Broken city wall
The Zerbst city wall is a city fortification that encloses the old town of Zerbst with a 4.2 km long wall, gates and towers .
history
When the city of Zerbst was captured by Boleslaw I. Chobry in 1007 , the fortification of the city probably consisted only of earth walls and planks, possibly also of adobe and wall constructions. In the 14th century, a town wall with towers was mentioned in a document about the elevation and expansion. In 1420, during the Hussite Wars and the looting of robber barons from the Brandenburg region , the wall was further expanded. The current city wall was finally built between 1430 and 1434, although it was not completely closed until 1485. After the advent of firearms in 1571, the battlements were provided with an additional roof and loopholes and received a framework on the inside.
Buildings
The city wall was mainly built between 1430 and 1434 and was therefore built relatively late in comparison to other important cities in the region at the time. The design of the city wall followed existing natural terrain such as rivers and swamps. Originally the wall was lined with over 50 defense towers and Wiek houses, some of which are still very well preserved today. In addition, the breakthroughs in the major arteries and trade routes were protected by the following five large city gates:
- The Dornburger Tor in the eastern part of the city was built in the 15th century and was initially called the "Breite-Strasse-Tor". After the princely rule was taken over by the Anhalt-Zerbst-Dornburg line, it was renamed "Dornburger Tor" in 1753. In addition to the massive defense tower through which the traffic was directed, the gate consisted of a guard house and a gatekeeper house on its sides. For traffic reasons, these were removed in 1875, so that only the tower remains today. After the tower roof including the lantern (architecture) was destroyed in April 1945, it was replaced by a simple pointed roof.
- The Heidetor is still the best preserved gate today. Its name comes from the former Brandsheide , owned by the Lord of Lindau , to which it led. Due to its exposed location, the gate and the adjacent wall section were the most strongly fortified section of the city wall. The wall here is up to 7 m high and was once shielded by double ramparts and the city moat. The gate system itself had a front gate with a kennel of which remains are still preserved today.
- The Frauentor - initially referred to as the "Breede Tor" - is named after the former women's monastery immediately next to it . Of the gate system, which was once very strongly fortified with a front gate and ramparts, only the large defensive tower remains today. The baroque structures and decorations fell victim to a bomb attack.
- The former Ankuhner Gate connected Zerbst with the suburb of Ankuhn, which is important for the food supply . The gate system was kept comparatively simple, as the Ankuhn had its own ramparts. For traffic reasons, the gate was demolished in the 19th century.
- The important trade route to Aken on the Elbe ran through the former Akensche Tor . The gate was also demolished in the 19th century for traffic reasons.
Most of the Zerbst city fortifications have been preserved to this day or were restored after the destruction of the bombing in April 1945. The wooden part of the battlements burned down and a short stretch was rebuilt. The half-timbered lanterns with Welschen hoods of the Frauentor and Dornburger Tor were destroyed and replaced by simple roofs. Other parts of the old fortifications still preserved today are:
- The Wiekhaus on the plan
- The Marienpforte with fortified tower and battlements
- The Kiekinpott fortification tower was built in 1396 by the citizens of the city in the immediate vicinity of what was then the princely moated castle in order to demonstrate the city's bourgeois self-confidence to the Princely House. According to the name, you should be able to look from the “Kiekinpott” over into the castle kitchen into the prince's pot. Despite this provocation, the tower remained, but the city had to pay 900 silver marks as a penalty.
- The mighty round tower of Kuchels Warte
gallery
Heath gate
Marienpforte
View from the palace garden to the fortification tower "Kuchels Warte", the Dornburger Tor
View from the Dr.-Martin-Luther-Promenade to the tower "Zuckerhut" and the Dornburger Tor
"Kiekinpott" fortification tower
Defense tower, today observatory of the Francisceum Zerbst
literature
- Franz Münnich: The architectural monuments of the city of Zerbst. In: Zerbster Heimatkalender 1950, pp. 55–60
- Zerbst in Anhalt - A city guide. 4th revised edition, Heimatverein Zerbst eV, Zerbst / Anhalt 2009
- Reinhold Specht: The fortifications of the city of Zerbst. In: Saxony and Anhalt vol. 5, pp. 38-103 (1929)
Web links
- The defensive wall in Zerbst , alt-zerbst.de, accessed on January 8, 2013
- City wall and Heidetor , City of Zerbst, accessed on January 8, 2012
Coordinates: 51 ° 58 ′ 1.4 " N , 12 ° 4 ′ 41.3" E