Erftstadt

Gracht Castle in Erftstadt-Liblar is one of the most impressive moated castles in the region. The picturesque ensemble consists of a Baroque park, a three-winged outer bailey and a two-winged manor house. Today, the former seat of the Wolff Metternich family serves as the location of an internationally oriented management school.

First mentioned in documents in 1426, Gracht Castle came into the possession of the Wolff Metternich family through marriage in 1538. The family's rise to high secular and ecclesiastical offices prompted them to expand the manor house into a representative castle in 1658. Years of neglect – during the French period from 1794 to 1814, it served as a military hospital – caused considerable damage. In the mid-19th century, Count Levin Anton Wolff Metternich decided to rebuild the castle, giving it its present form.

In 1957, the municipality of Liblar acquired the castle. It built a sports field and designated land previously used for agriculture and forestry as building land. After the castle was sold again, it was used for various purposes. From 1969, the Goethe Institute offered courses for foreign students, and from 1973, the University Seminar of Economics provided training for executives of German companies. The University Seminar has since been merged into the European School of Management & Technology.