Vellberg Castle

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Lower Vellberg Castle
Lower Vellberg Castle today

Lower Vellberg Castle today

Creation time : around 1200
Castle type : Höhenburg, location
Conservation status: Covered foundation walls, neck ditch
Standing position : Noble
Place: Vellberg
Geographical location 49 ° 5 '15.2 "  N , 9 ° 52' 58.7"  E Coordinates: 49 ° 5 '15.2 "  N , 9 ° 52' 58.7"  E
Height: 360  m above sea level NN
Vellberg Castle (Baden-Württemberg)
Vellberg Castle

The Vellberg Castle ( Lower Castle ) is a hilltop castle complex at 360  m above sea level. NN high Feldberg above a loop of the Bühler valley at the northeastern tip of the triangular town complex of Vellberg in the Schwäbisch Hall district in Baden-Württemberg .

history

The castle was built around 1200 by the Lords of Vellberg . In the 15th century, the knights of Vellberg built the castle and the hamlet in front of it as the center of their rule into a festival and a market .

Destruction 1523

The destruction of the castle in 1523

In the middle of the 16th century, the robber baron Hans Thomas von Absberg terrified the imperial cities in Franconia and Swabia . He kidnapped merchants on their trade trips and demanded a large ransom for their release. He looked for allies who would support him in his raids, on whose castles he could take refuge in case of danger and where he could hide his hostages. Wilhelm von Vellberg also supported him in his feud, as he hoped that this would increase his dwindling wealth a little. In 1523 the Swabian Federation finally sent its troops to level a total of 23 "predatory nests" to the ground. The federal troops, which supposedly consisted of 10,000 foot soldiers and 1,000 horsemen, carried 100 cannons and 30 rifles as armament, for which they had 900 quintals of black powder with them. On June 11, 1523 they reached Vellberg Castle and destroyed Wilhelm von Vellberg's share in the Ganerbeburg .

The woodcut made by Hans Wandereisen shows very clearly the location of the castle on a rock outcrop. The houses recognizable in the foreground of the cut are supposed to represent the buildings outside the walls of Vellberg. Like many of the topographical features, however, their location is also shown very dubious. The troops of the Swabian Federation are just about to demolish half of the castle that was in the possession of Wilhelm von Vellberg. Vellberg is the only castle next to Berolzheim that was not or not completely destroyed. (Main article: Wandereisen woodcuts from 1523 )

Another story

The building was rebuilt in 1543–1546 by Wolf von Vellberg and his wife Anna Treusch von Buttlar. The builders had their coats of arms carved in sandstone above the entrance portal.

Around 1857 the city of Vellberg acquired the building from the Württemberg camera office, which until 2004 served as the seat of the city administration.

The two buildings, which stand above the foundation walls of the former castle complex, were restored in the 1960s. The whole building has been privately owned since 2008.

architecture

Outer kennel gate

The core castle , the foundation walls of which were later built over with two buildings, is separated from the city by a preserved neck ditch . The property can be reached via the former kennel of the outer bailey and a stone bridge. The south-eastern building, the former town hall, still shows the remains of the castle chapel from 1549. The defensive walls that sink behind the buildings reveal a view over the river valley to the Stöckenburg in the north-west. The castle complex also had two kennels and two kennel gates, gun turrets, an old moat and a chancellery tower, which later served as a prison.

Kennel and outer bailey

There is a second gate in the city wall on the north side of the outer bailey. According to a number inscription, this was walled up to become a "slip gate" in 1707. In order to reach this gate, one had to first cross the kennel sloping towards the north. The watercolor by Johann Friedrich Reik shows in the right half of the picture the pointed arched outer gate, which was built in 1499. A small half-timbered house was later built on top of it. A large turret with an open platform protected the entrance to the kennel.

Lower castle and office tower

The Lower Castle was built in 1543/1546 on the foundation and walls of the old castle. The west side of the castle faces the outer bailey. The facade shows cornices that emphasize the division into three floors with regularly arranged windows, as well as a staggered and openwork battlement gable that is hidden in front of the tapering roof. The office tower is on the right. Reik captured this view on a watercolor.

The castle chapel

There is also a 14th century castle chapel with the fresco cycle from 1549 depicting the passion story. The keystones of the rib cross vaults show the coats of arms of those of Vellberg, Buttlar and Crailsheim. In addition, founders, knights and noblewomen of the Vellberg noble family were on display. The knight's hall (hook hall) on the 1st floor showed hunting scenes by the Hall patricians as wall paintings.

Castle (west facade with pinnacle gable) and office tower (right)

literature

  • Alois Schneider: The castles in the Schwäbisch Hall district - an inventory . Konrad Theiss Verlag, Stuttgart 1995, ISBN 3-8062-1228-7 , pp. 258-263.

Web links

Commons : Schloss Vellberg  - Collection of images

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Herta Beutter, Armin Panther (ed.): Impressions from Hohenlohe. Views from Schwäbisch Hall and its surroundings by Johann Friedrich Reik (1836–1904). (On the occasion of the exhibition "Impressions from Hohenlohe. Views from Schwäbisch Hall and its surroundings by Johann Friedrich Reik (1836–1904)" from July 3 to September 26, 1999 in the Hällisch-Fränkisches Museum in Schwäbisch Hall. Black and white photogr. by Roland Bauer). Umschau / Braus, Heidelberg 1999, ISBN 3-8295-6322-1 , p. 182 f.
  2. ↑ Herta Beutter, Armin Panther (ed.): Impressions from Hohenlohe. Views from Schwäbisch Hall and its surroundings by Johann Friedrich Reik (1836–1904). (On the occasion of the exhibition "Impressions from Hohenlohe. Views from Schwäbisch Hall and its surroundings by Johann Friedrich Reik (1836–1904)" from July 3 to September 26, 1999 in the Hällisch-Fränkisches Museum in Schwäbisch Hall. Black and white photogr. by Roland Bauer). Umschau / Braus, Heidelberg 1999, ISBN 3-8295-6322-1 , p. 184 f.
  3. ↑ Old town tour : Discover our beautiful town , website of the town of Vellberg