Saxenstein Castle

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Saxenstein Castle
Saxenstein Castle with high entrance

Saxenstein Castle with high entrance

Creation time : 13th Century
Castle type : Hilltop castle
Conservation status: Ruin, rubble
Construction: Rubble stones, pebbles
Place: Obersaxen
Geographical location 46 ° 44 '52 .5 "  N , 9 ° 2' 46.5"  E Coordinates: 46 ° 44  '52.5 " N , 9 ° 2' 46.5"  E ; CH1903:  722 835  /  178673
Height: 1014  m above sea level M.
Saxenstein Castle (Canton of Graubünden)
Saxenstein Castle
South side

The ruins of Saxenstein Castle are in the municipality of Obersaxen in the Swiss canton of Graubünden .

location

The ruins of the hilltop castle is situated on 1,014  m above sea level. M. west of the hamlet of Axastein in the far west of the municipality of Obersaxen on a small hill, separated from the slope by a wide ditch .

Surname

In Obersaxen, German-speaking settlers advanced into a Rhaeto-Romanic area in which there were probably already castles. Since the name of a knightly dynasty does not appear on any of the four castles, it can be assumed that the castle name was simply formed from the name of the settler to whose area the crumbling castle belonged.

The tautological word formation Saxenstein can be best explained with the connection with the family name "Sax" and therefore means stone or castle of the Sax.

investment

A massive, square keep with a floor plan of 9 by 8 meters on each side has been preserved. The wall thickness of the warehouse masonry with strong bosses and precise edges varies between 1.6 and 2.4 meters. Three floors can be verified. The high entrance with a round arched door was on the second floor on the north side of the valley . At the western demolition point, the reveal of a window can be seen on the second floor and an opening that can no longer be determined on the third floor. Remains of a ring have been preserved at the foot of the hill .

history

Written documents about Saxenstein only existed from the 15th century. According to the construction, the building dates from the early 13th century. Presumably Saxenstein was the seat of a ministerial of the Barons of Rhäzüns . In 1468 the Hof Saxenstein is mentioned in the regulation of the inheritance . On July 11th, 1470 the castle is also named: Item, however, is always called by the Saxenstein Castle . A brook is also mentioned, the da gat swüschend (= between) and the gaden steadly morning half (= eastward).

It is not clear when the castle was abandoned. Presumably it behaved the same as with the other castles of Obersaxen: When the Walser settling there received the low level of jurisdiction, the presence of Rhäzünser ministerials was no longer necessary and the castles were abandoned.

gallery

  • Bering remnants

  • Inside of the high entrance

  • Wall corner

  • Western wall

literature

  • Otto P. Clavadetscher, Werner Meyer : The castle book of Graubünden . Orell Füssli, Zurich 1984, ISBN 3-280-01319-4 .
  • Heinrich Boxler, naming castles in north-eastern Switzerland and in Graubünden , Huber Verlag, Frauenfeld 1976
  • Castle map of Switzerland, 2007 edition, Federal Office of Topography / Swiss Castle Association
  • Anton von Castelmur: The castles and palaces of the Canton of Graubünden Volume I, Birkhäuser-Verlag, Basel 1940

Web links

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

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Heinrich Boxler, The naming of castles in northeastern Switzerland and in Graubünden ; P. 147