The tower dates back to the thirteenth century, and was originally an open tower whose battlements are still visible in the northern and southern walls. Between the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries, Prince-Bishop George I of Lichtenstein had it rebuilt and raised, endowing it with a Gothic-style roof visible in Albrecht Dürer’s watercolor depicting the castle. It housed the garrison for the defense of the city walls and the guardhouse to defend the gate.
