Füssen High Castle

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The high castle at Füssen (right)
Reconstruction of the late Gothic extension
The high castle above Füssen
The castle courtyard
Knight hall
Escape in the north wing
In front of a wintry mountain panorama
The Kunigunden legend (beginning of the 16th century) BC. H. Holbein the Elder Ä. in the State Gallery
Interior view of the castle chapel

The Gothic high castle of the bishops of Augsburg is located on a hill above the old town of Füssen in Swabia . The large castle is one of the best preserved medieval castles in Bavaria.

history

The Fort Foetibus was built on the Schlossberg in the late Roman Empire as the seat of a supply unit of the III. Italian Legion. As early as AD 47, one of the rest stops on the Via Claudia was likely to have been on what is now the city. The Augsburg bishops founded the Sankt Mang monastery as early as the 8th century. The ruins of the Roman fort could certainly still serve as a welcome quarry at that time. In 1183 the Augsburgers donated the Gaisberg (Altwik) to the monastery , which would later carry the castle. However, at that time the monastery had to undertake never to erect a secular structure on the hill or to sell the mountain to a secular lord.

After the death of the last Staufer Konradin, the bailiwick of the bishopric of Augsburg became an object of dispute between the bishops of Augsburg and the dukes of Bavaria. Konradin had illegally pledged the bailiwick to his uncle, the Bavarian duke, in 1266 and 1267. Duke Ludwig II tried to secure his claims on the Füssen area by building a castle above the monastery. In 1292, after violent disputes, a settlement was reached in which the duke renounced the castle and the expansion of other fortifications in the region.

In 1313, Emperor Heinrich VII pledged the bailiwick of the bishopric's property to Bishop Friedrich I. In 1322, the bishopric acquired the castle hill on a barter route and made the fortress the seat of the Füssen nursing office. In 1363 the castle was already integrated into the city ​​fortifications . In the years from 1486 under Bishop Friedrich II. Von Zollern an extensive renovation and expansion of the nursing home took place, which defines the appearance of the complex to this day. Another renovation was started around 1680 under Prince-Bishop Johann Christoph von Freyberg , but this mainly concerned the interior.

In the years 1798 and 1799, the castle was used as the Austrian central hospital and was occupied by the French the following year. In the first half of the 19th century, some renovation work was carried out, at times the High Castle was even intended as the summer residence of the Bavarian Crown Prince Maximilian , who, however , opted for Hohenschwangau Castle , which he acquired in 1832. In the years 1862 and 1863, the Füssen district court was set up in the south wing , and later even some apartments were built.

The north wing has housed a branch gallery of the Bayerische Staatsgemäldesammlungen since 1931 . The main focus of the permanent exhibition in six rooms is Swabian late Gothic painting. In the large ballroom ( knight's hall ), Allgäu sculptures of this time are presented, including some works by Jörg Lederer . The municipal gallery on the first floor shows works by the “Munich School” of the 19th century, some drawings by Count Pocci and works by local artists.

The castle was renovated in 1957/58 and 1966/67. Later the illusion paintings were freshened up and some interiors and the chapel were renovated.

Building description

The High Castle has largely been able to retain its late Gothic structure to this day. Later changes mainly affected the interior.

The castle is located on the eastern foothills of the ridge, which at its other end carries Falkenstein Castle near Pfronten. The weir system was included in the city fortifications. The "High Castle", together with the - somewhat lower - lying Sankt Mang monastery, form a characteristic ensemble above the old town of Füssen.

The west side is separated from the hinterland by a mighty neck ditch carved out of the rock . This ditch, known as the “gorge”, was built under Prince-Bishop Friedrich II von Zollern (1486–1505). Behind it, the “high floor” and the semicircular jutting keep protected the attack side, which is reinforced by a kennel.

The elongated, trapezoidal floor plan of the core castle adapts to the terrain. To the south, a kennel was also placed here , the walls of which were reduced by half in the 19th century. In the southwest the short side wall of the city fortifications is connected to the main castle. The outer gate of the castle is also located here. The gateway stretches past the south side to the gate tower, in which the clock of the broken Augsburg gate tower of the city wall was built. On the left and right are the circular walls with their partially covered battlements and a semicircular defense tower above the Zwinger.

The horseshoe-shaped inner castle opens to the east. The three-storey side wings are closed off by late Gothic gables decorated with pinnacles. The choir of the castle chapel protrudes polygonally from the gable front . In the west, the mighty keep (prison tower) watches over the fortress. The tower is connected to the side wings by short connecting structures. Above the north-east corner is the stork tower, which was originally called the "Hohes Haus". The residential tower has a high gable roof with gable clusters.

The entire castle complex still retains its whitewashed exterior plaster, which serves as a carrier for the Gothic illusion paintings. The surrounding alpine limestone was mostly used as building material, but brick bricks and brook rubble were also used. Portals and window frames usually consist of set sandstone .

The illusion paintings

The courtyard facades of the palace wings and the gate tower were adorned around 1499 with unusually rich architectural and illusion paintings. The windows are framed by splendid eyelashes decorated with crabs and cruciferous flowers. Numerous - large and small - oriels adorned with coats of arms appear to protrude from the facades. The Hechingen painter Fidelis Eichele is believed to be the master. The present day stock has been heavily restored.

The interiors

Despite the numerous alterations and installations, some remarkable interiors have been preserved.

In the north connecting wing there are two "French rooms" with late Gothic wooden ceilings. On the ground floor of the north wing there is a late Gothic, groin-vaulted hall over five square pillars. The "Knights' Hall" on the 2nd floor (Staatsgalerie) has a late Gothic, colored aggregate (painted) Schnitzdecke with figurative bas-reliefs, the Jörg Lederer are attributed.

Numerous smaller rooms have also retained their beamed or stucco ceilings , tiled stoves, portals or window frames, but are not always open to the public.

  • Front gate and south wing

  • South wing and connection to the keep

  • North wing (courtyard side) with "Storchenturm" (high house)

  • North wing and gate tower

  • Keep and "Storchenturm" (High House)

literature

Füssen and the High Castle
  • Joachim Zeune : The High Castle in Füssen. Published by G. Ulrich Großmann on behalf of the Wartburg Society . Schnell and Steiner, Regensburg 2010, ISBN 978-3-7954-2395-7 ( castles, palaces and defensive structures in Central Europe 25).
  • Gisela Goldberg: State Gallery Füssen. = State Gallery Füssen in the High Castle . With an introduction to the history of the High Castle by Magnus Peresson. Schnell and Steiner, Munich et al. 1987, ISBN 3-7954-0667-6 , pp. 145 ( Great Art Guide 145).
  • Michael Petzet : City and District of Füssen (short inventory) . Deutscher Kunstverlag, Munich 1960 ( Bayerische Kunstdenkmale 8).

Web links

Commons : Hohes Schloss  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Coordinates: 47 ° 34 ′ 1.8 ″  N , 10 ° 41 ′ 53.3 ″  E