Odenburg (Colbitz)
| Odenburg | ||
|---|---|---|
| Creation time : | Early medieval | |
| Castle type : | Niederungsburg, moth | |
| Conservation status: | Burgstall, castle hill | |
| Place: | Colbitz | |
| Geographical location | 52 ° 18 ′ 37 " N , 11 ° 35 ′ 20" E | |
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The Odenburg is an abandoned Niederungsburg from the early Middle Ages in the Colbitz district in the Börde district in Saxony-Anhalt .
history
The first forerunners of the castle complex were probably built during the Saxon Wars of Charlemagne (772 to 804). To protect against incursions by Saxons or Slavs , appropriate protective castles were built. These were often so-called moths (tower hill castle). For this purpose, a circular moat was dug - often in a bog . With the excavation, a tower hill was heaped up inside the created moat circle, on which the actual castle was built. Palisades were built around the castle , which further increased the fortification of the complex.
In fact, there was an extensive moor at the castle site until the 1930s, which the Hägebach broke through and drained. With the commissioning of the Colbitz waterworks and the resulting lowering of the groundwater level, the moor fell dry.
Nothing is known about the end of the castle. Only the artificially raised castle hill has survived. 1700 meters north-west of the hill, a parcel bears the name "Arneburg", which is probably a result of sound shifts from "Odenburg". The name denotes either a desolate village belonging to the castle or simply fields belonging to the castle.
The remains of former hill-towers can also be found in several surrounding villages, such as Dolle , Rogätz and Meseberg .
The legend of the burgrave
A Count von der Odenburg is said to have lived in the castle, who, when his castle was destroyed in battle, separated the mansion of the army astrologers of the enemy troops and was cursed and banned by them. According to the stories, the count cannot die until the Odenburg has been rebuilt. Immortality should also be transferred to those who swear allegiance to the count until death. He lives as a robber captain in the woods around the desert of Odenburg together with a monk, an old mercenary and a minstrel. There are several accounts that these highwaymen are said to have ambushed and exempted fraudulent traders and tax collectors. On nights of the full moon, the count sends his three companions to the surrounding villages in order to recruit new followers. They have to join his band of robbers and help build the new Odenburg. If they swear allegiance to the Odenburg, they can only be redeemed through the death of the count.
literature
- Siegfried Fröhlich (Ed.): Aerial archeology in Saxony-Anhalt . State Museum for Prehistory, Halle (Saale) 1997, ISBN 3-910010-24-5 , p. 100.