Château de l'Ortenbourg

Ortenberg - View from the north

The castle Ortenberg (French Château de l' Ortenbourg ) is a medieval castle in Scherwiller in Alsace ( Bas- Rhin department ), about seven kilometers northwest of Sélestat ( German Schlettstadt ).

Location

The conspicuous plant sits as a spur castle in 440 meters on the eastern edge of the Vosges on a sloping south to the Upper Rhine Plain ridge. It monitors the output of the hamlet and Lebertals. Accessible open ruin is in each case about half an hour on part arduous hiking trails from the inn Hühnelmühl ( branch of D 35 towards Châtenois / Kesten wood) or the Taennelkreuz northwest of Scherwiller.

History

Ortenberg is first mentioned in 1166. The still existing building was, however, until 1265 newly built until 1262 by Rudolf von Habsburg, who lived up to his election as king in 1273 at the castle. 1293 besieged Governor Otto III. of Ochsenstein Ortenberg from the neighboring castle Ramstein. 1314 sold the Habsburg castle and village Scherweiler at the Strasbourg family home garbage. 1374 the castle of Lorraine troops was damaged. In the 15th century Ortenberg was first bone of contention of many Ganerben and sank in the sequel to the robber barons. Peter von Hagenbach, the proconsul of Charles the Bold, took the castle in 1470 itself, but it was recaptured in 1474 by the Strasbourgers. 1562 lived a castellan of Nicholas of Boll Weiler, who had acquired the castle in 1551, on Ortenberg. 1633, during the Thirty Years War, the castle was destroyed by the Swedes.

Plant

Ortenberg is the highlight and ideal type of early Gothic castle building in Alsace. The main castle stands on a granite rock, which is separated by a deep moat from the massif of Mount Ritter. Directly above the trench to face the 18 -meter high, multiple bent and broken by embrasures surrounding walls and the immediately behind her placed 30 meters high, five rectangular keep, contrary to the potential attackers. Both defensive shield the arranged behind two-storey residential and representational, the ( partially broken ) early Gothic tracery windows open onto the plane. Presented intermediate housing and keep a large cistern supplying water to the castle residents safe. From the east and south upstream bailey only the perimeter wall and the outer castle gate are preserved. As a building material of the upcoming Granite is used, only the window jambs are made of red sandstone.

Others

The Cripple oak woods surrounding the castle are places with their rare occurrence of thermophilic plants (eg Golden Aster, Large Stonecrop ) under protection.