A ''Ganerbenburg'' (plural: ''Ganerbenburgen'') is a castle occupied and managed by several families or family lines at the same time. These families shared common areas of the castle including the courtyard, well, and chapel, whilst maintaining their own private living quarters.
''Great Castles'' glossary
at great-castles.com. Retrieved 24 Jan 2014. They occurred primarily in medieval Germany.
''Ganerbenburgen'' and ''Ganerbschaft''
The German word ''ganerbe'' appears in the Middle High German
Middle High German (MHG; german: Mittelhochdeutsch (Mhd.)) is the term for the form of German spoken in the High Middle Ages. It is conventionally dated between 1050 and 1350, developing from Old High German and into Early New High German. High ...
romance
Romance (from Vulgar Latin , "in the Roman language", i.e., "Latin") may refer to:
Common meanings
* Romance (love), emotional attraction towards another person and the courtship behaviors undertaken to express the feelings
* Romance languages, ...
, ''Parzival
''Parzival'' is a medieval romance (heroic literature), romance by the knight-poet Wolfram von Eschenbach in Middle High German. The poem, commonly dated to the first quarter of the 13th century, centers on the Arthurian hero Percival, Parziva ...
'', written by Wolfram von Eschenbach
Wolfram von Eschenbach (; – ) was a German knight, poet and composer, regarded as one of the greatest epic poets of medieval German literature. As a Minnesinger, he also wrote lyric poetry.
Life
Little is known of Wolfram's life. There are ...
around 1200. The legal term ''Ganerbschaft'' appears from textual evidence to go back at least to the second half of the 9th century. In Old High German
Old High German (OHG; german: Althochdeutsch (Ahd.)) is the earliest stage of the German language, conventionally covering the period from around 750 to 1050.
There is no standardised or supra-regional form of German at this period, and Old High ...
, ''gan'' meant "common", "joint" or "commoner". Accordingly, the term ''Ganerbenburg'' may be roughly translated as "common inheritors' castle". The first historically verifiable ''Ganerbschaft'' arrangement appears in the 13th century in Alsace
Alsace (, ; ; Low Alemannic German/ gsw-FR, Elsà ss ; german: Elsass ; la, Alsatia) is a cultural region and a territorial collectivity in eastern France, on the west bank of the upper Rhine next to Germany and Switzerland. In 2020, it had ...
at the castle of Haut-KÅ“nigsbourg.
''Ganerbenburgen'' often came about as a result of a type of inheritance known as a ''Ganerbschaft
A ''Ganerbschaft'' (plural: ''Ganerbschaften'' in German), according to old German inheritance law, was a joint family estate, mainly land, over which the co-heirs (''Ganerben'') only had rights in common. In modern German legal parlance it corres ...
'' ("Common/Joint Inheritance"). Each branch of the family built, usually, their own residential building within a common curtain wall. Sometimes these residences were expanded into independent castles in their own right within the common castle site. ''Ganerbenburgen'' also resulted from the sale of parts of a castle in times of financial hardship or through the pledging or enfeoffment
In the Middle Ages, especially under the European feudal system, feoffment or enfeoffment was the deed by which a person was given land in exchange for a pledge of service. This mechanism was later used to avoid restrictions on the passage of ti ...
of an element of the castle.
The castles of powerful feudal lords were often planned from the outset as ''Ganerbenburgen''. Each castellan or ''Burgmann
From the 12th century in central Europe, a ''Burgmann'' (plural: ''Burgmannen'' or modern term ''Burgmänner'', Latin: ''oppidanus'', ''castrensus'') was a knight ministeriales or member of the nobility who was obliged to guard and defend castles. ...
'' was responsible for the management
Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business.
Management includes the activities o ...
and defence
Defense or defence may refer to:
Tactical, martial, and political acts or groups
* Defense (military), forces primarily intended for warfare
* Civil defense, the organizing of civilians to deal with emergencies or enemy attacks
* Defense industr ...
of a sector of the castle. This was not just for practical reasons; the higher nobility
Nobility is a social class found in many societies that have an aristocracy (class), aristocracy. It is normally ranked immediately below Royal family, royalty. Nobility has often been an Estates of the realm, estate of the realm with many e ...
naturally wanted to limit the power of their liegemen ('' Dienstmannen''). A good example of this is the Franconian castle of Salzburg
Salzburg (, ; literally "Salt-Castle"; bar, Soizbuag, label=Bavarian language, Austro-Bavarian) is the List of cities and towns in Austria, fourth-largest city in Austria. In 2020, it had a population of 156,872.
The town is on the site of the ...
near Bad Neustadt an der Saale
Bad Neustadt an der Saale, officially Bad Neustadt a. d. Saale and often simply called Bad Neustadt, is a town in northern Bavaria, Germany. It is the capital of the Rhön-Grabfeld district in Lower Franconia. It is situated on the rivers Fränki ...
, a castle enfeoffed (''Lehensburg'') by the Würzburg bishops.
''Ganerbenburgen'' that had evolved were sometimes forced to submit to the suzerainty of more powerful feudal lords. The Würzburg chronicler, Lorenz Fries, mentioned three such examples in his bishop's chronicle. In 1458, the joint lords of Steckelberg Castle
Steckelberg Castle (german: Burg Steckelberg) is a ruined hill castle near Ramholz, in the borough of the East Hessian town of Schlüchtern in Germany.
Location
The ruins of the old castle lie east of Vollmerz and northeast of Ramholz on th ...
near Schlüchtern
Schlüchtern is a town in the Main-Kinzig district, in Hessen, Germany. It is located on the river Kinzig, approximately 30 km southwest of Fulda. Schlüchtern has a population close to 16,000.
Location
Schlüchtern is located in the '' Ber ...
refused access to the bishop and attempted to modernize the castle fortifications. Bishop John III of Grumbach
John of Grumbach (german: Johann von Grumbach) (?–1466) was prince-bishop of Würzburg as "John III" from 1455 until his death in 1466.
Literature
*
* Alfred Wendehorst: ''Das Bistum Würzburg Teil 3 - Die Bischofsreihe von 1455 bis 1617'' ...
eventually asserted his authority after a military conflict.
In 1478, despite an imperial mandate, the mighty imperial city
In the Holy Roman Empire, the collective term free and imperial cities (german: Freie und Reichsstädte), briefly worded free imperial city (', la, urbs imperialis libera), was used from the fifteenth century to denote a self-ruling city that ...
of Nuremberg
Nuremberg ( ; german: link=no, Nürnberg ; in the local East Franconian dialect: ''Nämberch'' ) is the second-largest city of the German state of Bavaria after its capital Munich, and its 518,370 (2019) inhabitants make it the 14th-largest ...
had to acquiesce to Count Palatine Otto II of Mosbach selling Rothenberg Castle
Rothenberg Fortress (german: Festung Rothenberg) is a fortress on the eponymous hill, 588 m, near Schnaittach in the Franconian Jura.
Beginnings
The first fortifications were probably built between 1300 and 1330 by Dietrich von Wildens ...
above Schnaittach
Schnaittach is a market town in Middle Franconia, Bavaria, Germany.
Geography
Schnaittach is on the river Schnaittach, a tributary of the Pegnitz.
History
Schnaittach was first mentioned in 1011. Until 1806 the Christian population of S ...
to a community of 44 Franconian knights. This group of knight
A knight is a person granted an honorary title of knighthood by a head of state (including the Pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church or the country, especially in a military capacity. Knighthood finds origins in the Gr ...
s wanted to build a strong bulwark against competition from the rich citizens, who they deeply mistrusted. Significantly, the higher nobility were denied co-ownership; only the most important Franconian families from the lesser nobility were permitted to participate in joint ownership.
Legal foundations
A legal requirement for the establishment of a ''Ganerbschaft'' was the enfeoffment of the castle estate to the ''gesamten Hand'' ("whole hand"), in other words, all the feoffee
Under the feudal system in England, a feoffee () is a trustee who holds a fief (or "fee"), that is to say an estate in land, for the use of a beneficial owner. The term is more fully stated as a feoffee to uses of the beneficial owner. The use o ...
s were given equal possession of the fief
A fief (; la, feudum) was a central element in medieval contracts based on feudal law. It consisted of a form of property holding or other rights granted by an Lord, overlord to a vassal, who held it in fealty or "in fee" in return for a for ...
, an arrangement described as ''hantgemal''. All were given the same rights over their inheritance; they managed a common budget and, where appropriate, had certain officers and judges in common.
The so-called ''hantgemal'' agreement was particularly important for laying down the social privileges and estate rights of the noble families involved. A joint inheritance or ''Ganerbschaft'' ensured that all family members had this special status and prevented their social status being lowered.
As the number of co-heirs increased, ownership interests and rights were defined and assigned. Externally, however, it appeared like a closed community, and the division of the estate could be somewhat notional. Each heir had a share known as the ''Marzahl'' and these shares could vary in size. A ''Mutschierung'' was an internal agreement over rights of usage. Each joint owner was able to run their own household, but the overall joint community was maintained.
Full enfeoffment to co-heirs was practised in some territories up to the 15th century, thereafter it was enacted through a vassal, a ''Gesamthänder''.
Other ''Ganerbschaften'' were first established by ''Burgfrieden
The or 'c.fBurgfriedeat Duden online. was a German medieval term that referred to imposition of a state of truce within the jurisdiction of a castle, and sometimes its estate, under which feuds, i.e. conflicts between private individuals, were ...
'' agreements, for example following the purchase or seizure by force of the castle. Such agreements could also be dissolved. The ''Ganerbschaft'' was also terminated if a party to it was able to take possession of the entire estate.
Where the co-heirs agreed internally to a division of the whole land and property, the ''Ganerbschaft'' was usually wound up. This so-called ''Totteilung'' (''Watschar'' or ''Watschierung''), allowed the former co-heirs unrestricted disposal of their ownership interest. But, against that, they lost rights to the remaining common estate. The defence obligations of the entire castle still had to be maintained, however.
This often not very smooth communal existence of the co-heirs and their families was governed by the so-called ''Burgfrieden
The or 'c.fBurgfriedeat Duden online. was a German medieval term that referred to imposition of a state of truce within the jurisdiction of a castle, and sometimes its estate, under which feuds, i.e. conflicts between private individuals, were ...
'' ("castle peace"). Often the co-heirs used the central facilities of the castle, such as the ''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 ...
'' or chapel
A chapel is a Christian place of prayer and worship that is usually relatively small. The term has several meanings. Firstly, smaller spaces inside a church that have their own altar are often called chapels; the Lady chapel is a common ty ...
, jointly. The community usually chose one of the castellans (''Burgmannen
From the 12th century in central Europe, a ''Burgmann'' (plural: ''Burgmannen'' or modern term ''Burgmänner'', Latin: ''oppidanus'', ''castrensus'') was a knight ministeriales or member of the nobility who was obliged to guard and defend castles. ...
'') as the master builder and set up a join fund, which financed the necessary cost of maintenance of the entire estate. Much like a modern homeowner association
A homeowner association (or homeowners' association, abbreviated HOA, sometimes referred to as a property owners' association or POA), or a homeowner community, is a private association-like entity often formed either ''ipso jure'' in a building ...
, people held an annual meeting to discuss any problems.
The original purpose of ''Ganerbschaft'', to preserve a property
Property is a system of rights that gives people legal control of valuable things, and also refers to the valuable things themselves. Depending on the nature of the property, an owner of property may have the right to consume, alter, share, r ...
without dividing it, soon proved in practice to be no longer tenable. ''Ganerbenburgen'' sometimes had up to 50, in individual cases over 80, different joint owners, not all of whom were able to live in the castle. In the case of a feud
A feud , referred to in more extreme cases as a blood feud, vendetta, faida, clan war, gang war, or private war, is a long-running argument or fight, often between social groups of people, especially families or clans. Feuds begin because one part ...
, the attacker had to be very careful only to besiege the part of the castle owned by their enemy, without infringing the rights of neutral co-heirs.
Many ''Ganerbschaften'' were turned into a fee tail
In English common law, fee tail or entail is a form of trust established by deed or settlement which restricts the sale or inheritance of an estate in real property and prevents the property from being sold, devised by will, or otherwise alien ...
in the Late Middle Ages
The Late Middle Ages or Late Medieval Period was the Periodization, period of European history lasting from AD 1300 to 1500. The Late Middle Ages followed the High Middle Ages and preceded the onset of the early modern period (and in much of Eur ...
. A member of the family association or community governed by the agreement would be the owner of the undivided and inalienable estate, but his powers were very restricted.
Distribution
''Ganerbenburgen'' are predominantly found in Central Europe
Central Europe is an area of Europe between Western Europe and Eastern Europe, based on a common historical, social and cultural identity. The Thirty Years' War (1618–1648) between Catholicism and Protestantism significantly shaped the area' ...
. The majority were established in those territories that were the most subdivided: Franconia
Franconia (german: Franken, ; Franconian dialect: ''Franggn'' ; bar, Frankn) is a region of Germany, characterised by its culture and Franconian dialect (German: ''Fränkisch'').
The three administrative regions of Lower, Middle and Upper Fr ...
, Hesse
Hesse (, , ) or Hessia (, ; german: Hessen ), officially the State of Hessen (german: links=no, Land Hessen), is a States of Germany, state in Germany. Its capital city is Wiesbaden, and the largest urban area is Frankfurt. Two other major histor ...
, the Rhine Valley
), Surselva, Graubünden, Switzerland
, source1_coordinates=
, source1_elevation =
, source2 = Rein Posteriur/Hinterrhein
, source2_location = Paradies Glacier, Graubünden, Switzerland
, source2_coordinates=
, source ...
, and Swabia
Swabia ; german: Schwaben , colloquially ''Schwabenland'' or ''Ländle''; archaic English also Suabia or Svebia is a cultural, historic and linguistic region in southwestern Germany.
The name is ultimately derived from the medieval Duchy of ...
. The ''Ganerbschaft'' was also very common in the states of Baden
Baden (; ) is a historical territory in South Germany, in earlier times on both sides of the Upper Rhine but since the Napoleonic Wars only East of the Rhine.
History
The margraves of Baden originated from the House of Zähringen. Baden is ...
, Württemberg
Württemberg ( ; ) is a historical German territory roughly corresponding to the cultural and linguistic region of Swabia. The main town of the region is Stuttgart.
Together with Baden and Hohenzollern, two other historical territories, Würt ...
and the Alsace
Alsace (, ; ; Low Alemannic German/ gsw-FR, Elsà ss ; german: Elsass ; la, Alsatia) is a cultural region and a territorial collectivity in eastern France, on the west bank of the upper Rhine next to Germany and Switzerland. In 2020, it had ...
. In regions in which multiple inheritance or enfeoffment (''Gesamtbelehnung'' or ''gesamte Hand'') was uncommon, such as Silesia
Silesia (, also , ) is a historical region of Central Europe that lies mostly within Poland, with small parts in the Czech Republic and Germany. Its area is approximately , and the population is estimated at around 8,000,000. Silesia is split ...
, Mecklenburg
Mecklenburg (; nds, label=Low German, Mękel(n)borg ) is a historical region in northern Germany comprising the western and larger part of the federal-state Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. The largest cities of the region are Rostock, Schwerin ...
and Holstein
Holstein (; nds, label=Northern Low Saxon, Holsteen; da, Holsten; Latin and historical en, Holsatia, italic=yes) is the region between the rivers Elbe and Eider. It is the southern half of Schleswig-Holstein, the northernmost state of German ...
, no ''Ganerbschaften'' are recorded.
In France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
and England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
, by contrast, large castles were usually in the hands of a single powerful feudal lord. This is mainly due to the different way that feudalism developed in those countries.
Several examples of large "multi-family castles" have survived, especially in southern France and the Massif Central
The (; oc, MassÃs Central, ; literally ''"Central Massif"'') is a highland region in south-central France, consisting of mountains and plateaus. It covers about 15% of mainland France.
Subject to volcanism that has subsided in the last 10,00 ...
. Foremost among these are the Tours de Merle (Saint-Geniez-ô-Merle
Saint-Geniez-ô-Merle (Limousin: ''Sent Genes au Merle'') is a commune in the Corrèze department in central France.
Geography
The Maronne river forms the commune's southern boundary.
Population
See also
*Communes of the Corrèze departmen ...
, Corrèze
Corrèze (; oc, Corresa) is a department in France, named after the river Corrèze which runs through it. Although its prefecture is Tulle, its most populated city is Brive-la-Gaillarde. Corrèze is located in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, ...
). Also in the Limousin
Limousin (; oc, Lemosin ) is a former administrative region of southwest-central France. On 1 January 2016, it became part of the new administrative region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine. It comprised three departments: Corrèze, Creuse, and Haute-Vienn ...
is the smaller castle of ''Château de Saint-Hilaire et des Plas'' at Curemonte
Curemonte (; Limousin: ''Curamonta'') is a commune in the Corrèze department in central France. It is a medieval village characterised by its three castles. In a fortified position on a ridge overlooking a valley on both its eastern and western ...
. In north and central France, too, several very large castles ended up as joint enfeoffments, such as the giant castle of Chauvigny
Chauvigny (; Poitevin dialect, Poitevin: ''Chôvigni'') is a Communes of France, commune in the Vienne Departments of France, department in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine Regions of France, region in western France.
Chauvigny is located east of Poitiers ...
(Vienne
Vienne (; Poitevin-Saintongeais: ''Viéne'') is a landlocked department in the French region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine. It takes its name from the river Vienne. It had a population of 438,435 in 2019.[Eltz Castle
Eltz Castle (german: Burg Eltz) is a medieval castle nestled in the hills above the Moselle between Koblenz and Trier, Germany. It is still owned by a branch of House of Eltz who have lived there since the 12th century. Eltz Castle along with BÃ ...]
on the Moselle river. Other examples include: Lichtenstein Castle, Altenstein Castle in Lower Franconia
Lower Franconia (german: Unterfranken) is one of seven districts of Bavaria, Germany. The districts of Lower, Middle and Upper Franconia make up the region of Franconia.
History
After the founding of the Kingdom of Bavaria the state was totally r ...
, Windeck Castle near Bühl in Baden, Salzburg Castle
Salzburg Castle (german: Burg Salzburg) stands on the edge of a plateau above the town of Bad Neustadt an der Saale in Lower Franconia in southern Germany. The large ''Ganerbenburg'' (jointly inherited castle) is still partly occupied today and ...
in Bad Neustadt an der Saale, Liebenstein
Liebenstein is a village and a former municipality in the district Ilm-Kreis, in Thuringia, Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Euro ...
on the Rhine, Leonrod Castle in Dietenhofen
Dietenhofen is a Municipalities of Germany, municipality in the district of Ansbach (district), Ansbach in Bavaria, Germany.
Geography
This small village is located in the Franconian Heights about 28 km west of Nuremberg, 14 km north e ...
and Lindheim Castle Lindheim Castle (german: Burg Lindheim) is a former medieval castle in Lindheim, in the municipality of Altenstadt, Wetteraukreis county, in the German state of Hesse. In the Middle Ages the castle became a large joint inheritance or ''Ganerbscha ...
in the Wetterau
The Wetterau is a fertile undulating tract, watered by the Wetter, a tributary of the Nidda River, in the western German state of Hesse, between the hilly province Oberhessen and the north-western Taunus mountains.
Bettina von Arnim writes of We ...
.
References
Literature
* Karl Friedrich Alsdorf: ''Untersuchungen zur Rechtsgestalt und Teilung deutscher Ganerbenburgen.'' Dissertation. Universität Köln 1979. Lang, Frankfurt am Main etc., 1980, (''Rechtshistorische Reihe.'' Vol. 9).
* Christoph Bachmann: ''Ganerbenburgen.'' In: ''Deutsche Burgenvereinigung'' by Horst Wolfgang Böhme (ed.): ''Burgen in Mitteleuropa. Ein Handbuch.'' Vol. 2: ''Geschichte und Burgenlandschaften.'' Theiss, Stuttgart 1999, , pp. 39–41.
* Henning Becker: ''Familiensoziologische Untersuchungen hessischer Ganerbenfamilien des 14. bis 17. Jahrhunderts am Beispiel der Schenken zu Schweinsberg und der von Hatzfeld.'' Dissertation. Freie Universität Berlin, 1983. Berlin, 1983.
* Horst W. Böhme, Reinhard Friedrich, Barbara Schock-Werner
Barbara Schock-Werner (born 23 July 1947, Ludwigsburg) is a German architect, and was until her retirement end of August 2012 the master builder at Cologne Cathedral with overall responsibility for conservation and restoration work. With the offi ...
(Hrsg.): ''Wörterbuch der Burgen, Schlösser und Festungen.'' Reclam, Stuttgart, 2004, , pp. 135–136.
* Helmut Flachenecker: ''Die Salzburg – eine Ganerbenburg als zentraler Ort.'' In: Heinrich Wagner, Joachim Zeune (ed.): ''Das Salzburgbuch.'' Stadt Bad Neustadt, Bad Neustadt, 2008, , pp. 257–266.
* Joachim Zeune: ''„… für etlich ganerben etlicher schlosz …“ Ganerbenburgen in Unterfranken.'' In: ''Schönere Heimat. Erbe und Auftrag.'' 89, 2000, , pp. 83–90.
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