History
A hotel with a heart and a history
A hotel, an order of knights and a long history – making the Deutschherrenhof what it is today.
1190
Merchants from Bremen and Lübeck founded the Teutonic Order in Acre, Palestine - also known as the German Order of Knights or Deutschherrenorden.
1247
Mechthild, the widow of Earl Heinrich von Sayn, endowed the Teutonic Order with various estates around Zeltingen and Rachtig. Also included in these endowments were the patronage of the church and tithe rights.
1254
First mention of the “Deutschherrenhof”.
1400
The Teutonic Order became the most powerful landowner of the region through land purchases and endowments. In this period the Deutschherrenhof developed its basic form also known as an independent commandery.
1618 - 1648
During the Thirty Years War Rachtig and the Deutschherrenhof were destroyed.
1688 - 1697
During the 3rd French war of succession the French pillaged Zeltingen-Rachtig and the Deutschherrenhof starting from their fortress Mont Royal near Traben-Trarbach.
1737 - 1738
The Order Commander, Johann Philipp von Steinkallenfels, restructured the Deutschherrenhof and enlarged it with several additional buildings.
1871
The Deutschherrenhof was auctioned off in four parts. The Deutschherren garden became the property of the Schmitz family.
1957
The Schmitz family bought the south wing of the Deutschherrenhof from the joint heirs of the Dusemund family. In 1965 first renovation work started.
1968 - 1979
The Deutschherren cellar was opened as a restaurant including a skittling alley.
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1972
The manor house was bought by the Gessinger family.
1981
The Deutschherrenhof was opened as a hotel, restaurant and winery. This also included reopening the Knights’ Hall with its listed stucco ceiling.
1982
The servants’ quarters and the bakehouse were purchased by the Krämer heirs.
1985 - 1989
At the same time as the outside area of the courtyard and gardens were being laid out the renovation of the manor house and the bakehouse were still in progress.
1993
Through the acquisition of the gardens from F.J. Morbach the estate was reunited again for the first time since 1809.
2008
The sun terrace in the front garden is designed.
2014
The hotel and restaurant business is placed into entrusted and new hands. The daughter of the Schmitz family, Alexandra Schmitz-Zirbes, and Martin Haier forming the executive management as well as Sebastian Bodensteiner, the new owner, and the 20-person strong team now look forward to welcoming you.
2015
With the opening of the 250m² large luxury spa area the Deutschherrenhof can now boast a wellness and beauty sector. Our wellness sanctum includes a Finnish sauna bath overlooking the Mosel, a soft sauna and a steam bath allowing you to retreat to the panorama relaxation lounge. Release tension with numerous kinds of massages or enjoy an aroma bath and pampering treatments.
In the historical arched cellar in which the Teutonic Order first stored their wine casks there is now a fully redesigned room for all kinds of individual events accommodating up to 100 people.
2017
The hosts now present many other further renovated rooms. All 42 rooms of the main building have been tastefully redesigned since the new management took over in 2014.
2019
In the spring of 2019 all rooms and en-suite bathrooms in our guest house were renovated.
