The Donnersberg ("thunder mountain") is the highest peak of the Palatinate (german: Pfalz) region of

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

. The mountain lies between the towns of

Rockenhausen Rockenhausen is a town in the Donnersbergkreis, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is situated on the river Alsenz, approx. north of Kaiserslautern. Rockenhausen is the seat of the ''Verbandsgemeinde'' ("collective municipality") Nordpfälzer ...

and Kirchheimbolanden, in the

Donnersbergkreis The Donnersbergkreis is a district (''Kreis'') in the middle of Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Neighboring districts are Bad Kreuznach, Alzey-Worms, Bad Dürkheim, Kaiserslautern, Kusel. History The district was created in 1969 by merging the dis ...

district, which is named after the mountain. The highway A63 runs along the southern edge of the Donnersberg. European walking route E8 runs across the mountain. The highest point of the Donnersberg is the rock ''Königstuhl'' ("king's seat") at 687 metres above sea level. The mountain has a diameter of about 7 kilometres and covers an area of some 2,400 hectares. The Donnersberg was formed by volcanic activity during the

Permian The Permian ( ) is a geologic period and System (stratigraphy), stratigraphic system which spans 47 million years from the end of the Carboniferous Period million years ago (Mya), to the beginning of the Triassic Period 251.9 Mya. It is the last ...

, in the transition period between the lower and upper

Rotliegend The Rotliegend, Rotliegend Group or Rotliegendes (german: the underlying red) is a lithostratigraphic unit (a sequence of rock strata) of latest Carboniferous to Guadalupian (middle Permian) age that is found in the subsurface of large areas in wes ...

strata. The name Donnersberg is thought to refer to

Donar Thor (; from non, Þórr ) is a prominent god in Germanic paganism. In Norse mythology, he is a hammer-wielding god associated with lightning, thunder, storms, sacred groves and trees, strength, the protection of humankind, hallowing, and ...

, the Germanic god of thunder, a theory supported by the fact that the

Romans Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy * Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

dubbed the Donnersberg ''Mons Jovis'' after their god of thunder,

Jupiter Jupiter is the fifth planet from the Sun and the largest in the Solar System. It is a gas giant with a mass more than two and a half times that of all the other planets in the Solar System combined, but slightly less than one-thousandth t ...

. According to other theories, the name of the mountain was derived from the Celtic ''dunum'' (meaning "mountain") or from the name of a Celtic deity,

Taranis In Celtic mythology, Taranis (Proto-Celtic: *''Toranos'', earlier ''*Tonaros''; Latin: Taranus, earlier Tanarus) is the god of thunder, who was worshipped primarily in Gaul, Hispania, Britain, and Ireland, but also in the Rhineland and Danube r ...

. During the Celtic La Tène period, around 150 BC, an important settlement (''

oppidum An ''oppidum'' (plural ''oppida'') is a large fortified Iron Age settlement or town. ''Oppida'' are primarily associated with the Celtic late La Tène culture, emerging during the 2nd and 1st centuries BC, spread across Europe, stretchi ...

'') was built on the Donnersberg, covering some 240 hectares. Part of the wall (''Keltenwall'') surrounding this settlement has been reconstructed. Archeological excavations are ongoing. In the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...

, five castles surrounded the strategically placed mountain: Tannenfels,

Wildenstein Wildenstein is a commune in the Haut-Rhin department in Grand Est in north-eastern France. Population See also * Communes of the Haut-Rhin department The following is a list of the 366 communes of the French department of Haut-Rhin. The ...

, Hohenfels, Falkenstein and

Ruppertsecken Ruppertsecken is a municipality in the Donnersbergkreis district, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europ ...

. Today, only ruins remain of these five castles. About 900 metres east of the ''Königstuhl'' rock, a 27 metres tall tower was constructed in 1864-1865, the ''Ludwigsturm''. After

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, a

radio mast Radio masts and towers are typically tall structures designed to support antennas for telecommunications and broadcasting, including television. There are two main types: guyed and self-supporting structures. They are among the tallest human-made ...

for the largest U.S. radio station in western Europe was placed on the Donnersberg. In the early 1960s, a new communications tower was constructed, stretching over 200 metres. The Donnersbergbahn is a railway line that runs from Alzey to Kirchheimbolanden. The line originally ran even further, to Marnheim, but on March 20, 1945, the Pfrimm Viaduct, a railway bridge between Kirchheimbolanden and Marnheim, was destroyed by withdrawing German troops, and it has not been rebuilt since. File:SenderDonnersberg-unten.jpg, Base of the over 200 metres tall radio and TV mast on top of Donnersberg File:Donnersberg-earthworks-01s.jpg, Earthworks of the Celtic

Hill fort A hillfort is a type of earthwork used as a fortified refuge or defended settlement, located to exploit a rise in elevation for defensive advantage. They are typically European and of the Bronze Age or Iron Age. Some were used in the post-Roma ...

File:Keltenwall.jpg, Recoonstructed Celtic fortification wall at the hillfort File:KeltendorfDJHSteinbachamDonnersberg.jpg, Reconstructed Celtic buildings at the hillfort

Sources

Donnersbergverein für Mensch und Natur: Der Donnersberg
(German)

(German) {{Authority control Former populated places in Germany Mountains and hills of Rhineland-Palatinate Mountains under 1000 metres Culture of the Palatinate (region) Treveri Laccoliths