Another clue is in the date of the restoration of the stone fortress, which took place in 1168, and coincides with first construction work on Gräfenstein Castle.

The boundaries of these places were contiguous with that of Gräfenstein's, so the castle's main function was to maintain a hold on the uncertain borders.

Thereafter the castle continued to change hands, until in 1570 it was transferred, together with its associated villages, to Badenese ownership (Margraviate of Baden-Baden and Baden-Durlach).

In 1635, during the Thirty Years' War, the castle was razed by fire (due to "carelessness on the part of the imperial forces...") and became unusable for a long time.

In 1771, when the rule of the Counts of Baden-Baden ended, ownership of the castle passed into the hands of the government of Baden-Durlach.

Another feature is the fact that the bergfried at Gräfenstein is not oriented in the direction of an attack, because the castle stands on a conical hill with steep drops on all sides.

This underscores the symbolism of military architecture, which was on an equal footing with functionality in the High Middle Ages.

Around the bergfried there is a mantlet wall, which appears to represent five sides of a slightly irregular octagon, due to the nature of the terrain.

In the northern part of the upper ward lies the Hohenstaufen era palas, whose walls have been preserved as far as the height of the rain gutters.

The shape of the irregular polygon is again repeated on the expected direction of attack, so that there is a triple defence here consisting of enceinte, mantlet wall and bergfried.

Two small round towers with loopholes for hand weapons guarded the approach on the northeastern side of the lower ward.