Benzenberg ruin

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Benzenburg
Restored retaining wall

Restored retaining wall

Alternative name (s): Benzenburg
Creation time : before 1050
Castle type : Höhenburg, rocky location
Conservation status: ruin
Standing position : Free nobles
Construction: Quarry stone
Place: Rohrdorf
Geographical location 48 ° 1 '34.2 "  N , 9 ° 6' 0"  E Coordinates: 48 ° 1 '34.2 "  N , 9 ° 6' 0"  E
Height: 670  m above sea level NN
Benzenberg ruin (Baden-Württemberg)
Benzenberg ruin

The ruin Benzenberg , also called Benzenburg , is located on the Benzenberg near Rohrdorf , a district of the town of Meßkirch in the district of Sigmaringen , Baden-Württemberg . From 1060 to 1210 it was the seat of the Counts of Rohrdorf, mentioned since 1050. These were a leading noble family with rich property in Hegau and Linzgau , which had possessed wealth and power.

Geographical location

The ruins of the rock castle at 670  m above sea level. NN is located just after the current exit from Rohrdorf in the direction of Kreenheinstetten in the Gewann "Altes Schloss" on a high, steep mountain spur to the right of the road, where steep rocks form a bottleneck on both sides.

History of the Counts of Rohrdorf

The Counts of Rohrdorf were among the first owners of the Messkirch lordship and were among the leading noble families in the northern Lake Constance area.

In addition to the area around Meßkirch, they owned extensive property in Upper Swabia , Madach , Hegau and Linzgau . They also owned the Meersburg on Lake Constance as a fief . The first Rhine bridge in Constance is said to have been built by them. The Zwiefalten and Salem monasteries received rich donations of land from them; They built their burial chapel in the Salem Minster . Blessed Eberhard von Rohrdorf was one of the most important abbots of this monastery; he was an adviser to the emperor and the pope.

Picture from the second moat with the information board; Background: first moat

With Mangold III. the family died out in 1210. Their successors were the Truchsessen von Rohrdorf, a side branch of the Truchsessen von Waldburg , under whose rule Messkirch obtained city rights around 1260. Around the year 1300 the Truchsessen gave up their residence on the Benzenberg and moved their residence to Messkirch to the place of today's castle.

Building description

From the castle built by Count Mangold von Rohrdorf, which was owned by the Counts of Rohrdorf, Counts of Neiffen (1210) and Lords of Zimmer (mid-14th century), only sparse ruins remain on the Benzenberg after the castle was finally canceled around 1400 in order to get building material for the reconstruction of the Meßkirch Castle under Johannes von Zimmer († 1441 in the old Messkirch Castle). The remains of the former castle were left to decay after 1400. In 1846 the foundations were still preserved.

The picture shows the debris from the former residential tower in the background
Right side: Overgrown rubble mound of the residential building; Background: courtyard

According to the Zimmerische Chronik , the Benzenberg (referred to in the chronicle as "Benzenberg Castle") was unprotected in the 11th century, at the time of Count Mangold von Rohrdorf. The current building stock, which shows huge fortifications, was unlikely to have been built before the year 1200. Ceramic finds, which are assigned to the group of so-called "older Albware" and date between 1050 and 1150, prove that the castle actually has to be much older and is also one of the earliest castles in the Alb-Bodensee area can.

A retaining wall around 25 meters long and five meters high is the last remaining wall that is still visible, but on the basis of elevations in the terrain (rubble mound of the former residential building) it is easy to get a picture of the considerable size of the former castle complex.

The castle area was about 1100 square meters, and measures 65 × 20 meters. A building remainder of around 9 × 9 meters is located in the southwest.

literature

  • Hans-Wilhelm Heine : Studies on weir systems between the young Danube and western Lake Constance . In: Landesdenkmalamt Baden-Württemberg (Hrsg.): Research and reports on the archeology of the Middle Ages in Baden-Württemberg. Volume 5 . Stuttgart 1978, ISSN  0178-3262 , pp. 82 and 164.

Web links

Commons : Ruine Benzenberg  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. Albverein Stetten akM Hikers explore Rohrdorf's history . In: Schwäbische Zeitung of March 17, 2009
  2. ^ Hans-Wilhelm Heine: Studies on weir systems between the young Danube and western Lake Constance , p. 82