Wittekindsburg (North Rhine-Westphalia)
| Wittekindsburg | ||
|---|---|---|
 Wall rest of the Wittekindsburg |
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| Creation time : | 3rd – 1st Century BC Chr. | |
| Castle type : | Hilltop castle | |
| Conservation status: | Remnants of walls, ramparts, expansion as a restaurant | |
| Standing position : | no assignment | |
| Construction: | Earth wall | |
| Place: | Häverstädt ( Minden ) and Barkhausen ( Porta Westfalica ) | |
| Geographical location | 52 ° 14 '52.3 " N , 8 ° 53' 2" E | |
| Height: | 238 m above sea level NHN | |
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The Wittekindsburg is a refugee castle in the eastern Wiehen Mountains in North Rhine-Westphalia . The elongated hilltop castle lies in the transition area between the Häverstädter Berg and the Wittekindsberg at a height of about 225 m above sea level. NN up to 270 m above sea level NN .
The approximately eight hectare area of the Wittekindsburg is located in the East Westphalian district of Minden-Lübbecke . It belongs to the urban areas of Minden (district Häverstädt ) and Porta Westfalica (district Barkhausen ); the municipality boundary runs along the mountain ridge roughly in the middle of the complex.
description
The fortification is around 660 meters long and around 100 meters wide. The east and north walls are partly still well preserved. The north wall lies behind the limestone cliff that forms the mountain ridge. Since the steep mountain slope to the south offered sufficient protection, the castle was only weakly fortified here. The Wittekindsquelle spring, which dried up in 1938 because the underground water-bearing layers were interrupted by iron ore mining , is located in the facility . A mouth hole still bears witness to past mining. The facility on Königsberg in Häverstädt had its eastern end here.
Today the complex is home to the Wittekindsburg café and restaurant , which can be recognized from a distance from the valley by its pointed tower, the Margarethenkapelle built in Romanesque style , the Kreuzkirche and the dried up Wittekindsquelle , the Königslinde, an overnight building built in the 1950s , Remains of a sports field and a launch pad for hang-gliders . The entire complex is touched by the ridge path on the Wiehengebirge, the Wittekindsweg and can be hiked from the Kaiser Wilhelm monument in half an hour.
history
Iron Age foundation
The construction phase of the Wittekindsburg, like that of the nearby Dehmer Castle and the Nammer Camp, also dates back to the pre-Roman Iron Age . The three times larger and 25 hectare large Nammer camp is located in the opposite Weser Mountains . The three height fortifications typical of this time are only two kilometers away from the Porta-Westfalica breakthrough in the Weser and were used as refuges . It is assumed that at least temporarily they also served to control a supra-regional intersection of the trade routes of that time.
Saxon use
The ramparts experienced a further expansion and occupancy phase in the Saxon - Franconian times , which is also indicated by the above-mentioned locations. The fortification is said to have been named after Charlemagne's rival from Saxony, Wittekind . The first name as Wedegenborck comes from an imperial charter from the year 993.
In the area of Wittekindsburg, a hermitage was first founded in the 10th century before a nunnery could be founded there thanks to the support of Minden Bishop Milo (969–996 in office) . The foundations of the Kreuzkirche on the Wittekindsberg , which were discovered in 1996 along with other remains of the wall, were also assigned to this period . These were uncovered and accompanied by the archaeological research. To protect these excavations , a glass protective structure was built over the ground monument .
The facility was explored for the first time by Friedrich Langewiesche in 1907 . During the Nazi era , competitions were held at the Margaret Chapel and on the sports field next to it.
natural reserve
The area of the Wittekindsburg is - with the exception of the area at the eastern end with a restaurant, hang-glider ramp and cross chapel - under nature protection. It is located in the FFH area forests near Porta Westfalica (identifier DE-3719-301). The southern portion of the area belonging to Porta Westfalica is also located in the Wittekindsberg nature reserve .
literature
- Rolf Plöger: The Wittekindsburg on the Porta Westfalica, Minden Lübbecke district . In: Antiquity Commission for Westphalia (ed.): Early castles in Westphalia . 2nd Edition. Landschaftsverband Westfalen-Lippe, Münster 2005, issue 11. ISSN 0939-4745
- Torsten Capelle: Wall castles in Westphalia-Lippe. Published by the Antiquities Commission for Westphalia, Münster 2010, ISSN 0939-4745 , p. 22 No. FBW 11 ( Early Castles in Westphalia, special volume 1 ).
- Heinrich Rüthing: The Wittekindsberg near Minden as a holy place . Published by Verlag für Regionalgeschichte, 2007, ISBN 978-3-89534-685-9 .
- Archeology in East Westphalia, Volume 4: Monastery church, castle chapel, family grave? Published by the Society for the Promotion of Archeology in Ostwestfalen e. V. 1999, ISBN 3-89534-289-0 .
Web links
- Society for the Promotion of Archeology in East Westphalia: Wittekindsburg
- Entry on Wittekindsburg in the scientific database " EBIDAT " of the European Castle Institute
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b c d Topographical Information Management, Cologne District Government, Department GEObasis NRW ( information )
- ^ MGH DO III, 136 to August 15, 993: in castello suo Wedegenborck vocato
- ↑ "Wittekindsburg (North Rhine-Westphalia)" nature reserve (MI-038) in the specialist information system of the State Office for Nature, Environment and Consumer Protection in North Rhine-Westphalia (see map view)
