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Branzoll Castle
Castle Branzoll (, ) is on the southern slope of Mount Säben, below the Säben Abbey, and somewhat above the city of Klausen in South Tyrol, Italy. Blackmoor, the first fantasy roleplaying game campaign setting, used a kit model of the castle to represent the titular Castle Blackmoor. By 1155, the Lords of Säben from the Volser family had been named the burgraves of Hochstift Brixen on Mount Säben. Tensions arose in 1255 between Bishop Bruno von Kirchberg and some of his ministeriales, including Heinrich and Buchard von Säben. In the course of this dispute, the Lords of Säben built Branzoll castle at the entrance to the hilltop episcopal castle. Presently, the hilltop castle consists of a small inner bailey, protected by a zwinger and an outer bailey. The belfry is over 20 meters high. The zwinger has been partially reconstructed, and the outer bailey is now a garden. Restoration work was completed in 1912, which included the addition of a new residential struct ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hill Castle
A hill castle or mountain castle is a castle built on a natural feature that stands above the surrounding terrain. It is a term derived from the German ''Höhenburg'' used in categorising castle sites by their topographical location. Hill castles are thus distinguished from lowland castles (''Niederungsburgen''). Hill castles may be further subdivided depending on their situation into the following: * Hilltop castle (''Gipfelburg''), that stands on the summit of a hill with steep drops on all sides. A special type is the rock castle or ''Felsenburg''. * Ridge castle (''Kammburg''), that is built on the crest of a ridge. * Hillside castle (''Hangburg''), that is built on the side of a hill and thus is dominated by rising ground on one side. * Spur castle (''Spornburg''), that is built on a hill spur surrounded by steep terrain on three sides and thus only needs to be defended on the one remaining side. When in the 10th and 11th centuries castles lost their pure fortress charact ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ministerialis
The ''ministeriales'' (singular: ''ministerialis'') were a class of people raised up from serfdom and placed in positions of power and responsibility in the High Middle Ages in the Holy Roman Empire. The word and its German translations, ''Ministeriale(n)'' and ''Dienstmann'', came to describe those unfree nobles who made up a large majority of what could be described as the German knighthood during that time. What began as an irregular arrangement of workers with a wide variety of duties and restrictions rose in status and wealth to become the power brokers of an empire. The ''ministeriales'' were not legally free people, but held social rank. Legally, their liege lord determined whom they could or could not marry, and they were not able to transfer their lords' properties to heirs or spouses. They were, however, considered members of the nobility since that was a social designation, not a legal one. ''Ministeriales'' were trained knights, held military responsibilities and surr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Enceinte
Enceinte (from Latin incinctus: girdled, surrounded) is a French term that refers to the "main defensive enclosure of a fortification". For a castle, this is the main defensive line of wall towers and curtain walls enclosing the position. For a settlement, it would refer to the main town wall with its associated gatehouses, towers, and walls. According to the 1911 ''Encyclopædia Britannica'', the term was strictly applied to the continuous line of bastions and curtain walls forming "the body of the place", this last expression being often used as synonymous with ''enceinte''. However, the outworks or defensive wall close to the enceinte were not considered as forming part of it. In early 20th-century fortification, the enceinte was usually simply the ''innermost'' continuous line of fortifications. In architecture, generally, an enceinte is the close or precinct of a cathedral, abbey, castle, etc. This definition of the term differs from the more common use of enceinte as ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bergfried
''Bergfried'' (plural: ''bergfriede''; English: ''belfry''; French: ''tour-beffroi''; Spanish: ''torre del homenaje'') is a tall tower that is typically found in castles of the Middle Ages in German-speaking countries and in countries under German influence. Friar describes it as a "free-standing, fighting-tower".Friar (2003), p 36. Its defensive function is to some extent similar to that of a keep (also known as a ''donjon'') in English or French castles. However, the characteristic difference between a bergfried and a keep is that a bergfried was typically not designed for permanent habitation. Overview The living quarters of a castle with a bergfried are separate, often in a lower tower or an adjacent building called a ''palas'' (an English-style keep combines both functions of habitation and defence.) Consequently, a bergfried could be built as a tall slender tower with little internal room, few vaults and few if any windows. The bergfried served as a watchtower and as a ref ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Outer Bailey
An outer bailey or outer ward is the defended outer enclosure of a castle.Friar, Stephen (2003). ''The Sutton Companion to Castles'', Sutton Publishing, Stroud, 2003, p. 22. It protects the inner bailey and usually contains those ancillary buildings used for the management of the castle or the supply of its occupants. These domestic buildings could include workshops, livestock stalls and stables; storage facilities such as barns, sheds and granaries, as well as quarters for servants such as maids, farm workers, and even the castle governors or castellans. In many cases there was also a brewery, a bakehouse and a kitchen, if the latter was not located in the hall or ''palas''. An outer bailey was often called a base court in England. Depending on topography it could also be referred to as a lower bailey or lower ward, the keep being in the upper bailey or ward. Chepstow Castle has lower, middle and upper baileys. The domestic buildings of the continental ''schloss'', often a st ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Zwinger
"" () is a German word for outer ward or bailey (castle), outer bailey. It represents an open kill zone area between two defensive walls that is used for defensive purposes. s were built in the Post-classical history, post-classical and early modern periods to improve the defence of castles and town walls. The term is usually left untranslated, but is sometimes rendered as "outer courtyard", presumably referring to the subsequent role of a as a castle's defences became redundant and it was converted into a palace or ''schloss''; however, this belies its original purpose as a form of killing ground for the defence. The word is linked with , "to force", perhaps because the forced an enemy to negotiate it before assaulting the main defensive line. Essenwein states that the "main purpose of this feature was so that the besieging force could not reach the actual castle wall very easily with battering rams or belfry (siege engine), belfries, but had to stop at the lower, outer wall; ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Inner Bailey
The inner bailey or inner ward of a castle is the strongly fortified enclosure at the heart of a medieval castle.Friar, Stephen (2003). ''The Sutton Companion to Castles'', Sutton Publishing, Stroud, 2003, p. 22. It is protected by the outer ward and, sometimes also a ''Zwinger'', moats, a curtain wall and other outworks. Depending on topography it may also be called an upper bailey or upper ward. The inner bailey enclosed the most important living quarters and defensive elements for the lord and his family, e.g. the great hall, the ''palas'', the tower house and the keep or ''bergfried''. The castle well or cistern was usually found in the inner bailey, because water supplies were particularly important in the past in order to be able to withstand a siege for any length of time. The inner bailey is usually the oldest part of a castle, because it contains those buildings that were the first to be built during its construction. It often has flanking towers that enabled grazin ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hilltop Castle
A hilltop castle is a type of hill castle that was built on the summit of a hill or mountain. In the latter case it may be termed a mountaintop castle. The term is derived from the German, ''Gipfelburg'', which is one of a number of terms used in continental castellology to classify castles by topology. The chief advantage of such a strategically selected site was its inaccessibility. The steep flanks of the hill made assaults on the castle difficult or, depending on the terrain, even impossible. In addition, it often commanded excellent fields of view and fire over the surrounding countryside. The sheer height of the castle above the local area could also protect the occupants of the castle from bombardment. In addition, the prominent location of such a castle enhanced its status as a residence. Nevertheless, hilltop castles presented their logistic difficulties. Without sufficiently strong pumps, water supply could be problematic if there was no well in the vicinity. The tr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Prince-Bishopric Of Brixen
The Prince-Bishopric of Brixen (german: Hochstift Brixen, Fürstbistum Brixen, Bistum Brixen) was an ecclesiastical principality of the Holy Roman Empire in the present-day northern Italian province of South Tyrol. It should not be confused with the larger Catholic diocese, over which the prince-bishops exercised only the ecclesiastical authority of an ordinary bishop. The bishopric in the Eisack/Isarco valley was established in the 6th century and gradually received more secular powers. It gained imperial immediacy in 1027 and remained an Imperial Estate until 1803, when it was secularised to Tyrol. The diocese, however, existed until 1964, and is now part of the Diocese of Bolzano-Brixen. History The Diocese of Brixen is the continuation of that of Säben Abbey near Klausen, which, according to legend, was founded about 350 as ''Sabiona'' by Saint Cassian of Imola. As early as the 3rd century, Christianity had penetrated Sabiona, at that time a Roman custom station of con ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Klausen, South Tyrol
Klausen (; it, Chiusa ; Ladin: ''Tluses'' or ''Tlüses'') is a ''comune'' (municipality) in South Tyrol in northern Italy, located about northeast of the city of Bolzano. Geography As of 30 November 2010, it had a population of 5,144 and an area of .All demographics and other statistics: Italian statistical institute Istat. Klausen borders the following municipalities: Feldthurns, Lajen, Sarntal, Vahrn, Villanders and Villnöß. Frazioni The municipality of Klausen contains the ''frazioni'' (subdivisions, mainly villages and hamlets) Gufidaun (Gudon), Latzfons (Lazfons), and Verdings (Verdignes). History Klausen is first mentioned in 1027, in a document issued by emperor Conrad II, as ''Clausa sub Sabiona sita'', meaning chasm below the Säben Abbey. Coat-of-arms The emblem represents an argent dexter key on gules. The emblem was used as a seal from 1448, known from 1397 and granted in 1540 by Cardinal ''Bernhard von Cles'', Bishop of Brixen. Society Linguistic ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hochstift
In the Holy Roman Empire and the Catholic Church, the German language, German term (plural: ) referred to the territory ruled by a bishop as a prince (i.e. prince-bishop), as opposed to his diocese, generally much larger and over which he exercised only spiritual authority. The terms prince-bishopric (, or simply ) and ecclesiastical principality are synonymous with . and referred respectively to the territory (prince-archbishopric) ruled by a prince-archbishop and an elector-archbishop while referred to the territory ruled by an imperial abbot or abbess, or a Prince-abbot, princely abbot or abbess. was also often used to refer to any type of ecclesiastical principality. The was made of land mostly acquired in the Middle Ages through donations by the king/emperor, bequests by local lords or through purchase. It was often made of non-contiguous parts, some of which could be located outside the bishop's diocese. While a diocese is a spiritual territorial jurisdiction, a prin ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Burgraves
Burgrave, also rendered as burggrave (from german: Burggraf, la, burgravius, burggravius, burcgravius, burgicomes, also praefectus), was since the medieval period in Europe (mainly Germany) the official title for the ruler of a castle, especially a royal or episcopal castle, and its territory called a ''Burgraviate'' or ''Burgravate'' (German ''Burggrafschaft'' also ''Burggrafthum'', Latin ''praefectura'').Encyclopædia Britannica; Definition of ''burgrave (title)''/ref>Duden; Definition of ''Burggraf'' (in German)/ref> The burgrave was a "count" in rank (German ''Graf'', Latin ''comes'') equipped with judicial powers, under the direct authority of the emperor or king, or of a territorial imperial state—a prince-bishop or territorial lord. The responsibilities were administrative, military and jurisdictional. A burgrave, who ruled over a substantially large territory, might also have possessed the regality of coinage, and could mint his own regional coins (see silver bracte ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
