Kastell Zugmantel (Latin name unknown) is a former Roman garrison site designed for a complement the size of a

cohort Cohort or cohortes may refer to: * Cohort (educational group), a group of students working together through the same academic curriculum * Cohort (floating point), a set of different encodings of the same numerical value * Cohort (military unit), ...

. The facility is located on the western

Taunus The Taunus is a mountain range in Hesse, Germany, located north of Frankfurt. The tallest peak in the range is ''Großer Feldberg'' at 878 m; other notable peaks are ''Kleiner Feldberg'' (825 m) and ''Altkönig'' (798 m). The Taunus range spans ...

section of the

Upper Germanic-Rhaetian Limes The Upper Germanic-Rhaetian Limes (german: Obergermanisch-Raetischer Limes), or ORL, is a 550-kilometre-long section of the former external frontier of the Roman Empire between the rivers Rhine and Danube. It runs from Rheinbrohl to Eining on the ...

, and has been a

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...

World Heritage Site A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for h ...

since 2005. The above-ground remains in the area, still very visible, are located in a forest edge area of Taunusstein-Orlen in the Hessian

Rheingau-Taunus-Kreis Rheingau-Taunus is a Kreis (district) in the west of Hesse, Germany. Rheingau-Taunus-Kreis is part of the Darmstadt region; its main administrative seat is Bad Schwalbach. Outposted sections of the local administration are located in Idstein and R ...

. The fort was originally constructed under the

Flavians The Flavian dynasty ruled the Roman Empire between AD 69 and 96, encompassing the reigns of Vespasian (69–79), and his two sons Titus (79–81) and Domitian (81–96). The Flavians rose to power during the civil war of 69, known as ...

(90 AD) and rebuilt three times. The four building phases are indicated as a–d.

Location

The remains of the fort and the

vicus In Ancient Rome, the Latin term (plural ) designated a village within a rural area () or the neighbourhood of a larger settlement. During the Republican era, the four of the city of Rome were subdivided into . In the 1st century BC, Augustus r ...

, along with a reconstructed watchtower and reconstructed section of the Limes are located about one kilometer northeast of the village Taunusstein-Orlen, at the point where the Hühnerstraße—the present B 417—crosses the Limes between Orlen and

Ehrenbach Ehrenbach is a village, first mentioned in 1371, that became in 1971 part of Idstein, Hesse, Germany. Location It is located southwest of Idstein in the Ehrenbach valley. The Upper Germanic-Rhaetian Limes borders it in the south. The highest poi ...

. Before and during the Roman era the Hühnerstraße was an important link between the densely populated Germanic

Limburg Limburg or Limbourg may refer to: Regions * Limburg (Belgium), a province since 1839 in the Flanders region of Belgium * Limburg (Netherlands), a province since 1839 in the south of the Netherlands * Diocese of Limburg, Roman Catholic Diocese in ...

basin and the

Rheingau The Rheingau (; ) is a region on the northern side of the Rhine between the German towns of Wiesbaden and Lorch near Frankfurt, reaching from the Western Taunus to the Rhine. It is situated in the German state of Hesse and is part of the Rheing ...

, with Aquae Mattiacorum, today's

Wiesbaden Wiesbaden () is a city in central western Germany and the capital of the state of Hesse. , it had 290,955 inhabitants, plus approximately 21,000 United States citizens (mostly associated with the United States Army). The Wiesbaden urban area ...

, as the capital of the Civitas Mattiacorum and

Mogontiacum Mainz () is the capital and largest city of Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Mainz is on the left bank of the Rhine, opposite to the place that the Main joins the Rhine. Downstream of the confluence, the Rhine flows to the north-west, with Mainz ...

, today

Mainz Mainz () is the capital and largest city of Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Mainz is on the left bank of the Rhine, opposite to the place that the Main (river), Main joins the Rhine. Downstream of the confluence, the Rhine flows to the north-we ...

, as the capital of the Roman province

Germania Superior Germania Superior ("Upper Germania") was an imperial province of the Roman Empire. It comprised an area of today's western Switzerland, the French Jura and Alsace regions, and southwestern Germany. Important cities were Besançon ('' Vesontio' ...

. Military surveillance was necessary for the security of this territory. The remains of the fort are located at a height of about on the outskirts of a larger forest. The southern and southeastern areas of the site were disturbed by the creation of a sports field and a commercial enterprise. Further disturbances were caused by modern expansion of the Hühnerstraße. An approximately long nature trail leads through the area today.

References

{{Reflist Roman fortifications in Germania Superior Buildings and structures in Rheingau-Taunus-Kreis