Schmeien Castle
| Schmeien Castle | ||
|---|---|---|
| Creation time : | around 1100 | |
| Castle type : | Höhenburg, rocky slope | |
| Conservation status: | Burgstall, traces of the wall | |
| Standing position : | Ortsadlesburg, noble free | |
| Place: | Oberschmeien | |
| Geographical location | 48 ° 6 '1.3 " N , 9 ° 8' 53.8" E | |
| Height: | 650 m above sea level NN | |
|
||
The castle Schmeien an Outbound Höhlenburg is today only a high medieval ruins of a former local aristocratic castle in a cliff between under- and Oberschmeien , districts of the city Sigmaringen in Sigmaringen County in Baden-Wuerttemberg .
Geographical location
The hilltop castle on a rocky slope is at 650 m above sea level. NN about 500 meters north of Unterschmeien over the left bank of the Schmeie and is one of the 27 cave or cave castles (the actual castle of the cave used is built in front of the latter), which can be detected in a unique concentration in the Danube valley and side valleys. The ruins in an exposed position can be reached via a steep slope and a six meter high rock barrier.
history
The beginnings of this castle are still largely in the dark of history. It is assumed that it is the castle of the noble local nobility of Oberschmeien. This family was mentioned for the first time in 1137 in a document for the Gengenbach monastery . Here “Eberhardus de Smiehun” was listed in second place out of 38 non-precious items . After evaluating ceramic finds, the castle was built around 1100; the builder could be Eberhart, who was mentioned in 1137.
When it was first mentioned in a document in 1334 as "Smyehen" castle , the cave castle was already in the possession of the Counts of Hohenberg . The local lords of Schmeien were probably already extinct by this time. Shortly afterwards, in 1342, the castle was sold to the Lords of Jungingen. In 1362 it was mentioned again in a border description: "From Schmychen der Burg to Unterschmychen"
The frequent changes of ownership in recent years suggest that the castle probably only existed as a ruin, in 1461 it was then also referred to as the castle stables , i.e. a castle that had been lost.
In 1497 the castle was stable as owned by the Lords of Hausen mentioned, today is the former rock castle owned by the Hohenzollern branch line Hohenzollern .
description
The castle was laid out as a representative administrative building to which the subjects had to look up. Beam holes, remains of mortar from a presumed front wall on the rock, remains of roof tiles and ceramics in the dump have survived from the former castle complex. They underline that life in the wooden residential castle, fitted into the natural cave space, should not have been so uncomfortable. Finally, taxable farmers, a mill on the and sole fishing rights in the Schmeie and a presumed larger farmyard on the plateau above the cave ensured adequate income and wholesome food.
literature
- Jürgen Meyer: Wild caves, grottos, rock nests: 100 mysterious cavities between the Alb and the Danube . Oertel & Spörer, 2011, ISBN 3-88627-479-9 . Pp. 60-61.
- Christoph Bizer: Surface finds of castles in the Swabian Alb - A contribution to ceramic and castle research . Published by the regional council Stuttgart - State Office for the Preservation of Monuments, Konrad Theiss Verlag, Stuttgart 2006, ISBN 3-8062-2038-7 , pp. 399-401.
- Günter Schmitt : Schmeien . In: Ders .: Burgenführer Schwäbische Alb. Volume 3. Danube Valley. Hiking and discovering between Sigmaringen and Tuttlingen. Biberacher Verlagsdruckerei, Biberach an der Riß 1990, ISBN 3-924489-50-5 , pp. 81-84.
- Christoph Bizer, Rolf Götz: Forgotten castles of the Swabian Alb . DRW-Verlag, Stuttgart 1989, ISBN 3-87181-244-7 , pp. 93-96.
Individual evidence
- ↑ The story of Oberschmeien. (No longer available online.) Archived from the original on July 31, 2009 ; Retrieved December 14, 2009 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Mountain Rescue. On historical tracks in the rock. In: Südkurier of July 26, 2011
- ↑ a b Bergwacht explores historical traces in the rock of the Schmeiental. During a training evening, castle researcher Helmut Söllner explains the former high aristocratic castle Schmeien. In: Schwäbische Zeitung from July 26, 2011
- ↑ Source history: Christoph Bizer: Surface finds of castles in the Swabian Alb - A contribution to ceramic and castle research , p. 399ff.
