Château de La Petite-Pierre
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The Château de la Petite-Pierre, Burg Lützelstein (
German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...
) is a
castle A castle is a type of fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by military orders. Scholars debate the scope of the word ''castle'', but usually consider it to be the private fortified r ...
in the ''
commune A commune is an alternative term for an intentional community. Commune or comună or comune or other derivations may also refer to: Administrative-territorial entities * Commune (administrative division), a municipality or township ** Communes of ...
'' of
La Petite-Pierre La Petite-Pierre (; german: Lützelstein; Rhine Franconian: ''Lítzelstain'') is a commune in the Bas-Rhin department in Grand Est in north-eastern France. It lies in the historical and cultural region of Alsace (Elsass in German). Petit-Pierr ...
(German: ''Lützelstein'') in the
Bas-Rhin Bas-Rhin (; Alsatian: ''Unterelsàss'', ' or '; traditional german: links=no, Niederrhein; en, Lower Rhine) is a department in Alsace which is a part of the Grand Est super-region of France. The name means 'Lower Rhine', referring to its low ...
''
département In the administrative divisions of France, the department (french: département, ) is one of the three levels of government under the national level ("territorial collectivity, territorial collectivities"), between the regions of France, admin ...
'' of France, in
Alsace Alsace (, ; ; Low Alemannic German/ gsw-FR, Elsàss ; 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 ...
(German: ''Elsass''). All the names of the place are related to "small stone" (Latin: ''parva petra''), and come from Old Franconian ''Lítzelstäin'', with the French name as a translation. It is the headquarters of the
Parc naturel régional des Vosges du Nord The Northern Vosges Regional Natural Park ( French: ''Parc naturel régional des Vosges du Nord'') is a protected area of woodland, wetland, farmland and historical sites in the region Grand Est in northeastern France. The area was officially d ...
. It has been listed as ''
monument historique ''Monument historique'' () is a designation given to some national heritage sites in France. It may also refer to the state procedure in France by which National Heritage protection is extended to a building, a specific part of a building, a coll ...
'' by the
French Ministry of Culture The Ministry of Culture (french: Ministère de la Culture) is the ministry of the Government of France in charge of national museums and the . Its goal is to maintain the French identity through the promotion and protection of the arts (visual, ...
since April 1922.


History

Originally there was a stronghold in the place, built by the family of Hugues IV of
Nordgau The Nordgau (from the Germanic for "northern region") can refer to two distinct areas: * Nordgau (Alsace), the Alsatian Nordgau, the medieval County of Nordgau, the northern part of Alsace * Margraviate of the Nordgau, the Bavarian Nordgau in the a ...
(fr), Count of
Egisheim Eguisheim (; german: Egisheim; Alsatian dialect, Alsatian: ''Egsa'') is a Communes of France, commune in the Haut-Rhin Departments of France, department in Grand Est in north-eastern France. It lies in the historical region of Alsace (german: Els ...
. Built at the end of the 12th century, the Château de la Petite-Pierre is recorded from 1212. Count Hugo, either the son or grandson of the powerful Count of
Blieskastel Blieskastel () is a city in the Saarpfalz (Saar-Palatinate) district, in Saarland, Germany which is divided into villages. It is situated on the river Blies, approximately southwest of Homburg (Saar), west of Zweibrücken, and east of Saarbrüc ...
(fr), is held as the constructor. The fief was recognised as the "County of Lützelstein", within the German
Holy Roman Empire The Holy Roman Empire was a Polity, political entity in Western Europe, Western, Central Europe, Central, and Southern Europe that developed during the Early Middle Ages and continued until its Dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire, dissolution i ...
, approximately at the same time. The counts have used the title ''Graf von Lützelstein'', later also ''Comte de Petite-Pierre'', meaning basically the same, also ''Comte de
Lunéville Lunéville ( ; German, obsolete: ''Lünstadt'' ) is a commune in the northeastern French department of Meurthe-et-Moselle. It is a subprefecture of the department and lies on the river Meurthe at its confluence with the Vezouze. History Lun ...
'' (in
Lorraine Lorraine , also , , ; Lorrain: ''Louréne''; Lorraine Franconian: ''Lottringe''; german: Lothringen ; lb, Loutrengen; nl, Lotharingen is a cultural and historical region in Northeastern France, now located in the administrative region of Gr ...
), which might be due to a confusion of transferral of power at some point. A probable, incomplete, order of the early counts of Lützelstein, as precise documentation is not at hand: * Hugo I of Blieskastel (d.a. 1220), Count of Lützelstein or Lunéville (or both), second son of Folmar I (d.a. 1179), Count of Blieskastel with Clementia of Metz.FMG: Folmar I, Count of Blieskastel
/ref> His brother Folmar II, Count of Blieskastel was married to Jutta, daughter of
Simon I, Count of Saarbrücken Simon I of Saarbrücken (died after 1183) was a German nobleman. He was the second ruling Count of Saarbrücken (de), in office 1135 - 1183. Life Simon was a son of Frederick, Count of Saarbrücken (d. 1135) and his wife Gisela of Lorraine (b ...
. Hugo married Kunigunde, daughter of Konrad, Count of
Kyrburg Kirn is a town in the Bad Kreuznach district in Rheinland-Pfalz, Germany. It is the seat of the ''Verbandsgemeinde'' Kirner Land. Kirn is a middle centre serving an area on the Nahe and in the Hunsrück. Geography Location Kirn lies in a la ...
and Mathilde of
Bar Bar or BAR may refer to: Food and drink * Bar (establishment), selling alcoholic beverages * Candy bar * Chocolate bar Science and technology * Bar (river morphology), a deposit of sediment * Bar (tropical cyclone), a layer of cloud * Bar (u ...
, and had Hugo II. ** Hugo II of Blieskastel, Count of Lützelstein (1208? - a. 1246). Married Judith (Joathe) of Lorraine, daughter of Philippe, son of
Frederick I, Duke of Lorraine Frederick I ( or ) (c. 1143 – 7 April 1206) was the duke of Lorraine from 1205 to his death. He was the second son of Matthias I and Bertha (also called Judith), daughter of Frederick II, Duke of Swabia. He succeeded his brother, Simon II, w ...
("Ferry"). *** Hugo III, Count of Lützelstein (Perhaps also
Lunéville Lunéville ( ; German, obsolete: ''Lünstadt'' ) is a commune in the northeastern French department of Meurthe-et-Moselle. It is a subprefecture of the department and lies on the river Meurthe at its confluence with the Vezouze. History Lun ...
) (d.a. 1280/99), married Elisabeth (d.a. 1271), daughter of
Simon III, Count of Saarbrücken Simon III of Sarrebrück, Simon III von Saarbrücken (Saarbrücken- Leiningen) (c. 1180–1243) was the Count of Saarbrücken (de) from 1207 until his death, about 1240. Background Simon III was the eldest son of Simon II (de) (d.1207), Coun ...
. Probably also Elisabeth of Vinstingen, a grandniece of Simon. In 1223, due to a conflict with the
Bishop of Strasbourg {{Unreferenced, date=December 2009 These persons were bishop, archbishop or prince-bishop of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Strasbourg (including historically Prince-Bishopric of Strasbourg): Bishops and prince-bishops *Amandus *Justinus vo ...
, the counts of ''Parva Petra'' were forced to yield it as a fief to the bishop as an episcopal stronghold, under the bishop's reign. In 1403, Friedrich of Lutzelstein died as the last was the last male heir of the castle. His uncle Bourcard/Burkhard II of Lutzelstein,
Bishop of Strasbourg {{Unreferenced, date=December 2009 These persons were bishop, archbishop or prince-bishop of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Strasbourg (including historically Prince-Bishopric of Strasbourg): Bishops and prince-bishops *Amandus *Justinus vo ...
(in office 1393 - 1394), was one of the claimants, as well as Friedrich's sister, married to Johann of Leiningen. Burkhard (of Friedrich?) divided the property letting
Palatine count A count palatine (Latin ''comes palatinus''), also count of the palace or palsgrave (from German ''Pfalzgraf''), was originally an official attached to a royal or imperial palace or household and later a nobleman of a rank above that of an ord ...
Robert III, Holy Roman Emperor a fourth and the rest to his daughters. Sons of Burkhard and of the Leiningen family ruled for some time in Lützelstein. However the
Palatine count A count palatine (Latin ''comes palatinus''), also count of the palace or palsgrave (from German ''Pfalzgraf''), was originally an official attached to a royal or imperial palace or household and later a nobleman of a rank above that of an ord ...
Frederick I Frederick I may refer to: * Frederick of Utrecht or Frederick I (815/16–834/38), Bishop of Utrecht. * Frederick I, Duke of Upper Lorraine (942–978) * Frederick I, Duke of Swabia (1050–1105) * Frederick I, Count of Zoller ...
(1425 - 1476) seized it all in 1452/62 as the new holders died without legitimate heirs. In 1566, it became the residence of
George John I, Count Palatine of Veldenz George John I (German: Georg Johann I.; sometimes called George Hans) (11 April 1543 – 18 April 1592) was the Count of Veldenz from 1544 until 1592. Life George John was born in 1543 as the only son of Rupert, Count Palatine of Veldenz. George ...
, who carried out major works. The French Army occupied the castle in 1677; in 1681 the county was joined with in France. Vauban was charged with improving the fortifications. In 1870 that the fortifications were removed. Since 1977, the building has housed the administrative services of the ''Parc naturel régional'' (Natural Regional Park) of Vosges du Nord. In the multi-media exhibition there, a room is specifically devoted to the history of the castle with, in particular, a superb model of ''Staedtel'', the fortified old town, according to plans of 1771, and an impressive sight of the castle's ancient
cistern A cistern (Middle English ', from Latin ', from ', "box", from Greek ', "basket") is a waterproof receptacle for holding liquids, usually water. Cisterns are often built to catch and store rainwater. Cisterns are distinguished from wells by t ...
. The fortified town, with the Saint-Louis chapel, the 15th-century church choir and the bastion tower protecting the cisterns, is closely linked to the castle.


Architecture

The castle is located at the end of a crest, separated from the old town by an artificial ditch dating from the beginning of the 13th century. The pentagonal
keep A keep (from the Middle English ''kype'') is a type of fortified tower built within castles during the Middle Ages by European nobility. Scholars have debated the scope of the word ''keep'', but usually consider it to refer to large towers in c ...
was destroyed in the 19th century. The residence has been greatly altered but in its cellar the filtering cistern dates from the 14th century. On the southern façade are Romanesque windows. The well with
Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history marking the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and covering the 15th and 16th centuries, characterized by an effort to revive and surpass ideas ...
decoration, the main door with
pilaster In classical architecture Classical architecture usually denotes architecture which is more or less consciously derived from the principles of Greek and Roman architecture of classical antiquity, or sometimes even more specifically, from the ...
s and the staircase turret date from the 16th century. The polygonal construction exhibits
Gothic Gothic or Gothics may refer to: People and languages *Goths or Gothic people, the ethnonym of a group of East Germanic tribes **Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths **Crimean Gothic, the Gothic language spoken b ...
ornamentation, in particular hooked
capital Capital may refer to: Common uses * Capital city, a municipality of primary status ** List of national capital cities * Capital letter, an upper-case letter Economics and social sciences * Capital (economics), the durable produced goods used f ...
s.


See also

*
List of castles in France This is a list of castles in France, arranged by Region and Department. ;Notes: # The French word ''château'' has a wider meaning than the English ''castle'': it includes architectural entities that are properly called palaces, mansions or vine ...


References


External links


Château de La Petite-Pierre
- Parc naturel régional des Vosges du Nord * {{DEFAULTSORT:Petite-Pierre, Chateau de la Buildings and structures completed in the 12th century Castles in Bas-Rhin Monuments historiques of Bas-Rhin