Reifenberg Castle (Oberreifenberg)

Reifenberg Castle
Reifenberg Castle in 2010
Alternative name (s):	Oberreifenberg Castle, Reiffenberg Castle, Riffinberg Castle
Creation time :	Late 12th century
Castle type :	Hilltop castle
Conservation status:	Keep, shield wall, residential tower
Standing position :	Nobles
Place:	Oberreifenberg
Geographical location	50 ° 14 '49 "  N , 8 ° 25' 43"  E Coordinates: 50 ° 14 '49 "  N , 8 ° 25' 43"  E
Height:	626  m above sea level NHN

The Burg Reifenberg , formerly Riffinberg or Reiffenberg called, is located in the district of Upper Reifenberg of Schmitten in the Taunus in Hessen . A residential tower and a shield wall from the 14th century, the older keep and some smaller parts of the complex have been preserved. The castle is the core of the Reifenberg estate .

history

Reiffenberg with castle on an engraving by Matthäus Merian , 17th century

The hilltop castle at 626  m above sea level. NN was first mentioned in a document in 1331. At this point in time it was probably built more than a hundred years ago. There is even evidence that construction began even earlier in the tenth or eleventh century.

The castle belonged to the Reiffenberg family ("Riffinberg"), who were related, if not identical, to the Hattsteiners (those of "Hazechenstein" or "Hatzechinstein"). Possibly the castle was built because Hattstein Castle, about 1.5 km away as the crow flies, had become too small.

Since the 14th century, the residents of the castle have been involved in numerous feuds, in which, supported by changing allies, they war not only with the Falkensteiners residing near Königstein , Kronberg , the imperial city of Frankfurt (" Kronberger Feud ") and Mainz . There were also fights between the various Reiffenberg lines. During the "Hattsteiner Feud", which lasted from 1428 to 1435, the residents of Reiffenberg Castle, together with Frankfurt and Kurmainz , conquered Hattstein Castle in 1432 and even destroyed it in 1467. In 1560, Friedrich von Reiffenberg (1515–1595) from the Weller line ( Westerwald line) conquered Reiffenberg Castle, which was part of the Wetterau line of the Reiffenberger. In 1587 he had it burned down.

The castle was restored, but was subjected to renewed destruction during the Thirty Years War . The last knight of Reiffenberg, Philipp Ludwig , temporarily lost the castle to the Swedes from 1632, then to the imperial troops from 1644. It was destroyed in 1646. Only after the Peace of Westphalia was Philipp Ludwig given the castle back and had it restored.

With Philipp Ludwig's death in 1686, the Reiffenberg family also died out in the Wetterau line after the Weller line had already died out in 1665. Philipp Ludwig's brother-in-law, Count Johann Lothar Waldbott von Bassenheim, inherited Reiffenberg Castle. Only a little later, in 1689, it was finally destroyed in the Palatinate War of Succession .

conservation

View from the center of Oberreifenberg, the residential tower is behind the trees

New roof on the stairwell of the residential tower

Today the round keep of the castle , the right-angled, now partially open residential tower and in front of it the mighty shield wall still stand . The site is freely accessible.

Since the end of the 90s, the castle association Reifenberg eV, founded in January 1995, has been trying to renovate the castle, organize festivals and concerts and work on the creation of a museum.

To secure the residential tower , the castle association financed the construction of a roof. However, the monument protection authorities demanded that a metal-glass construction be erected instead of the conservative roof made of oak and slate proposed by the Burgverein, which is contradicted by both its appearance and its low protective effect.

The approximately 24 m high residential tower is open from spring to autumn on weekends during the day; the 21 m high viewing platform on the roof can be reached via a narrow stone spiral staircase , from which there is a good view of Oberreifenberg and the Großer Feldberg .

literature

• Rudolf Knappe: Medieval castles in Hessen. 800 castles, castle ruins and fortifications. 3. Edition. Wartberg publishing house. Gudensberg-Gleichen 2000, ISBN 3-86134-228-6 , p. 479f.
• Rolf Müller (Ed.): Palaces, castles, old walls. Published by the Hessendienst der Staatskanzlei, Wiesbaden 1990, ISBN 3-89214-017-0 , p. 320f.

Web links

Commons : Burg Reifenberg  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

• Floor plan of the castle at www.burgenwelt.de
• More detailed history at www.reifenberg.de
• www.schmitten.de
• State Office for Monument Preservation Hessen (Ed.): Castle Reifenberg In: DenkXweb, online edition of cultural monuments in Hessen
• Reconstruction drawing by Wolfgang Braun
• Oberreifenberg Castle at Burgenarchiv.de

Individual evidence

1. ^ Friedrich Otto:  Reiffenberg, Ritter Friedrich v. In: Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie (ADB). Volume 27, Duncker & Humblot, Leipzig 1888, pp. 687-690.
2. ↑ ^{a b} Height information according to measurements taken privately
3. ↑ according to the information board on site, boarded on June 26, 2016 (Sunday), opened around 8:30 a.m.