Jägersburg ist ein ehemaliges Jagdschloss, das zum Markt Eggolsheim gehört.

Geschichte

Durch die Verwaltungsreformen zu Beginn des 19. Jahrhunderts im Königreich Bayern wurde das ehemalige Jagdschloss der Grafen von Schönborn mit dem Zweiten Gemeindeedikt 1818 ein Gemeindeteil der Landgemeinde Bammersdorf. Im Zuge der kommunalen Gebietsreform in Bayern in den 1970er Jahren wurde der Ort zusammen mit der Gemeinde Bammersdorf am 1. Juli 1972 in den Markt Eggolsheim eingegliedert. In der zweiten Hälfte des 20. Jahrhunderts bestand in Jägersburg ein Altersheim, zu dieser Zeit hatte der Ort 1987 83 Einwohner. Nachdem die Nutzung aufgegeben worden war, wurde der Gebäudekomplex für Veranstaltungszwecke umgestaltet.

Sehenswürdigkeiten

Das von 1721 bis 1728 für Lothar Franz von Schönborn nach Plänen von Anselm Franz von Ritter zu Groenesteyn errichtete Jagdschlosses ist eine Barockanlage aus mehreren denkmalgeschützten Gebäudeteilen, neben dem Hauptbau unter anderem ein Torturm und eine Kapelle.

Jagersburg (Eggolsheim)

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The castle in Forchheim (German: Burg in Forchheim), also referred to as a royal palace or Kaiserpfalz, was an important urban castle under the bishops of Bamberg in the town of Forchheim in the south German state of Bavaria. The castle was built in the late 14th century. After comprehensive archaeological and architectural-historical investigation it has become one of the best researched castles of this period in Central Europe. Today it houses the Archaeological Museum of Upper Franconia.

The oldest part of the castle is in the west wing where the cabinet (Kemenate) of the Schultheiß has survived, a room which was built onto the old town wall in 1339.

Site of the early medieval Kaiserpfalz?

From the 9th to the early 11th centuries there was a Frankish royal court (Königshof) and a palace (Pfalz) in Forchheim (see the history of Forchheim). Its exact location is, however, not known. In the late 19th century it was thought to be on the site of the episcopal urban castle, which was also referred to as the Pfalz ("palace") or Kaiserpfalz ("imperial palace"). However, archaeological investigations carried out during the renovation of the castle from 1998 to 2004 uncovered no remains of an early medieval settlement at all. Nevertheless even in recent literature by Tillman Kohnert (2008), the Pfalz is still seen as the direct predecessor to the episcopal castle. And the castle still retains the name of Kaiserpfalz, a name which has been adopted for decades and is used as the official name of the castle.

The castle around 1400

From the late 14th century the bishops of Bamberg, especially Bishop Lambert of Buren, built an urban castle that became their most important residence outside of the immunity of Bamberg Cathedral. The centrepiece of the castle is the so-called Great Cabinet (Große Kemenate), the former residence, which was built in the east of the castle from 1391. In the cabinet an extensive stone chamber forced-air heating system has survived. Of great art-historical significance are the Gothic murals, some of which are even by Bohemian masters.

Description

Exterior

The almost square castle site is surrounded by moats. Until around 1550 the fortress at the northwest corner of the town was incorporated into the town fortifications. North of the castle, is the only surviving medieval town gate, the Saltor Tower (Saltorturm). In the 16th century a modern bastioned fortification, based on Italian designs, was constructed in front of the remains of the medieval town wall. North and west of the castle district, two large casemated "Old Italian" bastions escaped the fate of demolition that other parts of Forchheim Fortress suffered in the 19th and early 20th centuries.

Large parts of the main house and the courtyard buildings go back to the 14th century. The eastern part of the main house is joined to the courtyard buildings on the west side by walls and timber-framed passageways. The two upper storeys of the northwest wing have also been executed in a simple, timber-framed style as far as the castle courtyard.

In the middle of the 16th century the urban castle was remodelled. It was at that time that the picturesque, timber-framed walkways on the curtain walls were constructed. In 1603 work began on building an octagonal staircase tower in front of the four-storey main house. The mighty half-hipped roof of the main house dates to the 18th century. Originally the east wing was covered by a gable roof with crow-stepped gables. Since 1768/69 a sandstone bridge has spanned the moat in front of the gateway on the south side. Previously access had been protected by a drawbridge. Next to it, a rectangular Renaissance oriel with a shed roof enhances the architectural impression. The rather austere south front of the ensemble is brought to life mainly by the timber framing (Sichtfachwerk) above the gateway. A typical Franconian motif is the frieze made of numerous, small curved St. Andrew's crosses underneath the window area.

On the east façade of the main wing are three reliefs depicting coats of arms. On the second storey is the official coat of arms of Prince-Bishop John Philip of Gebsattel. The third storey bears the coat of arms of Bishop Lamprecht of Brunn and the Hochstift. A high medieval sculpture of a basilisk has been engraved into the south wall; it has been dated to the 12th century.

The addition of a modern, steel and glass staircase and lift tower in the north of the east wing has been highly controversial. This feature was needed to turn the castle into a museum.

Interior rooms

East Wing

The East Wing of the castle is divided into two parts by a transverse wall running the width of the building. The north part is somewhat larger than the south part. The barrel-roofed cellar goes back to the 14th century. The ceilings of the two halls on the ground floor are borne on sandstone columns.

The flat ceiling of the north room rests on a round column and a wooden beam. The south part was vaulted later, resulting in a twin-aisled hall comprising four bays that are covered by cross vaults. In former times a passageway led from here to St. Mary's Chapel. On the walls of the hall fragments of fresco-secco (painting on dry plaster) from the period around 1400 have survived, which are stylistically related to contemporary Bohemian art. A fragment shows the Biblical and historical figure of King David of ancient Israel. Like the murals in the other halls these paintings are among the most important Gothic murals in South Germany.

The chapel was originally located in the southern part of the first floor. The vaulting was done in the early modern period; and the hall was divided by an internal dividing wall. The murals of the old chapel have survived and indicate its original function and arrangement. It includes depictions of the prophets, the Adoration of the Magi, the Annunciation and the Last Judgement. Two paintings with secular content have been interpreted by H. Kehrer as referring to the weak king, Wenceslaus. The paintings were clearly done by different masters. The Adoration of the Magi, again, appears to be derived from the field of Bohemian art. The Last Judgement, by contrast, is in the latest Forchheim style, which was derived from the Nuremberg art of the early 15th century. The northern hall, like that on the ground floor, is covered by a flat ceiling which, however, rests on wooden beams.

On the second floor of the northern end of the wing is also a twin-aisled, flat-ceiling hall with a wooden centre beam. The architectural paintings were done by Jakob Ziegler in the years 1559/60. The south room is likewise a two-aisled hall. The flat ceiling is supported on an octagonal centre frame. The murals, of various themes, were also created by Jakob Ziegler. One of the paintings shows Saints Henry II and Cunigunde with the model of Bamberg Cathedral (drawn in 1599, south wall).

The third floor was conceived as a storage area and currently serves as a museum depot. The old staircase tower hides a stone circular staircase which opens into the northern part of the east wing.

West Wing

The West Wing, the former side wing, acts as offices for the castle museums. No significant historical interior features have survived here.

Forchheim Castle

Schloss Wiesenthau stands on the northeastern edge of the eponymous municipality at the foot of the Ehrenbürg in northern Bavaria. The Renaissance building is a three-winged country house with 4 mid-16th century corner towers and the remains of an enceinte.

The village is first recorded in 1062 in connexion with the royal palace (Königshof) in Forchheim. The lords of Wiesenthau appear from 1128 onwards as ministeriales of the Bishopric of Bamberg. Whether at that time a castle already existed is not clear. The castle itself is first recorded in 1379.

Originally an allodial possession of the lords of Wiesenthau, on 25 June 1379 part of the castle was sold to the Bishopric. In the period that followed the whole castle became a fief of Bamberg. The lords of Wiesenthau remained, however, in charge of the castle as Bamberg vassals.

In 1430 the castle was badly damaged by the Hussites. It suffered destruction again in 1525 during the Peasants' War. In 1566 it was fully rebuilt. Apart from a short period of time, the castle, or at least a part of it, was continuously owned by the lords of Wiesenthau until they died out in 1814.

After a comprehensive renovation lasting from 1985 to 1992, the castle became an inn and hotel.

Schloss Wiesenthau

Feuerstein Castle (German: Burg Feuerstein) lies at the edge of the so-called Lange Meile near Ebermannstadt in the county of Forchheim in the south German state of Bavaria. It was built in 1941 by Oskar Vierling as a laboratory for researching High Frequency technology and electroacoustics and was used until 1945 by 250 employees for research into weapons and communication technology as part of the German armaments programme during the Second World War.

At the end of the war the castle was seized by American soldiers, from 1946 it was rented by the Archdiocese of Bamberg under Jupp Schneider and sold in 1949. Since then the castle and the entire estate have been in use as a Roman Catholic youth and conference centre.

History

Oskar Vierling was looking for a central location for his laboratories. The choice fell on a hill called the Feuerstein. Its design as a castle blended well into the countryside of Franconian Switzerland and was chosen for camouflage reasons. During the war it was disguised as a hospital and had tiles in the form of a red cross on the roof, but actually housed a laboratory for secret Nazi armament projects. After the end of the war it was abandoned and construction plans and documents were destroyed. Nevertheless, in 2011 a document came into the hands of cryptographer-historian, Norbert Ryska, from the American special unit, Ticom (Target Intelligence Committee), which described the work of Vierling at Feuerstein Castle in more detail. According to this, Vierling worked for the Nazis on speech encoding methods, acoustic torpedo control, acoustic detonation of mines, anti-detection technology for U boats and in the fields of radio and electrotechnology.

A relict of its construction period is the present wine cellar, formally a walk-in safe with a ten-centimetre-thick steel door. The charm of the castle comes not from any medieval origin, but from its wartime history and its young age.

The castle has been expanded by dormitory accommodation, a dining hall, leisure facilities (Kegelbahn, table tennis, volleyball, hard court, sports field), conference rooms, camping sites, agriculture, a riding stable and a glider airfield. Today Feuerstein Castle is a modern youth facility owned by the Diocese of Bamberg.

In 1999 Feuerstein Observatory was founded, 500 metres south of Feuerstein Castle Airfield. The observatory took the name of the castle. The tower of the castle is used by the observatory as a microwave radio relay relay station to link it to the town of Ebermannstadt in the valley. In this way the tower built by Vierling to test the first radio relay link continues to fulfil its original purpose.

The churches

In 1961 the Church of the Transfiguration of Jesus was opened. It consists of three spaces: the crypt, the lower church and the upper church. The crypt is accessed by steps from the lower church and only dimly lit. It houses the eternal flame and the tabernacle. On the sides of the tabernacle are twelve candlesticks which represent the twelve apostles.

The lower church is dedicated to Mary, the "Mother of Wisdom". It has an altar, behind which is a mural portraying the Litany of the Blessed Virgin Mary. The glass windows are kept dark and portray on one side the head of a beast of prey, fire, broken ears of corn and the reaper, and on the other side, people, a rainbox, the sun and angels' wings. Both the mural and the window are works by the artist, Alfred Heller, from Bamberg. After leaving the lower church, the path runs past windows that portray the fundamental attitudes of Christian spirituality: Oratio – Meditatio – Contemplatio ("prayer - meditation - contemplation").

The upper church was designed by the architect Heinzmann and cathedral master builder Schädel. It was consecrated in 1961 and constructionally anticipated the liturgical reform of the Second Vatican Council a year later: the altar is positioned in the nave so that the priest can celebrate mass with the congregation. The large glass wall portrays on its right-hand side, the Burning Bush and on the left the sacrifice of Elijah. The glass wall is a work by glass artist, Georg Meistermann. The stations of the cross were created in 2005 by a youth group.


Feuerstein Castle


Schloss Kunreuth is situated on the northwestern edge of the eponymous village of Kunreuth which is part of the collective municipality of Gosberg in the county of Forchheim, in the province of Upper Franconia in the south German state of Bavaria.

The village of Kunreuth had probably been mentioned in the founding document (Gründungsbuch) of the church of St. James at Bamberg which dates to 1109. Lords of Kunreuth are first recorded in 1308. What is unclear is whether there was already a castle in existence at that time.

The first record of a castle dates to 1409. At that time, the castle was a fief of the Bishopric of Bamberg, owned by the lords of Egloffstein.

In 1420 the castle was conquered and plundered during a feud between Margrave Frederick I of Brandenburg and Duke Louis VII of Bavaria-Ingolstadt.

In 1525, during the Peasants' War the castle was destroyed. It was immediately rebuilt by the lords of Egloffstein. In 1553 the castle was wrecked again: during the Second Margrave War by Margrave Albert Alcibiades. Despite the promise of free passage, the troops of the garrison were hanged on the trees around the castle.

From 1558 the castle, now a Ganerbenburg of the House of Egloffstein, was rebuilt as a schloss, whilst largely retaining its military character.

During the Thirty Years' War the schloss suffered severe damage during its frequent use for billeting soldiers.

This damage was repaired over time. The schloss is still owned by the counts and freiherren "von und zu Egloffstein", who have used it to house their family archives.

The village of Kunreuth had probably been mentioned in the founding document (Gründungsbuch) of the church of St. James at Bamberg which dates to 1109. Lords of Kunreuth are first recorded in 1308. What is unclear is whether there was already a castle in existence at that time.

The first record of a castle dates to 1409. At that time, the castle was a fief of the Bishopric of Bamberg, owned by the lords of Egloffstein.

In 1420 the castle was conquered and plundered during a feud between Margrave Frederick I of Brandenburg and Duke Louis VII of Bavaria-Ingolstadt.

In 1525, during the Peasants' War the castle was destroyed. It was immediately rebuilt by the lords of Egloffstein. In 1553 the castle was wrecked again: during the Second Margrave War by Margrave Albert Alcibiades. Despite the promise of free passage, the troops of the garrison were hanged on the trees around the castle.

From 1558 the castle, now a Ganerbenburg of the House of Egloffstein, was rebuilt as a schloss, whilst largely retaining its military character.

During the Thirty Years' War the schloss suffered severe damage during its frequent use for billeting soldiers.

This damage was repaired over time. The schloss is still owned by the counts and freiherren "von und zu Egloffstein", who have used it to house their family archives.

The former water castle – some of the moats were laid dry in 1827 – has a rectangular plan. It consists primarily of a west and a south wing. The south wing probably houses the oldest parts of the castle, which go back to the 14th century. The west wing was given its present appearance mainly in the period from 1611 to 1613. The gateway on the east side of the schloss was built in 1624. In 1746 the drawbridge was replaced by a stone bridge. On the north side is a wall with buttresses. Until its destruction in the Second Margrave War the so-called rear cabinet (Kemenate) was located here.

In the forecourt of the schloss is a monument to the first Count of Egloffstein, Count Albert Dietrich Godfrey of Egloffstein.

Schloss Kunreuth

Schloss Hundshaupten is a quadrangular castle in the village of Hundshaupten in the municipality of Egloffstein in the German county of Forchheim.

History

The castle is recorded for the first time in 1369 in the ownership of the Lords of Wiesenthau. It was, like almost all castles in Franconian Switzerland, built on a hill spur of the Franconian Jura plateau jutting out into the valley. Following its destruction in 1388 by Nuremberg during the War of the Cities, in 1412 by Burgrave Frederick VI of Nuremberg and in 1525 during the Peasants' War, then it was rebuilt in 1561.

In 1613, when the Wiesenthau line at Hundshaupten died out, the fief reverted to Michelsberg Abbey in the city of Bamberg. In 1661, after the Thirty Years' War, the abbey sold the castle to Hieronymus Christopher, Freiherr of Pölnitz, town commandant of Forchheim, who resided in Aschbach, now a village in the municipality of Schlüsselfeld. In the years that followed, work was carried out, but its castle character was not changed.

In 1991, part of the estate was gifted by Gudila, Freifrau of Pölnitz to the county of Forchheim, including Hundshaupten Wildlife Park.

Hieronymus Christopher Heinrich Freiherr von Pölnitz, great nephew and adoptive son of Götz Freiherr von Pölnitz and Gudila Freifrau von Pölnitz continue to live there.

Meaning of the placename

The meaning of the placename of Hundshaupten can no longer be explained with certainty today. There are several possibilities that have been suggested and compared by Dorothea Fastnacht.

The names of the neighbouring villages of Hundshaupten and Hundsboden should be seen as connected. The suffix, '-haupten' probably refers to the hill spur on which, initially a castle and, later, the present schloss were built. By contrast the suffix, '-boden', suggests a level field of fertile soil on the plateau that was cleared in the High Middle Ages as part of the expansion of cultivated land. The prefix 'Hund-' probably refers to the owner of the clearance and the castle with the office of a Hunno (chief of a Hundertschaft). With the firm establishment of feudal lordship this office had become hereditary during the High Middle Ages and filled by local nobility. Originally, during the Migration Era and in the Early Middle Ages the leader of a community of free farmers was called a Hunno.

Schloss Hundshaupten

The ruins of Streitburg Castle (German: Burgruine Streitburg or Streitberg Castle (Burgruine Streitberg) are the remains of a high mediaeval aristocratic castle above the village of Streitberg, in the market borough of Wiesenttal in the Upper Franconian county of Forchheim in the German state of Bavaria. They lie directly opposite the ruins of Neideck Castle, the symbol of Franconian Switzerland, on the other side of the valley.

The ruins are freely accessible to the public.

The ruins of the spur castle are located at a height of 403.7 m above sea level (NN) on a rocky southwest-pointing hill, the Streitberg, above the eponymous village, which is bounded to the south and west by the Wiesent river and to the west by the valley of Schauertal.

The ruins may be reached on footpaths from the village or the surrounding area.

Near the ruins of Streitburg are other former castles: to the northeast is the burgstall of Kulk on the hill named Guckhüll, to the southeast is Neideck Castle and the former motte castle of Wöhr which is on a former river island of the Wiesent near the hamlet of the same name. About 250 metres southwest and above the Neideck is the site of Wartleiten Castle, in the area of the present cemetery in Niederfellendorf is a castle site of the Fellendorfs and on the Hummerstein above Gasseldorf an early mediaeval burgstall.

Streitburg Castle

Neideck Castle (German: Burgruine Neideck) is a former high mediaeval nobleman's castle above the village of Streitberg (de), in the municipality of Wiesenttal in the Upper Franconian county of Forchheim in the German state of Bavaria. As a result of its exposed location above the valley of the Wiesent, it has become a symbol of Franconian Switzerland.

The ruins are freely accessible; the tower house is used as a viewing point.

The ruins of the spur castle are located in the Franconian Switzerland-Veldenstein Forest Nature Park about 800 metres east of the church in the village of Streitberg. They stand above the Wiesent valley on a hill spur (402.9 m above sea level (NN)) north-northeast of the hill of Wartleitenberg (488 m above NN).

The ruins may be reached on various hiking trails from the valley or from the villages on the plateau.

In the vicinity of Neideck there are other old castles: to the northwest are the ruins of Streitberg, to the north is the burgstall ("castle sitle") of Kulk on the hill called the Guckhüll, towards the east on a former river island in the Wiesent is the former motte-and-bailey castle of Wöhr near the hamlet of the same name. To the southeast, in the village of Trainmeusel, there also used to be a castle, of which the gable side is still visible. In the immediate vicininty of the Neideck, ca. 250 metres above and to the southwest is the Wartleiten and on the Hummerstein above Gasseldorf an early mediaeval burgstall.

The plateau above the Wiesent valley was already in use in prehistoric times as a settlement area. Archaeologically, traces of settlement of the Urnfield, the late Hallstatt and early La Tène cultures, the early Roman Empire and Great Migration period have been documented. The unusual size of the medieval castle and its two vast outer baileys with their deep ditches could indicate an early medieval hillfort.

The castle was first mentioned in 1312 as the property of the edelfrei family of Schlüsselberg. A Henry of Neideck, however, was recorded as early as 1219 in a documentary source. The castle was therefore probably built in the 12th century, possibly as early as 1150/60. At that time there was probably only a small wooden outer bailey in front of the main castle on the distinctive shoulder of rock above the Wiesent valley.

From 1312 it was owned by Conrad II of Schlüsselberg, the most important and the last representative of his family line. He expanded the Neideck into a fortress. With an area of 140 × 200 metres, it was one of the largest German castles. The shield wall, outer and inner moats, two artillery towers, main ditch and bridge, the tower house and adjoining building elements of the main castle are still visible. When Conrad of Schlüsselberg got into a feud in 1347 over the imposition of a toll with the bishops of Würzburg and Bamberg and the Burgrave of Nuremberg, they attacked and defeated him. Conrad, himself, was killed on 14 September 1347 by a stone fired from a trebuchet and the castle was subsequently destroyed. After the siege, Neideck became the seat of an office (Amt) of the bishops of Bamberg.

After the castle had survived the Peasant's War in 1525, it was captured and set on fire in 1553 in Second Margrave War by mercenaries of Margrave Albert Alcibiades of Brandenburg-Kulmbach. Since then it has been a ruin.

Until the early 19th century, the fortress was used by the residents of the valley as a quarry. Its decline was further accelerated in the period 1737-1743 when rock on which the castle stands was quarried for marble.

The increasing decline of the castle ruins prompted the municipality of Streitberg shortly after the Second World War to start implementing the first conservation measures. In 1996, the county of Forchheim began the comprehensive renovation of the ruins; this was completed in 2008 with the opening of an "Archaeological Park" on the castle site. The work was accompanied by archaeological excavations, but not always in accordance to the latest historic preservation methods.

The large castle complex consists of three separate areas, separated by deep neck ditches. Even the outer bailey was protected by a moat approximately 100 metres long, 22 metres wide and about 7 metres deep. The towering shield wall behind it was built around 1300. Of its other buildings only small traces of the foundations remain.

The middle bailey was reinforced in the early 16th century by two artillery roundels that have partly survived. The 'cross key' embrasures (Kreuzschlüsselscharten) of the eastern tower were designed for arquebuses and crossbows. The rectangular slits of the western roundel were probably added around 1531/32. This bastion flanked the approach road. The curtain walls between the roundels and the gate of the middle bailey have been almost completely lost.

The inner bailey is located on a projecting spur of rock that points northeast. The mighty tower house rises three stories above its foundations. It was built from 1347 after the destruction of the castle on those older foundations and walls that were still usable. The former vault of the ground floor probably dates to the early 13th century. Above the surviving three storeys there was originally a fourth stone upper storey, possibly even a timber-framed house. The obligatory elevated entrance on the first floor has survived; the ground floor access was only created in modern times. Since 2008, a staircase has enabled visitors to ascend to the 10 metre-high wall crown.

The remaining elements of the inner bailey date largely to the period around 1480, when the fortress was expanded and reinforced after a siege. Still recognisable are the barrel vaulted cellar of a building and the shaft of a filter cistern. The historical entrance consisted of a late mediaeval gatehouse and a stone bridge over the deep neck ditch. In front of the gatehouse lay a short drawbridge.

One theory is that the water supply was provided partially by the Trainmeusel Spring on the hillside to the north. Water from this spring was fed along a 1,300-metre-long tree trunk pipe made of oak trunks into the castle well. More recent excavations of the inner bailey, however, do not support this thesis by Nuremberg Castle researcher, Hellmut Kunstmann. The alleged well was in reality a filter cistern, fed by wooden pipes from the roofs of buildings immediately adjoining the bergfried and other nearby buildings.

The castle site is classified by the Bavarian State Office for Monument Protection (BLfD) as a hillfort of the Urnfield period, the late Hallstatt and early La Tène periods, the early Roman Empire and the migration period and listed as monument number D-4-6133-0110. The subterranean parts of the ruins of the medieval and early modern castle are also a protected monument.

The name of the castle is probably derived from its location on a "lower corner" (German: Nieder = lower; Ecke = "corner"). Because of this, militarily very unfavourable, situation, a stone watchtower was erected on the ridge above the castle site. This tower was surrounded by a moat which is still visible in the terrain. The tower itself has almost completely disappeared, but is recalled in the local place name of Wartleiten (monument number D-4-6133-0153).

Neideck Castle

Egloffstein Castle (German: Burg Egloffstein) is a former high mediaeval, aristocratic castle, that stands immediately west of the eponymous village of Egloffstein in the Upper Franconian county of Forchheim in the German state of Bavaria.

The castle may be visited for an entrance fee.

The spur castle is located within the Franconian Switzerland-Veldenstein Forest Nature Park at a height of 443 metres on a rocky, eastwards-pointing promontory of the Rabenstein, about 80 metres above the village in the Trubach valley in the hill region of Franconian Switzerland.

In the vicinity are also the castles of Thuisbrunn, Hundshaupten and Wolfsberg. Other castles not far from Egloffstein include the Altes Schloss on the Altschlossberg hill near Affalterthal, the ruins of Dietrichstein near Lützelsdorf and the ruins on the Zaunsbacher Berg and Thüngfelderstein as well as the former castle by Heidhof on the Schlossberg.

The earliest record of the lords of Egloffstein dates from 1180. The castle was first mentioned in 1358, when Albert II of Egloffstein and his brothers founded a chaplaincy there, but it is probably older than that. The lords of Egloffstein initially owned the castle as an allod.

In 1372, during a feud with the Bishop of Bamberg, Götz von Egloffstein returned to his family castle at Egloffstein after the destruction of Leienfels Castle, which also belonged to him. In order to avoid Egloffstein Castle being besieged by the Bishop of Bamberg, Götz was excluded from the family association in 1374.

In 1376 the Bishop of Bamberg, Lamprecht of Brunn (1374–1398) forced Seybot II von Egloffstein to grant Öffnungsrecht to the Bishopric in the majority of the castle.

During the First Margrave War in 1449/50 the castle was attacked unsuccessfully by troops of Margrave Albert Achilles on 8 April 1450, but it was nevertheless badly damaged. From 1482 to 1493 it was considerably remodelled.

In 1509, Jobst I of Egloffstein gave up his portion of the castle to the Prince-Bishopric of Bamberg as a fief. In 1516 Wolf I of Egloffstein gave up the last remaining freehold element of the castle in family hands to the Prince-Bishopric as a fief. The reason was probably to do with the financial plight of the lords of Egloffstein.

In spite of the constant reinforcement of its defences the castle was conquered by Nuremberg troops during the War of the Succession of Landshut in 1504 and partly razed. Scarcely had it been rebuilt when, in 1525, it became a victim of the German Peasants' War. Its rebuilding thereafter was only partial and very slow.

During the conflict between William III of Egloffstein and the Bishop of Bamberg, Veit II of Würtzburg (1561–1577), the latter had the castle occupied and ravaged in 1563.

When the village of Egloffstein was raided by the Swedes in 1632 and 1645 during the Thirty Years' War, the castle suffered severe damage necessitating comprehensive rebuilding work. In 1664, Albert Christopher of Egloffstein had a large battery tower (Geschützturm) built.

In 1703, the castle survived its last warlike occupation during the War of the Spanish Succession without great damage. Likewise, the castle suffered no destruction in the succeeding decades.

In 1750 the brothers, Albert Christopher Charles and Louis I of Egloffstein built the present parish church of St. Bartholomew in place of the lower cabinet and its old castle chapel. In 1800, the great battery tower collapsed and was carried away.

The so-called patrimonial courts (Patrimonialgericht) at Egloffstein Castle over which its free nobles presided continued until 1848. Today, the castle still belongs to the lords of Egloffstein.

Of the original castle site, only the main or upper ward remains. It mainly comprises the Old Cabinet (Alte Kemenate) and the Long Cabinet (Lange Kemenate). In the former are probably the oldest parts of the castle, which may date back to the 12th century. The parish church of St. Bartholomew was built in 1750 to replace the castle chapel.

Egloffstein Castle

Thuisbrunn Castle (German: Burg Thuisbrunn) is located centrally within the parish of Thuisbrunn in the municipality of Gräfenberg in the Bavarian province of Upper Franconia. After having been destroyed and rebuilt several times, the castle is now in private ownership.

The spur castle was first mentioned in 1348 and Lord Hiltpolt of Mayenthal named as the castle lord (Burgherr) of Thuisbrunn. In 1388, during the South German War of the Cities, it was destroyed by Nuremberg troops and thereafter given to the burgraves of Nuremberg as a fief. In 1420 the castle was again wrecked during the Bavarian War by troops of Duke Louis of Ingolstadt. However, when the village of Thuisbrunn was destroyed in July 1449 by Nuremberg soldiers and again in 1460 during the Princes' War, the castle remained undamaged. In 1553, during the Second Margrave War, the castle was once more destroyed by Nuremberg troops. By 1558 only the district office (Amtshaus) and the bergfried had been rebuilt. During the Thirty Years' War and thereafter, Thuisbrunn and the castle were plundered seven times by Imperial, Swedish and Bavarian soldiers. In 1667, the Vogtei office was probably built in place of the old district office; apart from this house and the bergfried the castle remained a ruin. In 1816, the cartographer, Johann Christoph Stierlein, made for the first time a very precise map of the castle area and its surviving buildings. Following the seizure of the estates by the Kingdom of Bavaria in 1806 during the Napoleonic Era, the Vogtei office was used as a forestry office. Towards the end of the Second World War the castle was shelled by American troops. In 1961 it was sold into private ownership.



Thuisbrunn Castle

Das Schloss Atzelsberg, das sich im bayerischen Marloffstein befindet, wurde zum ersten Mal in der ersten Hälfte des 15. Jahrhunderts erwähnt. Man geht jedoch davon aus, dass Vorgängerbauten existierten, die möglicherweise bis ins 12. Jahrhundert zurückreichten.

1450 wurde das Schloss im Ersten Markgrafenkrieg zerstört. Im Anschluss baute man es wieder auf, ehe es im Zweiten Markgrafenkrieg 1553 erneut dem Erdboden gleichgemacht wurde. Vermutlich standen nur noch Mauerreste und Teile des Turms. Einige Gebäude wurden in den folgenden Jahren wieder aufgebaut, darunter ein Wohnhaus, in dem sich der damalige Besitzer aufhielt. Einer erneuten Zerstörung im Dreißigjährigen Krieg, konnte sich das Schloss Atzelsberg nicht entziehen. Bis ins frühe 18. Jahrhundert wechselten immer wieder die Besitzer, ein Wiederaufbau ging kaum voran. Die Wende kam im Jahr 1705, als der neue Besitzer Johann Conradt von Seutter das Schloss in neuem Glanz erstrahlen ließ.

Weitere Besitzerwechsel folgten. Im Jahr 1848 wurde aus dem Rittergut ein Schlossgut, was zur Folge hatte, dass die Gutsuntertanen zu Gutspächtern wurden. 1961 kaufte die Stadt Erlangen Schloss Atzelsberg und wollte es aufwendig renovieren. Da man das Geld dafür nicht aufbringen konnte, verkaufte man das Gebäude wieder.

Heute befindet sich auf Schloss Atzelsberg nicht nur ein Standesamt, es gibt auch eine Gaststätte, Räume können für Feierlichkeiten oder Tagungen angemietet werden und seit 14.11.2010 finden jeden Sonntag Schlossführungen statt.

Nach meinen Informationen ist eine Besichtigung von Schloss Atzelsberg möglicherweise möglich (eventuell nur eine Außenbesichtigung). Genaue Informationen dazu und zu den Öffnungszeiten und Besichtigungszeiten liegen mir aber leider noch nicht vor. Zu Schloss Atzelsberg liegen mir noch keine Informationen zu einem Hotel vor. Das Restaurant der Burg/des Schlosses bietet eine vielfältige Küche. Im Bistro oder Café erhalten Sie kleine Speisen und Getränke. Schloss Atzelsberg bietet sich heute mit seiner Tagungstechnik, Tagungsraum, Konferenzraum auch für Seminare oder geschäftliche Events an. In Schloss Atzelsberg finden Sie ein Standesamt oder zumindest die Außenstelle des Standesamtes Erlangen-Höchstadt für die Zeremonie der standesamtlichen Trauung. Zu einer Kirche oder Kapelle direkt auf dem Gelände liegen mir keine Informationen vor. Der Bankettsaal, Ballsaal oder größere Raum ermöglicht eine Hochzeitsfeier mit Bewirtung.

Dieser Text wurde von den Mitarbeitern meiner Redaktion recherchiert und geschrieben und ist urheberrechtlich geschützt. Falls Sie Fragen oder Anregungen dazu haben, schreiben Sie mir gerne.



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