Hohenstaufen (mountain) in the context of Lorch (Württemberg)

The Hohenstaufen dynasty (/ˈhoʊənʃtaʊfən/, US also /-staʊ-/, German: [ˌhoːənˈʃtaʊfn̩]), also known as the Staufer, was a noble family of German origin that rose to rule the Duchy of Swabia from 1079, and to royal rule in the Holy Roman Empire during the Middle Ages from 1138 until 1254. The dynasty's most prominent rulers – Frederick I (1155), Henry VI (1191) and Frederick II (1220) – ascended the imperial throne and also reigned over Italy and Burgundy. The non-contemporary name of 'Hohenstaufen' is derived from the family's Hohenstaufen Castle on Hohenstaufen mountain at the northern fringes of the Swabian Jura, near the town of Göppingen. Under Hohenstaufen rule, the Holy Roman Empire reached its greatest territorial extent from 1155 to 1268.

Hohenstaufen Castle (German: Burg Hohenstaufen) is a ruined castle in Göppingen in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. The hill castle was built in the 11th century, on a conical hill between the Rems and Fils rivers (both tributaries of the Neckar) in what was then the Duchy of Swabia.It was the seat of the Staufer (Hohenstaufen) dynasty, the Dukes of Swabia for the period of 1079–1268, with three Holy Roman Emperors during 1155–1250. The castle was destroyed in the German Peasants' War of 1525.

Hohenstaufen Castle can be found on Hohenstaufen Mountain, 684 m (2,244 ft) above sea level. The word Stauf means "drinking vessel" (beaker or cup) and refers to the conical shape of the mountain.

The Rechberg (el. 707.9 m.) is one of the three Imperial mountains near Göppingen in Baden-Württemberg in southern Germany.Together with the Hohenstaufen and Stuifen, it forms the so-called "Three Kaiser mountains" (Drei Kaiserberge).

It lies south of Schwäbisch Gmünd on the northern end of the Schwäbische Alb. The other two Imperial mountains are the Stuifen to the southeast and the Hohenstaufen to the west. In 1979, the Rechberg was made a state recreation area.

The Drei Kaiserberge (lit. three emperor-mountains) Hohenstaufen (684 meters), Rechberg (707 meters) and Stuifen (757 meters) are inlier mountains of the Swabian Alb in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. They form a distinctive group between Göppingen and Schwäbisch Gmünd and are a widely visible and prominent feature of the region. Since 4 October 1971, they have been protected together with Aasrücken and Rehgebirge as a Landschaftsschutzgebiet (landscape conservation area).

The name Kaiserberge references Hohenstaufen Castle, the family seat of the royal and imperial family Staufer. Its remains can be seen today at the top of Hohenstaufen.