The fortress Heldrungen is a fortress used until 1712 with two moats , four Vauban bastions and five roundels and is located in Heldrungen in Thuringia , district of An der Schmücke on the southern edge of the Golden Aue, southeast of Bad Frankenhausen . The core of the fortress appears as a bastion castle from 1519, while the surrounding ramparts and bastions date from 1668. The main gate of the fortress is in turn flanked by two mighty round towers.

History

The first fortification was probably a wooden refuge castle for the residents of the nearby manor "Roter Hof". The first documentary mention took place in 1126. The castle was owned by the Lords of Heldrungen . A first stone, Romanesque castle complex was built around 1190 . Around 1400 the castle came into the possession of the Counts of Hohnstein . Due to high debt, they had to sell the castle to Count Ernst II von Mansfeld-Hinterort (1479–1531) in 1479 . From 1501 Count Ernst II von Mansfeld had the castle renovated and converted into a residence. The four-wing renaissance was built from 1512 to 1518-Schlossanlage for Count Ernst II. And his second wife Dorothea von Solms . In the years after 1519, fortifications with a total of 12 rondelles were built in two fortress belts and a double moat around the castle. The moated castle became a fortress, which in its time was considered impregnable. The complex of castle and independent fortress belt is characterized by the early Renaissance emerging in the Saxon region and represents an early example of the “bastionized castle”. Hartenfels Castle in Torgau , Wittenberg Castle in Wittenberg and Moritzburg in Halle are comparable .

During the Peasants' War, the fortress played an important role as a retreat for the regional nobility. After the Battle of Frankenhausen , the farmer's leader Thomas Müntzer was imprisoned and tortured in the castle in May 1525 until he was executed . In the Schmalkaldic War there were battles for the fortress in 1546 and 1547 . During the Thirty Years' War, the fortress was conquered on October 23, 1632 by Wallenstein's troops under General Merode . All the fortress residents were murdered after the conquest. Until 1645 the fortress changed during the Thirty Years Waroften the owner before it was conquered by the Swedes in 1645 . The fortress was badly damaged during the siege . The outer walls were razed in 1645. From 1664 to 1668 Johann Moritz Richter built a new, modern outer fortress based on the Vauban system. From 1680 the fortress lost its importance and the entire complex slowly fell into disrepair. The last garrison that was on the fortress was passed on December 17, 1712 by the Council of War of Tottleben. As a result of the Congress of Vienna in 1815, the Heldrungen fortress and site came to the Kingdom of Prussia. Because of its lack of military importance, the fortress was removed from the list of Prussian fortresses in 1860.

The first value preservation measures were carried out from 1930. After the Second World War , some families used the buildings of the Wasserburg as apartments. Later, a youth hostel was opened on the moated castle and a Müntzer memorial (museum) was set up, which was removed after 1990. Extensive renovation and restoration measures were carried out by the GDR from 1974 to preserve the building fabric. This work continued even after German reunification. In particular, the inner and outer fastening rings with the bastions could be saved from decay. In 1990 the Burgcafé was opened, which has since been closed again.

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Gratis

Feste und Veranstaltungen

- Privateigentum (Jugendherberge)

- Führungen nach Vereinbarung