Aschersleben Castle
| Aschersleben Castle | ||
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 Remnants of a tower in Aschersleben Zoo |
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| Alternative name (s): | Altenburg, Askania, Old Castle on Wolfsberg | |
| Creation time : | 1000 to 1100 | |
| Castle type : | Hilltop castle | |
| Conservation status: | Wall, moat, rest of the keep | |
| Place: | Aschersleben | |
| Geographical location | 51 ° 45 '4.9 " N , 11 ° 26' 21" E | |
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The castle Aschersleben , even Altenburg, Old castle on the Wolfsberg called, is the ruins of a hilltop castle on the Wolfsberg in the southwest of present-day urban area of Aschersleben in Salzlandkreis in Saxony-Anhalt . Only small remains of it have survived, which are also known as the Askania ruins .
Structure and use
Only the remains of a tower and some ramparts that are today in the area of the Aschersleben Zoo have survived . The tower ruin is now used as an enclosure for the eagle owls kept in the zoo .
There is a small permanent exhibition on the history of the castle in the animal keeper's house, also on the zoo grounds.
history
The castle was built in the 11th / 12th. Century on the site of an early Fliehburg (Volksburg). It should not be identical with the Count Castle of the Ballenstedt family, later known as the Ascan family. The original count's castle has not been preserved.
On the other hand, it is said to have temporarily served as a residence for the Ascanian counts. As early as the 12th century, however, the extensive castle complex was destroyed during battles between the Ascanians and the Guelph Duke Heinrich the Lion .
The existing today still remains the keep was originally a residential tower . Its height was about 30 m. The city of Aschersleben later used the tower as a watchtower.
The actual ancestral castle of the Askanians was on today's Burgplatz (formerly Burggarten), directly in front of the city of Aschersleben and its fortifications (which were built later). The early ramparts referred to here served the city's population as protection from attacks for a long time, but it was abandoned early on. As early as the 13th century, it was only referred to as a ruin. Its keep served as a control room for the city of Aschersleben for a long time. It is unclear whether the Ascanians themselves ever owned / viewed it as their own castle. The Wallburg is therefore usually referred to as the "Old Castle" because it was built much earlier than the Ascanian ancestral castle. It is the only castle in Aschersleben that still exists, while the Ascanian family castle is only indicated by the name of the castle square and the castle school.
literature
- Corinna Köhlert, Jürgen Blume: Of palaces and fortresses in Saxony-Anhalt. Mitteldeutscher Verlag Halle (Saale), ISBN 3-89812-058-9 , p. 137 f.
Web links
- Entry on Aschersleben Castle in the private database “All Castles”.