Kriebstein Castle From 1384, the von Beerwalde family erected Kriebstein Castle as a residential and noble ruling seat. At that time, they already owned the towns of Waldheim and Hartha. In 1400, the construction of the buildings and the extensions leaning out over the steep rock were completed. When Dietrich von Beerwalde died in 1408, the Kriebstein property fell to his widow Elisabeth and later to his daughter Klara. The second era of importance in the castle’s architectural history began in 1465 when Hugold III von Schleinitz acquired the castle. He assigned Gothic reconstruction and extension works to Arnold von Westfalen, the court master builder and architect of Meissen Albrechtsburg Castle. After Hugold von Schleinitz’s death in 1490, ownership of the castle changed frequently. Only the last third of the 17th century saw a revival of building activities under the rule of the von Schoenberg family. In 1825, Hanscarl von Arnim of the House of Planitz near Zwickau acquired the castle, which remained the property of the von Arnim family until 1945. After the Arnim family was expropriate in September 1945, the castle was at first used for residential purposes and then by the forestry administration. The museum has been in operation since 1949. Since 1 January 1993, Kriebstein Castle has been in the ownership of the Free State of Saxony.