REDSTONE ARSENAL, Ala. -- There are times for every historian when the stories of the past seem to come alive.
For Russ Rodgers, those times often happen when he is visiting a castle.
The Aviation and Missile Command historian has a passion for a great many historical eras and artifacts. But, no interest runs deeper than his curiosity about the ancient castles and castle ruins that grace the countryside of Bavaria, a state in southeastern Germany.
"These are ancient structures that show us how people lived in medieval and pre-medieval times," Rodgers said.
"Ever since I was an eight-year-old boy visiting Germany, I've been interested in exploring castles as a hobby. Today, more than 40 years later, I have a more professional interest and a more historic approach to castles. But I am still just as fascinated with castles as I was as a boy."
The castles are not only valued from a historic perspective, but also on a personal level as Rodgers' mother's family was from Germany and has a family coat of arms dating back to the 1000s.
During his Army career, Rodgers rekindled his interest in castles when he and an Army buddy stationed in Germany would search for ruins together. As a civilian, Rodgers has traveled often to Germany during the low tourist season in search of castle ruins, which he then documents with photographs and pages of notes. Eventually, Rodgers, who is the author of five historical books, plans to turn his interest in castle ruins into a book about the history and ownership of castles.
While the castles of Germany is certainly a subject worthy of a book. Rogers realized from the beginning of his research that he could never view all the castle ruins in Germany. He had to narrow his research area to a manageable size.
"I have visited over 550 ruins of castles from medieval and pre-medieval times in Germany up to this point. But, with more than 14,000 ruins in Germany of castles and fortifications, I had to come up with a plan that would allow me to see the most during my short trips there," Rodgers said.
"Recently, I chose to focus on castle ruins in northern Bavaria. Even with that, I've had to pick and choose. I've divided Bavaria up into sections and I am planning my visits systematically."
A two-week trip to Germany in September unearthed 59 sites of castle ruins in the 2,400 miles Rodgers traveled. To Rodgers, the discoveries are much like what treasure is to a gold miner. Through the years, he has visited castle ruins in France, Austria, Northern Italy and the Czech Republic. But, the gold mine is in Germany.
"When I first started out in search of castle ruins, the only advantage I had were maps. But, even with maps, I would hike past a ruin and not even find it. Sometimes a castle ruin would be just a pile of rocks," he said. "Other ruins have been in good condition and most impressive."
While some ruins have been maintained and preserved, with mortar and wood only replaced as needed, other ruins have been restored with rebuilding done to recreate a certain part of a castle or to rebuild the entire structure.
"When you rebuild an old Roman structure or fortification, you are giving a modern interpretation of what you think it would look like," Rodgers said.
"This has happened with castles from the Roman empire that were built along the Rhine River and down the Danube River. Some have been rebuilt based on what their remaining foundations indicate. But that doesn't mean they are rebuilt correctly. The Saalburg castle, which is a Roman fortification north of Frankfurt, Germany, was rebuilt decades ago based on a later design that is probably not accurate."
For that reason, Rodgers focuses his research on preserved ruins.
"Preservation is needed so that a castle's remains don't crumble and deteriorate even further," he said. "My interest is in the preserved ruins of castles built before the 1600s. But I also visit those that have been rebuilt either partially or entirely because you really need to look at a mix to get a true picture of what castle remains represent to us."
One of the more famous castles of the Bavarian region is the Hohenzollern Castle in Baden-Wurttember, near Hechingen, Germany. Built on a bluff, it greets more than 300,000 visitors each year.
"The first Hohenzollern Castle structure was a fortress built as far back as the 1300s. It was completely destroyed in 1423, and then rebuilt even larger. Its original chapel from when it was rebuilt is still there," he said. "In the 18th century, most of the castle fell into ruin, but then it was built for a third time in the mid-1800s."
In contrast to Hohenzollern, the castle of Konigswart is virtually unknown. Built in the 1300s or 1400s, it's location in northern Germany is so obscure that it wasn't found until the 1960s.
"It started out as a glorified hunting lodge, and then was lost in history, buried in the woods," Rodgers said. "Many castles that were once known to exist have completely disappeared while other castle sites are being newly found all the time."
As tourists find the rebuilt castles most attractive, Rodgers prefers the quieter backdrop of the more unfamiliar castle ruins. On his trips to Germany, he collects information about the location and history of ruins from local residents. The German version of the national archives is not a source of history of its castles because it has no records prior to 1806.
During his searches, Rodgers will trek through overgrown underbrush and along mountain sides, and venture into remote areas to find castle ruins. He has often camped with tents and sleeping bags, but these days makes good use of the growing number of bed-and-breakfast inns in Bavaria so that he gets a good night's sleep in preparation for a day of hiking and searching for castle ruins.
"I like to see where a castle originally started," he said. "Every castle looks the same and every castle is different. The walls and the turrets all look similar. But each one is laid out differently according to the ground they were built on and the terrain around them. Some are built to fit on a rock outcrop, others on a bluff and others hidden away in the foothills."
Once he finds a castle ruin, Rodgers focuses a good bit of time documenting the area. He measures the height and width of walls, the size of the living areas, the number of living areas and the general layout of the castle. He looks at the foundation to determine how the castle was built to fit the ground where it stands.
"It is absolutely dead quiet around these ruins. It's so quiet that you can hear the squeeks and shudders of the ruins. Sometimes the quiet is downright scary," he said.
Beyond the structure of castles, Rodgers is also interested in the culture and sense of family that grew up around castles of medieval times.
"When you owned a castle, it wasn't just the castle you were responsible for. You were also responsible for the justice, taxation and protection of the community that built up in and around the castle," Rodgers said. "The castle owner became the lord, administrator of justice and provider of protection. The castle was designed to protect the movable wealth from insurgents."
In medieval times, the Saxons and Huns would invade to steal the livestock, tools and equipment of the more productive Bavarian people.
"They would sweep over large areas of central and western Europe to pillage and plunder," Rodgers said. "Castles made thieving more difficult."
While that sort of thieving is of no concern today, Rodgers is glad that the remains of an era gone by are still available for historians to study and appreci
Social Sharing