Alzeyer Castle

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Alzeyer Castle, north wing. Left Ludwigsbau, right Philippsbau

The Alzeyer Castle probably emerged from a Hohenstaufen imperial castle and was expanded into a castle in the 16th century .

It was destroyed in the Palatinate War of Succession in 1689 and only rebuilt by the Grand Duchy of Hesse at the beginning of the 20th century . Before it was destroyed, the castle was the seat of the regional administration and now houses the district court of Alzey as well as the girls' boarding school of the Alzeyer advanced and art high school.

Building stock

Castle plan

It is a rectangular castle complex on the eastern edge of the old town center, which was rebuilt as a ruin around 1905. For the most part, historical image material served as a template. To the east, towards the formerly free area, it has a mighty shield wall ; to the west, towards the city, it borders on the city wall with a bailey. Two gates lead through it into the outer bailey. To the south is the so-called Friedrichsbau, today used as a boarding school; to the north the imposing ensemble of the Philipps and Ludwigsbaues, which serve as the district court and judicial building. In the south-west corner sits a thick round tower that can be seen from afar and was built as a gun turret under Elector Friedrich I. In the northwest corner there is a gate tower, through which the only entrance to the castle led from the outer bailey. Around the inner castle there is a curtain wall with parts of a battlement that used to lead completely around the complex.

gallery

  • Alzey Castle, northeast corner, Ludwigsbau on the right, the shield wall on the left

  • Philippsbau from the castle courtyard

  • Shield wall, east side

  • Gun turret and city wall gate from the west

  • Gun turret from the courtyard

  • South side with gun turret and outer wall of the Friedrichsbau

  • Friedrichsbau from the courtyard

  • Gate tower with inner castle gate, on the northwest corner

  • Outer castle gate from the outer bailey towards the city

Emergence

Alzey Castle as a ruin before reconstruction, 1904/05

The origin of the castle in Alzey can no longer be clearly dated today. At the earliest, however, it came into being in 1125 after the Hohenstaufen came into possession of the imperial estate in Alzey.

Before the Staufer Duke Friedrich II took over the imperial estate, there was a flourishing estate in Alzey . It is not clear whether this was already attached . Duke Friedrich II was experienced in building castles and would have had a political interest in fortifying Alzey. It is therefore quite possible that he laid the foundation stone for Alzeyer Castle. However, this cannot be clearly demonstrated. So it could be that it was not Duke Friedrich II, but rather his son Palatine Count Konrad , who had spent his childhood in Alzey, who initiated the construction of the castle. At least this Alzey seems to have envisaged it as a mansion. However, there is no evidence of the activities of the Count Palatine in Alzey.

After Konrad's death Alzey came to the Guelphs in the course of the famous love marriage between his daughter Agnes and Heinrich the Tall One , but they showed no interest in this "remote possession". This epoch (1195–1213) is therefore rather unlikely as the date of foundation.

Only in 1214, when Alzey fell to the Wittelsbach Count Palatine Ludwig I , would have been a good time to build a castle in Alzey. This third variant at the time the castle was built could be based on two considerations: On the one hand, no components were found on today's castle that date back to before 1200; on the other hand, a castle (castrum) Alzey is first mentioned in 1278. This could indicate that the castle had only recently been built.

This could also explain the "great dispute" of 1260, in which the city fortifications were affected. At that time, the citizens of Worms , who had long been a thorn in the side of the castle lords of Alzey, attacked the place. The building of a castle could have been the trigger for the aggressiveness.

For all possible origins of the castle in Alzey - around 1125, around 1168 and shortly after 1214 - neither written sources nor archaeological findings can be cited. It is also not possible to say exactly what the early castle complex might have looked like. It was probably a tower hill castle .

history

The facility was first mentioned in 1278. At that time Werner Truchsess von Alzey , the founder of the Cistercian convent Sion in Mauchenheim , was in command of the castle. In 1190 the Alzey ministerials had been awarded the title of Alzey Truchessen. Presumably they had been commissioned to build the castle. After completion, this was then given to them by the builders - either the Hohenstaufen or the Count Palatinate - as a hereditary fief . This was a typical approach at the time that was definitely beneficial for both sides. The client did not have to worry about the administration, manning and maintenance of his castle. His feudal sovereignty also ensured that he had a say in the future of the castle.

In Alzey, however, this system only worked poorly. The Truchsessen viewed the Lehnsburg as their own property and used their position in Alzey to build up their own domain between the Rhine and Donnersberg. By the beginning of the 14th century, the Count Palatine succeeded in gaining full control of the castle. In the following years it served as an important territorial base and temporary residence of the Count Palatine with his court. The castle was expanded as a residence for this purpose. There are various court offices (Burgschenk, chamber master). In 1689 the castle was destroyed by the French during the War of the Palatinate Succession . A reconstruction took place between 1901 and 1903, during which many historical building details were removed.

Legend of the Raugräflichen castle

Above all, older historical research has assumed that a fortification was built in Alzey as early as the 11th century. This assumption goes back to the tradition by the native abbot Johannes Trithemius . The anecdote, however, has been debunked by modern research as improbable.

literature

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ A b Stefan Grathoff: Alzey Castle and Palace - Residence of the Count Palatine near the Rhine , accessed on September 20, 2012.

Coordinates: 49 ° 44 ′ 45.8 ″  N , 8 ° 6 ′ 58.5 ″  E