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Duchy Of Gifhorn
The Duchy of Gifhorn (german: Herzogtum Gifhorn) with its residence at Gifhorn Castle was founded in 1539 and lasted only 10 years until the death of its ruler, Duke Francis of Brunswick-Lüneburg in 1549. It consisted of the '' Ämter'' of Gifhorn, Fallersleben and Isenhagen Abbey. Foundation The duchy was founded when Duke Francis of Brunswick-Lüneburg returned in 1536 after many years at the court of the Electorate of Saxony in Wittenberg. He demanded from his older brother, Duke Ernest of Brunswick-Lüneburg (known as ''the Confessor'' due to his espousal of Lutheran doctrine), to have his own duchy as an inheritance and pressed for a division of the state. Because his demands for the entire eastern half of the dukedom were unacceptable, not least due to the serious debt carried by the state, he was given the ''Ämter'' of Gifhorn, Fallersleben and Isenhagen Abbey, near Hankensbüttel, in 1539. Although Francis tried to achieve full sovereignty for his domain, considerable ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gifhorn Castle
Gifhorn Castle (german: Schloss Gifhorn) is a castle in Gifhorn, Germany, built between 1525 and 1581 in the Weser Renaissance style. The castle was fortified until 1790 with moats, ramparts and bastions and was never captured. In the 16th century it was the ''Residenz'' of the Duchy of Gifhorn under Duke Francis of Brunswick-Lüneburg for just 10 years. Design This well-fortified castle was built in the shape of a trapezium. It was surrounded by ramparts and a moat up to 50 metres wide. The immediate vicinity could be flooded to create a swamp. Stone bastion towers were built on the four corners of the site. These were linked to the castle by underground rampart passages (''Wallgänge'') in the form of casemates. A 45 metre long section is preserved today that led to the north bastion. Today it is used to house exhibitions for the castle museum. The original entrance to the castle was over a bridge on the narrow side of the castle moat in the southeast, that led to the gat ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Residenz
Residenz () is a German word for "place of living", now obsolete except in the formal sense of an official residence. A related term, Residenzstadt, denotes a city where a sovereign ruler resided, therefore carrying a similar meaning as the modern expressions ''seat of government'' or ''capital''. As there were many sovereign (imperially immediate) rulers in the Holy Roman Empire, ranking from Lord (''Herr'') to prince elector and king, there are many cities, palaces, and castles in this territory which used to be a residenz and are partially still so referred to today. The former residenz status of a city is frequently reflected by the architecture of its center. During the baroque period especially, many prestigious buildings were erected, sometimes even new towns were founded. Today, former ''Residenzstädte'' mostly still serve as cultural and administrative centers. Examples of buildings or cities: * Munich Residenz, the former residence of the monarchs of Bavaria. Munich r ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gifhorn (district)
Gifhorn () is a district in Lower Saxony, Germany. Geography The district is located at the border of Saxony-Anhalt and extends from the southern edge of the Lüneburg Heath () in the north to the suburbs of Braunschweig and Wolfsburg in the south. The Aller River enters the district in the southeast, runs through the town of Gifhorn, is joined by the Ise and Oker river and leaves the district in the west. The southern terminus of the Elbe Lateral Canal at the Mittellandkanal is at Edesbüttel in the district. It is bounded by (from the south and clockwise) the district of Helmstedt, the cities of Wolfsburg and Braunschweig, the districts of Peine, Hanover, Celle and Uelzen, and by the state of Saxony-Anhalt (districts of Altmarkkreis Salzwedel and Börde). The lowest point of the administrative district Gifhorn lies at the Aller near Müden ( above sea level). The highest point lies in the north of the district near Sprakensehl ( above sea level). History The district was es ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Former States And Territories Of Lower Saxony
A former is an object, such as a template, gauge or cutting die, which is used to form something such as a boat's hull. Typically, a former gives shape to a structure that may have complex curvature. A former may become an integral part of the finished structure, as in an aircraft fuselage, or it may be removable, being using in the construction process and then discarded or re-used. Aircraft formers Formers are used in the construction of aircraft fuselage, of which a typical fuselage has a series from the nose to the empennage, typically perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the aircraft. The primary purpose of formers is to establish the shape of the fuselage and reduce the column length of stringers to prevent instability. Formers are typically attached to longerons, which support the skin of the aircraft. The "former-and-longeron" technique (also called stations and stringers) was adopted from boat construction, and was typical of light aircraft built until the ad ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Duchies Of The Holy Roman Empire
A duchy, also called a dukedom, is a medieval country, territory, fief, or domain ruled by a duke or duchess, a ruler hierarchically second to the king or queen in Western European tradition. There once existed an important difference between "sovereign dukes" and dukes who were ordinary noblemen throughout Europe. Some historic duchies were sovereign in areas that would become part of nation-states only during the modern era, such as happened in Germany (once a federal empire) and Italy (previously a unified kingdom). In contrast, others were subordinate districts of those kingdoms that had unified either partially or completely during the medieval era, such as France, Spain, Sicily, Naples, and the Papal States. Examples In France, several duchies existed in the medieval period, including Normandy, Burgundy, Brittany, and Aquitaine. The medieval German stem duchies (german: Stammesherzogtum, literally "tribal duchy," the official title of its ruler being ''Herzog'' or "duke ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
1540s In The Holy Roman Empire
Year 154 ( CLIV) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Aurelius and Lateranus (or, less frequently, year 907 ''Ab urbe condita''). The denomination 154 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years. Events By place Roman Empire * King Eupator of Bosphorus pays tribute to Rome, due to the threat posed by the Alani. * The Antonine Wall is completed. Asia * Last (2nd) year of ''Yongxing'' era of the Chinese Han Dynasty. * Adalla becomes ruler of the Korean kingdom of Silla. By topic Religion * Anicetus becomes pope of Rome (approximate date). * Anicetus meets with Polycarp of Smyrna to discuss the Computus, the date of Easter in the Christian liturgical calendar. * Change of Patriarch of Constantinople from Patriarch Euzois to Patriarch Laur ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Principality Of Lüneburg
The Principality of Lüneburg (later also referred to as Celle) was a territorial division of the Duchy of Brunswick-Lüneburg within the Holy Roman Empire, immediately subordinate to the emperor. It existed from 1269 until 1705 and its territory lay within the modern-day state of Lower Saxony in Germany. The principality was named after its first capital, Lüneburg (also called Lunenburg in English), which was ruled jointly by all Brunswick-Lüneburg lines until 1637. From 1378, the seat of the principality was in Celle. It lost its independence in 1705 when it was annexed by the Electorate of Brunswick-Lüneburg, but retained its vote in the Reichstag as Brunswick-Celle. Territory When the Principality of Lüneburg emerged as a result of the division of Brunswick-Lüneburg in 1269, the domain of the Lüneburg princes consisted of a large number of territorial rights in the region of Lüneburg. However, it could not be described as a unified state, because many rights were owne ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sarcophagus
A sarcophagus (plural sarcophagi or sarcophaguses) is a box-like funeral receptacle for a corpse, most commonly carved in stone, and usually displayed above ground, though it may also be buried. The word ''sarcophagus'' comes from the Greek σάρξ ' meaning "flesh", and φαγεῖν ' meaning "to eat"; hence ''sarcophagus'' means "flesh-eating", from the phrase ''lithos sarkophagos'' ( λίθος σαρκοφάγος), "flesh-eating stone". The word also came to refer to a particular kind of limestone that was thought to rapidly facilitate the decomposition of the flesh of corpses contained within it due to the chemical properties of the limestone itself. History of the sarcophagus Sarcophagi were most often designed to remain above ground. The earliest stone sarcophagi were used by Egyptian pharaohs of the 3rd dynasty, which reigned from about 2686 to 2613 B.C. The Hagia Triada sarcophagus is a stone sarcophagus elaborately painted in fresco; one style of later A ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ratzeburg
Ratzeburg (; Low German: ''Ratzborg'') is a town in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. It is surrounded by four lakes—the resulting isthmuses between the lakes form the access lanes to the town. Ratzeburg is the capital of the district Herzogtum Lauenburg. History The town was founded in the 11th century as Racisburg. The name is traditionally derived from the local Wendish ruler, Prince Ratibor of the Polabians, who was nicknamed Ratse. In the year 1044 Christian missionaries under the leadership of the monk Ansverus came into the region and built a monastery. It was destroyed in a pagan rebellion in 1066; the monks were stoned to death. Today monuments to the missionaries in two of the town's churches commemorate these events. Ansverus was canonised in the 12th century and his relics were entombed in the Ratzeburg cathedral. Henry the Lion became the ruler of the town in 1143 and established a bishopric in 1154. He was also responsible for the construction of the late Romane ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Clara Of Saxe-Lauenburg
Clara of Saxe-Lauenburg (13 December 1518 – 27 March 1576) was a Princess of Saxe-Lauenburg and Duchess of Brunswick-Gifhorn by marriage. Life Clara was born on 13 December 1518 in Lauenburg upon Elbe, a daughter of Duke Magnus I of Saxe-Lauenburg (1470–1543) and his wife Catherine (1488–1563), daughter of Duke Henry I of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel. She married Duke Francis of Brunswick-Gifhorn (1508–1549) on 29 September 1547 in the Saxe-Lauenburgian castle at Neuhaus in Darzing. The couple were greatly loved by their subjects even if their short marriage of convenience was unlucky. Clara, who was very benevolent and went into medicine, used to prepared an herbal beer (''Kräuterbier'') for the poor and sick, which was produced long after her death. Following the untimely death of her husband, Clara lived at the dower pledged to her as a life annuity in Fallersleben, where she finished building her castle A castle is a type of fortified structure built duri ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fallersleben Castle
Fallersleben Castle (german: Schloss Fallersleben) is located in Wolfsburg in the German state of Lower Saxony and, together with Neuhaus and Wolfsburg Castles, is one of the most important historic buildings in the town. It is in the district of Fallersleben and forms an historic setting along with the castle lake, St. Michael's Church and the Old Brewery. Construction The castle was built from 1520 to 1551, after its predecessor had been destroyed during the Hildesheim Diocesan Feud (1518–23). It was originally laid out as a horseshoe with the courtyard open on its south side. By 1760 the castle was surrounded by a moat, about 12 metres wide and 5 metres deep. Access was only possible over two bridges. One bridge and a section of moat was reconstructed in 1998 on the basis of archaeological excavations. Before that its water castle character was scarcely recognisable because the moats had been filled in. Of the original three wings of the castle, only the west wing, with ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Court Jester
A jester, court jester, fool or joker was a member of the household of a nobleman or a monarch employed to entertain guests during the medieval and Renaissance eras. Jesters were also itinerant performers who entertained common folk at fairs and town markets, and the discipline continues into the modern day, where jesters perform at historical-themed events. During the Middle Ages, jesters are often thought to have worn brightly colored clothes and eccentric hats in a motley pattern. Their modern counterparts usually mimic this costume. Jesters entertained with a wide variety of skills: principal among them were song, music, and storytelling, but many also employed acrobatics, juggling, telling jokes (such as puns, stereotypes, and imitation), and performing magic tricks. Much of the entertainment was performed in a comic style. Many jesters made contemporary jokes in word or song about people or events well known to their audiences. Etymology The modern use of the English ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
