Grabfeld

The grave field or Grabfeldgau located in the border area of southern Thuringia and northern Bavaria. It is up to 679 m above sea level. NN high, gently undulating to hilly, often mountainous landscape that is predominantly composed of rocks of limestone and Keuper. The Grabfeldgau is north of the Mainfränkisches plates between the Rhön and the foothills of the Thuringian Forest. In comparison to the environment prevailing in the grave field in front of favorable climatic conditions and soil conditions, which is why the landscape is dominated by agriculture over wide ranges.

Location

The situation in the Thuringian- Bavarian border region extends to the majority in the Lower Franconian district of Rhön - grave field, also in the south of the Thuringian districts Hildburghausen and Schmalkalden- Meiningen. The center of the grave field is between Bad Königshofen and Mellrichstadt.

Framed it is from the Rhön in the West, the Werra- Gäuplatten in the north with the Long Mountains in the northeast, the demand for construction - Itz - hills in the east and the Haßberge in the southeast.

The grave field in the narrow sense drained exclusively for Main and roughly corresponds to the catchment area of ​​the upper reaches of the Franconian Saale Bad Neustadt above. The natural spatial main unit grave field ( 1381 ) also includes the catchment area of ​​Nassach to its confluence with Haßfurt less Quelläufe as well as that of the Unterrodach to the mouth of the Itz south of Coburg.

Commonly also the adjacent left in the north of the catchment area of the river Werra, especially that of Jüchse and Bibra is added where is the majority of the community grave field. By this definition, not the Rhine -Weser watershed but the Werra 's northern border. Even broader is the natural spatial About Grabfeldgau main unit (138 ) that contains the complete Werra Gäuplatten ( 1382 ), that is located at the right side of the river, and ends north of Meiningen. The Werra Gäuplatten and the natural spatial grave field represent the northernmost units of Mainfränkisches plates dar.

Important tributaries of the Franconian Saale in the grave field, the north central spleen as well as the scattering and Lauer, forming about the western border.

To the east of Bad Königshofen extends the northern part of the Natural Park Haßberge into the grave field.

Geology

The geology at the surface largely follows the slight dip of Triassic strata to the east, resulting in a sequence of older to younger rocks resulted from west to east. To the west of the grave rock there are rocks of the Muschelkalk, in the central region occurs the younger Lower Keuper. Both units are large areas of cold- temporal loess. To the east of the grave field to Middle Keuper is. From the Tertiary basalts of Heldburger transition band in the extreme east of the grave field come. The DC mountains form prominent clingstones while maintaining the highest elevations in the grave field. In the north of the grave field in the direction of the Thuringian Forest Foreland emerge from disorders and bends (especially the Willmars Bibra saddle) deeper layers, especially rocks from the Muschelkalk.

The grave field is the type region of the grave field formation, a unit of the Middle Keuper lithostratigrafischen in the Germanic Triassic.

Climate and landscape

The grave field is an average of 300 m above sea level. NN lying inhomogeneous pool in the rain shadow of the Rhön. Rainfall of about 550 mm / yr can include it to the driest areas of Bavaria. The annual average temperatures will be around 8 ° C. Large areas of the grave field are used for arable farming on relatively fertile loess soils in more in relief areas is forest.

History

The grave field is a former East Frankish Gau, whose Gaugrafen are documented since 819. In a document from the year 813 a distinction is made between an eastern and a western grave field. The Gau associated with numerous Untergaue. Fulda beyond the Rhön was assigned to the western grave field ( grapfeld occidentalis).

Count field in the grave were the Frankish Babenberg:

• Poppo (I.), 819/839 Graf Saalgau
• Burchard I. 837 to 857 according to Graf in Grabfeldgau
• Christian called 857 and after 866
• Adalbert, son Poppos ( II ) 898/915 Count field in the grave
• Poppo ( III.), † 945, son of Adalbert, Count of grave box and Tullifeld

The Grabfeldgau was left in 1057 by Bishop of Würzburg Adalbero the Polish queen Richiza. After her death in 1063 the district came again into the possession of the Bishopric.

At the beginning of the High Middle Ages prevailed in the grave field, the Lords of Wildenberg, who called themselves after the castle Wildenberg in the Haßbergen. As allodium Castle County Würzburg, a large proportion of the country in 1157 in the possession of the county of Henneberg, 1190 the line Botenlauben 1274 line Aschach - Römhild.

The hen berg, now under Frankish parts of the country were acquired from 1353 gradually from the Bishopric of Würzburg. The court Römhild sold Count Berthold von Henneberg - Aschach 1548 to the Counts of Mansfeld. From this it came in 1555 to care for Coburg and thus to the Electorate of Saxony. As ernestinisches Duchy of Saxe - Römhild obtained the Römhilder grave field from 1680 to 1710 again for 30 years, a certain degree of independence until it came up in the Duchy of Saxe-Meiningen.

Ostheim vor der Rhön came in 1572 to Saxony -Coburg- Eisenach, was from 1741 an office of the Grand Duchy of Saxe-Weimar- Eisenach and was an exclave in 1920 to the newly established state of Thuringia. 1945 Ostheim was assigned as part of the American occupation zone the Free State of Bavaria and Thuringia was as enclave under Bavarian administration.

From 1949 to 1990, the inner German border ran through the middle of the grave field. Today, this landscape is one part of Lower Franconia in Bavaria and partly to the Free State of Thuringia. The old main Franconian dialect, the Grabfeldische is still spoken in the region.

Origin of the name

In his song of the Franks Joseph Victor von Scheffel mentioned the Grabfeldgau in the fourth stanza:

"... And seh ' the land of the river Main lying at my feet. From Bamberg to Grabfeldgau framing mountain and hill the broad stromdurchglänzte Au ... "

The origin of the name of the landscape grave field was not yet clear. However, there are some explanations:

German - German Freilandmuseum

You can relax while Thuringian Behrungen in the German - German open-air museum about the history along the running formerly also by the grave field inner-German border - inform - including the memorial German - German history.

Museums in the Schrannenplatz Bad Königshofen

The history along the former inner German border also covers the cross-border workers in the Bavarian town of Bad König Museum Mayrhofen. In the same building there is the archaeological museum which untder other prehistoric finds from the grave field.

ADAC Rallye grave field

Since 1994, organized by the AMC Bad Königshofen the ADAC Rallye grave field which has since been held annually in late June or early July in the very scenic grave field. The start and finish are located in the municipality Sulzdorf at the Lederhecke on the edge of the district of Rhön - grave field. The rally has become one of the largest and most important events in the grave field. The grave field rally is one of the biggest racing events of its kind in Europe and is known far beyond the borders of the grave field beyond. The 20th anniversary rally in the summer of 2013 attracted 10,000 spectators and more than 250 participants from home and abroad. Contributed the most demanding routes in the grave box on paths and roads along the former inner- German border and the support of the population and the policy and help that it has become the best-attended car rally event in Germany. On 5 July 2014, it will take place for the 21st time.

Mountains and ridges

The grave field whose interior is divided hilly and in many places has island-like hills, consists among others of these mountains and ridges that rise or in particular at the edge of the grave field - sorted by height in meters above mean sea level ( MSL ):

• Equal peaks, several peaks, with, among other things: Large DC Mountain ( 679 m), with mobile base mast; southeast of Römhild ( Thuringia)
• Less than or equal Mountain (641 m), with oppidum stone castle; east of Römhild ( Thuringia)