Tetzelstein
The Tetzelstein is a legendary stone near a destination with a forest restaurant of the same name at around 290 m above sea level. NN on the Elm , a mountain range around 20 kilometers east of Braunschweig . The only 88 cm high stone is reminiscent of the Dominican and indulgence preacher Johann Tetzel (1465–1519), who, according to a legend, was robbed or slain nearby.
stone
The square tetzel stone protrudes only 88 cm from the ground with a total length of 1.36 m. It was first mentioned in 1676 as the stone on the Großer Rode (the great clearing). In 1935 the stone was excavated and examined by the regional archaeologist Hermann Hofmeister . It consists of Elm limestone extracted nearby . The location found was not the original, and the stone was moved to its current, presumably original, location in 1935. In 1839 the stone was probably moved to the middle of the roundabout in front of the memorial when the "Hagenweg" to Warberg (now the Tetzelweg running east) was made accessible and in 1856 it was surrounded with an iron grating.
Today the inconspicuous stone, surrounded by a hornbeam hedge, stands in a clearing of the Elm near the forest restaurant of the same name, which is a popular excursion destination.
monument
In 1846, the Brunswick Oberhofmarschall Anton Reinhold Edler von Lübeck (1783–1863) erected an eight-meter-high monument made of light yellow Elm limestone in the neo-Gothic style . The large and eye-catching monument is often mistaken for the Tetzelstein, which is about 100 m away. Inside the monument there is a written description of the alleged raid.
legend
According to legend, in 1518 a preacher of indulgence was buried under the stone. A pastor from Sambleben am Elm was the first to describe the event in writing in the 18th century in a historical report that is now kept in the Wolfenbüttel State Archives (archive signature: LB 1225 vol. 8 sheet 238) :
“There is a stone on the Großer Rode on the way to Königslutter ... At the top there is a star. A preacher of indulgence is said to be buried under this stone. He would have wanted to travel to Königslutter, but a nobleman from Küblingen , who had previously bought indulgences from him for a murder that was about to be carried out, would have shot and robbed him there: that's what they say. "
The Tetzelstein actually has a "carved" cross at the upper end, so that it could well have been erected as atonement for the murder of a person.
An actual presence of Tetzel in the Elm region cannot be proven historically. He only announced a possible visit in June 1517 in a letter to the abbot of the Königslutter monastery. Even the appearance of alleged drainage boxes by Tetzel in Braunschweig and Küblingen is no proof of his presence, given the large number of such boxes. There are indications that the legend of the death of the indulgence preacher on the Elm was promoted by Protestant reformers in the 16th century. Philipp Melanchthon , who was significant alongside Martin Luther and who first brought the name Tetzel into play for the murder victim, was responsible for this.
Wilhelm Bode , city director of Braunschweig from 1825 to 1848, later modified the legend to mitigate the current humanitarian trends at the time. He named a "Knight of Hagen vom Hagenhof" at Königslutter as the perpetrator. After purchasing a letter of indulgence, the latter only chastised the preacher of indulgence and assigned the stolen treasure, which was kept in a box made of oak, to the people. In fact, Tetzel died of natural causes on August 11, 1519 in Leipzig.
mythology
The forest clearing on which the Tetzelstein stands was also assigned a mythical meaning. After that, it could be a prehistoric cult or Thingplace have acted. The archaeological investigations of 1935 could not confirm this assumption. Nevertheless, according to legend, a knight as the embodiment of light is said to have fought victoriously against darkness at this place. The darkness has been described as a dragon . This vision was presented by the stonemason Theo Schmidt-Reindahl from Königslutter in 1940 on the wooden panels set up around the Tetzel stone .
- Woodcuts by Schmidt-Reindahl
Indulgences
Battle of the Knight
Victory of the knight and sale of indulgences
Forest restaurant Tetzelstein
First attempts in 1878
As early as 1878 there was the first attempt to build a guest house and spa in the clearing of today's Tetzelstein in the middle of the Elm. The request of the master carpenter Singelmann from Schöppenstedt was rejected by the forest administration on the grounds that "the forest and quarry workers could find the opportunity to drink and carousing". In 1884 the application of the innkeeper Theodor Plomann from Schöppenstedt to be allowed to set up a portable kiosk from May to October was approved by the ducal chamber. A drink delivery to the workers working in the Elm for feasts was prohibited.
Shack 1884
The forest restaurant was initially a “shack” where beer was served to the few tourists. The innkeeper soon built a large shed with windows and a wooden roof, the so-called "tent". Equipped with garden tables and chairs, it provided accommodation for the Elm hikers. In 1891 ownership changed to the innkeeper Westerwald from Lichtenberg , who expanded the temporary buildings. The application for the construction of an inn was rejected in 1893, "as it goes against the ducal forest administration to promote the increase of the local wagon traffic" . However, the application was granted a year later after support from the Duke of Braunschweig forestry master Eduard von Schütz (1848–1918) from the nearby forester in Groß Rhode . He had a personal interest in finding a place to live for his forestry business in order to obtain human help in emergencies.
Swiss-style inn 1894
Then in 1894 today's restaurant was built in the “most elegant Swiss style ” with the glass veranda. Forester Schütz called for “human help” every day from 6 p.m. in the restaurant due to a “probable emergency”. Together with the housekeeper, forest aspirants and friends, he drank his twilight bottle "on the Tetzel" . The grave of the forester with a distinctive gravestone is located 200 m from the Tetzelstein opposite the parking lot near a path towards Reitling.
In 1928 the restaurant complex received electric lighting instead of the previous kerosene lamps. In 1935, a 1700 m² car park for 60 to 70 vehicles was created.
Around 1920, about ten meters north of the Tetzelstein monument, the kiosk that can now be found behind the explanatory board was set up.
Tetzelstein motorcycle riders' meeting
The parking lot at Tetzelstein is a popular meeting place for motorcyclists, not only on Sundays. The course is located directly on the German Alps – Baltic Sea holiday route .
Elm mountain gymnastics festival
In 1866 the first of the annual Elm mountain gymnastics festival was held in Reitlingstal . From 1887 the Tetzelstein was set as the venue "for all time". After the Feldberg Festival near Oberursel im Taunus, it is the second oldest mountain gymnastics festival in Germany. The monument to the south of the forest clearing was erected in 1926 to the founder of the medical council, Gustav Mack.
literature
- Ernst Andreas Friedrich : Der Tetzelstein im Elm , pp. 119-120, in: If stones could talk , Volume II, Landbuch-Verlag, Hanover 1992, ISBN 3-7842-0479-1 .
Web links
- Tetzelstein. braunschweig-touren.de, accessed on March 9, 2014 (Tetzelstein auf Braunschweig tours).
- The Hagendenkmal im Elm , MyHeimat.de
Coordinates: 52 ° 11 ′ 45.3 " N , 10 ° 47 ′ 27.3" E