The castle was first mentioned in written sources in 1217, but not much is known about its first owners. The most famous owners of the castle, the noble Hopfenbach lords or the Hmeljniški lords, died out in the early 14th century. In 1321, the lordship was inherited by Gerlach pl. Auersperg.
The building is classified as an immovable monument of national importance. A cultural national monument is a building that has exceptional cultural value at the national level. Such buildings are initially assessed as cultural heritage and then entered into the Register of Immovable Cultural Heritage. The declaration is made by acts of declaration adopted by the competent authority. These acts are published in the Official Gazette of the Republic of Slovenia or the local community gazette.