Old Bavarian Oxenweg
The Altbaierische Oxenweg is an old trade route on which tens of thousands of Hungarian gray oxen were driven to Altbayern every year in the Middle Ages and in the early modern period .
term
In order to avoid confusion with the Ochsenweg in Schleswig-Holstein and Denmark , the historical spelling "Ox" or "Oxenweg" was used. Under Altbayern refers to the area that is now Upper Bavaria , Lower Bavaria and the Upper Palatinate covers. The Fernweg owes its unusual name to the gray cattle that were herded between 1350 and 1750 over a distance of at least 600 kilometers from the Hungarian Puszta to the gates of Augsburg . Always close to the rivers of Glonn , Langenpettenbach and Zeitlbach, the route ran across the Dachau district .
history
Between 1350 and 1750 up to 200,000 oxen were driven from the Hungarian lowlands, the so-called Puszta , to Central Europe every year in order to satisfy the meat demand of the citizens of growing southern German cities. One of the goals was Augsburg as one of the most important trading cities in Europe at the time.
The meat of Hungarian ox was considered a delicacy by the rich bourgeoisie and was therefore more expensive than domestic beef .
The oxen, which came from the Hungarian lowlands and partly from Transylvania , traveled up to 1,000 kilometers before they reached their destination. Ox herds were out for several weeks and usually consisted of 60 to 200 animals. Even after the long drive from Hungary, the frugal animals were still stronger than local cattle. They were driven by so-called Haiducken .
However, it was not only the meat of the white-gray and large steppe cattle that was valued. Bones, horns and skins were also processed into important consumer goods. In addition, the resilient Hungarian oxen were also used in agriculture, because some of these gray oxen developed up to twice as much power on the plow as native cattle.
The main hub for oxen from Hungary was Vienna . The driving routes to southern Germany initially ran along the Danube to the border town of Schärding . From there, the paths led in different routes to various Bavarian cities. Two routes led to the important trading town of Augsburg: one via the Dachau region , the other via the Schrobenhausen region .
Tourist development
Since 2004 the Wittelsbacher Land has been in the process of opening up part of the old drive route for tourism: cycling and hiking routes have been signposted, ox festivals and ox races round off the activities around the Altbaierischen Oxenweg. The Wittelsbacher Land has also taken the initiative to revive this old culture and trade route on a European level.
In the Dachauer Land, the signposted and almost incline-free route runs in an east-west direction for 42 km as follows: Hohenkammer (today the Freising district ), Petershausen , Weichs , Markt Indersdorf , Wagenried , Altomünster , Unterzeitlbach , Oberzeitlbach and Tödtenried . From the western border of the district, the route takes about 19 km via Adelshausen , Tattenhausen and Harthausen to Friedberg and from there with a detour via St. Afra to Augsburg . In Pasenbach near Vierkirchen there is a small loop of the path. The bronze figures exhibited in the local church of St. Leonart, depicting oxen with distinctive horns, are probably gifts from the Hungarian cattle drovers (Hajduken).
In 2009, three LEADER action groups from Germany, four from Austria and three from Hungary decided on cross-border cooperation. Other groups from Slovakia and Romania have expressed interest. One of the main aims of the project is to develop this old drive way as completely as possible. In November 2009 the project was recognized as a “Best Practice Project” in Brussels and presented to the European Commission .
Gray cattle herds in Hungary today
After the Hungarian gray cattle were threatened with extinction for a long time, around 25,000 animals are now living in the Hortobágy and Körös-Maros National Park .
literature
- Christina Dalhede: On the European ox trade: The example of Augsburg 1560 and 1578. Scripta Mercaturae Verlag, St. Katharinen 1992, ISBN 3-928134-69-8
- Rainer G. Schöller: Slaughter cattle from Hungary - interregional meat supply in southern Germany, shown on the basis of transit trade with Hungarian oxen. In: Maximilian Böhm u. a. (Ed.): On the alert. Shepherd life and pasture farming. Neusath-Perschen 2003.
- Wolfgang Stromer von Reichenbach: Wild West in Europe. The transcontinental ox trade in the early modern period. From: Kultur & Technik: Zeitschrift des Deutsches Museum München, vol. 3 (1979), no. 2, pp. 36–43
- Ekkehard Westermann (Ed.): International ox trade (1350-1750). Files of the 7th International Economic History Congress Edinburgh 1978. Klett-Cotta, Stuttgart 1979, ISBN 3-12-912690-2
- Josef Heindl: The silent ones - traces of Hungarian gray oxen in our homeland. Hoffmann Druck & Verlag Plattling 2013
- Gudrun J. Malcher: The Oxen Connection. The international marketing of oxen - an unknown industry in Regensburg from the Middle Ages to modern times . Dr. Peter Morsbach Verlag, Regensburg 2016