The Nürburg is situated south of Castle Are, where the Counts of Are belonged to a family circle whose members can be traced back to the 9th century. In the 10th century, they are alleged to have held rights in what would subsequently become the village of Nürburg. The counts were able to build up an independent power base within the High Eifel and at the upper Ahr and this power base was centered between Adenau, Nürburg, and Altenahr. The counts were divided up between several ancestral lines: the Are-Hochstaden line held the property in the village of Nürburg.