Nothberg Castle

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Nothberg Castle
View from the east

View from the east

Creation time : around 1300 to 1361
Castle type : Hilltop castle
Conservation status: ruin
Standing position : Ministeriale
Construction: Quarry stone, brick
Place: Nothberg
Geographical location 50 ° 48 ′ 41 ″  N , 6 ° 17 ′ 51 ″  E Coordinates: 50 ° 48 ′ 41 ″  N , 6 ° 17 ′ 51 ″  E
Nothberger Castle (North Rhine-Westphalia)
Nothberg Castle

The Nothberger Burg , now in ruins , is a historic donjonburg in the Eschweiler district of Nothberg , Germany. It has four round corner towers, a bay window and a day agricultural bailey . The earliest known owner of Nothberg Castle was Edmund von Engelsdorf, who was enfeoffed with the castle in 1361 by Duke Wilhelm II of Jülich .

The valley railway line is at the Nothberger Castle

location

The Höhenburg is located on a hill on the southern slope of the Inde valley in the Nothberg district of Eschweiler between Cologne and Aachen .

history

9th and 10th centuries

Perhaps there is already an older castle complex on the plateau of the core castle, which rises above the Indetal, visible from afar.

14th Century

In documents in which Reinhard von Schönforst buys some properties from the heirs of Herr von Monschau, a clear distinction is made between 1334 and 1335 between the Castle of Monschau, the Castle of Bütgenbach and the Huys te Berghe (= Nothberger Castle).

In 1356 Reinhard von Schönforst exchanged his acquisitions with the Duke of Jülich . A few years later, when he wanted to reverse the exchange, the Huys Berge op der Inden (= Nothberger Castle) was excluded.

In 1361 knight Edmund von Engelsdorf was enfeoffed with the Nothberg castle by the duke of Jülich. Von Engelsdorf is the earliest known owner of Nothberg Castle.

In 1398, Gerhard von Engelsdorf pledged the Nothberg Castle with all accessories for 1,500 heavy Rhenish guilders to Werner von Palant . At this point in time, it is in great need of renovation, which is clear from the modalities of the pledge agreement.

15th century

The west gable wall of the manor house (2006)

The core of the manor house of the Nothberg Castle is built as a late Gothic building. The gate castle probably dates from the 14th century , the remains of which are probably the oldest parts of the entire complex and are still clearly visible into the 21st century. The late Gothic gate for the drawbridge is being built on the southern corner of the west wing of the outer bailey, a brick built barn.

In 1433 Johann von Palant received the Nothberg Castle from his father Werner as a dowry. In return, he undertakes to suspend the tithe to Bützdorf and Metzen and must also undertake to repair the system again. For this reason he gives the order for extensive renovation and renovation work. A late medieval castle that is no longer up-to-date and unsuitable for defense against modern firearms is turned into a castle-like representative building that does not lack a certain level of comfort according to the status of the owner.

Around 1445 an oak beam was cut and installed over a doorway in the cellar. It shows traces of burn on one side in the 20th century.

16th Century

All house stone work is done in bluestone .

In 1543, the Nothberg Castle was badly damaged by the troops of Emperor Charles V during the dispute over the succession over Geldern .

1544: This year is recorded on the Nothberg coat of arms .

Alessandro Pasqualini's client Maximilian von Egmond died in 1548, and Wilhelm V immediately signed Pasqualini for Jülich . He becomes the ducal state master builder for the Duchies of Jülich-Kleve-Berg and can build a castle in the fortress and a Renaissance town in Jülich based on the ideal ideas of his time.

In 1549 Pasqualini helped design the Düsseldorf residence and in 1552 he worked on the fortifications in Cologne .

1555 is the year of the great redesign. This is evidenced by the design of the coat of arms above the entrance to the southwest tower with the year 1555, which has been redesigned as a stair tower to the upper floors, and by the dendrochronological examination of the oak beam in the hall on the south side of the core building. There are indications that work on the (new) design of the outer bailey was also being carried out at that time. On behalf of the Jülich bailiff Johann von Palant , Alessandro Pasqualini probably dedicated himself to the renovations of the Nothberg castle. Even if no written proof of the activity of Pasqualini in Nothberg has appeared anywhere so far, the entire planning and its execution at least suggest that he played a significant part in it.

In 1556, Alessandro went to Bielefeld for the first time with Duke Wilhelm V to take on an advisory role there for the expansion of the Sparrenburg . He tries to improve the defensive capabilities of the complex by adding a bastion on the main attack side.

In 1559, Alessandro Pasqualini died while working as a building consultant in Bielefeld.

In 1591, the last von Palant , a Johann von Palant , died, and protracted inheritance disputes broke out. His mother Anna von Gertzen survived all of her children and died herself in 1611.

17th century

The Nothberg Castle is temporarily inhabited by several shareholders, which makes it necessary to divide the castle into several apartments. With this division, two cross-frame windows next to the bay window on the west wall of the manor house are widened and converted into entrance doors. Inside the building, the entrance areas are separated from each other by the installation of clay walls.

Around 1640 the Nothberg castle belonged to the von Rolshausen family, because the silver bird of the Sebastianus Schützengesellschaft in Nothberg, which dates from this time, bears a label with this year as a certificate from the donor.

Imperial troops tore down the gallery in 1646, thus destroying the main courtyard in order to exclude the castle's defensive capabilities. Access to the small northwest bastion - a work by Pasqualini - becomes impossible.

18th and 19th centuries

The south wing from the late Middle Ages with the stables and a two-storey house for the tenant is being significantly redesigned.

On February 18, 1756, the Nothberg Castle suffered considerable damage from the great earthquake in the Düren area . They are never completely resolved for lack of money.

In 1800 Nothberg and Hastenrath had 1,400 inhabitants and belonged to the canton of Eschweiler in the Département de la Roer (= Rur) under French administration .

In 1815, the Rhineland and thus Nothberg came to the Kingdom of Prussia, which shaped its own administrative structures: Nothberg was part of the Düren district in the Aachen administrative region.

On the large protruding chimneys in the knight's hall there are still chimney cornices made of red sandstone around 1820, about 5 feet long and 1¼ feet wide, on which all kinds of human figures are chiseled in rather rough work. Most of these cornices are dated 1558.

In 1829, the Nothberg castle was sold into civil ownership, a third of the masonry of the manor house was demolished. The Nothberg Castle is used as a quarry, so to speak, which is an explanation for the ruinous condition in the 20th century.

Up until this point, the building had a high, steeply rising line roof with both corners blunted. It collapsed around 1832 to 1833 and was replaced a few years later by a flat-lying tile roof, which still existed in 1850. The two gables, which have had their previous shape for a long time, were removed in the years before 1850 to match the shape of the roof.

In 1842, the Dürwiss notary Melchior Delhougne bought the Nothberg Castle from Herr von Rolshausen zu Türnich for 24,000 thalers / gulden.

In 1850 an unknown author describes the Nothberg castle in handwriting.

After his father's death in 1867, the son Theodor of the notary Delhounge bought it for 15,255 thalers, after which the castle was destroyed. The oak beams of the roof structure and the storey ceilings are sold as timber, the eastern towers are torn down and the entire eastern facade is destroyed and a quarry is made out of it, which supplies cheap material for numerous building projects in Nothberg and its surroundings.

In 1879 the Kever family bought the property for 11,000 thalers . The high castle is a ruin.

20th century

From 1912 to 1914, several renovation measures were carried out at Nothberg Castle, which came to a standstill when the First World War broke out .

In 1932, Nothberg is incorporated into the city ​​of Eschweiler together with Bohl, Hastenrath, Scherpenseel and Volkenrath and thus belongs to the Aachen district (today the Aachen city region ).

During World War II (1944), an American tank deliberately destroyed the bay window, the bridge over the ditch, the arch at the entrance to the plateau and more.

Sponsorship Association

In 1976 the “Fördererverein Nothberger Burg” was founded, which endeavors to maintain and scientifically research the facility and has set itself the goal of saving and securing the ruins.

In November 1980, extensive restoration work began with the help of the state curator , the Aachen district and the Nothberger Burg Förderverein.

investment

The mansion

The manor house of Nothberg Castle is a late Gothic building, the core of which dates from the 14th and 15th centuries. It's just a ruin now . Of the three-storey quarry stone building , only the western gable wall with the two corner towers is fully preserved. The north and south walls are only partially upright. The eastern part of the building has almost completely disappeared. The building originally had a rectangular floor plan of approx. 28 m × 18 m. Round towers stood at all four corners . When the castle passed into civil ownership in 1829, a third of the masonry of the manor house was sold for demolition. The castle was used as a quarry, which is an explanation for the current ruinous condition.

The outer bailey

The west wing of the two- wing outer bailey runs parallel to the outer ring of the entire complex, while the south wing faces the main castle . At the southern corner of the west wing of the outer bailey is the late Gothic gate for the drawbridge from the 14th or 15th century. A brick arch bridge leads from the outer bailey over the moat to the main castle, which is to the east of the outer bailey.

Renaissance, Pasqualini and the Thirty Years War

Some details, such as the evacuation, main portal and columns inside, already show the influence of the new style epoch, the Italian High Renaissance. The remodeling measure by Pasqualini included the addition of an arbor (bay window) on the western gable side based on the north-west tower. During the Second World War, the bay window, the bridge over the moat, the arch at the entrance to the plateau and other things were destroyed. In the wake of the inheritance disputes after the death of the last of Palant in 1591 and as a result of the Thirty Years War, the complex began to fall into disrepair. In 1646 imperial troops tore down the gallery and destroyed the main courtyard in order to exclude the castle's defensive capabilities. Access to the small northwest bastion - also a work by Pasqualini - had become impossible.

Web links

Commons : Nothberger Burg  - Album with pictures, videos and audio files