Schönburg Castle (German: Burg Schönburg), is in the municipality of Schönburg, Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. It has been proposed by Germany as a World Heritage Site.
| Schönburg Castle | |
|---|---|
 | |
  Schönburg Castle Location within Saxony-Anhalt  Schönburg Castle Schönburg Castle (Germany) | |
| General information | |
| Type | Castle |
| Location | Saxony-Anhalt |
| Country | Germany |
| Coordinates | 51°9′38″N 11°52′6″E / 51.16056°N 11.86833°E |
Location
editThe Late Romanesque ruins of Schönburg Castle are on top of a mottled sandstone cliff by the Saale River, which is 40 metres high and declines sharply in the west. The castle was built with the local mottled sandstone.
History
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The castle on top of the southern slopes of the Saale was erected as the most important castle in the 12th century on commission by the bishops of Naumburg. The bishops owned several castles within their territory to secure their assets. From 1158 at the latest, a free Schönberg noble family that owned property around Naumburg named itself after the castle. It was first documented in 1157. Schönburg has been preserved to this day and is an example from the time of classical castle construction.[1]
Architecture
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All the walls, gates and parts of the Palas have retained their original substance from the High Middle Ages, as have parts of the interior like visible chimneys dated to 1220 and decorated windows. The architecture and decorations found here correspond to other monuments in the World Heritage nomination.[2]
World Heritage Nomination
editSchönburg Castle is one of the eleven components of the cultural landscape “Naumburg Cathedral and the High Medieval Cultural Landscape of the Rivers Saale and Unstrut”. As a landmark the castle is an important part of the lines of sight connecting the cultural landscape as a whole.[note 1] [3] The World Heritage nomination is representative for the processes that shaped the continent during the High Middle Ages between 1000 and 1300: Christianization, the so-called “Landesausbau” and the dynamics of cultural exchange and transfer characteristic for this very period.[4][5]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ Schmitt, Reinhard (2003). Zur Geschichte und Baugeschichte der Schönburg, Burgenlandkreis. In: Burgen und Schlösser in Sachsen-Anhalt 12 [On the history of Schönburg, Burgenland. In: Castles and palaces in Saxony-Anhalt.] (in German). Saxony-Anhalt. pp. 15–79.
- ^ Baumgart, Uwe (1997). Die Schönburg. Bischofsburg zu Naumburg. Die erste Neufassung der Geschichte der Schönburg seit 1936 [Schönburg Castle. The castle of the Bishop of Naumburg. The amended version of the history of Schöburg since 1036.] (in German). Naumburg. pp. 15–79.
- ^ Rössler, Mechtild (2002). Linking Nature and Culture: World Heritage Cultural Landscapes. Unesco Press.
- ^ UNESCO (2017): WHC/17/41.COM/INF.8B1.Nominations to the World Heritage List (Krakow, 2017). UNESCO press. p. 54. Retrieved 5 May 2017.
- ^ Bartlett, Robert (1994). The Making of Europe: Conquest, Colonization and Cultural Change 950-1350. Penguin. ISBN 9780140154092.
Notes
edit- ^ The Förderverein Welterbe an Saale und Unstrut e.V. is the coordinating body for this nomination: http://www.naumburg-cathedral.de/.