Eltz

#187 Burg Eltz
near Wierschem, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany
before 1157 and 1470 - 1540 plus later
This is NOT an official Lego site

Eltz Castle is one of Europe's most famous examples of a Ganerbenburg, a castle which is the direct result of the combined efforts of a community of joint owners and heirs. In this case the initial structures were a small group of houses surrounding a manor hall. The families were of the House of Eltz, so named for location of their lands centered on the raised, horseshoe-shaped plot bordered on three sides by the Elzbach River, a fairly minor tributary of the Moselle River in northwest Germany. Around 1157 the families, the Kempenichs, the Rübenachs and the Rodendorfs, fortified their holding with a stone keep, called the Donjon Platt-Eltz, which is the oldest part of the wonderful castle which grew to photogenic proportions over the next centuries. The early earthen palisades were replaced by stone walls and towers, and the individual stone "houses" grew taller and taller as the families expanded. The present day castle measures approximately 130 by 350 feet.

The only significant military conflict in Burg Eltz long history occurred between 1331 and 1136, when several lords and free knights of the region became fed up with the policies of the powerful Balduin [Baldwin] of Luxembourg, then the Elector and Prince-Archbishop of Trier. When Johann of Eltz joined the insurgents, Balduin bombarded his castle with the then state-of-the-art pot-de-fer, primitive cannon first described just five years earlier in European literature. The bombardment, from a small siege castle built on the hill just north of Burg Eltz [see Burg Trutzeltz ruin in upper left photo], lasted two years and ended with the lords and knights capitulating to the Archbishop. During the Palatinate War of Succession in 1688-89, Burg Eltz was saved from destruction when Hans Anton zu Eltz-Üttingen, a senior officer in the army of King Louis XIV, deleted his castle from the list of fortifications to be destroyed. The French confisticated the possessions of Count Hugo Philipp zu Eltz in 1794, including Burg Eltz, but in 1797 the Count returned from hiding the Mainz, and reclaimed the family's lands, goods and wealth. In 1815 he bought out the Houses of Rübenach and the Rodendorf, and the Kempenish branch still maintains ownership of Burg Eltz to this day.


The tunnel under Rodendorf [#17] into the inner courtyard...	...and looking up the several steps into the inner courtyard.	Looking back (north) from where you just entered.	And looking south toward the other end of the inner courtyard.	And looking straight up!!

Photos of the Lego Model Under Construction November 2023

Construction begins on November 13.	The first three days are devoted to laying out the entire castle, with the Eltz' house noted.	Small red plates designate where section splits are planned.	The days before the Thanksgiving holiday are spent landscaping the south end of the castle.

Build Your Own
When I relooked at the plans and elevations I meticulously drew several years ago,
I realized the scale was just 0.67, not the 1.0 that works so well with Lego Group's
minifigures, so I'm building the middle and inner wards at 1.0, instead of the entire
castle. Therefore, no valid plan or elevations. Sorry.


A closer view from the WSW.	AN impressive view from the Elzbach.	A general view highlighting the north gate house.	And the view through that gate.	The inner Gatehouse [#5 on the castle plan below]


From the southwest, the path leading from the river Elzbach.	And the fortified ramp at the southeast corner.	This	Fina

Photos of the Lego Model Completed ????, 2024

Here	The view	From	The nor


This p	From th	This is	Fina


South	East	North	Cross-section


Top-down plan of Burg Eltz	The plan of the castle with key	Cross-section of the castle looking south