Runkel Castle

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Runkel Castle
Runkel Castle over the Lahn

Runkel Castle over the Lahn

Creation time : before 1159
Castle type : Hilltop castle
Conservation status: ruin
Standing position : Free nobles
Place: Runkel
Geographical location 50 ° 24 '19.2 "  N , 8 ° 9' 21.2"  E Coordinates: 50 ° 24 '19.2 "  N , 8 ° 9' 21.2"  E
Height: 150  m above sea level NHN
Runkel Castle (Hesse)
Runkel Castle

The Runkel Castle is the ruin of a high medieval hilltop castle in the town of Runkel in Limburg-Weilburg in Hesse .

location

The place and the castle are about six kilometers east of Limburg an der Lahn , 30 kilometers southwest of Wetzlar and almost 60 kilometers northwest of Frankfurt am Main in the Lahn valley. The hilltop castle is around 150 m above sea level. NN and rises about 35 to 40 meters above the valley of the Lahn .

history

The castle was first mentioned in 1159, but it may be older. It was built by the Lords of Runkel to secure the Lahn Bridge and was owned by Siegfried (I.) von Runkel in 1159.

In the course of a family dispute over ownership and inheritance claims that began around 1250, Siegfried (V.) drove his cousin Heinrich († 1288) out of the castle in 1276. From 1288 he had Schadeck Castle built as a fortress on the opposite heights of the Lahn . In the same year, the rulers of Runkel and Westerburg, who had previously been connected, were separated . Dietrich III. In 1376 von Runkel enlarged his rule to include the tithe Schupbach and Aumenau and had a more modern castle built next to the castle. Dietrich IV von Runkel († after 1462), Herr von Runkel, came into the possession of the County of Wied through marriage to Anastasia von Isenburg- Wied , after which his descendants were named from then on. In 1543, Runkel Castle hosted Philipp Melanchthon as a guest of Count Johann IV von Wied-Runkel († 1581).

In 1595 the County of Wied was divided, Wilhelm IV. Von Wied-Runkel received the "Upper County Wied" (around Runkel and Dierdorf ), his nephew Johann Wilhelm von Wied-Runkel received the "Lower County Wied" (around Wied , Braunsberg and Isenburg ). This made Runkel the center of the Upper County of Wied.

During the Thirty Years War on October 15, 1634, the castle and the site were destroyed by imperial troops ( Croats ) under Count Isolani . After that, the main or core castle was not rebuilt; however, the buildings of the lower castle and some farm buildings were restored or expanded in the following years.

In 1692 Friedrich von Wied-Runkel left the Upper County of Wied to his grandson Maximilian Heinrich von Wied-Runkel , especially around Isenburg, which until then belonged to the Lower County of Wied. The county was henceforth called Wied-Runkel, it was elevated to a principality in 1791.

As part of the Rhine Federation Act , the Principality was mediated in 1806 and incorporated into the newly created Duchy of Nassau , the right-wing part into the Grand Duchy of Kleve and Berg (1813 to Prussia). Karl Ludwig Friedrich Alexander Prince of Wied was appointed as a civil servant a. a. Administrator of the newly created Nassau office of Runkel.

When Karl Ludwig Friedrich Alexander Prince zu Wied died in March 1824 and his brother Friedrich Ludwig Prince zu Wied died childless in April 1824, the Wied-Runkel line became extinct with them. Her civil rights to the town and castle of Runkel fell to Wilhelm Hermann Karl Fürst zu Wied from the Wied-Neuwied branch line (formerly Lower County).

  • View over the lower castle to the town hall

  • Castle gate from the inside

List of gentlemen von Runkel

Lordship of Runkel

Coat of arms of the Lords of Runkel
  • around 1159: Siegfried I. von Runkel, Herr von Runkel
  • around 1181: Siegfried II von Runkel, his son, Herr von Runkel
  • around 1191 – around 1221: Siegfried III. von Runkel-Westerburg, his son, Herr von Runkel and Westerburg
  • after 1221 – around 1250: Siegfried IV of Runkel-Westerburg († 1266), his son, co-lord of Runkel, lord of Westerburg
  • after 1221 – around 1226: Dietrich I. von Runkel, his brother, co-lord of Runkel
  • after 1250–1277: Heinrich I von Runkel-Westerburg, son of Siegfried IV, co-lord of Runkel, lord of Westerburg
  • around 1270–1288: Siegfried V. von Runkel, son of Dietrich I, co-lord of Runkel, 1277 sole lord of Runkel
  • 1288 (?) - 1352: Dietrich II. Von Runkel († after 1352), his son (or grandson?), Herr von Runkel
  • 1352-1402: Dietrich III. von Runkel († 1402), his son, Herr von Runkel
  • 1402-1417: Friedrich III. von Runkel († before 1417), his son, Herr von Runkel
  • 1417 – around 1427: Siegfried VIII von Runkel, his brother, Herr von Runkel
  • around 1427–1462: Dietrich IV. von Runkel († 1462), his brother, Herr von Runkel
  • 1462–1487: Friedrich IV. Von Wied-Runkel († 1487), his son, Lord von Runkel, in 1454 Count von Wied
  • 1487–1505: Wilhelm III. von Wied-Runkel († 1526), ​​his son, Herr von Runkel, Count von Wied and Moers
  • 1505-1533: John III. von Wied-Runkel († 1533), his brother, Count von Wied
  • 1533–1535: Philipp von Wied-Runkel († 1535), his son, Lord von Runkel, Count von Wied
  • 1535–1581: Johann IV. Von Wied-Runkel († 1581), his brother, Herr von Runkel, Count von Wied
  • 1581–1591: Hermann I von Wied-Runkel († 1591), his son, Herr von Runkel, Count von Wied (together with Wilhelm IV.)
  • 1591–1595: Johann Wilhelm von Wied-Runkel († 1633), his son, Herr von Runkel, Count von Wied (together with Wilhelm IV.)
  • 1581–1595: Wilhelm IV. Von Wied-Runkel († 1612), brother of Hermann I, Lord von Runkel, Count von Wied (with Hermann I and Johann Wilhelm)

Upper County of Wied

  • 1595–1612: Wilhelm IV. Von Wied-Runkel († 1612), Count zu Wied (Upper County)
  • 1613–1631: Hermann II von Wied-Runkel († 1631), brother Johann Wilhelm, Count zu Wied (Upper County)
  • 1631–1640: Friedrich von Wied-Runkel († 1698), his son, Count zu Wied (Upper County, also 1691–1692), 1638–1698 Count zu Wied (Lower County)
  • 1640–1653: Moritz Christian von Wied-Runkel († 1653), his brother, Count zu Wied (Upper County)
  • 1653–1664: Johann Ernst von Wied-Runkel († 1664), his brother, Count zu Wied (Upper County)
  • 1664–1691: Ludwig Friedrich († 1709), his son, Count zu Wied (Upper County)
  • 1691–1692: Friedrich von Wied-Runkel († 1698), his uncle, Count zu Wied (Upper County, also 1631–1640), 1638–1698 Count zu Wied (Lower County)
Coat of arms of the Counts and Princes of Wied-Runkel

County and Principality of Wied-Runkel

  • 1692–1706: Maximilian Heinrich von Wied-Runkel († 1706), his grandson, Count zu Wied-Runkel
  • 1706–1762: Johann Ludwig von Wied-Runkel († 1762), his son, Count zu Wied-Runkel
  • 1762–1791: Christian Ludwig von Wied-Runkel († 1791), his son, Count zu Wied-Runkel, 1791 Prince of Wied-Runkel
  • 1791–1806: Prince Karl Ludwig Friedrich Alexander zu Wied († 1824), his son, Prince zu Wied-Runkel, from 1806 mediatized rank lord

Noble lords of Runkel

  • 1806–1824: Karl Ludwig Friedrich Alexander zu Wied († 1824), Prince of Wied, Lord of Runkel
  • 1824: Friedrich Ludwig zu Wied († 1824), his brother, Prince zu Wied, Herr zu Runkel
  • 1824–1836: Johann August Karl zu Wied († 1836), his uncle 4th degree, Prince zu Wied, Count of Isenburg, Lord of Runkel and Neuerburg (House Wied-Neuwied)
  • 1836–1848: Wilhelm Hermann Karl zu Wied († 1864), his son, Prince zu Wied, Count of Isenburg, Lord of Runkel and Neuerburg, abdicated in 1848, Runkel dissolved

  • Castle gate

  • The lower castle building still in use today

  • Maintenance work on the castle

  • Runkel Castle

Outline of the castle

The castle consists of an upper or core castle and a lower castle .

  • The upper castle has been a ruin since its destruction , but it is still accessible. At the highest point of the rock opposite today's Lahn bridge, built between 1440 and 1448, there is the climbable donjon , which towers over the courtyard of the lower castle by about 31 meters. It is surrounded by the mighty ruins of the Palas and other former residential buildings, which on the Lahn side almost look like a shield wall . At both ends of the approximately 40-meter-long wing of the building there is a mighty defensive tower that is hardly inferior to the keep in terms of height and wall thickness. One can therefore speak of one of the very rare types of castles at Runkel Castle that has three keep.
  • The lower castle was rebuilt and expanded after the destruction of the Thirty Years War in the 17th and 18th centuries. It consists of two- to three-storey buildings that connect to the upper castle in a U-shape to the south and form a closed inner courtyard. Other former farm buildings are located within a forecourt, which is surrounded by a circular wall. In contrast to the upper castle, the buildings in the lower castle are still well preserved and are still predominantly used today.

today

Nowadays there is a museum, a chapel, an archive and the Princely Wied administration in the lower castle. At times the castle is inhabited by Metfried Prinz zu Wied (brother of Friedrich Wilhelm Prinz zu Wied ) and his family. Other parts of the building are also inhabited or serve, among other things, as a storage room for agricultural vehicles. The buildings of the upper castle that have not been restored can also be visited. At the entrance to the castle, visitors receive a leaflet with a written guide to 18 stations that explain the route through the castle to be explored. It is also possible to climb the main tower. From its viewing platform there is a beautiful view of the village of Runkel, the medieval Lahn bridge and the Schadeck Castle, which is still in good condition today, on the opposite side of the Lahn. In addition to being a listed building , the castle has been given the status of war protection under the Hague Convention .

literature

  • Randolf Fügen: Highlights in Central Hesse . 1st edition. Wartenberg Verlag, Gudensberg-Gleichen 2003, ISBN 3-8313-1044-0 .
  • Rudolf Knappe: Medieval castles in Hessen. 800 castles, castle ruins and fortifications. 3. Edition. Wartberg-Verlag, Gudensberg-Gleichen 2000, ISBN 3-86134-228-6 , p. 434.
  • Alexander Thon, Stefan Ulrich, Jens Friedhoff : "Decided with strong iron chains and bolts ...". Castles on the Lahn . Schnell & Steiner, Regensburg 2008, ISBN 978-3-7954-2000-0 , pp. 130-135.
  • Rolf Müller (Ed.): Palaces, castles, old walls. Published by the Hessendienst der Staatskanzlei, Wiesbaden 1990, ISBN 3-89214-017-0 , p. 309.
  • Michael Losse: Castles and palaces on the Lahn: from Biedenkopf and Marburg via Gießen, Wetzlar and Weilburg to Limburg, Nassau and Lahnstein . Imhof, Petersberg 2007, ISBN 3-86568-070-4 , 223 pages

Web links

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