Prince's head tower

Prinzenkopf tower near Pünderich

The Prinzenkopf tower near Pünderich on the Moselle is a 27.3 m high observation tower in the Rhineland-Palatinate district of Cochem-Zell .

location

The Prinzenkopf tower is about 700 m west-northwest of the Marienburg on the eponymous Prinzenkopf , a 235.5 m above sea level. NHN high mountain near the narrowest point of the Moselle loop "Zeller Hamm" between Pünderich in the south, Alf in the north-north-west and Bullay in the north-north-east. The long-distance hiking trail Moselsteig leads past the tower, which runs on this section from Reil over the Prinzenkopf to Barl and on to Zell . The Kanonenbahn cultural hiking trail leads from Bullay over the Prinzenkopf to Reil.

history

The Prinzenkopfturm is already the fourth observation tower at this point, the history of which began in 1818, when the then Crown Prince and later King Friedrich Wilhelm IV. During a trip to the Rhineland enjoyed the beautiful view of the mountain, which at that time was not forested and was then known as the "Horse's Head" Enjoyed the Moselle. In the following years the visits were repeated, whereupon the mountain was named "Prinzenkopfhöhe-Prinzenkopf". Finally, spruce trees were planted and a pavilion was built.

First tower

After the growing trees increasingly obstructed the beautiful view, a wooden tower was first built in 1888 , which previously stood as a surveying tower in the Kondelwald , where it was dismantled and then rebuilt on the Prinzenkopf. After only ten years, however, the tower was rotten and had to be replaced.

Second tower

In 1898 the "Turmbauverein Prinzenkopfhöhe GmbH" was founded, which promoted the construction of a stone tower. After six months of construction, it was inaugurated on July 25, 1899. In 1906 a slate roof was put on and glazing was installed to protect against the weather and annoying flying ants . The glasses were designed in red, green, yellow and blue colors to match the four seasons , which meant that the previously undisturbed view was now somewhat impaired. In 1944, the tower had to be closed due to increasing attacks on the Moselle bridge located below the Prinzenkopf , until it was finally destroyed on March 15, 1945 after being blown up by the American army.

Third tower

Third lookout tower on the Prinzenkopf; Wooden tower (2005)

In 1983 a wooden tower was built by the citizens of Alf and Pünderich, but it was closed in 2005 after construction defects and had to be demolished in 2008.

Fourth tower

Shortly after the wooden tower was demolished in 2008, construction of today's steel tower began, which was completed by June 2009 and officially inaugurated on July 11, 2009. It was opened for use on May 31, 2009 and was climbed by 974 visitors on that day. It was financed by the surrounding communities, the state of Rhineland-Palatinate and a major sponsor . In addition, donations were made through symbolic stair purchases.

description

The new prince head tower was in steel - framed structure built, stands on a 2.75-meter square ground floor and has at the base of an edge length of five by five meters. The total height is 22 m with the roof and 27.3 m with the cellular antenna installed above. The staircase to the tower first leads over a few steps to the foundation level, then over an angled concrete staircase to the ground floor and finally over a metal staircase running in the tower with 90 steps and nine intermediate landings to the 18 m high roofed viewing platform . A total of 113 steps have to be overcome. There is a telescope, a “summit book” on the platform and a remote-controlled webcam under the roof .

The viewing platform offers one of the best views of the Moselle with its narrow loop from Pünderich via Zell to Bullay and the surrounding vineyards , the Hunsrück heights and the Kondelwald .

The mobile operator Telefonica Deutschland operates a BTS (Base Transceiver Station) on the tower . For the duration of the work, this was replaced by a temporary BTS about 50 m below the tower location.