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101-444: Historical sources from the year 999 report the existence of an imperial Castell Sarabruca . In 1009, it is named as Veste Sarebrugka . A document from 1065 mentions that Duke Frederick of Lower Lorraine received the castle as a fief from the King . Later, Emperor Henry IV gave the castle to Frederick's brother, Count Adalbero III of Luxembourg, who was Bishop of Metz . In 1168,

202-454: A watchtower and as a refuge during sieges (at least if the siege was relatively brief). The distinction between a bergfried and a keep is not always clear-cut, as there were thousands of such towers built with many variations. There are some French keeps with only austere living quarters, while some late bergfrieds in Germany were intended to be habitable ( Piper 1900). For maximum protection,

303-462: A "high medieval" hill castle with a mighty main tower was built out of rusticated ashlar here. The Fugger family, who had come from a humble background, appear to have wanted to legitimize their newly acquired nobility here with an "ancient" family castle. Attacks on medieval castles in Central Europe were not usually carried out by large siege armies. Often just twenty to a hundred men blocked

404-470: A Greek word brought back from the Crusades . A theory that is often stated in older texts, that the bergfried took its name from the phrase "weil er den Frieden berge" ("because it keeps the peace"), i.e. it guaranteed the security of the castle, cannot be confirmed. The bergfried established itself as a new type of building during the 12th century and from about 1180 to the 14th century increasingly became

505-454: A bergfried and a keep is that a bergfried was typically not designed for permanent habitation. The living quarters of a castle with a bergfried are separate, often in a lower tower or an adjacent building called a palas (an English-style keep combines both functions of habitation and defence.) Consequently, a bergfried could be built as a tall slender tower with little internal room, few vaults and few if any windows. The bergfried served as

606-456: A bergfried date to the late Middle Ages and early modern period; to what extent this was common before then, is uncertain. Often it is probably a later change of use, as was the case in many town wall towers and even entire castle complexes, like the Bastille , are known. When prisoners were incarcerated in the often claustrophobic, poorly ventilated and dimly lit or even completely dark basements, it

707-491: A castle. In Western Europe however, the donjon or keep, with their combination of domestic and defensive functions, continued to be predominant during the course of the Middle Ages . Often the bergfried forms the main tower in the centre of the castle or is positioned as a wall tower on the main avenue of attack against the castle (especially in the case of spur castles ). It may be an isolated structure standing alone amongst

808-401: A complete disregard for high medieval feudal order and its system of fealty . It would simply transfer Günther Bandmann's methodology to secular architecture. Many castles were feudal estates that were owned by a powerful feudal lord or prince-bishopric . Princely territories at that time were protected by a dense network of small and medium-sized fortifications, which was supplemented by

909-569: A conspicuous manner. During the schloss building of the Renaissance era (and to a lesser extent the Baroque too) towers again played an important role as elements of a stately home, even if they now mostly had no longer any defensive function ( Moritzburg , Meßkirch Castle ). More recent castle research, especially the group around the Bavarian medieval archaeologist Joachim Zeune, has placed in doubt

1010-504: A corner facing the main line of attack on the castle. Bergfrieds averaged 20 to 30 metres in height, although those at Forchtenstein Castle in Burgenland , Austria, and Freistadt Castle reach a height of 50 metres. Compared with the donjon, which occupies a relatively large ground area because of its elaborate interior layout with living rooms, a hall, kitchen, etc., the bergfried usually has

1111-485: A feature of the Central European castles. Numerous examples have survived from this period almost to their full height. However the origin of the design is not fully understood, since towers dating from before the 12th century have had to be almost entirely excavated archaeologically, and only the lowest sections remain. Individual examples (like the bergfried of Habsburg Castle ) may also be found dating to as early as

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1212-411: A few able-bodied men. If the siege was foreseen, the castle's peacetime complement of three to twenty men could be doubled or tripled. And in an emergency, at least the higher ranks could take refuge in the main tower. A castle was only regarded as conquered when the bergfried had fallen. This could take some weeks. During this time the attacker had to continue to feed and pay his men. Sometimes, therefore,

1313-426: A few narrow vertical slits. The enormous wall thickness at basement level in many bergfrieds usually decreases significantly on the inside of the tower at the level of the upper floors. On the resulting wall ledges, wooden ceilings were laid that served to partition the various floor levels. The lowest floor and the uppermost floor are often covered by a stone vault. Occasionally, narrow stairways were incorporated into

1414-583: A further indication that a castle would not be given up even after the enceinte had been breached. The largest main tower of a medieval European castle, the mighty donjon of the French Château de Coucy , was still viewed as a threat during the First World War . The German High Command had the roughly 50-metre-high tower blown up on 27 March 1917 in order to cut off the line of retreat for French troops, in spite of widespread international protests. In

1515-413: A much smaller footprint, which, although of similar height to the donjon gives it the slimmer appearance of a tower. As a building, the bergfried has an even stronger vertical emphasis than the donjon. Local rock was usually used for building material and was quarried in the immediate vicinity of the castle site. In areas where there was little usable rock, brick or fieldstone was used. The masonry work

1616-418: A panoramic view of the surrounding area and enabled the use of long-distance weapons ( Idstein Castle , Sayn Castle ). Some surviving ledges or beam holes on bergfrieds indicate, in some cases, that wooden superstructures were used. In the late Middle Ages, the tower roofs were often embellished with bartizans and other similar structures. Larger ballistic weapons or catapults were only rarely positioned on

1717-446: A reliable and authentic image of the topography of the palace complex in the 17th century. It shows a four-winged structure inside a curtain wall with differently shaped bastions . Defensive structures including towers, walls, gatehouses and trenches followed the topography of the Saar rock. The rampart was strengthened with triangular corner bastions. In October 1983, excavations next to

1818-487: A sense represent an intermediate stage between a bergfried and a shield wall The two closely spaced towers are linked by a narrow section of shield wall. That bergfrieds with pentagonal or triangular plans are mostly aligned with a corner facing the main line of attack, is also associated with the shield function: stone projectiles hurled by catapults were deflected laterally by the oblique angle of impact. In some cases, such "deflection wedges" ( Prallkeile ) were also added to

1919-490: A side staircase. The palace remained the cultural and administrative centre of the principality for almost 50 years. After the baroque palace was partially destroyed by fire in 1793 in the turmoil of the French Revolution . In 1810, the palace was reconstructed to house eight middle-class families. Architect Johann Adam Knipper rebuilt the heavily damaged north wing on top of the preserved baroque vaults. He demolished

2020-461: A special case in which plinth on the side facing the line of attack has been extended to form triangle, making the tower heptagonal . In the post-Hohenstaufen period, octagonal bergfrieds appeared in Brick Gothic castles. The octagonal shape is adopted because of the brick construction, because angular shapes are preferred to round ones. A variant is the octagonal tower on a square plinth. Based on

2121-418: A square or round floor plan , but pentagonal towers are also frequently encountered; whilst octagonal towers are rather less common. There are even a few examples of bergfrieds with irregular polygonal floor plans. A rare form is the triangular bergfried of Grenzau Castle near Höhr-Grenzhausen or that of Rauheneck Castle near Baden bei Wien . Towers with triangular and pentagonal floor plans invariably had

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2222-423: A stately, comfortable residence and a fortification. The bergfried, however, dispenses with the keep's residential function in favour of its defensive purposes. At the same time, new forms of unfortified residential building became popular, the palas , for example, was incorporated into castle construction. The emergence of the bergfried is thus clearly related to the differentiation of living and fortification within

2323-408: A tower within a few days is almost impossible. Thanks to their solid construction many bergfrieds even escaped later demolition attempts by the surrounding rural population, who wanted to carry off building materials from abandoned castles and reuse them. An attack on such a fortified site within an active feudal system was almost hopeless. It was far less risky simply to plunder the farms and mills of

2424-462: A wooden truss covered with tiles or slates or, alternatively, was of solid stone. It often covered the entire fighting platform, so that the roof rested on the battlements. In other cases, it was set back, creating an open gangway between roof and battlements (e.g. the Rudelsburg and Osterburg ). In covered fighting platforms there were similarly located window openings in place of the merlons that gave

2525-597: Is a tall tower that is typically found in castles of the Middle Ages in German-speaking countries and in countries under German influence. Stephen Friar in the Sutton Companion to Castles describes a bergfried as a "free-standing, fighting-tower". Its defensive function is to some extent similar to that of a keep (also known as a donjon ) in English or French castles. However, the characteristic difference between

2626-454: Is because the tops of the walls have become ruined and the wooden elements have rotted away, and on the other because bergfrieds in castles that were still inhabited in modern times were often given a new top section (e.g. Stein Castle , Rochsburg Castle ). Furthermore, some towers that might look medieval at first glance are, in reality, 19th century Historicist creations (e.g. the Wartburg of

2727-597: The Ludwigsplatz ("Louis square"), a square connecting the Protestant Ludwigskirche ("Louis Church"), the Peace Church, and yet another palace. The city plan followed the principles of geometry and symmetry from a references axis ( point de vue ). The new princely palace was planned on the site of the old castle on the Saar, with residential and administrative buildings dominating the cityscape. Space for

2828-608: The Electorate of the Palatinate and stood on the southeastern edge of the cliff . The castle was surrounded in the north-east by the Saar Rocks and the river Saar, on the east by a ditch and on the south and southwest by the bulwark and a moat. The entrance was the drawbridge opposite the large tower. At the southern end of the garden was a red tower and at the northern corner a small round tower. Drawings by Hienrich Höers provide

2929-505: The crusader castles of Montfort Castle and Khirbat Jiddin built by the Teutonic Order had prominent towers that some authors have compared to bergfrieds (Kennedy 2000, Folda 2005), arguing that these castles depended more on Rhineland than local crusader traditions of military architecture. Eynsford Castle in Kent is a rare English example, where the bergfried is the central element of

3030-436: The 15.84 metre long sides. This geometric arrangement was supported by the symmetrical arrangement of the two main stairwells on the inner walls of the reserves in the corps de logis. The wings could also be accessed from two auxiliary staircases on the inner wall between the reserves in the wings and the northwest and southwest pavilions. Access to the interior of the castle was from the courtyard through three main portals on

3131-403: The 1850s) and some are even romanticized notions of medieval castle architecture ( Château du Haut-Kœnigsbourg , 1909). Late medieval tower crowns (which themselves are often a remodelling of the original tops of the towers) have survived more often or can sometimes be reconstructed based on drawings (especially from the 16th & 17th centuries). The terrace or fighting platform of a bergfried

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3232-560: The Counts of Nassau-Saarbrücken, reports that Count Philip IV built a summer residence in Saarbrücken and provides a sketch of appearance of the medieval castle. It had a trapezoid-shaped inner court, surrounded by buildings of different widths. There was a tower on the western side. The bailey on the Saar side was enclosed on the northwest and southeast by buildings. The summer house had been designed by architect Christmann Stromeyer from

3333-650: The Nassau-Usingen branch of the House of Nassau . In 1735, Princess Charlotte Amalie, née Countess of Nassau-Dillenburg, the widow of Prince William Henry divided the possessions of the Walram line of Nassau among her sons. Charles , the elder son, was given the territories on the right bank of the Rhine; his younger brother William Henry received the territories on the left bank. When William Henry came of age in 1741, he commissioned

3434-556: The Nazi era, the castle was the headquarters of the Gestapo. The western wing was partially destroyed during World War II and rebuilt in 1947 and 1948. By 1969, the structural condition of the castle had deteriorated massively. Safety regulations mandated that the south wing be locked up immediately. Several plans were proposed for the reconstruction of the castle. Ideas ranged from reconstructing Stengel's baroque palace to completely demolishing

3535-399: The accepted princely lifestyle and provided a more open attitude, free access to outer courtyards and garden and a more comfortable, more splendid and refined interior. He expanded this to a comprehensive plan for central Saarbrücken, with individual buildings and groups of buildings, including a spacious square in front of the castle, a city hall, a palace for the hereditary prince Louis and

3636-412: The aid of Adalbero III, Bishop of Metz , his brother, Frederick imposed his authority in the duchy and made war on the continuing rebel Godfrey. He was loyal to the emperor, but unsuccessful in the field and Henry began parcelling out portions of the duchy to more capable warriors. He died in war with Anno II , Archbishop of Cologne , after which King Henry IV gave the duchy to Godfrey. His first wife

3737-658: The architect Friedrich Joachim Stengel from Zerbst to write a report on the structural condition of the Saarbrücken Castle. Stengel had studied architecture at the Royal Academy of Arts in Berlin from 1708 to 1712 and had been appointed court architect in Usingen in 1733. On 26 January 1739, he proposed a design for the reconstruction of the castle. The new design did away with any defensive functions and reflected recent changes in

3838-540: The bergfried could be sited on its own in the centre of the castle's inner bailey and totally separate from the enceinte . Alternatively, it could be close to or up against the outer curtain wall on the most vulnerable side as an additional defence, or project from the wall. For instance, the Marksburg has its bergfried in the centre, and Katz Castle on the most likely direction of attack. Some, like Münzenberg and Plesse Castles , have two bergfrieds. Outside Germany,

3939-415: The bergfried gradually lost its military function, as any high buildings were particularly vulnerable to cannon fire and explosives. In response to these developments, castles were converted into fortresses of a new type, the bergfried being often thereby demolished or dismantled, as for example at Coburg Fortress or Wildenstein . The bergfried survived until modern times, however, in some castles, where

4040-613: The bergfried is known as the White Tower) or Wildeck Castle (where the tower is known as Dicker Heinrich - "Fat Henry") at Zschopau. When Johannisburg Castle in Aschaffenburg, the last big Renaissance palace built before the outbreak of the Thirty Years' War , the Gothic bergfried of the previous castle was integrated in the otherwise very regular layout, although it breaks the symmetry in

4141-475: The bergfried made it a relatively safe repository within the castle. Here valuables could be stored, so that the tower took over the role of a stronghold . By the Early Modern Period at least, bergfrieds were being used as largely escape-proof places of custody for prisoners. In particular, the shaft-like cellars in the base of the tower were often used as a form of dungeon called an oubliette , which

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4242-412: The building. In 1981, the district of Saarbrücken decided to renovate the building and replace the central pavilion. Construction lasted from 1982 to 1989. The hall built by Dihm was torn down and replaced by a steel skeleton pavilion designed by the architect Gottfried Böhm , of the same size as the former baroque pavilion. Dihm's neo-baroque façade was retained, and the space between this façade and

4343-589: The castle (the inner bailey and outer baileys 1 and 2), i.e. a total of three bergfrieds. The unusually large royal imperial castle of Kyffhausen Castle in the Kyffhäuser consisted of an upper bailey, a middle bailey and a lower bailey. In the upper and middle baileys, the two known bergfrieds have survived at least in remnants. Smaller castles sometimes had two bergfrieds too: the Kohren Castle in Kohren-Sahlis or

4444-503: The castle and the market square. It shows the ground plan of the restored castle. A low arcade tract replaces the earlier east wing. The west wing was a Bergfried , which had been built during the reign of the Hohenstaufens . During sewer repairs in August 1977, a three-metre thick wall was discovered that had been part of the main tower of the Renaissance castle. In March 1989, during

4545-475: The castle as a whole. The bergfried in its status symbolism is perhaps comparable to medieval family towers in some northern Italian and German cities, whose sometimes bizarre heights cannot be explained in military terms. In addition, there were, for example, in Regensburg , no armed conflicts between the urban patrician families, so that here the status function was dominant from the beginning. A possible example of

4646-417: The castle was destroyed by Count Symon, on the orders of Emperor Frederick I . Later archives mention a Castel and Bourg on 2 July 1277. A deed from 1485 reports that Count John II .... in 1459, because of the war, began to fortify and guard the two cities. In 1463, John added a bulwark and a drawbridge across the moat that separated the castle from the city. Johann Andreae, the chronicler of

4747-547: The castles of the Teutonic Order, this type of tower is also common in Central Poland (e.g. Brodnica , Człuchów , Lidzbark Warmiński ). Occasionally Teutonic Order castles have such towers that are not executed in brick (e.g. Paide ). The bergfried was a multi-functional building that could have various defensive functions, but which also had status value. In the last decade of the 20th century there has been discussion in

4848-463: The central pavilion in the Corps de Logis and the mezzanine floor. A lithograph of 1812 shows the free passage where the central pavilion had been. The ground and first floors of the castle were divided into three floors and equipped with a new roof. In 1872, the owner of the adjacent part of the castle, the iron works magnate Karl Ferdinand Stumm, commissioned architect Hugo Dihm to build a new hall to fill

4949-460: The central pavilion. Another four entrances were located in the first window axis of the reserves of the wings. The corps de logis were accessed via two representative main stairs on the left and right of the central courtyard pavilion. These were in the reserves and were designed symmetrically. From the courtyard one entered the Grand Vestibule via a three-level stairs. Between the stairs and

5050-411: The defensive function was increasingly forgone and the castle was instead converted into a stately home or palace, typically called a schloss . Often, the bergfried here the only element here largely retained in its original form from the old medieval castle, which in turn can be regarded as evidence of its role as the (now traditional) symbol of power. Examples include the palace at Bad Homburg (where

5151-494: The design. The word '"bergfried", sometimes rendered perfrit , berchfrit or berfride and many similar variants in medieval documents, did not just refer to a castle tower, but was used to describe most other types of tower, such as siege towers , bell towers (cf. its cognate belfried or belfry ) or storage buildings. The main tower of a castle was often simply referred to as a "tower" ( Turm ) or "big tower" ( großer Turm ). In late medieval Low German documents, however,

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5252-413: The earlier castle. The main courtyard and the central pavilion sat on the axis of symmetry of the complex. In the earlier castle, the main courtyard had been separated from the city by a mighty donjon . In the 18th-century castle, however, the fourth side of the square was open to the city. A balustrade with busts delineated this side of the courtyard and provided an entrance on the axis of symmetry. On

5353-477: The enemy. In fact, a large number of Central European castles were never seriously attacked during the Middle Ages. Consequently, there is not much evidence of a retreat into a bergfried; the building had already fulfilled its deterrent function. A siege was only worth undertaking if the attacker had previously ensured he had legal authority and had asked the state sovereign or even the emperor for permission. This

5454-430: The entrances to the castle and demoralized its occupants with occasional attacks. Animal carcasses or debris might be thrown into the courtyard. A blockaded castle actually only needed to be starved out, nevertheless supplies were also a problem for the besieging force. Farmers in the area would hide their grain in erdstalls and drive their cattle into the forest. The retinue of a besieged castle usually consisted of only

5555-400: The field of castle research about whether the bergfried's functions could be succinctly stated as a "fortification or (more likely) a status symbol." This has not, however, gained universal acceptance. With its enormous wall mass - the plinth is even solid in some cases - the tower offered passive protection for the areas of the castle behind it. For this reason, at many castles the bergfried

5656-566: The fields. Even without supplies the remaining castle residents could hold out in the bergfried until the return of their menfolk and were protected from abuse and rape . The safe refuge of the bergfried was certainly very welcome at a time when state and social structures were just beginning to take shape. During later expansions additional towers were often designed as shell towers. Their rear sides were open so as to offer an invading enemy no cover. Such semi-circular or rectangular towers have survived at countless castles and fortifications. They are

5757-467: The fighting platforms. Large castles (e.g. Münzenberg Castle ) and Ganerbenburgs (castles owned by more than one family simultaneously) sometimes had multiple bergfrieds for status or security reasons. Consisting of an inner bailey and two outer baileys , the very large castle of Neuenburg , the residence of the landgraves of Thuringia in Freyburg, Germany , used to have a bergfried in every part of

5858-531: The fighting positions lower down. The bergfried usually also served generally as a fortified tower . Examples of very high bergfrieds were or are those at Rheinfels Castle (54 m) and the Osterburg (53 m). Additional chemins de ronde (walkways behind the battlements) could be built on the lower storeys of a tower (e.g. Bischofstein Castle on the Moselle ). The solid construction and inaccessible elevated entrance of

5959-596: The former baroque central. The Saarbrücken castle now serves as the administrative headquarters of the District of Saarbrücken . The exhibition rooms of the Historical Museum Saar are housed in the vaulted cellar and a new annex. Casemates were uncovered during extensive excavations between 2003 and 2007. These can now be visited as part of the museum. Frederick, Duke of Lower Lorraine Frederick of Lower Lorraine ( c.  1003 – 18 May 1065)

6060-419: The fortified estates of sub-vassals. From this perspective, in the event of attack the defenders could rely entirely on the support of their lords his subordinated or allied knighthood . Conversely, the ruler would of course rely upon the support of his vassals in times of battle. The basements of bergfrieds were often embedded several metres into the ground. Undermining was therefore not a great threat. Arson

6161-486: The fortified town of Limbourg-sur-Vesdre . In 1044, Gothelo I , duke of both Lorraines, died and his eldest son, Godfrey , succeeded in only the upper duchy while the Emperor Henry III first threatened to give the other duchy to his younger (incompetent) brother, Gothelo II . Because of the rebellion of Godfrey, Henry III appointed Frederick, a relative of the reigning duke of Upper Lorraine , Adalbert . With

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6262-479: The function of the bergfried as a refuge in case of siege. They suggest that a retreat into the tower was "death by stages" and was most useful if a relief army was expected. In support of this thesis, the general lack of appropriate findings and traditions is cited. The elevated entrance , too, is suggested as having more of a symbolic and psychological importance. Critics reject this theory (which emerged as part of Zeune's broader "symbol of power" theory) as having

6363-462: The gap left by the demolition of the central pavilion. The new hall, however, was rather smaller than the baroque central pavilion. Between 1908 and 1920, the district of Saarbrücken gradually acquired the apartments, in order to use the building as the seat of district government. In 1938, a Neo-Baroque façade and a grand open-air staircase to the Cour d'honneur were added to the central building. During

6464-451: The garden was the Sala terrena . A ceremonial path led from the portal across the courtyard to the Corps de Logis. From the entrance hall, the main staircase ( French : Escalier d'Honneur ) led to the audience chambers of the princely family in the piano nobile , and from there to the mezzanine to the sumptuously furnished Grand Salon . The suite of the prince was in the piano nobile of

6565-527: The late and post medieval period emerged new castles emerged whose main towers were certainly never intended as refuges. For example, in 1418 Frederick of Freyberg had one of the last great new castles of the German Middle Ages built next to his ancestral castle of Eisenberg in the Allgäu . Hohenfreyberg was created in the style of a Hohenstaufen hill castle , so it could not be without a bergfried. Today,

6666-408: The masonry to allow a single person to climb the tower. More often, however, the floors were connected by wooden stairs or ladders. Some bergfrieds had limited living space, and even small fireplaces may be found in the upper floors. These heated rooms were usually used by the watchmen. On many bergfrieds the original design of the top of the tower cannot be precisely ascertained. On the one hand, this

6767-463: The new building was converted into a grand entrance hall. The hip roofs of the corner pavilions were replaced by gable roofs , similar to those on the baroque palace. Erich Fissabre and Alfred Werner Maurer had previously made the reconstruction drawings and the inventory of the baroque castle. In the course of this, the Dihm's central building was built over with a steel frame structure in the dimensions of

6868-486: The new palace was created by slighting the old castle walls, filling in the moat and diverting the river Saar. The staggered terraces on the slope towards the Saar were expanded to create space for the new, larger Baroque garden. The new palace, a three-wing structure open to the city, with residential, representative and administrative functions, was completed in 1748. Many architects, engineers and construction workers had been hired for this project. The palace complex

6969-472: The northeast, it was bounded by a small single-storey cross-wing, and to then north by the castle wall. In front of the summer house on the southeastern rock was a garden house. The castle was destroyed by imperial troops on 16 May 1677. It was restored around 1696 by architect Josef C. Motte, nicknamed la Bonté , on the orders of Countess Eleonore Clara of Hohenlohe-Gleichen, the widow of Count Gustav Adolph and her son Louis Crato . The wing adjacent to

7070-440: The other buildings of the castle or be joined to them to form a combined building complex. However, typically, the bergfried is a self-contained element that is not internally connected to other buildings and has its own access. As a rule, this is a so-called elevated entrance , i.e. the entrance is located at the level of an upper floor of the tower and is accessed via its own bridge, staircase or ladder. Bergfrieds very often have

7171-404: The other side of the main building, the axis of symmetry formed the axis of symmetrical garden, with symmetrical stairs descending to the valley. The forecourt was separated from the city by a wrought-iron fence with two octagonal guard houses. The entrance to the forecourt was through a gate that stood on the same axis as the main entrance of the corps de logis. The basic plan of the three wings

7272-584: The redevelopment of the Palace Square, the staircase was removed and the foundations of the tower were fully excavated. This rectangular, five-storey clock tower — the fifth storey had been added in 1613 — towered over the castle's four wings and was topped with a dome with dormer windows and a roof lantern . The octagonal stair towers at the four corners of the courtyard were also covered with domes. After Frederick Louis of Nassau-Saarbrücken died without issue in 1728, Nassau-Saarbrücken fell back to

7373-514: The right wing of the palace, the princess's suite was of the left. The civil administration and government archives were housed in the Rez-de-Chaussee of the right wing; the left wing housed the administration of the regiment William Henry maintained on behalf of the King of France. The storage rooms were in the basement and could be accessed from the courtyard via a door in front of the stables and

7474-415: The road in the valley, performed while preparing the foundations of a technical annex, unearthed a part of these extensive fortifications in several different layers. A bastion and parts of the southwestern rampart were included in the design of the new annex, and can be visited today. The trapezoidal main courtyard was surrounded by four wings. Three of these were joined at right angles. The main square

7575-431: The road to St. Arnual Rauschen Thal (today's Talstraße ) was, according to reconstruction plans that have been preserved, carried out à la mode . The courtyard was opened to the garden on the south side and bordered by a single-storey arcade hallway. The garden was extended beyond the castle wall and far into the valley as a terraced French formal garden . A sepia drawing, made after 1710, probably by Anton Kohl, shows

7676-461: The second half of the 11th century. The precursor of the bergfried is the fortified tower house , whose Western European expression is called a donjon or keep. Residential towers were common before the advent of the bergfried in German-speaking countries, too; a precursor is found, for example, in the wooden tower of the motte-and-bailey castle . Donjons combine the two contrasting functions of

7777-401: The spire is a small, original stone observation platform for the watchmen at a height of almost 58 metres above the ground. An enemy attacking a spur castle or hillside castle could often position himself above the castle itself. The height of the bergfried could at least in some cases compensate for that. From the elevated fighting platform, the hillside could be better controlled than from

7878-449: The terms berchfrit , berchvrede and similar variants often appeared in connexion with smaller castles. German castle research during the 19th century introduced Bergfried or Berchfrit as the general term for a non-residential main tower, and these terms then became established in the literature. The etymological origin of the word is unclear. There are theories about it being derived from Middle High German or Latin, or even from

7979-469: The time. The symbolism of a tower has many meanings, not all of them positive, for example, the Tower of Babel represented man's pride and self-indulgence. Because, from the Middle Ages, secular rulers and especially the knight (who considered himself as a 'militia christiana') often had a Christian faith, researchers have suggested that the bergfried may have a Christian connotation as a symbol of Mary. Mary

8080-481: The top storey or the fighting platform the foreground and the area surrounding the castle could be observed. Watchmen ( Türmer ) could give early warning of an approaching enemy, raising the alarm. During sieges the raised observation post was important for observing the foreground. A particularly well-preserved example is the Osterburg in Weida : under the masonry spire of the bergfried is a watchman's residence and just under

8181-621: The tower later, and they can even be found on towers with an otherwise circular plan (e.g. the Zvíkov Castle in Bohemia and Forchtenstein Castle in Austria). A square bergfried set up on a corner could also serve this purpose. In other cases, the acute-angled floor plan is, however, simply due to the natural shape of the bedrock Because the bergfried was the highest building in the castle, it usually functioned as watchtower or observation tower. From

8282-743: The two castle ruins are one of the most important castle groups in Central Europe. The Freybergers probably wanted to create a symbol chivalrous self-consciousness again at the end of the Middle Ages. In the 16th century the Augsburg family of Fugger acquired the Marienburg in Niederalfingen in the present-day county of Ostalb in the German state of Baden-Württemberg . In the time of the High Renaissance

8383-410: The use of these towers as a status symbol, are the so-called butter-churn towers whereby a small tower or turret was built on top of the original tower, bringing no additional military benefit, but increasing its height for better observation. During the transition from the late Middle Ages to modern times when, as a result of the development of firearms, a revolution in military technology took place,

8484-651: The well-known Saaleck Castle at Bad Kösen , for instance. A rare form is the octagonal bergfried. The first appeared in a few Hohenstaufen -era castles in Baden-Württemberg, in the Alsace region and in Lower Italy. The best known is the bergfried of Steinsberg Castle . Frederick II's tower in Enna has an octagonal bergfried with a symmetrical octagonal enceinte. The octagonal bergfried of Gräfenstein Castle can be considered

8585-459: The wings were named from the point of view of the corps de logis: the wing nearest the Saar was called the right wing; the wing next to the Talstraße was called the left wing. The four pavilions were named after their compass points: northwest, southwest, northeast and southeast pavilion. The northwest and southwest pavilion each had three windows on their 14.98 metre long sides, and four windows on

8686-446: Was Gerberga (died c.  1049 ), daughter of Eustace I, Count of Boulogne . They had a daughter named Jutta, who married Waleran , Count of Arlon . His second wife (1055) was Ida (died 1102), daughter of Bernard II, Duke of Saxony , who remarried Albert III, Count of Namur , on Frederick's death. Bergfried Bergfried (plural: bergfriede ; English: belfry ; French: tour-beffroi ; Spanish: torre del homenaje )

8787-447: Was a rectangle of 65.45 × 61.34 metres. The Corps de Logis had a length of 65.45 metres with 15 window bays: three in the central pavilion and three in each of the reserves and the corner pavilions. It was 18.26 metres deep and in this direction, it was divided by four windows. The length of the wings was 43.08 metres. Each had ten axes: seven in the reserves and three in the pavilions at the end. In accordance with 18th-century customs,

8888-554: Was a younger son of Frederick, Lord of Gleiberg . Frederick was the advocatus of the Abbey of Stavelot-Malmedy from 1033, Duke of Lower Lorraine from 1046, and the advocatus of the Abbey of St Truiden from around 1060 or earlier. He was also lord of a large domain based originally in Baelen-sur-Vesdre , which in later generations was called the Duchy of Limburg , with his seat in

8989-404: Was also a result of the fact that the elevated entrance of the tower was located on an upper floor. Access to the oubliette through the hole (an angstloch or "fear hole") was almost always by means of a ladder or rope winch. Wall steps, like those found in the old bergfried of Langenau Castle , are a rare exception. The cellar in the tower base was used in different ways. In some instances, it

9090-427: Was also very difficult due to their stone construction and the few light openings could be quickly closed to prevent being smoked out. The conservative historian therefore sees the bergfried as a means of passive defence, as a refuge for a few days until relief arrived. For this reason, very few facilities for active defence can be found in these buildings. The main aim was to prevent an attacker breaking in. To storm such

9191-413: Was based on a square floor plan. The corps de logis dominated the complex by its roof, which towered above the other buildings. Two equally long wings were attached to the corps de logis and the central pavillon, surrounding the cour d'honneur and thereby creating an additional living space. The four corners of this horseshoe shape were emphasized with pavilions reminiscent of the defensive towers of

9292-449: Was not just imprisonment, but corporal punishment , a severe psychological and physical mistreatment of prisoners. Just as the former tower houses of the nobility and other types of tower, the bergfried assumed a significant representational function. Some castle researchers emphasize its role as a status symbol, although it cannot be proved from medieval sources that symbolism was actually intended or indeed perceived by those living at

9393-496: Was often executed very carefully, edges being accentuated with rusticated ashlar . The bergfried could be plastered or the stonework could be left exposed. The latter was the case, for example, in the towers of the Hohenstaufen era which were entirely made of rusticated ashlar. The tower shaft (i.e., the main part of the tower between the base and the top floor) usually had no or very few windows; where they exist, they are often just

9494-404: Was only accessible through a narrow opening in the ceiling. However this form of cellar was not necessarily intended for such use but was a result of the overall engineering design of the bergfried. The thick walls used in the base only left a narrow, about 4-8 metre high, internal space that was usually covered by a stabilizing vault and was only accessible through a hatch at its apex. This design

9595-609: Was only possible where there had been actual or fabricated violations of the law, such as highway robbery , forgery or murder. The hands of those who had sworn allegiance to the sovereign were then tied; for legal reasons they could not come to the aid of the attacked lord. In such cases, taking final refuge in the main tower was almost pointless. The bergfrieds of 12th and 13th century castles were originally surrounded only by simple defensive walls . Flanking towers and zwinger s were added in later phases. Many outbuildings were then made of wood or were half-timbered , and stone housing

9696-429: Was originally often surrounded by battlement . Occasionally these crenellations have survived in their original state, especially where they were protected by subsequent roof or other superstructures ( Wellheim Castle ). The fighting platform could be either open or covered by a roof or spire . Depending on the floor plan of the tower, the latter would frequently either be a tented or a conical roof . The roof comprised

9797-517: Was referred to in the Litany of the Blessed Virgin Mary as an " ivory tower " and "Tower of David ". But in the case of castle towers, this symbolism has not been sufficiently established by the sources. In contemporary descriptions of a castle, the main tower is often cited as the first; as a pictorial abbreviation or visual shortcut it is often seen on coats of arms and seals, where it symbolizes

9898-660: Was situated on the main avenue of attack, often set into the front defensive wall. Thus, the bergfried was able to perform a similar function to the shield wall . This was particularly the case with castles in which shield wall and bergfried were interconnected to form a single structural unit (e.g. Liebenzell Castle in the Black Forest ). So-called 'double bergfrieds' like that of the Greifenstein in Hesse and Rochlitz Castle in Saxony in

9999-450: Was surrounded by buildings of equal width. The three-storey building could be accessed from spiral staircases in the stair towers at the corners of the inner courtyard. The framework was completed at the south side by four superimposed arcades . The forecourt on the Saar side was bounded on the northwest by the Botzheim building, named after the chief forester who resided there in 1728. To

10100-408: Was used as a warehouse or magazine, so sometimes piles of round stones were kept here for use as projectiles during a siege. In a few cases, it was used as a cistern , but often the room remained unused. The blanket assumption in older literature and often also in tourism that the cellar space was used as the dungeon is thus misleading. Most reports of the incarceration of prisoners in the basement of

10201-464: Was usually not fortified. In the Middle Ages in the event of a siege, a massive bergfried was undoubtedly the safest building in which women, the elderly and children could seek refuge during the fighting. Such a tower was certainly an effective protection against surprise attacks by smaller marauding gangs and the local population. Often a castle was vulnerable just through the absence of a few able-bodied men whilst they were out hunting or working in

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