Small fort Rheinbrohl

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Small fort Rheinbrohl
limes ORL NN ( RLK )
Route (RLK) Upper German Limes ,
route 1 (Rhine-Lahn)
Dating (occupancy) around 180/190 to?
Type Small fort
unit unknown vexillatio
size 26 m × 26 m = 0.07 ha
Construction stone
State of preservation completely destroyed (gravel mining)
place Rheinbrohl / Bad Hönningen
Geographical location 50 ° 30 '12.7 "  N , 7 ° 19' 9.5"  E Coordinates: 50 ° 30 '12.7 "  N , 7 ° 19' 9.5"  E
height 63  m above sea level NHN
Previous Fort Remagen / Rigomagus ,
→ ( Lower Germanic Limes )
Subsequently Small fort Am Forsthofweg (east- south- east)

The Kleinastell Rheinbrohl was a Roman military camp of the Upper German Limes , which was granted UNESCO World Heritage status in 2005 . The fortification was located in the area of the present-day Rhineland-Palatinate district of Neuwied nearby municipality Bad Hönningen , the Upper Germanic-Rhaetian Limes in the area from the river border of the Rhine - the Lower Germanic Limes towards solving the east, between the local church - Rheinbrohl and City of Bad Hönningen began in the north.

location

Situation plan at the time of the investigation by the Reich Limes Commission (RLK).

The small fort Rheinbrohl was located on the northern edge of today's municipality of Rheinbrohl in the immediate vicinity of the Rhine. In ancient times it was located here directly on a now silted up Rhine bend, about 200 meters south of the "Caput Limitis" ( Latin for "head of the Limes"), the northern beginning of the Upper German Limes, which was monitored by the crew of the small fortification. The Limes began here on the right bank of the Rhine, opposite the mouth of the Vinxtbach (from Latin: Ad Fines = "At the borders") on the left bank of the Rhine , the border between the provinces of Germania inferior (Lower Germany) and Germania Superior (Upper Germany) formed.

Fort

Floor plan and cross-sections

The small fort Rheinbrohl was discovered and excavated in autumn 1899 . It was a square stone fort with a side length of around 26 meters, which corresponds to a total area of ​​around 0.07 hectares. The interior of the camp was occupied by a single building with a fountain in the courtyard. The facility, with its only gate facing the Rhine, was surrounded by a 90 centimeter thick defensive wall, in front of which there were two pointed trenches, each about six meters wide and two meters deep, as an obstacle to approach.

The fort was built in the reign of Commodus (180-192) on the site of an older Roman building. However, the full extent and former function of these buildings could not be determined at the time of the excavations. At a time that cannot be dated, probably in the late phase of the Limes, it was destroyed by a fire of unknown cause. Nothing is known about the fort occupation; it was probably the vexillatio ( detachment ) of a larger auxiliary unit stationed nearby .

Nothing is left of the facility today, not even underground. The area was completely destroyed by modern gravel mining .

Limes course from "Caput Limitis" to the small fort "Am Forsthofweg"

Incorrect reconstruction of Wp 1/1

The near beginning of the Limes itself is marked today by a privately initiated attempt to reconstruct a Roman tower, which is not listed at the historical site, which is about halfway between the actual former location of the watchtower and the small fort Rheinbrohl. Even when it was built in 1974, the design of this tower did not correspond to the scientific findings about the appearance of Limes watchtowers and has been criticized accordingly in the literature. In addition, when the reconstruction was built, the once well-preserved watchtower Wp 1/8 was exploited as a quarry, which severely destroyed the original findings there .

Limes ditch with reconstructed palisade on the road from Rheinbrohl to Rockenfeld, between the watchtowers Wp 1/10 and Wp 1/11

From here, the Limes leaves the Rhine first in an easterly direction, and after a good four kilometers as the crow flies, for example in the area of ​​today's hunting lodge “Wilhelmsruh”, swings to the southeast. In its northern section it encloses the Neuwied Basin , an old settlement chamber that played a major role in the strategic deliberations of the Romans from an early stage. Already the two bridges that Julius Caesar in the years 55 and 53 v. BC over the Rhine, they were probably located in this area. Another Roman bridge was built in AD 49 between Confluentes , today's Koblenz, and Ehrenbreitstein . During the Chat Wars (83-85 AD) under Emperor Domitian (81-96), the Neuwied Basin served as a deployment base for military operations through the Lahn valley and probably after the end of the campaigns, towards the end of the first century AD started the expansion of the Limes in this region.

The northernmost section of the Upper German Limes, between its starting point and the Niederbieber fort , has been preserved in different states. Especially in the sparsely populated, wooded mountain ranges northeast of the Rhine, numerous traces of both the Limes ditch itself and its watchtowers can be seen in the area. Sometimes it runs directly parallel to the Rheinhöhenweg .

ORL Name / place Description / condition
Wp 1/1 Unscientific, very free reconstruction, somewhat apart from the actual Wp 1/1. (See picture above).
KK Small fort Rheinbrohl see above
Wp 1/2 to Wp 1/4
Wall moat and palisade moat near Rheinbrohl, documented photographically and in drawings
Only suspected but archaeologically unproven tower sites. The relevant layers of the investigation areas had already been removed by stream and rain washing away from the loess soil or by sand extraction. Only the course of the Limes line itself could still be proven in some places.

In this section, the Limes, coming from the Rhine plain, gradually stretches over Arienheller to the ridges of the Rheinbrohler Forest. Nothing can be seen in the terrain today.

Wp 1/5 "Am Berdelder"
Position of the Wp 1/5 in the elevated terrain profile
Hardly perceptible traces of the ground of a former 4.20 x 4.30 m stone tower with 85 to 90 cm thick walls, 13 m behind the moat of the Limes, which begins to be visible here in the area. The tower was surrounded by a 1.35 m wide and 70 cm deep ring trench, which was probably used for drainage. Isolated ceramic finds allow the assumption of an older, archaeologically not proven wooden tower at this point.
Wp 1/6 Due to the distance between Wp 1/5 and Wp 1/7 assumed but archaeologically not proven tower site.
Wp 1/7 "On the Steinbrink"
Projecting foundation base of Wp 1/7
Visible rubble mound of a rectangular stone tower, around 20 m from the palisade ditch of the Limes. The side lengths were 4.20 mx 4.30 m, the wall reached a thickness of 97 cm. The finding of a post hole can be interpreted as a probable indication of an older predecessor tower.

From the gallery of this tower, the entire Limes stretch back to Wp 1/1, forward to Wp 1/10, as well as the left bank of the Rhine could be overlooked.

Wp 1/8 "On Hottels Buchen"
Location of the tower site Wp 1/8 (1894)
Outline of the findings at Wp 1/8 (1894)
Interior view of one of the stone towers from Wp 1/8 (1894)
Preserved place of two stone towers and one wooden tower. The tower site was discovered in 1894 by the Reich Limes Commission and excavated under the direction of the route commissioner Georg Loeschcke . Over a century later, in 2005 and 2006, the General Directorate for Cultural Heritage Rhineland-Palatinate carried out an archaeological follow-up examination and subsequent conservation of the site in a total of three campaigns. This had become necessary because the excavation sections had not been backfilled with the findings from the early excavators, so that they were severely attacked by the erosion that followed, which lasted for 110 years. To make matters worse, repeated improper exposures since the early 1970s and, in particular, massive destruction through the overexploitation of stone material, which was used in 1974 for the pseudo-reconstruction of the tower site Wp 1/1.

Wooden tower
Under the western stone tower, a wooden predecessor tower could be detected due to two post holes , one of which still contained the post stand track. The wooden tower had a square floor plan with a side length of 4.25 m. It was surrounded by an uninterrupted trench 2.0 m to 2.4 m wide, which had a square floor plan with rounded corners and a remaining depth of 70 to 94 centimeters. The side lengths - measured from the middle of the trench to the middle of the trench - were around nine meters. The backfill consisted of sandy loam with debris from greywacke and sand slate. In the uppermost area of ​​the backfill, ceramic shards were found, which are probably related to the debris from the stone tower below. The lower layers of the trench were mixed with bricked clay and particles of charcoal.

Western, older stone tower
This stone tower was built after the middle of the second century AD on the exact site of the wooden tower after it fell victim to a fire. It had a rectangular floor plan with sides of 4.4 m and 4.3 m. Its wall thickness was on average 90 cm as it rose, so that a relatively small inner area of ​​around 2.5 m by 2.5 m resulted. The foundation plinth protruded five to ten centimeters and was sunk 30 cm into the ground. At a distance of only four meters from the bottom of the moat and around seven meters from the palisade moat, the tower was oriented with its sides parallel or at right angles to the course of the Limes. The tower construction consisted of graywacke stones connected with clay / lime mortar, which were probably later used as a secondary means for the construction of the younger stone tower. On the northeast side of the tower, the post marks of a possible scaffolding could be found, which may have been used either for construction or maintenance.

Eastern, younger stone tower
The eastern stone tower had a square floor plan with a side length of 4.4 m (inside 2.6 m) with a wall thickness of 90 cm when rising. The foundations, which were sunk by 0.60 m, protruded six to ten centimeters. Like its predecessor, the tower was made of greywacke that was bound with clay / lime mortar. As with its predecessor, no plaster residue whatsoever could be observed. A clay-loamy strip around 30 cm wide and 20 cm deep, which ran parallel to the masonry on the southeast side of the tower at a distance of 0.7 m, was mentioned as a possible gutter. In this case, the small distance would allow a roof overhang between 0.7 m and a maximum of 1.0 m, so that a corridor running around the outside would almost certainly be ruled out.

Limes passage
In the immediate area of ​​the tower, the moat and probably also the wall were interrupted over a length of 9.25 m. One of the numerous Limes passages typical of the Limes stretches of the Westerwald and Taunus must have been here. The actual crossing must have been about 100 m further in a west-north-westerly direction, where an old route crosses the Limes. Another passage is suspected there, but could not and can no longer be proven archaeologically. The wall and moat were interrupted, but not the palisade, which indicates a different period, as it can be reconciled with the expansion scheme of the Upper German-Raetian Limes. Three little ditches in the area of ​​the ditch interruption are interesting, one of which had already been identified by the Reich Limes Commission and interpreted as a drainage channel for the ditch. Due to the two other ditches discovered during the investigations at the beginning of the 21st century, on which the use of wedge stones could also be ascertained, the findings must, however, rather be addressed as relics of various safety fences to secure the ditch interruption. The temporal relationship between the individual moats and between them and the palisade moat could no longer be clarified due to very strong disturbances in the area.

Finds and inscriptions
The finds at the tower site consisted mainly of common pottery from the late second century with only four TS fragments. However, the fragment of an inscription stone from the rubble of the eastern stone tower, on which four lines of text were still rudimentary, fell out of the frame:

4: [(---) L or E]
5: [(.) Ulp (ius)]
6: [(..) sius]
7: [(Pr) aef (ectus)]

On the basis of analogies to an inscription find from the Saalburg fort , the archaeologist Thomas Becker interpreted the find as a possible consecration stone for the goddess Fortuna and suggested the following, heavily supplemented reading:

1: [(Deae)]
2: [(Fort)]
3: [(una) e]
4: [M (arcus) Ulp (ius)]
5: [(..) sius]
6: [(Pr) aef (ectus)]
7: [(Coh VII)]
8: [Raet (orum)]
9: [V (otum) S (olvit) L (Libens) L (aetus) M (erito)]

Translated: "The goddess Fortuna (has) Marcus Ulpius (..) sius, prefect of the seventh  cohort of Rhaetians ., His vow gladly, joyfully met and for a fee" The Cohors VII Raetorum (equitata) was at that time in the southeast,, round Fort Niederberg stationed nine kilometers as the crow flies .

Conservation
In order to protect the ensemble of the Wp 1/8 from further vandalism, the findings were completely covered with earth according to the latest investigations. The Rheinbrohl community acquired the site and had the walls reconstructed directly above the original findings. The entire area was integrated into a small park.

Wp 1/9 "Am Beulenberg" Barely noticeable traces of a stone tower at the site of an older wooden tower, which was surrounded by a ring moat about two meters wide. The stone tower stood 29.5 m from the center of the moat. The square tower had a side length of 4.10 m with a wall thickness of almost 80 cm.

A reconstruction proposal for the wooden tower was erected at a non-historical location, around 300 m southeast of Wp 1/8 and around 150 m northwest of Wp 1/9 as a viewing tower.

Wp 1/10 "On the Martian"
Wp 1/10 during the excavation
About 100 m northwest of the Wilhelmsruh hunting lodge is the clearly visible rubble hill of a square stone tower 20 m from the center of the moat. The tower had a side length of almost 4.40 m and a wall thickness of 90 to 95 cm. A relatively thick layer of culture was found around the tower. A place in the Limeswall that contained a thick layer of fire was interpreted as the place of the wooden previous tower.

The Limes reaches the watershed between the Rhine and Wied here .
In the area of ​​Wp 1/10 it was crossed by a prehistoric high path that came from Malberg and ran into the Neuwied basin.

Wp 1/11 "On the Freßhelder"
Outlines of the findings at Wp 1/11
Wp 1/11 during the excavation
A little more than 50 m away from the moat is a visible hill that contains the foundations of a stone tower with a side length of 4.30 m and a wall thickness of around 75 cm. What was noticeable in this tower was the brickwork , which was not conventionally in horizontal layers, but rather at an angle in the form of Opus spicatum .

Traces of an older wooden tower with a side length of 4.75 x 4.35 m, which was generously surrounded by a 19 m diameter trench, could be detected.

Wp 1/12 "At the Weierhof" On agricultural land 39 m behind the moat, between two groups of trees, recognizable and designated rubble mound of a former stone tower 4.80 x 4.80 m in size with 65 to 75 cm thick walls. Like the Wp 1/11, this tower also had construction features of the Opus spicatum . Another stone tower recorded in the literature has come off, a wooden tower could not be detected.
Wp 1/13 "On the Rennweg" Noticeable remains of a 5.30 x 5.30 m large stone tower with 90 cm thick walls about 52 m from the moat. A wooden tower was proven on the basis of the ceramic finds.
Wp 1 / 13a Presumed, but archaeologically not proven tower site. Between this and Wp 1/13 there was an interruption of the Limeswall and the large moat, while the palisade moat had no interruption features.
Wp 1/14 "On the Forsthofweg"
Wp 1/14 during the excavation
Faintly perceptible soil deformations due to the rubble mound of a former stone tower with a floor plan of 4.30 x 4.50 m and a wall thickness of 75 cm. Inside the tower, a layer of fire with shards as well as iron and bronze fragments was detected. Traces of a wooden tower are not documented in the literature.

The tower is only a good 20 m away from the northwest corner of the small fort on Forsthofweg.

KK Small fort on the Forsthofweg see main article Small fort Am Forsthofweg

Monument protection

The small fort Rheinbrohl and the mentioned ground monuments have been part of the UNESCO World Heritage as a section of the Upper Germanic-Rhaetian Limes since 2005 . In addition, the facilities are cultural monuments according to the Monument Protection Act of the State of Rhineland-Palatinate (DSchG) . Research and targeted collection of finds are subject to approval. Incidental finds are to be reported to the monument authorities.

Limes information and adventure center Rheinbrohl

Construction site of the info center (February 2008)

The official Limes visitor center for the state of Rhineland-Palatinate, RömerWelt, is located in the Arienheller district of Rheinbrohl at Caput Limitis . The center opened in late 2008. The “Caput Limitis” Rheinbrohl Foundation is responsible for the conception of the content, and the Rhineland-Palatinate General Directorate for Cultural Heritage is responsible.

See also

literature

  • Dietwulf Baatz : The Roman Limes. Archaeological excursions between the Rhine and the Danube. 4th edition. Gebr. Mann, Berlin 2000, ISBN 3-7861-2347-0 , pp. 91-93.
  • Thomas Becker: A fragment of an inscription from the watchtower 1/8 near Rheinbrohl. To the "inscription equipment" of the watchtowers on the Upper German-Raetian Limes . In: Andreas Thiel (ed.): New research on the Limes. 4th specialist colloquium of the German Limes Commission 27./28. February 2007 in Osterburken . Theiss, Stuttgart 2008, ISBN 978-3-8062-2251-7 , (= contributions to the Limes World Heritage Site, 3), pp. 43–57.
  • Ernst Fabricius , Felix Hettner , Oscar von Sarwey (ed.): The Upper Germanic-Raetian Limes of the Roemerreich . Dept. A, Vol. 1: Lines 1 and 2. Petters; Heidelberg, Berlin, Leipzig 1936.
  • Christian Fleer: Typification and function of the small buildings on the Limes. In: Egon Schallmayer (Ed.): Limes Imperii Romani. Contributions to the specialist colloquium “Limes World Heritage Site” in November 2001 in Lich-Arnsburg. (Saalburg writings 6), Bad Homburg v. d. H. 2004, ISBN 3-931267-05-9 , pp. 75-92.
  • Cliff Alexander Jost: Subsequent excavation and conservation of the towers on the Limes. Guard post 1/8 in the Rheinbrohler Wald. In: Andreas Thiel (ed.): New research on the Limes. 4th specialist colloquium of the German Limes Commission 27./28. February 2007 in Osterburken . Theiss, Stuttgart 2008, ISBN 978-3-8062-2251-7 , (= contributions to the Limes World Heritage Site, 3), pp. 31–41.
  • Cliff Alexander Jost: The Roman Limes in Rhineland-Palatinate . (Archeology on the Middle Rhine and Moselle, Vol. 14), State Office for Monument Preservation Rhineland-Palatinate, Koblenz 2003, ISBN 3-929645-07-6 , pp. 27–43.
  • Margot Klee : Limes. Course 1, SS 1 / 1–1 / 93 . In: Heinz Cüppers : The Romans in Rhineland-Palatinate. Licensed edition of the 1990 edition, Nikol, Hamburg 2002, ISBN 3-933203-60-0 , pp. 442–443.
  • Margot Klee: The Limes between Rhine and Main. Theiss, Stuttgart 1989. ISBN 3-8062-0276-1 , pp. 33-37.

Web links

Commons : Römerturm (Rheinbrohl)  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Remarks

  1. ↑ To the beginning of the Limes and the watchtower reconstruction on the private website Limeseiten by Claus te Vehne.
  2. ↑ See Baatz, p. 92. Since the ground floors of the Limes watchtowers mostly had no external entrances, the entrance must have been located significantly higher. A half-timbered construction on a stone tower is also highly unlikely and the tower was certainly plastered and covered with a roof made of bricks, shingles or reeds / straw. The modern inscription on the tower, dating from the reign of Emperor Trajan (98-117) and affixed by the tower builders, is false and misleading, since no stone towers were built on the Upper German Limes under Trajan.
  3. ^ Brigitta Rabold, Egon Schallmayer , Andreas Thiel : Der Limes , Theiss, Stuttgart 2000, ISBN 3-8062-1461-1 , p. 26; Hartwig Schmidt : Archaeological Monuments in Germany - Reconstructed and rebuilt , Theiss, Stuttgart 2000, ISBN 3-8062-1395-X , p. 98; Cliff Alexander Jost: Subsequent excavation and conservation of the towers on the Limes. Guard post 1 (8 in the Rheinbrohler Wald. In: Andreas Thiel (Hrsg.): Neue Forschungen am Limes . 4th specialist colloquium of the German Limes Commission February 27/28, 2007 in Osterburken. Theiss, Stuttgart 2008, ISBN 978-3-8062- 2251-7 , (= Contributions to the Limes World Heritage, 3), pp. 31–41; here: p. 31.
  4. ↑ ORL = numbering of the Limes structures according to the publication of the Reich Limes Commission on the O bergermanisch- R ätischen- L imes
  5. ↑ Wp = W oh p east, watch tower. The number before the slash denotes the Limes section, the number after the slash denotes the respective watchtower.
  6. ↑ Unsuccessful reconstruction attempt at 50 ° 30 ′ 12.99 ″  N , 7 ° 19 ′ 4.34 ″  E
  7. ↑ Tower position Wp 1/1 at 50 ° 30 '17 "  N , 7 ° 19' 2.63"  E
  8. ↑ KK = unnumbered K linseed K astell
  9. ↑ Tower location Wp 1/2 assumed at 50 ° 30 ′ 32.26 ″  N , 7 ° 19 ′ 23.76 ″  E , tower location Wp 1/3 assumed at 50 ° 30 ′ 37.86 ″  N , 7 ° 19 ′ 53 , 26 "  O and tower position Wp 1/4 suspected at 50 ° 30 '46.56"  N , 7 ° 20' 13.2 "  O .
  10. ↑ Tower position Wp 1/5 at 50 ° 30 ′ 47.66 ″  N , 7 ° 20 ′ 33.72 ″  E
  11. ↑ tower point Wp 1/6 suspected at 50 ° 30 '48.61 "  N , 7 ° 20' 57.54"  O
  12. ↑ Tower position Wp 1/7 at 50 ° 30 ′ 49.74 ″  N , 7 ° 21 ′ 22.27 ″  E
  13. ↑ a b c d e f g Cliff Alexander Jost: Subsequent excavation and conservation of the towers on the Limes. Guard post 1 (8 in the Rheinbrohler Wald. In: Andreas Thiel (Hrsg.): Neue Forschungen am Limes . 4th specialist colloquium of the German Limes Commission February 27/28, 2007 in Osterburken. Theiss, Stuttgart 2008, ISBN 978-3-8062- 2251-7 , (= contributions to the Limes World Heritage Site , 3), pp. 31–41.
  14. ↑ Western post hole: 0.50 m diameter with post stand track of 0.30 / 0.35 m. South post hole: 0.60 m without shoulder lane.
  15. ↑ Wooden tower of the tower location Wp 1/8 at 50 ° 30 ′ 47.43 ″  N , 7 ° 21 ′ 56.06 ″  E
  16. ↑ Older stone tower of the tower site Wp 1/8 at 50 ° 30 ′ 47.43 ″  N , 7 ° 21 ′ 56.06 ″  E
  17. ↑ younger stone tower, the tower location Wp 1/8 at 50 ° 30 '47.18 "  N , 7 ° 21' 56.62"  O
  18. ↑ CIL 13, 7445
  19. ↑ Thomas Becker: A fragment of the inscription from the watchtower 1/8 near Rheinbrohl. To the "inscription equipment" of the watchtowers on the Upper German-Raetian Limes . In: Andreas Thiel (ed.): New research on the Limes . 4th specialist colloquium of the German Limes Commission 27./28. February 2007 in Osterburken. Theiss, Stuttgart 2008, ISBN 978-3-8062-2251-7 , (= contributions to the Limes World Heritage Site, 3), pp. 43–57.
  20. ↑ Tower position Wp 1/9 at 50 ° 30 ′ 41.43 ″  N , 7 ° 22 ′ 17.89 ″  E
  21. ↑ Reconstruction proposal for the wooden tower at the tower site Wp 1/9 at 50 ° 30 ′ 41.43 ″  N , 7 ° 22 ′ 17.89 ″  E
  22. ↑ Cliff Alexande Jost: Tower No. 1/9 in Rheinbrohl ( Memento from December 4, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) on the website Der Limes in Rhineland-Palatinate of the Secretariat for World Heritage in Rhineland-Palatinate, accessed on February 6, 2015.
  23. ↑ Stone tower of the tower point Wp 1/10 at approximately 50 ° 30 ′ 37.1 ″  N , 7 ° 22 ′ 32.6 ″  E
  24. ↑ stone tower, the tower location Wp 1/11 at 50 ° 30 '14.63 "  N , 7 ° 22' 36.62"  O
  25. ↑ Stone tower of the tower site Wp 1/11 at 50 ° 30 ′ 14.3 ″  N , 7 ° 22 ′ 35.92 ″  E
  26. ↑ Tower position Wp 1/12 at 50 ° 29 ′ 59.54 ″  N , 7 ° 22 ′ 47.69 ″  E
  27. ↑ stone tower, the tower location Wp 1/13 at 50 ° 29 '41 "  N , 7 ° 23' 11.46"  O
  28. ↑ wood tower, the tower location Wp 1/13 at 50 ° 29 '40.96 "  N , 7 ° 23' 10.71"  O
  29. ↑ Tower location Wp 1 / 13a suspected at around 50 ° 29 '39.98 "  N , 7 ° 23" 24.13 "  E
  30. ↑ Tower position Wp 1/14 at 50 ° 29 ′ 39.83 ″  N , 7 ° 23 ′ 34.23 ″  E