Süpplingenburg Castle

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Süpplingenburg Castle
Castle grounds with St. John's Church around 1650, copper engraving by Merian (detail)

Castle grounds with St. John's Church around 1650, copper engraving by Merian (detail)

Creation time : probably 11th century
Castle type : Niederungsburg
Conservation status: Burgstall, St. Johannis Church preserved
Place: Süpplingenburg
Geographical location 52 ° 15 '3.1 "  N , 10 ° 54' 15.8"  E Coordinates: 52 ° 15 '3.1 "  N , 10 ° 54' 15.8"  E
Süpplingenburg Castle (Lower Saxony)
Süpplingenburg Castle
Süpplingenburg Castle on a map from 1764, with St. John's Church in the center

The castle Süpplingenburg is an Outbound medieval Marsh Castle in Süpplingenburg in district Helmstedt in Lower Saxony .

The castle was the ancestral seat of Lothar III. as Duke of Saxony and later Emperor of the Roman-German Empire . Only the St. John's Church has survived from the castle complex.

location

The castle was built between the places Königslutter and Helmstedt on an island in the Schunter . Today it is located on the western outskirts of Süpplingenburg in the valley of the Schunter. The “Salzweg”, an old north-south trade route, passed near the castle . From the 11th century it was crossed here by the east-west trade route from Braunschweig to Magdeburg . When the castle existed, the mining settlement on Petersteich , one kilometer away, probably already existed , which fell desolate around the year 1200. The place Süpplingenburg was formed later as a settlement at the castle.

Building description

The original appearance of the castle is not known. The first pictorial representation is a Merian engraving from 1653, which mainly shows the St. John's Church in the castle courtyard. The first site plans date from the years 1747, 1764 and around 1800. There are hardly any written documents about the complex, since the archive of the Commandery was destroyed in a fire in 1615.

The castle was a square complex measuring 70 × 70 meters. Since there are no more building remains, their extent can be reconstructed based on the height of the site. Merian described the castle as surrounded by a high curtain wall and a wide moat , which the Schunter fed. Access was via a drawbridge and a fortified gate. The castle buildings were attached to the inner wall. This included mansion, administration and farm buildings. The Johannis Church with a cloister, a Romanesque structure at its core, stood in the courtyard. To the north there was a bailey with a farm yard.

Around 1875, due to increasing decay, all castle buildings and the fortification walls were torn down and the moat filled in. Today the site is hardly recognizable as a former castle, but remains of it are still in the ground, which was discovered during excavations in 1964. The church was the last remaining structural part of the castle. After the building was demolished on the castle grounds, new buildings such as a manor house , stables, barns and workers' apartments were built towards the end of the 19th century . They represent the current building stock and, like the previous castle buildings, form a rectangle around the church.

history

The Süpplingenburg belonged to a chain of castles along the Schunter . It is believed to have originated from a Frankish royal estate in the 10th century. In the 11th century the castle was owned by Count Gebhard von Haldensleben . His son Lothar III. named himself after the castle as Lothar von Süpplingenburg. In 1130 he laid the foundation stone for the collegiate church of St. Johannis, which was completed in 1140. Around 1130 he gave the castle to the Knights Templar . After the dissolution of the Knights Templar in 1312 by Pope Clement V , the Süpplingenburg came to the Brunswick dukes . In 1357 Duke Magnus handed the Kommende Süpplingenburg over to the Order of St. John, in whose possession it remained as a commandery until 1820 .

The St. John's Church today

In 1432 the castle was destroyed during the war between Dukes Wilhelm I and Heinrich II. In 1517 the preacher of indulgences Johann Tetzel is said to have left a money box on the castle.

During the Reformation , the Süpplingenburg and the surrounding area were taken in 1542 by the Schmalkald allies . The Johanniter Commandery could continue to exist on the condition that it remained loyal to the Schmalkaldic League.

In 1615, while herbs were being distilled in the castle's residential building, a fire broke out that destroyed the house, which was partially rebuilt in 1697. During the Thirty Years' War , the Süpplingenburg withstood all attacks with its high walls and wide moats. Only the outer bailey buildings fell victim to pillage and pillage in 1641.

In 1820 the castle grounds came to the Duchy of Braunschweig as an agricultural state domain . The structural condition of the church was so bad that demolition was considered. It had partially collapsed as early as 1420. From 1838 to 1843 the church was extensively renovated and has been used as a parish church ever since. Today it is part of the Romanesque Road . Excavations were carried out inside the church in 1967 , which led to the discovery of coins, coffin handles and Gothic architectural parts. In 1975 the University of Braunschweig carried out archaeological investigations in the immediate vicinity of the church on behalf of the Department of Monument Preservation at the Lower Saxony State Administration .

literature

Web links

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