Calenberg Castle
Encyclopedia
Calenberg Castle was a medieval lowland castle
in central Germany, near Schulenburg in the borough of Pattensen
, 13 km west of the city of Hildesheim
. It was built as a water castle
in 1292 by the Welf duke, Otto the Strict, in der Leine river meadows between 2 branches of the Leine river on the southern part of the chalk marl hill of the Calenberg
. At the start of the 16th century it was converted into a fort (Feste). In the 15th century, Fort Calenberg gave its name to the Welf Principality of Calenberg. Following the Thirty Years' War
it lost its military importance and was slighted
. Today it is a ruin with underground vaults that are surrounded by high ramparts.
fest ("strong", "firm" or "immovable"). The adjective in turn has its roots in the Middle High German
and Middle Low German
word veste and the Old High German
word festi meaning: fortress, castle, fortification and security of a location.
The word syllables Kal, Kalen-, Calen- in the word Calenberg are derived from the word kal in the Middle High German
and Middle Low German
languages and mean "bare", "stripped" or "treeless". The name formations with Kal, Kalen or Calen could refer to the geological base of rock or stone. So the word Calenberg means the same as kahler Berg or "bare hill".
The following variations have been noted: dat hus to der kalenborch 1327, dat slot kalenberch 1350, ...unse del des slotes der Kalenborch 1363, to dem Kalenberge, unse Slot de Kalenberch 1406, Haus Calenberg 1661, Fürstl. Ambtshaus, Fürstl. Palladium 1663, Altes Schloß Calenberg 1730, Auf dem Alten Calenberg 1777, Alt Calenberg 1854, Alt-Kalenberg 1896..
stage. Before the castle was built, the Calenberg rose some 10 metres above the water meadows between the river arms of the Leine that existed at that time It covered not just the site of Calenberg Castle, but extended a further 500 metres forther north to the River Leine. As a result the castle moats had to be cut over 10 metres deep into the layer of chalk marl. During high water the Calenberg still rises like an island in the surrounding floodwaters.
The name Calenberg clearly indicates that the chalk marl stratum was not tree-covered, but stood proud of the Leine meadows as a "bare hill". The river terrace of the Leine had, in former times, laid down gravel to the north and south of the chalk marl step, that was later covered with loess
and river loam (Auelehm). The builders of the water castle used this gravel, loess and loam to build the ramparts. Stone for the foundation walls and fortifications of Calenberg Castle were extracted from a quarry on the north side of the Calenberg, which was used until the second half of the twentieth century as a rubbish tip and then covered with topsoil.
was built on the island of Calenberg as a lowland fort in the middle of the River Leine, which used to form the border of the episcopal region of Hildesheim. The castle was laid out on a raised plateau about 50 × 70 m in area. Around it was a moat, which was later refilled when the castle was rebuilt into a much larger fortification. Originally the water castle was a three-storey motte and bailey structure (Turmhügelburg) with a floor plan of 14.4 × 14.4 m. It had a residential wing to the north. The castle dominated the military road or Heerstraße
from Gestorf through the Leine valley to Hildesheim.
Although the castle had an important location as a border fortification, it was enfeoffed as early as 1327 to the knight, Conrad of Saldern, due to a lack of funding. He was also permitted to establish an unfortified town to the south of the castle. The settlement of Lauenstadt, founded in 1327, never fully developed however. In 1613 it ranked last in a list of towns in the Principality of Calenberg. Until about 1900 markets were held in Lauenstadt, at which everyday items were sold in open stalls.
By 1350 the castle had been enhanced with a long west wing (32.6 × 9.6 m) adjoined by another gate tower (13.9 × 13.9 m). The rest of the bailey was surrounded by a curtain wall
. In 1363 there was a mill belonging to the castle and a customs station on the Leine bridge.
The von Saldern family had to relinquish the castle in 1364 to Duke William
because they had participated in a secret pact with the Bishop of Hildesheim.
In 1380 Calenberg Castle withstood a siege by the Bishop of Hildesheim; after which the episcopal castle of Nabershausen near Barnten was slighted. In 1371 the castle became the seat of the ducal advocates (Vögte) in the 'Grand Advocacy' (Großvogtei) of Calenberg and, in 1432, it was named as a Residenz
for one of the Welf dukes. From 1405 the castle became the administrative seat of the Advocacy (Vogtei) of Calenberg.
into a modern fortress, accessible over two bridges. The most important measure was the construction of a 700 m long wall, which was to protect the castle square from gunfire. The main wall with eight stone sconces
was surrounded by a 40 m wide moat, which was flooded by a channel from the Rössingbach stream. In front of the western entrance with its drawbridge
, an unfortified 'island' (Vorwerksinsel) was laid out and given the field name Die Bleiche. Directly behind the bridge was the three-story battery tower, about 24 m in diameter with 2 m thick walls and gun slits arranged in pairs. The fort was defended by seventeen guns and was thus better equipped than the towns of Göttingen and Hanover that belonged to the Principality.
The fortress of Calenberg survived several sieges. During the Great Diocesan Feud in 1519 it was besieged for three weeks without success. In the Thirty Years War the fortress of Calenberg was besieged in 1625 for three weeks by Tilly and it was surrendered only after a mutiny
by the troops. In 1632 the Welf duke, George of Brunswick-Calenberg
, fighting on the Swedish side, did not initially succeed in retaking the castle despite a six-week siege. Only after his victory in the Battle of Hessisch-Oldendorf and another siege, was he able to capture the heavily damaged fortress of Calenberg in 1633.
and to achieve territorial gains. At the start of the 16th century the water castle was converted into a manor house (Schloss). But it was not big enough to host the court, and was not surrounded by a larger settlement. So it was never a palace, but more of a manor house and was only the seat of the advocacy for a limited time. The actual administrative centre of the Principality was in Neustadt
. The fortress of Calenberg was, however, regarded by the princes as their ancestral home and was looked after accordingly.
In 1634, after a number of divisions of the estate, the principalities of Calenberg and Göttingen were merged into the Principality of Brunswick-Lüneburg-Celle and, after the granting of electorate status in 1692, became part of the Electorate of Hanover
. In 1636, Duke George of Brunswick-Calenberg recaptured the territory for the House of Welf during the Thirty Years with the help of Swedish troops, and chose Hanover as a residence. From 1648 the manor house itself was turned back into a fortress. It then served as a garrison
, from 1673 as a glass factory and then as a prison. The fortress was repaired again from 1656 to 1662.
from the Catholic Emperor. At the Lutheran synod
of Münden in 1549, the Lutheran reformer, Anton Corvinus, and the Pattensen preacher, Walter Hoiker, (also Hocker), together with 140 priests, voiced their bitter opposition to the Interim.
As a result on 2 November 1549, Eric II placed Anton Corvinus and Walter Hoiker in custody in Calenberg Fortress for contempt
to force them and the other clergy to accept the Interim. The prisoners were well cared for, could receive and reply to letters and talk to visitors through an open window. After the Peace of Passau
, when the Emperor declared the Interim invalid and Eric II had fallen out of favour with him, the two prisoners were released on 21 October 1552.
In the left foreground stand the gallows (Das alte Gericht) and, behind them, the desmesne of New Calenberg (Domäne Neues Calenberg; labelled as B. Fürstlich Vorwerck in the key), with houses of that period. In the background are the fortifications of Calenberg enclosing various buildings (A. Das Schloss) with a house for employees on the defensive island in front of the fortress. To the right of the fort are the houses of Lauenstadt (D. Lawenstat); in front of them, on the near bank of the Leine (G. Leina Fluss), is the Calenberg Mill (C. Die Mühle). In the right foreground is the village of Schulenburg (F. Dorf Schulenburg) and, behind on the other side of the Leine, the village of Rössing (E. Dorf Rossing). To the rear left is the village of Barnten (H. Bornden). The unnamed village on the right behind the fortress is Emmerke
.
The place of execution, Das alte Gericht, was located north of Schulenburg's Poggenworth Pond (Poggenworthsteich) at the southern edge of the military road from Schulenburg to Gestorf (now the L 460 state road) on the site of the abandoned village of Herbergen. The gallows were later replaced by a new execution site, Das neue Gericht, which was located northeast of the present intersection of the B 3 road with the L 460.
.
As a result the castle was abandoned and, in 1690, demolished due to its dilapidated state. In 1692 Calenberg Fortress was slighted, the southern castle was removed and the moats were filled in. Consequently the city of Hanover was fortified. In 1669 on the left bank of the Leine the desmesne of New Calenberg (Neues Calenberg) was established in the present-day Calenberg Manor House (Hausgut Calenberg) in Schulenburg, along with the then brewery of 1673 and with the Amt of Calenberg, which acted as an intermediate administration until the 19the century.
In 1765, from the stones of the demolished castle, a prison (Criminal-Gefängnis) was built in the northeastern part of the fortress site. It was surrounded by protective walls and served as a gaol until 1930. It was demolished before the Second World War. South of it stood the accommodation for the prison warders and the legal staff (Gerichtsboten); here there were 2 detention cells with barred windows. This building later served as a private house with an outbuilding to the south; it had been demolished by 1981.
A row of two half-timbered houses dating from 1830 stood centrally on the foundation of the west wing of the early 14th century castle. To the south was a stone building, the southern cellar entrance of which still exists and is called the Corvinus Cellar (Corvinuskeller). The area lying to the east of the demolished castle was used as a garden. The buildings were occupied by three families in 1981, but became so dilapidated that they had to be completely removed in the following years. The gardens were planted with forest trees. A hydrant
by the track indicates where the old buildings used to be. Although the buildings were removed, the cellars remained, several entrances were filled in, others are still open. By 1990 the ruins were restored by Rasch, a stonemasons' company from Schulenburg, using stones found on the site. One of their finds was a decorative stone that resembled a coat of arms, which was set over the lintel of the entrance to the Corvinus Cellar. In the Corvinus Cellar is the inscription "Have patience, brother".
In the 19th century the Welfs built Marienburg Castle on the Schulenberg Hill (Schulenburger Berg) which belongs to Ernest Augustus VI, Prince of Hanover and acts as a museum and restaurant.
According to oral tradition there were also underground escape tunnels to Lauenstadt and the Bishopric of Hildesheim. The ramparts still exist to the northwest, north and northeast. The surrounding moats are no longer filled with water. The whole area is overgrown with trees, bushes and stinging nettles, and there are also snowdrops and wild narcissi.
Since the end of the 20th century an ecumenical church service has been held in the morning on Ascension Day in good weather in the southern part of Calenberg Castle. (as at: 2007).
. It is protected by traffic lights and may only be crossed in one direction at a time. The bridge is a listed monument. It was renovated in summer 2008.
At the end of the Second World War, two citizens from Adensen, Conrad Kösel and Rudolf Ohlmer, wanted to prevent German soldiers from blowing up the bridges at Marienberg and the Leine Bridge at Schulenburg. When they arrived at the Marienberg Bridge on 6 April 1945 it had already been blown up. Together with Hans Bremer, the owner of the Calenberg Mill, they were able to prevent the Calenberg Bridge being blown. Conrad Kösel and Rudolf Ohlmer were shot dead in their car during the retreat on the K 506 road just before Adensen by the advancing tanks of the US Army. The Calenberg Bridge had already been prepared for demolition, but Hans Bremer had invited the demolition guard commando of the Volkssturm
to vespers and entertained his guests for so long that the bridge was seized by the allies
.
The Calenberg Mill on an island in the Leine river near Schulenburg was a water mill. Its predecessor is portrayed on the Merian copperplate (see above). The first Calenberg Mill, however, was located in Calenberg Castle itself.
Lowland castle
The term lowland castle or plains castle describes a type of castle based that is situated on a lowland, plain or valley floor, as opposed to one built on higher ground such as a hill spur...
in central Germany, near Schulenburg in the borough of Pattensen
Pattensen
Pattensen is a town in the district of Hanover, in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is situated approx. 12 km south of Hanover.-History:It was the capital of the Principality of Calenberg until 1636, when the capital moved to the town of Hanover, from which the state of Hanover was...
, 13 km west of the city of Hildesheim
Hildesheim
Hildesheim is a city in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is located in the district of Hildesheim, about 30 km southeast of Hanover on the banks of the Innerste river, which is a small tributary of the Leine river...
. It was built as a water castle
Water castle
A water castle is a castle or stately home whose site is entirely surrounded by moats or natural waterbodies. Topographically water castles are a type of lowland castle.There is a further distinction between:...
in 1292 by the Welf duke, Otto the Strict, in der Leine river meadows between 2 branches of the Leine river on the southern part of the chalk marl hill of the Calenberg
Calenberg
The Principality of Calenberg was a dynastic division of the Welf duchy of Brunswick-Lüneburg in the Holy Roman Empire from 1494 until 1705, when Elector George I Louis, Prince of Calenberg, inherited the Principality of Lüneburg to form the state of Hanover....
. At the start of the 16th century it was converted into a fort (Feste). In the 15th century, Fort Calenberg gave its name to the Welf Principality of Calenberg. Following the Thirty Years' War
Thirty Years' War
The Thirty Years' War was fought primarily in what is now Germany, and at various points involved most countries in Europe. It was one of the most destructive conflicts in European history....
it lost its military importance and was slighted
Slighting
A slighting is the deliberate destruction, partial or complete, of a fortification without opposition. During the English Civil War this was to render it unusable as a fort.-Middle Ages:...
. Today it is a ruin with underground vaults that are surrounded by high ramparts.
Etymology
The word Feste or Veste ("fort") stems, like the words Festung ("fortress") and Befestigung ("fortification") from the adjectiveAdjective
In grammar, an adjective is a 'describing' word; the main syntactic role of which is to qualify a noun or noun phrase, giving more information about the object signified....
fest ("strong", "firm" or "immovable"). The adjective in turn has its roots in the Middle High German
Middle High German
Middle High German , abbreviated MHG , is the term used for the period in the history of the German language between 1050 and 1350. It is preceded by Old High German and followed by Early New High German...
and Middle Low German
Middle Low German
Middle Low German is a language that is the descendant of Old Saxon and is the ancestor of modern Low German. It served as the international lingua franca of the Hanseatic League...
word veste and the Old High German
Old High German
The term Old High German refers to the earliest stage of the German language and it conventionally covers the period from around 500 to 1050. Coherent written texts do not appear until the second half of the 8th century, and some treat the period before 750 as 'prehistoric' and date the start of...
word festi meaning: fortress, castle, fortification and security of a location.
The word syllables Kal, Kalen-, Calen- in the word Calenberg are derived from the word kal in the Middle High German
Middle High German
Middle High German , abbreviated MHG , is the term used for the period in the history of the German language between 1050 and 1350. It is preceded by Old High German and followed by Early New High German...
and Middle Low German
Middle Low German
Middle Low German is a language that is the descendant of Old Saxon and is the ancestor of modern Low German. It served as the international lingua franca of the Hanseatic League...
languages and mean "bare", "stripped" or "treeless". The name formations with Kal, Kalen or Calen could refer to the geological base of rock or stone. So the word Calenberg means the same as kahler Berg or "bare hill".
The following variations have been noted: dat hus to der kalenborch 1327, dat slot kalenberch 1350, ...unse del des slotes der Kalenborch 1363, to dem Kalenberge, unse Slot de Kalenberch 1406, Haus Calenberg 1661, Fürstl. Ambtshaus, Fürstl. Palladium 1663, Altes Schloß Calenberg 1730, Auf dem Alten Calenberg 1777, Alt Calenberg 1854, Alt-Kalenberg 1896..
Location on the Calenberg
The castle site stands on a low hill, the Calenberg, which is . The hill was formed almost 100 million years ago at the beginning of the Upper Cretaceous during the CenomanianCenomanian
The Cenomanian is, in the ICS' geological timescale the oldest or earliest age of the Late Cretaceous epoch or the lowest stage of the Upper Cretaceous series. An age is a unit of geochronology: it is a unit of time; the stage is a unit in the stratigraphic column deposited during the corresponding...
stage. Before the castle was built, the Calenberg rose some 10 metres above the water meadows between the river arms of the Leine that existed at that time It covered not just the site of Calenberg Castle, but extended a further 500 metres forther north to the River Leine. As a result the castle moats had to be cut over 10 metres deep into the layer of chalk marl. During high water the Calenberg still rises like an island in the surrounding floodwaters.
The name Calenberg clearly indicates that the chalk marl stratum was not tree-covered, but stood proud of the Leine meadows as a "bare hill". The river terrace of the Leine had, in former times, laid down gravel to the north and south of the chalk marl step, that was later covered with loess
Loess
Loess is an aeolian sediment formed by the accumulation of wind-blown silt, typically in the 20–50 micrometre size range, twenty percent or less clay and the balance equal parts sand and silt that are loosely cemented by calcium carbonate...
and river loam (Auelehm). The builders of the water castle used this gravel, loess and loam to build the ramparts. Stone for the foundation walls and fortifications of Calenberg Castle were extracted from a quarry on the north side of the Calenberg, which was used until the second half of the twentieth century as a rubbish tip and then covered with topsoil.
Water castle
The old water castleWater castle
A water castle is a castle or stately home whose site is entirely surrounded by moats or natural waterbodies. Topographically water castles are a type of lowland castle.There is a further distinction between:...
was built on the island of Calenberg as a lowland fort in the middle of the River Leine, which used to form the border of the episcopal region of Hildesheim. The castle was laid out on a raised plateau about 50 × 70 m in area. Around it was a moat, which was later refilled when the castle was rebuilt into a much larger fortification. Originally the water castle was a three-storey motte and bailey structure (Turmhügelburg) with a floor plan of 14.4 × 14.4 m. It had a residential wing to the north. The castle dominated the military road or Heerstraße
Heerstraße
Heerstraße is German for:*a military road that was built in order to enable the rapid movement of armies overland.*specific roads built for this purpose including the:** Aachen-Frankfurter Heerstraße** Bernauer Heerstraße** Georgische Heerstraße...
from Gestorf through the Leine valley to Hildesheim.
Although the castle had an important location as a border fortification, it was enfeoffed as early as 1327 to the knight, Conrad of Saldern, due to a lack of funding. He was also permitted to establish an unfortified town to the south of the castle. The settlement of Lauenstadt, founded in 1327, never fully developed however. In 1613 it ranked last in a list of towns in the Principality of Calenberg. Until about 1900 markets were held in Lauenstadt, at which everyday items were sold in open stalls.
By 1350 the castle had been enhanced with a long west wing (32.6 × 9.6 m) adjoined by another gate tower (13.9 × 13.9 m). The rest of the bailey was surrounded by a curtain wall
Curtain wall (fortification)
A curtain wall is a defensive wall between two bastions of a castle or fortress.In earlier designs of castle the curtain walls were often built to a considerable height and were fronted by a ditch or moat to make assault difficult....
. In 1363 there was a mill belonging to the castle and a customs station on the Leine bridge.
The von Saldern family had to relinquish the castle in 1364 to Duke William
William II, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg
William II, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg was the Prince of Lüneburg from 1330 to 1369.- Life :William was born around the year 1300 as the fourth child of Otto the Strict and his wife, Matilda of Bavaria....
because they had participated in a secret pact with the Bishop of Hildesheim.
In 1380 Calenberg Castle withstood a siege by the Bishop of Hildesheim; after which the episcopal castle of Nabershausen near Barnten was slighted. In 1371 the castle became the seat of the ducal advocates (Vögte) in the 'Grand Advocacy' (Großvogtei) of Calenberg and, in 1432, it was named as a Residenz
Residenz
Residenz is a very formal, otherwise obsolete, German word for "place of living". It is in particular used to denote the building or town where a sovereign ruler resided, therefore also carrying a similar meaning as the modern expressions seat of government or capital...
for one of the Welf dukes. From 1405 the castle became the administrative seat of the Advocacy (Vogtei) of Calenberg.
Fortress
Following the introduction of firearms the moated castle was no longer capable of resisting attack. At the beginning of the 16th century, and before the Hildesheim Diocesan Feud, it was therefore rebuilt under Eric IEric I, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg
Eric I, the Elder was Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg from 1495 and the reigning prince of Calenberg-Göttingen.- Ancestry :Eric I was born on 16 February 1470 in Neustadt am Rübenberge at the castle of Rovenburg....
into a modern fortress, accessible over two bridges. The most important measure was the construction of a 700 m long wall, which was to protect the castle square from gunfire. The main wall with eight stone sconces
Sconce (fortification)
A Sconce is a small protective fortification, such as an earthwork often placed on a mound as a defensive work for artillery. It was used primarily in Northern Europe from the late Middle Ages until the 19th century. This type of fortification was common during the English Civil War, and the...
was surrounded by a 40 m wide moat, which was flooded by a channel from the Rössingbach stream. In front of the western entrance with its drawbridge
Drawbridge
A drawbridge is a type of movable bridge typically associated with the entrance of a castle surrounded by a moat. The term is often used to describe all different types of movable bridges, like bascule bridges and lift bridges.-Castle drawbridges:...
, an unfortified 'island' (Vorwerksinsel) was laid out and given the field name Die Bleiche. Directly behind the bridge was the three-story battery tower, about 24 m in diameter with 2 m thick walls and gun slits arranged in pairs. The fort was defended by seventeen guns and was thus better equipped than the towns of Göttingen and Hanover that belonged to the Principality.
The fortress of Calenberg survived several sieges. During the Great Diocesan Feud in 1519 it was besieged for three weeks without success. In the Thirty Years War the fortress of Calenberg was besieged in 1625 for three weeks by Tilly and it was surrendered only after a mutiny
Mutiny
Mutiny is a conspiracy among members of a group of similarly situated individuals to openly oppose, change or overthrow an authority to which they are subject...
by the troops. In 1632 the Welf duke, George of Brunswick-Calenberg
George, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg
George, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg ruled as Prince of Calenberg from 1635.He was a son of William, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg and Dorothea of Denmark . His mother was daughter to Christian III of Denmark and Dorothea of Saxe-Lauenburg...
, fighting on the Swedish side, did not initially succeed in retaking the castle despite a six-week siege. Only after his victory in the Battle of Hessisch-Oldendorf and another siege, was he able to capture the heavily damaged fortress of Calenberg in 1633.
Aristocratic role
The fortress helped to reduce the influence of the bishops of Hildesheim, with whom the Welfs lived in constant conflict, in the region of HanoverHanover
Hanover or Hannover, on the river Leine, is the capital of the federal state of Lower Saxony , Germany and was once by personal union the family seat of the Hanoverian Kings of Great Britain, under their title as the dukes of Brunswick-Lüneburg...
and to achieve territorial gains. At the start of the 16th century the water castle was converted into a manor house (Schloss). But it was not big enough to host the court, and was not surrounded by a larger settlement. So it was never a palace, but more of a manor house and was only the seat of the advocacy for a limited time. The actual administrative centre of the Principality was in Neustadt
Neustadt am Rübenberge
Neustadt am Rübenberge is a town in the district of Hanover, in Lower Saxony, Germany. At 357 km², it is the 9th largest settlement in Germany by area , though only about 45,000 inhabitants live there...
. The fortress of Calenberg was, however, regarded by the princes as their ancestral home and was looked after accordingly.
In 1634, after a number of divisions of the estate, the principalities of Calenberg and Göttingen were merged into the Principality of Brunswick-Lüneburg-Celle and, after the granting of electorate status in 1692, became part of the Electorate of Hanover
Electorate of Hanover
The Electorate of Brunswick-Lüneburg was the ninth Electorate of the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation...
. In 1636, Duke George of Brunswick-Calenberg recaptured the territory for the House of Welf during the Thirty Years with the help of Swedish troops, and chose Hanover as a residence. From 1648 the manor house itself was turned back into a fortress. It then served as a garrison
Garrison
Garrison is the collective term for a body of troops stationed in a particular location, originally to guard it, but now often simply using it as a home base....
, from 1673 as a glass factory and then as a prison. The fortress was repaired again from 1656 to 1662.
Imprisonment of Corvinus
The Catholic duke, Eric II accepted in 1548 the Augsburg InterimAugsburg Interim
The Augsburg Interim is the general term given to an imperial decree ordered on May 15, 1548, at the 1548 Diet of Augsburg, after Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, had defeated the forces of the Schmalkaldic League in the Schmalkaldic War of 1546/47...
from the Catholic Emperor. At the Lutheran synod
Synod
A synod historically is a council of a church, usually convened to decide an issue of doctrine, administration or application. In modern usage, the word often refers to the governing body of a particular church, whether its members are meeting or not...
of Münden in 1549, the Lutheran reformer, Anton Corvinus, and the Pattensen preacher, Walter Hoiker, (also Hocker), together with 140 priests, voiced their bitter opposition to the Interim.
As a result on 2 November 1549, Eric II placed Anton Corvinus and Walter Hoiker in custody in Calenberg Fortress for contempt
Contempt of court
Contempt of court is a court order which, in the context of a court trial or hearing, declares a person or organization to have disobeyed or been disrespectful of the court's authority...
to force them and the other clergy to accept the Interim. The prisoners were well cared for, could receive and reply to letters and talk to visitors through an open window. After the Peace of Passau
Peace of Passau
Holy Roman Emperor Charles V had won a victory against Protestantism in the Schmalkaldic War of 1547. Many Protestant princes were unhappy with the religious terms of the Augsburg Interim imposed after this victory. In January 1552, led by Maurice of Saxony, many formed an alliance with Henry II of...
, when the Emperor declared the Interim invalid and Eric II had fallen out of favour with him, the two prisoners were released on 21 October 1552.
Merian copperplate
In 1654 Caspar Merian (1627–1686) published his copperplate of Calenberg Fortress in Topographia Germaniae Braunschweig-Lüneburg, which was based on a sketch by survey engineer, Conrad Buno. The copperplate shows a perspective view from the village of Gestorf towards Hildesheim, i.e. from northwest to southeast.In the left foreground stand the gallows (Das alte Gericht) and, behind them, the desmesne of New Calenberg (Domäne Neues Calenberg; labelled as B. Fürstlich Vorwerck in the key), with houses of that period. In the background are the fortifications of Calenberg enclosing various buildings (A. Das Schloss) with a house for employees on the defensive island in front of the fortress. To the right of the fort are the houses of Lauenstadt (D. Lawenstat); in front of them, on the near bank of the Leine (G. Leina Fluss), is the Calenberg Mill (C. Die Mühle). In the right foreground is the village of Schulenburg (F. Dorf Schulenburg) and, behind on the other side of the Leine, the village of Rössing (E. Dorf Rossing). To the rear left is the village of Barnten (H. Bornden). The unnamed village on the right behind the fortress is Emmerke
Emmerke
Emmerke is a part of the municipality of Giesen in the district of Hildesheim, Lower Saxony, in north-western Germany.-Geography:Emmerke is approx.6 km of the district town Hildesheim and 25 km from the state capital Hanover...
.
The place of execution, Das alte Gericht, was located north of Schulenburg's Poggenworth Pond (Poggenworthsteich) at the southern edge of the military road from Schulenburg to Gestorf (now the L 460 state road) on the site of the abandoned village of Herbergen. The gallows were later replaced by a new execution site, Das neue Gericht, which was located northeast of the present intersection of the B 3 road with the L 460.
Fall of the fortress
After the Thirty Years War the fortress was no longer capable against the greater ranges of guns. In addition there was also a security risk because, if enemies took possession of it, they could threaten the Calenberg LandCalenberg Land
The Calenberg Land is a historic landscape southwest of Hanover in Germany, roughly formed by the countryside between the Leine and the Deister hills...
.
As a result the castle was abandoned and, in 1690, demolished due to its dilapidated state. In 1692 Calenberg Fortress was slighted, the southern castle was removed and the moats were filled in. Consequently the city of Hanover was fortified. In 1669 on the left bank of the Leine the desmesne of New Calenberg (Neues Calenberg) was established in the present-day Calenberg Manor House (Hausgut Calenberg) in Schulenburg, along with the then brewery of 1673 and with the Amt of Calenberg, which acted as an intermediate administration until the 19the century.
In 1765, from the stones of the demolished castle, a prison (Criminal-Gefängnis) was built in the northeastern part of the fortress site. It was surrounded by protective walls and served as a gaol until 1930. It was demolished before the Second World War. South of it stood the accommodation for the prison warders and the legal staff (Gerichtsboten); here there were 2 detention cells with barred windows. This building later served as a private house with an outbuilding to the south; it had been demolished by 1981.
A row of two half-timbered houses dating from 1830 stood centrally on the foundation of the west wing of the early 14th century castle. To the south was a stone building, the southern cellar entrance of which still exists and is called the Corvinus Cellar (Corvinuskeller). The area lying to the east of the demolished castle was used as a garden. The buildings were occupied by three families in 1981, but became so dilapidated that they had to be completely removed in the following years. The gardens were planted with forest trees. A hydrant
Hydrant
A hydrant is an outlet from a fluid main often consisting of an upright pipe with a valve attached from which fluid can be tapped. Depending on the fluid involved, the term may refer to:*Fire hydrant*Oil depot*Yard hydrant...
by the track indicates where the old buildings used to be. Although the buildings were removed, the cellars remained, several entrances were filled in, others are still open. By 1990 the ruins were restored by Rasch, a stonemasons' company from Schulenburg, using stones found on the site. One of their finds was a decorative stone that resembled a coat of arms, which was set over the lintel of the entrance to the Corvinus Cellar. In the Corvinus Cellar is the inscription "Have patience, brother".
In the 19th century the Welfs built Marienburg Castle on the Schulenberg Hill (Schulenburger Berg) which belongs to Ernest Augustus VI, Prince of Hanover and acts as a museum and restaurant.
Present-day ruins
The remains of the fortress lie in the area of Old Calenberg (Alt Calenberg), which has been part of the Calenberg-Leine Valley Protected Landscape (Landschaftsschutzgebiet Calenberger Leinetal) since 1997. Of the fortress and the motte, only the rampoarts, cellars and foundations of the fort, the manor house, the Corvinus Cellar and ruins of the battery tower remain. The battery tower and its 2 cellars have been locked since the middle of 2008. Bats hibernate in the vaulted cellars under the two wings of the castle. From 1 October to 30 April the hibernating animals must not be disturbed. In one vault there is a stone well, several metres deep. The underground cellars are so extensive that, on one occasion, two children that had strayed into them had to be rescued by the emergency services.According to oral tradition there were also underground escape tunnels to Lauenstadt and the Bishopric of Hildesheim. The ramparts still exist to the northwest, north and northeast. The surrounding moats are no longer filled with water. The whole area is overgrown with trees, bushes and stinging nettles, and there are also snowdrops and wild narcissi.
Since the end of the 20th century an ecumenical church service has been held in the morning on Ascension Day in good weather in the southern part of Calenberg Castle. (as at: 2007).
Calenberg Bridge and Mill
A bridge over the River Leine between Calenberg Fortress and the village of Schulenburg was mentioned in the records as long ago as 1363. The existing stone bridge with three elliptical arches on two river piers was built in 1751 from chalk sandstone blocks and dated on the coat of arms stone with a monogramme of King George IIGeorge II of Great Britain
George II was King of Great Britain and Ireland, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg and Archtreasurer and Prince-elector of the Holy Roman Empire from 11 June 1727 until his death.George was the last British monarch born outside Great Britain. He was born and brought up in Northern Germany...
. It is protected by traffic lights and may only be crossed in one direction at a time. The bridge is a listed monument. It was renovated in summer 2008.
At the end of the Second World War, two citizens from Adensen, Conrad Kösel and Rudolf Ohlmer, wanted to prevent German soldiers from blowing up the bridges at Marienberg and the Leine Bridge at Schulenburg. When they arrived at the Marienberg Bridge on 6 April 1945 it had already been blown up. Together with Hans Bremer, the owner of the Calenberg Mill, they were able to prevent the Calenberg Bridge being blown. Conrad Kösel and Rudolf Ohlmer were shot dead in their car during the retreat on the K 506 road just before Adensen by the advancing tanks of the US Army. The Calenberg Bridge had already been prepared for demolition, but Hans Bremer had invited the demolition guard commando of the Volkssturm
Volkssturm
The Volkssturm was a German national militia of the last months of World War II. It was founded on Adolf Hitler's orders on October 18, 1944 and conscripted males between the ages of 16 to 60 years who were not already serving in some military unit as part of a German Home Guard.-Origins and...
to vespers and entertained his guests for so long that the bridge was seized by the allies
Allies
In everyday English usage, allies are people, groups, or nations that have joined together in an association for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not explicit agreement has been worked out between them...
.
The Calenberg Mill on an island in the Leine river near Schulenburg was a water mill. Its predecessor is portrayed on the Merian copperplate (see above). The first Calenberg Mill, however, was located in Calenberg Castle itself.
Sources
- Die Kunstdenkmale der Provinz Hannover Bd. 29: I,3 Kreis Springe. Hannover 1941, S. 30 bis 32, 191 bis 192.
- Kurt Brüning, Heinrich Schmidt (Herausgeber): Handbuch der historischen Stätten Deutschlands. Bd. 2: Niedersachsen und Bremen. 4. Aufl., Alfred Kröner Verlag, Stuttgart 1976. S. 91-93.
- Edgar Kalthoff: Die Burg und Feste Calenberg – Versuch einer Rekonstruktion. In: Burgen und Schlösser, 19 (1), 1978, S. 2-11
- Edgar Kalthoff: Die Geschichte der Burg Calenberg. In: Niedersächsisches Jahrbuch für Landesgeschichte, 50 (1978), S. 321-346
- Historisches Museum am Hohen Ufer, Hannover, Burgstraße (Hrsg.): Calenberg – Von der Burg zum Fürstentum. Hannover 1979
- Carl-Hans Hauptmeyer: Calenberg – Geschichte und Gesellschaft einer Landschaft. Hannover 1983
- Eckard Steigerwald: Pattensen. Zur Geschichte und Entwicklung der Dörfer (bis Ende des 16. Jahrhunderts). Herausgabe und Vertrieb: Stadt Pattensen 1986.
- Eckard Steigerwald: Wie wirklichkeitsgetreu ist Merians Stich von der Feste Calenberg? In: Burgen und Schlösser 1992/I, S. 23-25.
- Henner Hannig: Landkreis Hannover. Denkmaltopographie Bundesrepublik Deutschland. Baudenkmale in Niedersachsen Bd. 13.1. Verlag Friedr. Vieweg & Sohn, Braunschweig und Wiesbaden 1988. S. 128f u. 238ff.
- Eckard Steigerwald: Die Feste Calenberg: ein vergessenes Denkmal niedersächsischer Geschichte? Rotary Club Calenberg-Pattensen, Pattensen ca. 1991.
- Georg DehioGeorg DehioGeorg Gottfried Julius Dehio , was a Baltic German art historian ....
: Handbuch der Deutschen Kunstdenkmäler. Bremen, Niedersachsen. Deutscher Kunstverlag, München und Berlin 1992, ISBN 3-422-03022-0 - Margret Zimmermann, Hans Kensche: Burgen und Schlösser im Hildesheimer Land. Lax Verlag, Hildesheim, 2. Aufl. 2001.
Maps
- Flurnamenkarte 1:10.000 Blatt 5/3 Gestorf des Landkreises Hannover, Abt. Kartographie, o. J. (1986).
- Flurnamenlexikon zur Flurnamenkarte, Hrsg. vom Landkreis Hannover. Bearb. Heinz Weber Teil 5,3: Gestorf. Schriftenreihe: Flurnamensammlung des Landkreises Hannover. o. J. (1986).
- Flurnamenkarte 1:10.000 Blatt 6/3 Alt-Calenberg des Landkreises Hannover, Abt. Kartographie, o. J. (1981).
- Flurnamenlexikon zur Flurnamenkarte, Hrsg. vom Landkreis Hannover. Bearb. Heinz Weber Teil 6,3: Alt-Calenberg. Schriftenreihe: Flurnamensammlung des Landkreises Hannover. o. J. (1987).
Archives
- GSTA Berlin, HA STA Königsberg, HBA A2 1584–1586 (K. 92) Inventarium 3: Calenberg.
- Celle Br 2 Nr. 335, Br 57 Nr. 126.
- HSTA Düsseldorf, Werden Akten V d, Nr. 1, Bl. 2.
- Nds. Hauptstaatsarchiv Hannover, Cal Br 2 Nr. 78 + 335, Cal Br 8 Nr. 944, Cal Br 21, 2869, Hann 74 Cal. Nr. 93 + 1302 + 1303 + 1342, Hann 76 c B Nr. 101, Hann 88A Nr. 989.