Burgstall Frauenstein

Burgstall Frauenstein
The Burgstall above the Alpsee
Creation time :	First mentioned in 1290
Castle type :	Hilltop castle
Conservation status:	Burgstall
Standing position :	Nobles, Ministerials
Place:	Schwangau
Geographical location	47 ° 33 '18 "  N , 10 ° 43' 54"  E Coordinates: 47 ° 33 '18 "  N , 10 ° 43' 54"  E

The high until late medieval Postal Frauenstein is an Outbound hilltop castle near the village of Schwangau on a rocky floor above the Alpsee in the district of Ostallgäu in Swabia . The small castle was demolished in the 15th century except for the remains of the foundation.

history

The core castle from the west

Look into the neck ditch

The monument on the castle plateau

The "castrum Frawenstein" appears for the first time in 1290 in the written sources. The tower castle was the westernmost of the four neighboring castles of the powerful lords of Schwanstein, who had been promoted to the imperial ministry as servants of the Welfs and Staufers . Immediately below the fortress was Schwanstein Castle, which was expanded into Hohenschwangau Castle in the 19th century . The world-famous Neuschwanstein Castle is located on the area of ​​the two castle ruins Vorder- and Hinterschwangau, the remains of which were almost completely removed for the construction of the castle.

The sources contain only a few specific information about Frauenstein Castle. The complex was probably built as an additional base for the Schwangau people during the conflicts between the Counts of Tyrol , the Bishops of Augsburg and the Dukes of Bavaria . Each of the territorial lords laid claim to the Staufer inheritance in the Allgäu . The complicated rulership in this region is one reason for the unusual density of castles in the area around Füssen and Reutte ( castle region Ostallgäu-Ausserfern ). The Lords of Schwangau were on the side of Tyrol , which was supported by the Augsburg bishopric . The noble lords of Hohenegg (Rettenberg-Hoheneck) also stood in the way of the Counts of Tyrol's expansion efforts.

The Tyroleans were finally able to expand their territory to the north at the expense of the Hoheneggers and also took over the small grotto castle Loch . The few remains of the walls of this weir system are only a few kilometers behind the Frauenstein castle stable in a rock face above Unterpinswang .

The individual branches of the Schwangau family did not always live peacefully side by side on their four residences. The sources reported numerous inheritance disputes and other conflicts. In the 15th century, a keep was therefore closed. Other agreements followed this treaty . Like numerous similar treaties, these documents prove that medieval noble residences are not only to be interpreted as pure symbols of power and status, but also had to serve the safety of their residents.

In the late Middle Ages, some noble lords from Schwangau are said to have increased their income by raiding trade trains. Frauenstein Castle could have been destroyed during a punitive expedition by the Augsburg bishopric and not rebuilt afterwards.

The Frauenstein is mentioned several times in the documents until 1487. In the late 15th century, the now dispensable castle was finally cannibalized and demolished for the expansion of the Sinwell Tower of Schwanstein Castle below. A report from 1523 describes the Burgplatz as "even disintegrated and decayed". You don't need to pay any attention to this lock.

description

The abandoned Burgstall (Burgplatz) can be reached from Hohenschwangau Castle in around 10 to 15 minutes via a well-developed and secured hiking trail. The Burgstall is located on the eastern spur of the Perzen or Berzenkopf at a height of about 892 meters above sea level.

The foundations of a rectangular building can be seen on a hilltop about 250 meters south of the main castle . These wall sections do not necessarily have to be related to the castle complex. The actual castle site is cut out of the spacious mountain plateau by a neck ditch up to four meters deep . A wide, wall-like terrain formation is in front of the ditch. Several prominent rock ridges rise from the ridge. However, clear features of the terrain of a bailey cannot be documented.

The foundation tracks on the cone of the core Burg indicate a rectangular residential tower or Palas . Such smaller tower castles were built all over Europe in the 14th century. Remains of a curtain wall are nowhere to be found. Around 1850, the monument to the memory of the castle "zum Frauenstein" was erected on behalf of King Maximilian II . At that time the main castle was redesigned as a lookout point. The view of the two royal castles and the Alpsee is currently severely restricted by the dense forest.

The Bavarian State Office for Monument Preservation lists the ground monument as a medieval castle stable under monument number D-7-8430-0026.

literature

• Gisela Haasen: Hohenschwangau - the magic of a romantic castle . Munich 1998, ISBN 3-7654-3087-0 .

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Bavarian State Office for Monument Preservation: Entry ( Memento of the original from March 4, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) 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.