Birkenhainer Strasse

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Remains of the Birkenhainer Straße in the Spessart near Wiesen
Old ravine as a remnant of Birkenhainer Straße near the Bavarian Schanz
Border stone northeast of Hanau-Neuwirtshaus. Left south side ( Mainzer Rad ), right north side ( Hanauer rafters ).

The Birkenhainer (Land-) Straße is a medieval military and trade route between Rhine Franconia and East Franconia. It connects Hanau with Gemünden am Main over a length of 71 km and thus shortens the route along the Mainviereck through the route through the northern Spessart .

history

The name appears for the first time in 1338 and comes from the forest department "Birkenhain" near Geiselbach , in the vicinity of which several bundles of paths unite to form a main route to the east.

The route runs along the ridge and avoids constant ascents and descents. Grave finds along the road at the height of the Freigerichter Bay indicate that the path was already in the 2nd millennium BC. Was used. The construction of the Neuwirtshaus small fort shows that the road was used in Roman times. It was first mentioned in a document in 810 AD (please indicate source). The Einsiedel monastery was also laid out on the road .

In the Middle Ages it was the scene of raids by the Spessart robbers on commercial transports. In 1564, there is evidence of an attack by robber barons of the nobility on Nuremberg merchants above the Biebergrund. In addition to merchants, Upper Franconian boatmen, raft traders and linen riders used Birkenhainer Straße to avoid the detour via the Mainviereck on the way back . The street was part of the medieval connection between Vienna and Amsterdam . After the 14th century this - partly two-lane - "Middle Ages motorway" lost its importance due to the construction of new roads along the rivers and cities.

Today the Birkenhainer Straße is only used as a hiking and cycling path. The Spessart Association has marked the route with a black “B” on a white background and maintains it. It runs largely along the Hessian-Bavarian border. Accordingly, many historical landmarks have been preserved along the route.

remains

Even if large parts of the route have now been converted into forest roads, traces of the old long-distance travel route can still be seen. Striking traces can be found, for example, near the municipality of Wiesen at the intersection of Birkenhainer Straße, Eselsweg and Degen-Weg , west of Dr.-Kihn-Platz, on Wiesbüttsee , along today's state road L 2905 between Wiesen and Flörsbach and east of the old one Customs station and former hostel Bayerische Schanz. Very extensive tracks, including up to ten ravines side by side, can be seen on a ridge about 2 kilometers northeast of Ruppertshütten . In connection with the excavations that have been taking place here since 2011 at the old way station “ Kloster Einsiedel ”, small sections of the old Birkenhainer Strasse were also exposed. This shows that parts of the road were even two-lane (for traffic and two-way traffic). In the excavation sections it can be seen that it was an artificially created ravine, fortified with rock and stone. The 1.50 m wide old wheel guide tracks can be seen on the stones. Today's forest path "Birkenhainer Straße" passes near the old Birkenhainer Straße, but is not congruent with it.

Waypoints

Distinctive waypoints are:

literature

  • Paul Hupach: The Birkenhainer Straße. In: Hanauer Geschichtsverein (Hrsg.) : Hanau city and country. A home book for school and home . Hanau 1954, pp. 333-335.
  • History & stories along Birkenhainer Straße. From Hanau to Gemünden . Published by the Main-Kinzig.Kreis, Gelnhausen 2010

Web links

Commons : Birkenhainer Straße  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b P. Hupach: The Birkenhainer Strasse. In: Hanau city and country. A home book for school and home . Hanau 1954, p. 334.