Waldmössingen Castle

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Waldmössingen Castle
limes ORL 61b ( RLK )
Route (RLK) Neckar-Odenwald-Limes ,
older Neckar line
Dating (occupancy) 74 AD at the latest
until around / before 100 AD
(possibly until the middle of the 2nd century)
Vicus until the middle of the 3rd century.
Type Cohort fort
unit unknown cohort
size about 2 ha
Construction a) Wood and earth fort.
b) Stone fort
State of preservation partially reconstructed
place Schramberg -Waldmössingen
Geographical location 48 ° 16 '26 "  N , 8 ° 29' 36"  E Coordinates: 48 ° 16 '26 "  N , 8 ° 29' 36"  E hf
Previous ORL 61a Sulz Castle (northeast)
Subsequently ORL 62 forts of Rottweil (south)

The Waldmössingen fort was a Roman border fort on the Neckar line of the Neckar-Odenwald-Limes . It is located with the associated vicus as a ground monument under the fields on the northeastern edge of today's village Waldmössingen , a high-altitude district of the town of Schramberg in Baden-Württemberg, which belongs to the Rottweil district .

location

Site plan
(excavation 1896)

The fort is located in the vicinity of the old Roman fort and hedge area on the "Schafbühl", a spur-like elevation about halfway between Neckar and Kinzig. It was created at this point as part of a coordinated planning of the Kinzigtalstrasse , which is important for the history of occupation in southwest Germany , which connected the legionary camps in Mogontiacum ( Mainz ) and Argentorate ( Strasbourg ) with Augusta Vindelicorum ( Augsburg ) and the province of Raetien and thus connected the older traffic and troop transport routes significantly shortened from the province of Germania superior to the east. The fort is located here in a geographically and strategically important position, as the route forks at this point in two directions: to the southeast to the castles of Arae Flaviae ( Rottweil ) and to the northeast to the Sulz fort .

Research history

The former Roman presence in the area around Waldmössingen had been known since the middle of the 19th century. The fort was finally located and excavated by the Imperial Limes Commission in 1896 . Smaller archaeological investigations in the vicus were carried out in 1908 and 1983. Another excavation in the fort area itself took place in 1975. The southern corner tower of the camp was uncovered, which was reconstructed on the basis of these research results in 1982 through the commitment of the Förderverein für Heimatpflege.

Fort

Floor plan
(excavation 1896)

The Waldmössingen fort is of Vespasian origin and was built around the year 74 AD in connection with the expansion of the Kinzig valley road. It was initially built as a wood and earth fort, which was converted into a stone fort at a later date that cannot be dated according to current knowledge. The end of the military use of the site has not yet been assured due to the inadequate finds. It can be assumed that with the construction of the forts on the middle Neckar and the emergence of the road connection from Mogontiacum via the Cannstatt fort to Augusta Vindelicorum, the Kinzigtalstrasse and thus the garrison of Waldmössingen lost their importance and the camp possibly already with the early Trajan expansion of the Neckar -Odenwald-Limes was abandoned. But at the latest when the Limes was moved forward on the Miltenberg-Lorch line, its story ended.

Nothing is known about the auxiliary troops stationed here . Judging from the size of the camp, it was probably a Cohors quingenaria , an infantry unit of around 500 men.

Both construction phases deviate from the usual fort scheme in that they are not rectangular, but rather irregular, probably due to the topographical conditions. Both forts occupy an area of ​​about two hectares. From the older wood-earth construction phase, only the encircling pointed ditch is known, the width of which fluctuated between 4.0 and 4.7 m and the preserved depth between 1.7 and 2.7 m.

Trench cuts and architectural details
(excavation 1896)

When the fort was rebuilt, parts of the older trench were still used, namely on the southwest flank and on the eastern corner. Where this was not possible, new trenches were dug, and double trenches could be found in places. The camp was reinforced with a continuous 2 m thick wall, the rounded corners of which were occupied by towers. The three proven gates were flanked by double towers, a fourth gate with a similar situation can be assumed. A total of eight intermediate towers are assumed, but only three could be proven.

The interior of the camp is quite unclear. Fragments of the Principia (staff building) and another stone building of unknown purpose were found. Due to the orientation of the Principia, it can be assumed that the camp with its Praetorial Front is oriented towards the northeast.

Vicus

Small finds
(excavation 1896)

Little is known about the vicus of Waldmössingen. There is ample evidence of its existence, especially from the areas immediately west and south of the camp. The finds suggest that the vicus, like the fort, may have been built in the Vespasian era. Nothing is known about the end of the camp, it should have come to an end at the latest in the time of the domestic and foreign political and economic crisis of the empire around the middle of the 3rd century.

Monument protection, preservation of findings and what is found

The ground monument "Kastell Waldmössingen" is protected as a registered cultural monument within the meaning of the Monument Protection Act of the State of Baden-Württemberg (DSchG) . Investigations and targeted collection of finds are subject to approval, and accidental finds are reported to the monument authorities.

In contrast to the vicus, the entire fort area is not built over. A small museum was set up in the reconstructed south tower, in which some finds from Waldmössingen are exhibited. Other finds can be found in the Oberndorf Local History Museum and in the stacks of the archaeological collection of the Württemberg State Museum in the Old Castle in Stuttgart .

See also

literature

  • Eugen Nägele in the series Der Upper Germanic-Raetian Limes des Roemerreiches (Eds. Ernst Fabricius , Felix Hettner , Oscar von Sarwey ): Department B, Volume 5, Fort No. 61b (1897)
  • Dieter Planck : Schramberg-Waldmössingen. Roman fort and civil settlement . In: Dieter Planck (Ed.): The Romans in Baden-Württemberg . Theiss, Stuttgart 2005, ISBN 3-8062-1555-3 , p. 311 f.
  • Dieter Planck: Schramberg-Waldmössingen. Roman fort and civil settlement . In: Filtzinger, Planck, Cämmerer (ed.): The Romans in Baden-Württemberg. 3. Edition. Theiss, Stuttgart 1986, ISBN 3-8062-0287-7 , p. 544 f.
  • Alfred Rüsch: The Roman fort tower in Waldmössingen, city of Schramberg . In: Preservation of monuments in Baden-Württemberg , 12th year 1983, issue 1, p. 23 f. ( PDF )
  • Alfred Rüsch: The Roman fort in Waldmössingen . Society for Prehistory and Early History in Württemberg and Hohenzollern, Stuttgart, 1981
  • Andreas Schaub: The Romans in Waldmössingen. Where written sources are silent - history from the ground . Schramberg City Museum, Schramberg 1994
  • Roksanda M. Swoboda: An investigation in the Waldmössingen fort, Rottweil district . In: Monument Preservation in Baden-Württemberg , 8th year 1979, issue 1, p. 24 ff. ( PDF )

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