit or guided walk.

Routes and Regional Discoveries

A farm track leads directly to Ellingshausen and then on to Einhausen. In Einhausen, the Haseltal Cycle Route and the Werratal Cycle Route meet. If you are planning to take either route, Einhausen is an important point of reference; the farm track described here leads there via Ellingshausen.

The wider Schmalkalden-Meiningen travel region offers further landscapes and cultural attractions. The Schmalkalden-Meiningen district’s Prachtregion comprises four landscape areas: the Thuringian Forest, the Rhön, the Werra Valley and the Grabfeld. They can be explored on foot, whether for sporting adventures or relaxing family outings.

In Schmalkalden, visitors can experience the making of melt-in-the-mouth nougat at the Viba Nougat World’s glass-fronted manufactory. Hands-on confectionery courses offer the chance to mould chocolate, decorate nougat and create pralines. Course times and booking conditions may change, so check them if you are planning to take a course.

Also in Schmalkalden, the “Neue Hütte” blast furnace museum tells the story of regional industry. The furnace complex dates from 1835; locally mined iron ore was smelted there using charcoal until 1924. Exhibitions explore the region’s almost 1,300-year history of iron and steel goods production, including the famous “Schmalkalder Artikel”. A 45-minute guided tour focuses on the history and function of the blast furnace works.

The Trusetal Waterfall offers a different kind of natural attraction: it plunges 60 metres over a granite formation in three cascades. Visitors can also climb 228 steps beside the waterfall. These examples from the wider travel region complement Ellingshausen’s local architectural history with crafts, industry and landscapes.

Choosing the Right Holiday Apartment

When choosing a holiday apartment, start by asking what matters most to you: would you like to focus on Ellingshausen’s architectural history and the Bakunin Hut, or also include destinations elsewhere in the wider Schmalkalden-Meiningen travel region? If the latter, take the holiday apartment’s exact location and the routes to your chosen destinations into account.

Discover more destinations: Christes, Rhönblick, Wernshausen, Fambach, Grabfeld, Zella-Mehlis, Kleinschmalkalden, Jüchsen

Go to the overview of the wider travel region: Schmalkalden-Meiningen.