Blankenburg Castle (Harz)
Blankenburg Castle seen from the Old Town
The Great Blankenburg Castle is a building in the town of Blankenburg in the Harz (Saxony -Anhalt). It was built mainly in the Baroque period on the basis of older buildings.
- 5.1 Rescue Blankenburg Castle eV
- 5.2 Cultural and patrons Blankenburg Castle
Location
It's on the 305 m above sea level. NN high limestone Blankenstein built. Nearby are the small castle with baroque garden, tea house and museum, the ramparts, the pheasant garden, the castle park and the castle pond.
History
Middle Ages
To let 1123 Lothar von Süpplingenburg build on the Blankenstein Blankenburg. The suzerainty later fell by Henry the Proud (also Henry the Lion ) to the Guelphs.
In 1128 Poppo received from the Frankish noble family of Reginbodonen the county as a fief. His sons shared the county: Konrad received the Burg Regenstein, Siegfried I. Blankenburg. From a pilgrimage Siegfried I ( Henry the Lion ) did not return this back and left two sons, Henry and Siegfried II
Began in 1181 under the direction of Bishop Dietrich of Halberstadt, the siege of the castle and Blankenburg by imperial armies. Emperor Frederick Barbarossa took over the government.
1182 Blankenburg was captured and eventually released to plunder. The brothers Heinrich and Siegfried II went into captivity, but were reconstituted after peace returned the county. The new building and a generous expansion of the castle began.
Count Henry took over in 1190 the " completed " goods of rain Steiner and Siegfried II retained the county Blankenburg, whose descendants to 1343 Blankenburg held in their possession. Then the Blankenburg and the Burg Regenstein fell back to the younger Heimburger line of Regensteins.
1386 to have been secretly plundered at night by Dietrich von Wernigerode, while Count Busso was absent according to legend, the Blankenburg. As evidence of this attack is considered a toy in the main castle wall.
Renaissance
In 1500, Count Ulrich XI SAHT. despite large debt forced to resign from the East Wing and to erect a castle-like building. 1539 said Count Ulrich V of the Catholic Church going.
On November 19, 1546 before the new building broke out at night a fire destroyed large parts of the old castle. According to legend, the fire was sparked by the Einheizer the castle under the stairs of the old castle with dry twigs, after it had been paid by Baptists with gold. The sleeping residents noticed late in the fire. About roofs and windows, the maids and servants fled down the walls, but forgot their dominions. The younger children were wrapped in towels, drained from the windows of the guards. The pregnant Countess Magdalena von Regenstein was trapped by the flames. The Countess asked her husband Count Ulrich to leave them in order to save his life. The Count escaped through the window and abortion hung from the outside down. Below the half-burned Count was saved. In commemoration of the fire and the dead Count Ulrich was a plaque in Latin and German make. Then the Count, the Countess, the six sons and four daughters are shown.
Died 1599 from the Regensteins Counts and the castle fell to the Dukes of Brunswick.
Baroque and Modern Times
1705 began the renovation of the Renaissance castle to the baroque residence by the state architect Hermann basket on behalf of Duke Louis Rudolph of Brunswick- Wolfenbüttel. The tags provided for a simpler and clearer structure to the external shape and lasted until 1718. Representation spaces ( Gray Hall, Redutensaal, Imperial Hall ) inside and Hofkirche emerged as a multi-storey octagon.
In connection with the marriage of Elizabeth Christine at the residence of Ludwig Rudolf's with the later Emperor Charles VI. was raised by Emperor Joseph I. Blankenburg in the status of the Principality. Elisabeth Christine became the mother of the future Empress Maria Theresa.
The Duke Ernst August of Brunswick family and his wife Duchess Victoria Luise Princess of Prussia inhabited from 1930 to escape and dispossession in 1945, the castle, which was awarded to the family in the wake of Prince compensation in 1924 as a private property. In 1917, this was the only daughter of the Duke and Duchess, Friederike, who later became Queen of the Hellenes and mother of the Spanish Queen Sophia, was born.
Became famous, the Court Blankenburg by shiny festivals and theater performances.
After 1945, the College for domestic trade was housed in the castle. While this use of the building was structurally maintained. After the closure of the school at the end of the GDR imJahr 1990 began a long time without use, which led to a failure of building maintenance. Plans from a buyer who had purchased the castle in 1996, to make it the center of a major tourism project were not realized. Years of decline followed, the consequence leaking roofs, permanent penetration of the building and infested with dry rot and were led to the danger of collapse. Vandalism and theft made for further decline.
Architecture
It is a dreigeschosssigen plastered building complex, which is arranged around a courtyard. To the building belongs to a chapel with a high vaulted ceiling and several representative Sääle.
Use
In essence, the Blankenburg Castle serves tourist and cultural purposes. The Blankenburg castle is being renovated at the time sections, and can be seen in some areas. The most representative rooms, including the stucco gray hall, the theater with gilded capitals, the castle chapel with a high vaulted ceiling, the Imperial Hall with stucco work of the sculptor Jacob Perinetti and murals and the Knights' Hall with illusionistic wall paintings of the 19th century and the castle courtyard are already available. The castle is on events such as the Day of the Open Monument or Historical weekend open.
In the castle there are exhibitions, lectures and concerts. Even wedding parties find themselves. Overall, " the castle is actively used ."
Funding
Rescue Blankenburg Castle eV
The aim of the association is the securing and maintaining of Blankenburg castle as a single monument, an important cultural asset of supra-regional and national importance and as a symbol of the town Blankenburg with central historical importance. The goal of the Society is among other things achieved by the production and mobilization of a broad public for the conservation and preserving the architecture of the castle.
The club was founded in 2005 and pursues exclusively and directly charitable purposes. Club chairman of the club rescue Blankenburg Castle, V. ( VRSB ) is Gerd Biegel.
In 2008, the Big Schloss Blankenburg bought gGmbH, a foundation of the association, the castle. According to the plans of the office Planungsring Wernigerode has begun to repair roofs, gutters and downpipes and to combat dry rot. The latter is now almost fully succeeded. The financing of conservation and restoration work carried out by government subsidies, which must always be re-applied. In 2010, the Federal Republic of Germany granted nearly 3 million euros. Overall, the funding is not yet secured. One problem is return claims of the heirs of the former owner, represented by Ernst August of Hanover (son of Ernst August of Hanover ) which apply the moving inventory. After the Indemnification and Compensation Act them is the movable asset return, while the land is the property of the association. In the case of wall paintings that were removed for restoration, the previous owner 's representative raised claims for restitution with the argument that with the decrease of the wall they are moving inventory.
Cultural and development association Blankenburg Castle
Objectives of the association are the salvation of the castle, the moral and financial support of the reconstruction and the promotion of exhibitions and events. Chairman of the club culture & development association is Manfred Schneider. The state of the efforts of the association see FAZ on December 31, 2013, page 34: My Castle, your castle, our castle.