Heinzenberg Castle

Heinzenberg Castle
	Präz village, Cazis
	Ruins of Heinzenberg Castle
	Heinzenberg Castle Heinzenberg Castle
Coordinates	46°44′23″N9°24′31″E / 46.73972°N 9.40861°E Coordinates: 46°44′23″N9°24′31″E / 46.73972°N 9.40861°E
Type	hill castle
Code	CH-GR
Height	1,130 m above the sea
Site information
Condition	ruin
Site history
Built	about 1200
Materials	rough stone

Last updated April 06, 2019

Heinzenberg Castle German : Burg Heinzenberg is a ruined castle in the municipality of Cazis in the Viamala Region of the canton of Graubünden in Switzerland.

German is a West Germanic language that is mainly spoken in Central Europe. It is the most widely spoken and official or co-official language in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, South Tyrol (Italy), the German-speaking Community of Belgium, and Liechtenstein. It is also one of the three official languages of Luxembourg and a co-official language in the Opole Voivodeship in Poland. The languages which are most similar to German are the other members of the West Germanic language branch: Afrikaans, Dutch, English, the Frisian languages, Low German/Low Saxon, Luxembourgish, and Yiddish. There are also strong similarities in vocabulary with Danish, Norwegian and Swedish, although those belong to the North Germanic group. German is the second most widely spoken Germanic language, after English.

Municipalities are the lowest level of administrative division in Switzerland. Each municipality is part of one of the Swiss cantons, which form the Swiss Confederation. In most cantons municipalities are also part of districts or other sub-cantonal administrative divisions.

Cazis(Romansh: Tgazas) is a municipality in the Viamala Region in the Swiss canton of Graubünden. On 1 January 2010 the municipalities of Portein, Präz, Sarn and Tartar merged into the municipality of Cazis.

History

Heinzenberg Castle was built on the western side of the Domleschg Valley in the 12th century by the Freiherr von Vaz. In contrast to the small landholdings of other castles in the region, Heinzenberg was the political and judicial center over much of the valley.^[1] Though the first mention of the castle was in 1394, by 1380 the name was applied to the river and the entire side of the valley.^[2] The castle was the center of the Vaz family's power in the region until the extinction of the line in 1337-38.^[3]

The Domleschg is a valley in Graubünden in Switzerland. Geographically, the name "Domleschg" covers both sides of the valley. Politically, the villages on the left bank of the Poserior Rhine form the Kreis (sub-district) of Thusis and those on the right bank form the Kreis of Domleschg. Thusis is the main village in the valley. The northernmost locality is Rothenbrunnen, the southernmost is Sils.

Freiherr, Freifrau and Freiin are designations used as titles of nobility in the German-speaking areas of the Holy Roman Empire, and in its various successor states, including Austria, Prussia, Bavaria, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, etc. Traditionally it denotes the titled rank within the nobility above Ritter (knight) and Edler and below Graf and Herzog (duke). The title superseded the earlier medieval form, Edelherr.

After the extinction of the Vaz, the castle passed to Count Rudolph IV von Werdenberg-Sargans. His son Johann sold it in 1383 to Ulrich Bran von Rhäzüns.^[2] In 1450 there was a dispute over inheritance in the Rhäzüns family, the imperial court at Rottweil assigned Heinzenberg to Ursula von Hohenberg, a member of the Rhäzüns family.^[1] The castle was damaged in 1451-52 during fighting in the nearby Schams part of the valley. In 1461 the castle returned to the Werdenberg-Sargans family. In 1475 the Heinzenberg lands, except for the castle, was sold to the Bishop of Chur. In 1482 there was a Werdenberg vogt resident in the castle. After the death of Count Georg von Werdenberg-Sargans in 1504, it was abandoned and fell into ruin.^[2]

The Holy Roman Empire was a multi-ethnic complex of territories in Western and Central Europe that developed during the Early Middle Ages and continued until its dissolution in 1806 during the Napoleonic Wars. The largest territory of the empire after 962 was the Kingdom of Germany, though it also came to include the neighboring Kingdom of Bohemia, the Kingdom of Burgundy, the Kingdom of Italy, and numerous other territories.

Rottweil is a town in southwest Germany in the state of Baden-Württemberg. Rottweil was a Free Imperial City for nearly 600 years.

The Schams is a section of the Hinterrhein valley in the Swiss canton of Graubünden.

Castle site

The was built on a narrow, rocky outcropping below the village of Präz, on the slopes above the valley. A ditch protects the relatively flat mountain side of the outcropping. The tower has a pentagon shaped floor plan and today is about three stories tall. Before its partial collapse in 1956 the tower was a total of six stories high. It was crowned with battlements and topped with a wooden roof.^[1] A second construction phase added a ring wall around the tower. The west part of the ring wall is still standing.^[2] The remains of a southern wall show that a several story tall residence probably stood there.^[1]

Battlement part of defensive architecture

A battlement in defensive architecture, such as that of city walls or castles, comprises a parapet, in which gaps or indentations, which are often rectangular, occur at intervals to allow for the launch of arrows or other projectiles from within the defences. These gaps are termed "crenels", and the act of adding crenels to a previously unbroken parapet is termed crenellation. A defensive building might be designed and built with battlements, or a manor house might be fortified by adding battlements, where no parapet previously existed, or cutting crenellations into its existing parapet wall. The solid widths between the crenels are called merlons. A wall with battlements is said to be crenelated or embattled. Battlements on walls have protected walkways behind them. On tower or building tops, the roof is used as the protected fighting platform.

A curtain wall is a defensive wall between two towers (bastions) of a castle, fortress, or town.

Gallery

Heinzenberg castle site
Interior of the residence hall
North-east wall
One of the stones from the ruins

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References

1 2 3 4 "Les Grisons : Château de Heinzenberg". www.swisscastles.ch. Retrieved 2 March 2017.
1 2 3 4 "Burg Heinzenberg". www.burgenwelt.ch. Retrieved 2 March 2017.
↑ Heinzenberg in German , French and Italian in the online Historical Dictionary of Switzerland .

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[SC-1] 1 2 3 4 "Les Grisons : Château de Heinzenberg". www.swisscastles.ch. Retrieved 2 March 2017.

[BW-2] 1 2 3 4 "Burg Heinzenberg". www.burgenwelt.ch. Retrieved 2 March 2017.

[HDS-3] Heinzenberg in German , French and Italian in the online Historical Dictionary of Switzerland .