Uhlenburg

Southern slope of the main castle on today's pond, riprap from 2004 to erosion

The Uhlenburg is the castle stables of a passed in the 14th century lowland castle near the Aller near Essel in Lower Saxony. The late medieval aristocratic residence was only a few decades in the late 14th century and 1393/94 violently destroyed.

Location

The former castle site is about 2 km east of Essel and about 2 km north of Buchholz (Aller) in the floodplain of the Aller to 25 m above sea level in the district of Engehausen. The passage is found in a loop of the river, about 250 meters from the River Aller. The former castle grounds is just like the rest of the vast lowland area extensively used as grassland.

Description

The Uhlenburg consisted of a small main castle and a larger outer bailey, which was adjacent to the north of it. The almost square main castle lay on a castle hill of about 30 meters per side, which still has a height of about 1.5 m and adjacent to the south of a pond. 2004, the embankment was secured to the pond with stones against erosion. To the west of the hill of the ditch, a wall is in front. The entire facility was surrounded by a moat, may be the main and forecastle presented as islands in a larger water surface dar. on the castle hill in the east there are a plateau-like depression on an area of ​​11 x 20 m. From here a causeway leads across the moat, the former approach can be assumed here. In the pond a row of piles was found that once belonged to the castle and when it might well have been palisades.

The site of the bailey is slightly elevated from the surrounding lowlands. It is about 100 m long and up to 40 m wide. Surrounded the entire castle from a narrow Gewässerarm, where it could be in the west and north around the river loop of a Altarms the Aller.

Archaeological investigations

Probably one unprofessional, first excavations at the castle site was held in 1906. In this individual iron objects, like a chain found. In 1926 there were excavations by a teacher and his students. According to the records of the rubble of a building was found without a plan could be detected in the main castle. Finds were brick remains, clay, pebbles and pottery shards and bones. It was noticeable ubiquitous charcoal, which was close to a destruction of the plant by fire.

The castle fell due to the good condition of their remains from 2001 strengthened in the interest of archaeologists. Since then, an extensive prospecting was carried out. These included field surveys, a magnetometer commission, a ground resistance measurements and photos of the aerial archeology. The explorations were to conclude that in the soil of the hill lies a layer of debris. Corpus of wood piles from the wet ground were subjected to dendrochronological dating and dated to 1370-1380. More finds at inspections were pottery sherds and tile pieces. Outstanding was the discovery of a sealing stamp of a lead -tin alloy. It shows the coat of arms of the lords of Hademstorf as former lords.

Despite the intensive explorations an excavation has been conducted in recent times and also not provided. The archaeological site is to serve as future research reserve, since the preservation conditions are ideal for this purpose in the humid lowlands of the Aller.

History

Owner of the castle were the masters of Hademstorf whose gender was first mentioned in 1237. 1372 Bruno, Johann and Heinrich Brothers as the masters of Hademsdorf be mentioned. The Uhlenburg is mentioned in a document from 1394. This reflects the Lords of Hademsdorf complained to the district of Lüneburg, that the dukes of Brunswick- Lüneburg Henry I. and Bernhard I would have destroyed the Uhlenburg, which would violate the Lüneburg Sate. Probably the dukes were before against the landed gentry to expand their sphere and to take over the customs office on the Aller. According to the charter of the donjon and two bowers were destroyed, some other buildings you 've saved. 1410 after his captivity vowed Heinrich von Hademsdorf against Henry I Urfehde. However, it is not known whether the prisoner was connected with the destruction of the Uhlenburg.

Similar fortifications of the area

In the valley of the Aller there were in the vicinity a number of other medieval castles, partly similar design which existed at a distance of a few kilometers. These include fortifications in Bierde, Ahlden (Aller ) ( Bunkenburg ), nettle ( Blankenburg Castle ), testicular Hagen ( Hagen castle testicles ), Rethem (Aller), Grethem (castle Blankenhagen ).

The Uhlenburg one of the former strongholds, the ( BALT ) were examined between 2003 and 2005 the project castle landscape Aller-Leine Valley. The project was supported by, among other European LEADER funding program, as the castle is in the Aller -Leine valley.

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