Falkenstein Castle (Bad Emstal)
Falkenstein Castle
The Falkenstein Castle is a Romanesque castle in Bad Emstal sand in northern Hesse Kassel district.
Geographical location
The ruins of a hilltop castle located in the natural park Hawk Forest 2.5 km east-northeast of Bad Emstaler community part sand on the now wooded basalt crest of Falkenstein ( 461.9 m above sea level. NN ) north-northwest of Niedenstein or southwest of Schauenburg Elmshagen. On the southern flank of the mountain is the boundary of the city Niedenstein, along the eastern flank of those to church looking castle. Because the hilltop to the north and east falls steeply, it is and so best to reach the ruins of the South on hiking trails. West of the mountain passes over the upper reaches of the Eder- inflow Ems and east of this is happening by EMS inflow Wiehoff.
History
Probably built in the late 13th century Falkenstein Castle is first mentioned in 1346. In this year pledged Landgrave Henry II of Hesse probably already decaying castle of the lords of dog Kirchberg and Holzhausen for 452 silver marks, but with the obligation to devote to their reconstruction at least 170 marks of silver. The two strains of the dog family received concomitant each one Burglehen. The Landgrave should be allowed to redeem the castle of their heirs after the death of the mortgage holder, but the latter should retain the Burglehen and castle seats that they had built in the castle forever. On the other hand, the castle should be open to the Landgrave against enemies at any time. Already in 1351 a chapel in the castle is again mentioned. Protests of Archbishop Gerlach of Mainz against the reconstruction of the castle were turned away and dropped in 1354. On September 13 1363 the number of members of the dog family concluded a truce on the Falkenstein, but shortly afterwards the wooden houses line lost its share of the castle because of a dispute with the Landgrave. Landgrave Hermann II gave this half, because of the hostile behavior of the dog in Sterner war, first on April 6, 1387 at Ludwig von Wildungen, but then in the same year at Ekkebrecht of Grifte as a reward for his successful defense of the upper castle in Gudensberg against a besieging army of Archbishop Adolf I of Mainz, the Landgrave Balthasar of Thuringia and the Duke Otto of Brunswick- Göttingen.
In 1388 it came to a new agreement between Landgrave Hermann and the dog, which explains the deposit conditions of 1346 and the truce of 1363 to be invalid and the Hund's shares of the castle were applied to the Landgrave fief. After the extinction of the wooden houses line the dog in 1430, there was an inheritance dispute between the dog from Kirchberg one hand, and Reinhard von Dalwigk, a nephew of the late Otto von Holzhausen, and the Knights of Grifte other hand, the and the Landgrave only after considerable effort after a long time was able to settle in 1442. Reinhard von Dalwigk sold his claim in 1454 for 100 guilders to the of Grifte.
Until 1569 the castle then the Lords of Grifte and the family dog belonged together, they then 1569 held jointly as landgräflich - Hessian fief. 1597 Lords of Grifte died out, and the castle fell apart more and more. It is likely that the followers were invested only with the forest, the mountain and the associated lands, but no more with the castle. 1631 Tilly's troops destroyed the castle. After the death of Lieutenant Colonel Hans Heinrich dog Freienhagen (Canis called ) in 1679, the castle fell apart finally and fell as a completed fief again Landgrave of Hessen to.
Castle ruins
The close round plateau area of Mount Falkenstein has a diameter of 30 m. South of the Castle Falkenstein, there was a 40 m wide outer bailey. From the Palas some remains of walls are only preserved. A contiguous 11 m long piece of the wall in the south and two tall narrow wall pieces, between which there was a window, the settlement document. In the West, remains of moat and ramparts are still visible.