Gonsenheim Gate
The Gonsenheimer Tor is a former fortress gate of the Mainz fortress and is located in the Hartenberg-Münchfeld district .
History and location
The Gonsenheimer Tor was part of the Rheingau Wall , which was supposed to militarily secure the expansion of the city of Mainz after the Franco-German War . The gate was located west of the old fortress between Fort Hartenberg and Kavalier Judensand and formed the exit gate to Gonsenheim and the flood-proof roads to the west. Today's street Am Fort Gonsenheim led through the gate. It was located at the topographically highest point of the Rheingau Wall and was built in 1872, shortly after the war. In further expansion stages up to 1877, a wall was built with a parallel trench and elevated positions in the form of cavaliers . The gate was one of the few passages of the new wall and was adjacent to the Mombacher Tor in the valley and other north-western passages.
Description and architecture
The Gonsenheimer Tor was a gate system with separate passages for vehicle and pedestrian traffic. To secure the gate there were barrel-vaulted casemates to the right and left of it , which were illuminated from the city side through large arched windows. On the field side, there are double-storey closing openings on both sides of the passages, the lower ones of which were only just above the bottom of the trench. An increased defensive effect was achieved by a bridge made of steel double-T girders spanning the upstream trench, which could be quickly dismantled in the event of war. The gate was also secured to the inside by a drawbridge . The gate was passively protected by a massive earth cover as protection against artillery fire.
The gate has a total width of 35 meters. It was not decorated by a show facade, but the ashlar cladding consisting of sandstone frames , lintel arches , embossed corner ashlars and profiled cornices is of high quality.
Rediscovery
The fortress gate was demolished at the beginning of the 20th century as an additional defensive ring was necessary due to improved gun technology. In 1904 the city was abandoned as a fortress. By order of Emperor Wilhelm II , many of the fortifications and city gates were closed by 1912, including the Gonsenheim Gate. The upper part of the gate was torn down, the lower parts were filled in, filled in and everything was leveled.
Due to construction work for a new building for Südwestrundfunk including an underground car park in 2003, remains of the lower part came to light. After negotiations with the city and the state monument authorities, the SWR took over the sponsorship and responsibility for the restoration of the structure, however about 40 meters away from the former location. A blackboard provides information about the monument.
Web links
- The Gonsenheimer Tor on the sides of Maiz Fortress
- Gonsenheimer Tor: Fortified fortifications on mainz.de
- Gonsenheimer Tor on the website of the Institute for Historical Regional Studies at the University of Mainz
Coordinates: 50 ° 0 ′ 12.9 ″ N , 8 ° 14 ′ 51 ″ E