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In the Holy Roman Empire
The Holy Roman Empire was a political entity in Western, Central, and Southern Europe that developed during the Early Middle Ages and continued until its dissolution in 1806 during the Napoleonic Wars.
From the accession of Otto I in 962 unt ...
, a (, "court linden"; plural ) was a linden tree where assemblies and judicial court
A court is any person or institution, often as a government institution, with the authority to adjudicate legal disputes between parties and carry out the administration of justice in civil, criminal, and administrative matters in acco ...
s were held. Rooted in Germanic tribal law, the custom has left traces through the Germanic language
The Germanic languages are a branch of the Indo-European language family spoken natively by a population of about 515 million people mainly in Europe, North America, Oceania and Southern Africa. The most widely spoken Germanic language, E ...
-speaking areas.
Court lindens usually were situated outside settlements in open fields "under the free heaven". When located in the center of its village, the tree was also at the center of festivities, in this respect known as "dance linden". After Christianization
Christianization ( or Christianisation) is to make Christian; to imbue with Christian principles; to become Christian. It can apply to the conversion of an individual, a practice, a place or a whole society. It began in the Roman Empire, conti ...
, the linden remained associated with justice and benevolent protection, often re-dedicated to Mary mother of Jesus
Mary; arc, ܡܪܝܡ, translit=Mariam; ar, مريم, translit=Maryam; grc, Μαρία, translit=María; la, Maria; cop, Ⲙⲁⲣⲓⲁ, translit=Maria was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Joseph and the mother of ...
() or to the twelve Apostles
In Christian theology and ecclesiology, the apostles, particularly the Twelve Apostles (also known as the Twelve Disciples or simply the Twelve), were the primary disciples of Jesus according to the New Testament. During the life and minist ...
().
History
Many surviving linden trees may sometimes retain names , or , but often simply "village linden". The oldest of them is inSchenklengsfeld
Schenklengsfeld is a municipality in Hersfeld-Rotenburg district in eastern Hessen, Germany lying roughly 30 km northeast of Fulda and 60 km southeast of Kassel.
Geography
Location
The community of Schenklengsfeld lies in the outliers ...
, Hesse
Hesse (, , ) or Hessia (, ; german: Hessen ), officially the State of Hessen (german: links=no, Land Hessen), is a state in Germany. Its capital city is Wiesbaden, and the largest urban area is Frankfurt. Two other major historic cities are ...
, planted in the 9th century, in the time of Louis the Younger
Louis the Younger (830/835 – 20 January 882), sometimes Louis the Saxon or Louis III, was the second eldest of the three sons of Louis the German and Emma. He succeeded his father as the King of Saxony on 28 August 876 and his elder brother C ...
.
The 12th century ''Visio Godeschalci ''Visio Godeschalci'' is a 12th-century text relating the Vision (spirituality), vision of a peasant of Harrie, now Großharrie in Holstein, named Gottschalk. In December 1189, during the siege of Segeberg castle, Gottschalk fell ill, and during fi ...
'' describes a journey which the pious 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 ...
peasant Godeskalk believed he had made in the lower world. There is mentioned an immensely large and beautiful linden-tree hanging full of shoes, which were handed down to such dead travellers as had exercised mercy during their lives.
Numerous examples of sacred trees and groves exist amongst the pre-Christian Germanic peoples
The Germanic peoples were historical groups of people that once occupied Central Europe and Scandinavia during antiquity and into the early Middle Ages. Since the 19th century, they have traditionally been defined by the use of ancient and ear ...
. The linden is often claimed to have been sacred to Freyja
In Norse paganism, Freyja (Old Norse "(the) Lady") is a goddess associated with love, beauty, fertility, sex, war, gold, and seiðr (magic for seeing and influencing the future). Freyja is the owner of the necklace Brísingamen, rides a chario ...
in the pre-Christian period, forming a polarity with the oaks sacred 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 idea can be traced to Karl Strackerjan, ''ist die Eiche oder die Linde der Baum des Deutschen Volkes?'' Oldenburg (1874). C.f. Uwe Hentschel, ''Der Lindenbaum in der deutschen Literatur des 18. und 19. Jahrhunderts'', Orbis Litterarum 60:5 (2005), 357-37/ref>
Specimens
Notable specimens are found in Bargischow,Castell
A ''castell'' () is a human tower built traditionally at festivals in Catalonia, the Balearic islands and the Valencian Community.
At these festivals, several ''colles castelleres'' (teams that build towers) attempt to build and dismantle a ...
, Frankfurt am Main
Frankfurt, officially Frankfurt am Main (; Hessian: , " Frank ford on the Main"), is the most populous city in the German state of Hesse. Its 791,000 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located on it ...
, Großgoltern, Herzogenreuth, Himmelsberg (Hesse), Hohenpölz, Kierspe
Kierspe () is a town in the district Märkischer Kreis, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located at the western edge of the Sauerland on Volme River.
History
The first mention of Kierspe was in 1003, when the castle 'Haus Rhade' was f ...
, Müden an der Örtze, Neuenrade
Neuenrade is a town in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, located in the hills of the Sauerland in the ''Märkischer Kreis''.
Geography
The highest elevation in the town area is the ''Kohlberg'' with an altitude of 514 m above sea level. The lowes ...
, Salzhemmendorf, Sachsenbrunn Schaumburg
Schaumburg is a district (''Landkreis'') of Lower Saxony, Germany. It is bounded by (clockwise from the north) the districts of Nienburg, Hanover and Hamelin-Pyrmont, and the state of North Rhine-Westphalia (districts of Lippe and Minden-Lüb ...
, Upstedt, Waldtann (Kreßberg
Kreßberg is a municipality in the district of Schwäbisch Hall in Baden-Württemberg
Baden-Württemberg (; ), commonly shortened to BW or BaWü, is a German state () in Southwest Germany, east of the Rhine, which forms the southern part of ...
) and Warmsen.
The Danish Open Air Museum in northern Copenhagen
Copenhagen ( or .; da, København ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a proper population of around 815.000 in the last quarter of 2022; and some 1.370,000 in the urban area; and the wider Copenhagen metropolitan a ...
displays a reconstruction of such a village meeting place for a medieval-era village originally found on the island of Funen
Funen ( da, Fyn, ), with an area of , is the third-largest island of Denmark, after Zealand and Vendsyssel-Thy. It is the 165th-largest island in the world. It is located in the central part of the country and has a population of 469,947 as o ...
, Denmark
)
, song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast")
, song_type = National and royal anthem
, image_map = EU-Denmark.svg
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Kingdom of Denmark
, establish ...
. Each tenant farmer had his own stone seat beneath the linden and the meeting was presided over by the village elder ( da, oldermand, cognate "alderman").Exhibit number 69, "Bystaevne Fyn"/"Village Meeting Place Funen", Open Air Museum, Kongens Lyngby
Kongens Lyngby (, Danish for "the King's Heather Town"; short form Lyngby) is the seat and commercial centre of Lyngby-Taarbæk Municipality in the northern suburbs of Copenhagen, Denmark. Lyngby Hovedgade is a busy shopping street and the site ...
, Denmark
)
, song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast")
, song_type = National and royal anthem
, image_map = EU-Denmark.svg
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Kingdom of Denmark
, establish ...
Toponyms
The name of Malters,Canton of Lucerne
The canton of Lucerne (german: Kanton Luzern rm, Chantun Lucerna french: Canton de Lucerne it, Canton Lucerna) is a canton of Switzerland. It is located in the centre of Switzerland. The population of the canton (as of ) is . , the population ...
, Switzerland
). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...
, derives from " thing-tree".
See also
*Maypole
A maypole is a tall wooden pole erected as a part of various European folk festivals, around which a maypole dance often takes place.
The festivals may occur on 1 May or Pentecost (Whitsun), although in some countries it is instead erected at ...
*Sacred grove
Sacred groves or sacred woods are groves of trees and have special religious importance within a particular culture. Sacred groves feature in various cultures throughout the world. They were important features of the mythological landscape and ...
*Sacred trees and groves in Germanic paganism and mythology
Trees hold a particular role in Germanic paganism and Germanic mythology, both as individuals ( sacred trees) and in groups (sacred groves). The central role of trees in Germanic religion is noted in the earliest written reports about the Germanic ...
*Trees in mythology
Trees are significant in many of the world's mythologies, and have been given deep and sacred meanings throughout the ages. Human beings, observing the growth and death of trees, and the annual death and revival of their foliage, have often seen ...
References
Literature
*Lenzing, Anette: ''Gerichtslinden und Thingplätze in Deutschland''. Königstein i. Ts. 2005 (= Die Blauen Bücher). *Fischer-Rizzi, Susanne: ''Blätter von Bäumen. Legenden, Mythen, Heilanwendungen und Betrachtung von einheimischen Bäumen.'' Hugendubel, München, 1994. {{ISBN, 3-88034-683-6 *Petruszek T., ''Das Buch der Bäume'', Dreisam Verlag (1991). Tilia Trees in religion Legal history of the Holy Roman Empire