Weisswasserstelz castle ruins

Weisswasserstelz castle ruins
Southwest area (2015)
Alternative name (s):	Hohenwasserstelz, Neuwasserstelz
Creation time :	1100 to 1200
Castle type :	Hilltop castle
Conservation status:	Wall remains
Standing position :	Nobles
Place:	Hohentengen on the Upper Rhine
Geographical location	47 ° 34 '39.4 "  N , 8 ° 24' 5"  E Coordinates: 47 ° 34 '39.4 "  N , 8 ° 24' 5"  E
Height:	340  m above sea level NN

The Weisswasserstelz castle ruins , also called Hohen- or Neuwasserstelz , are the ruins of a hilltop castle at 340  m above sea level. NN high hill on the north bank of the Rhine near Hohentengen on the Upper Rhine in the district of Waldshut in Baden-Wuerttemberg .

Tithe barn of the Guggenmühle farmstead , now Hotel Wasserstelz

“The castle courtyard and the Guggenmühle belonged to Weißwasserstelz ” as well as an economic yard (later tithe barn ).

Opposite was the Schwarzwasserstelz castle on a small island in the Rhine . The Upper Rhine flows through a bottleneck here, so that - still in connection with the Rotwasserstelz Castle a few kilometers to the east - both riverside roads and the bridge at Kaiserstuhl and thus the entire movement of goods were easy to control.

history

"A nobility named themselves after these Wasserstelzschlösser, who appeared for the first time in 1165 with Heinrich von Wasserstelz." The builders did not call the castle after its name, but after the name given to the castle. Weisswasserstelz - this is how H. Fuchs sen. an - was named after the white Jura cuboid used in representative places (p. 114). In addition to Heinrich von Wasserstelz, Friedrich and Werner von Wasserstelz are also mentioned elsewhere in 1165 as ministerials of Reichenau Abbey.

To build the castle

Since the Lords of Wasserstelz were already ministerials or servants of the Reichenau monastery at this time , the construction of the castle was earlier. In the 7th century, in the second phase of the Alemannic conquest of the Alamannes, the families who made their own homely self-employment from the original rural settlements could have formed their own considerable court complexes long before the records began and belong to the local aristocratic families in Klettgau, which was often attested to at that time . In the next phase, these families “built a hill or moated castle outside the local area and (continue) their old residence only as a farmyard." ( G. Fingerlin ).

One of these courtyard complexes outside of the original settlements can be seen as the homestead with the castle courtyard, a farmyard and a mill located directly in front of the castle. When the farmyard was converted into a hotel from 1989 to 1997, walls that can be assigned to a chapel were found in the vicinity (today the parking lot), as well as foundation walls under the basement level of the farmyard that "experts date back to the year 1000." In the sense mentioned by G. Fingerlin, they formed the basis for the later (but before the 12th century) castle building. (more details about the farmyard under Guggenmühle )

owner

In 1170 a Wernherus de Wasserstelce is mentioned in a document.

“Weißwasserstelz was a fiefdom of the Reichenau monastery, to which the church set and the bailiwick of Lienheim belonged. After such fiefs could be inherited, pledged and sold from the 13th century onwards, Weißwasserstelz often changed hands. "

- Herbert Fuchs sen. The Wasserstelzschlösser , in: Hohentengen, p. 114.

According to the Wagner family chronicle:

• “1231 Rudolf von Wasserstelz, then Konrad von Wasserstelz
• 1239 Rudolf v. W. sells gradient to Wettingen Monastery
• 1265 Kunigunde von Wasserstelz, mentioned in the Frauenmünster Zurich
• 1299 Kunigunde von Wasserstelz, abbess of the Frauenmünster (Zurich).
• 1330 Last mention: Baroness Margarete von Wasserstelz […] Lüthold von Krenkingen acquires possession of Wasserstelz. "

In 1343 Abbot Eberhard von Reichenau, as feudal lord of Wasserstelz Castle and the court belonging to it, approved the transfer to Adelheid von Usenberg along with the church set in Lienheim . In 1347 Abbot Eberhard lent the Wasserstelz Castle and the property belonging to it to Ulrich Winkelshain, who bought it for 260 Marks from Schaffhauser Maas.

patio

The Heggenzer family from Schaffhausen

• 1366 on the water stilts: Noble Hermann von Griessen, Lords of Griessen , married to a Heggenzerin von Schaffhausen. (Wagner Chronicle)

"It was about Elisabeth von Heggenzer and the castle presumably came through her inheritance to the Heggenzer von Schaffhausen." (Fuchs, p. 114) This information is in contrast to a source from 1373, which still assumes other possessions Conditions enables:

• This document from 1373 shows that the knight Hermann von Grießheim, whose son was under the tutelage of Johann von Krenkingen , was given a fiefdom for Wasserstelz Castle from the Reichenau monastery.

Only 78 years later, a transfer to the Heggenzer was notarized:

• 1451 Hans Heggenzer, gentleman on Wasserstelz.
• 1465 “Abbot Johann von Reichenau enfeoffs Wilhelm Heggenzer with the Weißwasserstelz castle, the bailiwick and the church set of Lienheim and
• 1495 Abbot Martin den Konrad Heggenzer. "(Fuchs, 115) The Wagner chronicle adds to Konrad Heggenzer:" Rötteln, seat of the bailiffs in Kaiserstuhl, as fief also Schwarzwasserstelz. "
• 1511 “Wilhelm Heggenzer on Schwarzwasserstelz sold Weisswasserstelz to Konrad Heggenzer. Konrad Heggenzer, who was married to Katharina von Schönau, was enfeoffed with Weißwasserstelz in 1518 and 1524. "(Fuchs, 115)

“In 1540 the Reichenau monastery was incorporated into the diocese of Constance . From now on the bishops of Constance were also the lords of Weißwasserstelz. As episcopal feudal bearers or hereditary bearers, many genders were to be found on Weißwasserstelz in the following centuries. "

- Herbert Fuchs sen .: The water-stilted locks in: Hohentengen, p. 115.

The Wagner chronicle adds that (1540) Lienheim also went to the Bishop of Constance and the Heggenz family remained fiefdoms.

• 1560 Melchior Heggenzer. The keystone in the archway of the farmyard or the tithe barn directly in front of the castle in the Guggenmühle farmstead is also marked with the year 1560, which is also interpreted as the "date of construction" (Wagner Chronicle), but findings during the renovation (1989 to 1997) indicated that although the building was renovated in 1560, a previous building is likely to be much older. See Guggenmühle .

Last owner before the Thirty Years War

• 1571 “Hans Melchior von Wasserstelz and Rebekka von Schellenberg-Randegg, forest bailiff of the county of Hauenstein, Schultheiss Waldshut. Weisswasserstelz by inheritance to 'the von Landsberg'. "(Wagner Chronicle)
• 1577 Georg von Landsberg.
• 1592 Friedrich von Landsberg.
• 1614 “About marriage: inheritance to Hans Heinrich Holzapfel von Herxheim. (Tomb Lienheim Church) "(Wagner Chronicle)
• 1639 "Confederates complain to Swedes that soldiers are damaging their open house Wasserstelz." (Wagner Chronicle)

Round tower on the northeast corner

Partial destruction

Herbert Fuchs Sr. comments on the process as follows: “The castle (supposedly) was besieged, conquered and burned by the Swedes during the Thirty Years' War . ('German Sutter: True Stories 1903') […] The Confederates (reported) to the Swedish military leader, Duke Bernhard von Weimar, in 1693 […] that their open house Weißwasserstelz 'was being badly treated by his soldiers'. [...] It is clear that the keep was blown up. However, other large parts of the castle are likely to have survived this violent destruction relatively unscathed. Because until shortly before the takeover by the Baden state in 1803 there were very frequent sales, so that it can be assumed that at least parts of the castle were still inhabited for a long time. […] As a result, the castle was then abandoned to final ruin, whereby it may have served the surrounding farms and villages as a supplier of building materials. "

Owner after the Thirty Years War

• 1649 Johann Melchior worms
• 1665 Franz Jakob von Andlau .
• 1686 Franz Ernst Zweyer from Evibach .
• 1694 Aegidius von Kreuth

The following information comes from the Wagner chronicle:

• 1707 Georg Brumsk, fiefdom holder for Countess Marie Magdalena von Crotti (née Holzapfel) Baroness Ana Helena von Falkenhayn.
• 1715 inheritance to Count Ernst August von Falkenhayn.
• 1729 South Rhine walls crashed.
• 1731 inheritance to Johann Josef von Remscheid.
• 1753/54 fiefdom for a pawn schilling to the Bishop of Konstanz, Hochstift returned, administration Vogt auf Rötteln, castle disintegrating.
• 1779 white water stilt without roof, collapsed.
• 1798 court rights to the Confederation, rule expired.
• 1803 Ruin goes to Baden, not habitable, falls apart.
• 1891/1901 renovation work.

“As you can easily see from these very numerous names and gentlemen, there was no strong, down-to-earth family to be found on Weißwasserstelz for centuries, with the exception of the Heggenzer. […] Weißwasserstelz (was) at times not far from being a robber baron castle. At a historical lecture in Switzerland it was mentioned that black magic was practiced on Weißwasserstelz. At times, several alchemists are said to have tried to make gold or to find the philosopher's stone. It was therefore considered a local alchemical center. "

- Excerpts from the writings of Alois Nohl, Geißlingen (Fuchs, 115).

Here also the information, which differs from the Wagner chronicle, that the front walls should have slipped into the Rhine in 1779 and that there was no roof on the rear part of the castle from 1781.

Floor plan Fig. 1

"In 1989 the state building department carried out a new, extensive renovation of the remains of the wall."

description

The former castle is the remains of a round tower , a semi-circular tower, a circular wall , a cookhouse (after the castle researcher Arthur captain was it large enough to an ox across to fry) and one the keep .

Floor plan Fig. 2

Kraus describes the castle in its state towards the end of the 19th century:

“The enclosing walls of the remains of the castle, shown in the adjacent floor plan (see Fig. 1) , are partly still two stories high. The masonry is raw with irregular stratification. Facing stones have been used in individual places, while otherwise no remains of stone carving can be found. At "a" (see Fig. 1) of the plan drawing, a few parts of the plastered runways are visible. Further discoveries of the castle resulted in the profiled base stones of the main entrance gate, of which the one on the right bears the stonemason's mark ..., and some other wall sections, of which Fig. 43 (see Fig. 2) (floor plan II) gives a picture. The building was of small size and not yet equipped for defense against fire artillery. "

- Franz Xaver Kraus: The Art Monuments of the Grand Duchy of Baden , p. 167.

Remarks

1. ↑ The list of owners is compiled from two sources that complement each other and occasionally also provide different information: On the one hand, taken from the contribution by Herbert Fuchs senior: The Wasserstelzschlösser and, on the other hand, from a list based on research by the Wagner family, Hotel Wasserstelz - designated as "Wagner Chronicle". For the sake of clarity, the quotations are given in brackets in the running text. The preceding years come from the following information.
2. ↑ The information appears contradicting itself and cannot be clarified at the moment.

gallery

• 

  South side (2008)

• 

  West side (2008)

• 

  Half-round tower on the east side (2008)

• 

  Foundation walls

• 

  Southwest corner (2008)

Weilergraben bridge, old Rheintalstrasse

environment

At the Weisswasserstelz Castle with the Guggenmühle homestead, the old Rheintalstrasse used to lead past the castle courtyard - today this route is shortened and has a new bridge over the Weilergraben. A traffic route along the Rhine can already be assumed for prehistoric times (Kadelburg / Fährstelle - Kaiserstuhl / Hohentengen); it is likely that this was expanded during centuries of Roman settlement. The year of construction of the bridge is unknown.

literature

• Herbert Fuchs sen .: Hohentengen - history and stories , publisher: Hohentengen a. H., Geiger-Verlag Horb 1992, ISBN 3-89264-716-X .
• Franz Xaver Kraus : The art monuments of the Grand Duchy of Baden , Freiburg i. Br., 1892, Volume III - Waldshut District; Pp. 167-169 online
• J. Schmidt bridges: State of Baden-Württemberg. Castles, palaces and ruins . From the series: Bels excursion guide . Christian Belser Verlag, Stuttgart 1980, ISBN 3-7630-1290-7 .
• Arthur Hauptmann: Castles then and now - castles and castle ruins in southern Baden and neighboring areas . Verlag Südkurier, Konstanz 1984, ISBN 3-87799-040-1 , pp. 252-253.
• Friedrich-Wilhelm Krahe: Castles of the German Middle Ages - floor plan lexicon . Special edition. Flechsig Verlag, Würzburg 2000, ISBN 3-88189-360-1 , p. 652.
• Wagner Chronicle (Archive Family Wagner, Hotel Wasserstelz, 2015)

Web links

Commons : Weisswasserstelz  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

• Entry on Weisswasserstelz castle ruins in the scientific database " EBIDAT " of the European Castle Institute
• Weisswasserstelz Castle at burgenwelt.de
• Website of the Hotel Wasserstelz

Individual evidence

1. ↑ B. Peter, Heraldik  ( page no longer available , search in web archives )  Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. Both name alternatives in H. Fuchs, Hohentengen, p. 114.  
2. ↑ ^{a b} Herbert Fuchs senior: Die Wasserstelzschlösser in: Hohentengen - History and Stories, Ed .: Municipality of Hohentengen a. H., Geiger-Verlag Horb 1992, p. 114.
3. ↑ Helmut Maurer : The role of the castle in the high medieval constitutional history of the landscapes between Lake Constance and the Black Forest. Special print from The castles in the German-speaking area. (Ed .: Hans Patze) in: Lectures and Research XIX, 1976.
4. ↑ Chronicle, created by the Wagner family, who rebuilt the farmyard from 1989 to 1997, template 2015.
5. ^ Gerhard Fingerlin: On the Alemannic settlement history of the 3rd - 7th century. in: The Alemanni in the early days , Ed .: Wolfgang Hübener, publication of the Alemannic Institute Freiburg / Br. No. 34, Verlag Konkordia AG Bühl / Baden 1974, p. 87.
6. ↑ Eva Baumgartner: Recreation and new hospitality on the land of old knights. Tourism project "Wasserstelz" near Hohentengen in: Waldshuter storyteller, Alb-Bote from 23 August 1997.
7. ↑ ZGORh, Vol. 28, p. 177
8. ↑ Fürstenbergisches Urkundenbuch VII, p. 423
9. ↑ ZGORh, Vol. 5, p. 228
10. ^ Herbert Fuchs senior: Die Wasserstelzschlösser , in: Hohentengen, p. 115. Also the following four statements by H. Fuchs.
11. ^ Herbert Fuchs senior: Die Wasserstelzschlösser , in: Hohentengen, p. 116.