The Lost Fort
My Travel and History Blog, Focussing mostly on Roman and Mediaeval Times
Spring is Coming
That's a view from my balcony about two weeks ago. Winter had decided January was not much fun to be around, but April was. Added nuisance factor or something. Though I love snow even in April.

That's the same view a few days ago. Lots of rain and rising temperatures really made the shots shoot, and then the sun decided to play along as well. Read more »
Vows and Secret Meetings - The History of Lippoldsberg Abbey, part 1
As usual, there had been an older building on the site of Lippoldsberg Abbey. Some time between 1051-56, archbishop Luitpold (Lippold) of Mainz founded Lippoldsberg and had the first wooden chapel built. I've mentioned before that the possesions of the archbishop of Mainz stretched from the Rhine all the way into Thuringia, and the Weser was one station on the way there, with a ford near the future Lippoldsberg. Luitpold bought the land from the monastery at Corvey, probably to ensure an unhindered passage on his 'own' lands all the way to Erfurt in Thuringia (today the county capital).
Lippoldsberg Church, view from the south, detail of the angle at the west tower
His successor Siegfried got deeply embroiled in the investiture controversy, the contest between the Emperor (notably Heinrich IV) and pope Gregory VII about the appointment of church officials and the overall role of the Church in relation to the secular power. A quarrel that found its way to England as well where Heinrich's namesake Henry I had his share of troubles with the Gregorian papacy. Read more »
Romanesque Murals in Vernawahlshausen
I've mentioned that some villages in Germany have churches of great age and sometimes unexpected beauty. One of these can be found in a village called Vernawahlshausen (not only Wales has long names), built in early Romanesque style about 1100. It's a simple, rectangular building with no aisles. The half timbered tower was added in 1744.
Village Church Vernawahlshausen
The eastern part dates back to about 1100. It now holds the altar, but originally it was a choir with gross grain vault but no apse. There may have been an even older building, a chapel dedicated to St. Margarethe built by monks from Corvey, one of the great German monastic centres which had its roots in the Cluny tradition. Read more »
And order you to have made a good and strong gaol
In June 1330, William Melton Archbishop of York wrote the following letter to one Thomas Fox in Hexham:
‘William, by the Grace of God, Archbishop of York, to our beloved in Christ, Thomas Fox our receiver in Hexhamshire, greeting. We wish and order you to have made a good and strong gaol, in which our prisoners can be securely held and guarded and the expenses incurred in the building of this we will allow out of your account.’ (Borthwick Institute, Reg. 9A f.45, quote found on the official website of the Gaol)
The result can be seen here.
Old Gaol Hexham
Hexham Gaol was the first purpose-built prison in England. Before, prisons were rooms adapted from other buildings (I've mentioned prisoners were for example kept in Carlisle Castle, either the gatehouse or the keep). Read more »
Aelius Rufus Visits the Future - The Baths of Segedunum
We left the tower and went to the bath house, the one truly Roman looking feature on what Merlinius called 'the site'; obviously a modern word for the places where they'd dug out our walls and some terra sigillata. The baths were modeled after the ones in Cilurnum where quite a lot of walls had been found, Merlinus explained. People in the future were pretty interested in Roman baths.
Baths at Segedunum, details of the wall paint
"Don't they have any baths these days?" Gaius asked.
"They do," Merlinus said, "but they have only tubs and something they call showers in their insulae, and public indoor and outdoor swimming pools in most towns. Some also have what is called a sauna, a bit like the laconicum, the hot dry room. It is considered bad manners to stink." Read more »
The Lost Fort is a travel and history blog based on my journeys in Germany, Great Britain, Scandinavia, the Baltic Countries, and central Europe. It includes virtual town and castle tours with a focus on history, essays on Roman and Mediaeval history, hiking tours, and photography.
This blog is non-commercial.
All texts and photos (if no other copyright is noted) are copyright of Gabriele Campbell.
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- Name: Gabriele Campbell
- Location: Goettingen, Germany
I'm a blogger from Göttingen, Germany, with a MA in Literature and History, interested in everything Roman and Mediaeval, avid reader and sometimes writer, opera enthusiast, traveller with a liking for foreign languages and odd rocks, photographer, and tea aficionado. And an old-fashioned blogger who refuses to get an Instagram account.
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Historical Places
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Neolithicum to Iron Age
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Historical Places
Germany
Towns
Bad Sooden-Allendorf
Historical Town and Graduation Tower
Bruchteiche Reservoir
Binz
A Seaside Resort
Braunschweig
Medieval Braunschweig
Lion Benches in the Castle Square
The Quadriga
Bremerhaven
The Zoo by the Sea
Erfurt
Medieval Erfurt
Goslar
Medieval Goslar
Chapel in the Klus Rock
Lübeck
St. Mary's Church
Magdeburg
Church of Our Lady: History
Mainz
The Temple of Isis and Mater Magna
Paderborn
Medieval Paderborn
Quedlinburg
Medieval Quedlinburg
The Chapter Church
Speyer
The Cathedral
Jewish Ritual Bath
Stralsund
The Harbour
The Old Town
Treffurt
Medieval Lanes and Old Houses
Trier
The Roman Amphitheatre
The Aula Palatina
The Imperial Baths
The Porta Nigra
Weimar
Sites of the Weimar Classicism
The Park at the Ilm
Wismar
The Old Harbour
Xanten
Roman and Medieval Xanten
The Gothic House
Castles
Adelebsen
The Keep
Altenstein (Werra)
A Border Castle
Bramburg
Weser River Reivers
Brandenburg (Thuringia)
The Beginnings
Albrecht II of Thuringia
Coburg Fortress
History
Architecture
Ebersburg
The Marshals of Ebersburg
Architecture
Grebenstein
History
Grubenhagen
History of the Keep
Hanstein
First Impressions and Early History
Hardeg Castle
The Great Hall
Hardenberg
History
Heldenburg (Salzderhelden)
A Welfen Seat
Hohnstein (Harz)
The Counts of Hohnstein
Between Welfen and Staufen
14th-15th Century
Krukenburg
Built to Protect a Chapel
Kugelsburg
The Counts of Everstein
Later Times
Plesse
The Counts of Winzenburg
The Lords of Plesse
Architecture
Polle Castle
An Everstein Stronghold
Regenstein
History
Reichenbach (Hessia)
History
Sababurg
Photo Impressions
Scharfenstein
From Castle to Convention Centre
Scharzfels
History
Architecture
Sichelnstein
History
Stauffenburg (Harz)
A Secret Mistress
Stapelburg
A Little Known Ruin in the Harz
Trendelburg
Photo Impressions
Wartburg
A Virtual Tour
Weidelsburg
History
Architecture
Revisiting the Weidelsburg
Abbeys and Churches
Bursfelde
Early History of the Abbey
Fredelsloh
A Romanesque Basilica
Gehrden
A Romanesque Church
Göllingen
The Byzantine Crypt
Hahnenklee
The Stave Church
Heiligenstadt
Churches St.Martin and St.Mary
Helmarshausen
Remains of the Monastery
Lippoldsberg
Early History of the Abbey
Interior of the Church
Lorsch
The Carolingian Gate Hall
Pöhlde
Remains of the Monastery
Scharzfeld (Harz)
The Cave Church
Vernawahlshausen
Medieval Murals
Walkenried
The Monastery - Introduction
Wiebrechtshausen
Romanesque Church and a Ducal Burial
Wilhelmshausen (Kassel)
The Romanesque Church
Roman Remains
Augusta Treverorum / Trier
The Amphitheatre
The Aula Palatina
The Imperial Baths
The Porta Nigra
The Roman Bridge
Colonia Ulpia Traiana / Xanten
Roman Xanten
The Amphitheatre in Birten
Haltern am See
Romans in Haltern
Playmobil Romans, LWL Museum Haltern
Varus Statue in Haltern am See
Limes Fort Aalen
The Barracks
Limes Fort Osterburken
The Discovery
The Cohort castellum
The Annex Fort
The Garrisons
Limes Fort Saalburg
A Reconstructed Limes Fort
Main Gate and Walls
The vicus
Shrine of the Standards
Military Sites
Hedemünden
Kalefeld-Harzhorn
Kalkriese
Romans at the Moselle
Romans at the Moselle
The Villa Urbana in Longuich
Romans at the Rhine
Boppard - Roman Baudobriga
The Villa in Wachenheim
Neolithicum and Bronze Age
Neolithic Burials
Neolithic Burials in the Everstorf Forest and Rugia
The Necropolis of Oldendorf
Bronze Age
Bronze and Iron Age Remains at the Werra
Museums / Reconstructed Sites
Palatine Seat Tilleda
The Defenses
Viking Settlement Haithabu
The Nydam Ship
Open Air Museums
European Bread Museum Ebergötzen
Open Air Museum Oerlinghausen
Post-Mediaeval Exhibits
Historical Guns, Coburg Fortress
Vintage Car Museum, Wolfsburg
Local Tours
Bavarian Towns
Harz Tours
At Saale and Unstrut
Summer Tour 2016
England
Northumbria Tour
Towns
Chester
Roman and Medieval Chester
Hexham
The Abbey - Introduction
The Old Gaol
York
Clifford Tower
Guild Hall
Monk Bar Gate with Richard III Museum
Museum Gardens: St. Mary and Roman Tower
Houses in the Old Town
Tour on the Ouise River
York Minster: Architecture
Castles
Carlisle
History
Richmond
Conquest to King John
Henry III to the Tudors
Architecture
Scarborough
Romans to the Tudors
Civil War to the Present
Architecture
Roman Remains
Eboracum / York
Roman Bath in the Fortress
The Hadrian's Wall
Introduction
Hadrian's Wall: Birdoswald
The Dark Age Timber Halls
Hadrian's Wall: Segedunum
Museum and Viewing Tower
The Baths
Other Roman Sites
The Mithraeum at Brocolita
The Signal Station at Scarborough
Scotland
Scotland Tour
Towns
Edinburgh
Views from the Castle
Stirling
The Wallace Monument
Castles
Doune
A Virtual Tour
The Early Stewart Kings
Royal Dower House
Duart Castle
Guarding the Sound of Mull
Dunstaffnage
An Ancient MacDougall Stronghold
The Wars of Independence
The Campbells Are Coming
Dunstaffnage Chapel
Stirling
Robert the Bruce
Abbeys and Churches
Inchcolm
Arriving at Inchcolm Abbey
Neolithicum and Bronze Age
Neolithic Orkney
Ring of Brodgar
Skara Brae
Brochs and Cairns
Clava Cairns
The Brochs of Gurness and Midhowe - Introduction
Picts and Dalriatans
Dunadd Hill Fort
Staffa
Wales
Towns
Aberystwyth
Castle and Coast
Caerleon
The Ffwrwm
The Roman Amphitheatre
The Baths in the Legionary Fort
Conwy
The Smallest House in Great Britain
Castles
Beaumaris
History
Architecture
Caernarfon
Master James of St.George
The Castle Kitchens
Cardiff
From Romans to Victorians
Chepstow
Beginnings unto Bigod
Edward II to the Tudors
Civil War
Conwy
History
Architecture
Criccieth
Llywelyn's Buildings
King Edward's Buildings
Manorbier
The Pleasantest Spot in Wales
Pembroke
Photo Impressions
Roman Remains
Isca Silurum / Caerleon
The Amphitheatre
The Baths in the Legionary Fort
Denmark
Denmark Tour, Part 1 /
Part 2
Castles
Egeskov Castle
The Gardens
Finland
Towns
Porvoo
Medieval Porvoo
Norway
The Hurtigruten-Tour
Fjords of South-Western Norway
Castles and Fortresses
Akershus Fortress in Oslo
History
Architecture
Vardøhus Fortress
History
Museums
The Fram Museum in Oslo
Sweden
Neolithicum and Bronze Age
Gotland
Gnisvärd Ship Setting
Museums
The Vasa Museum in Stockholm
Raising the Vasa Wreck
Estonia
Baltics Tour, Part 1 /
Part 2
Towns
Tallinn
The History of Medieval Tallinn
Latvia
Baltics Tour, Part 1 /
Part 2
Towns
Riga
The History of Medieval Riga
Lithuania
Lithuania Tour, Part 1 /
Part 2
Towns
Vilnius
Photo Impressions
Czechia
Czechia Tour
Towns
Cheb / Eger
The Old Town
Karlovy Vary / Karlsbad
Brief History of the Town
Kutná Hora
The Sedlec Ossuary
The Medieval Town and St.Barbara's Church
Poland
Poland Tour
Towns
Gdańsk / Danzig
History of Medieval Gdańsk
Medieval and Renaissance Gdańsk
Kraków
The Old Town
Jewish Kraków - Kazimierz and the Ghetto
Wrocław / Breslau
The Botanical Garden
The Wrocław Dwarfs
Castles
Ogrodzieniec Castle
A Virtual Tour
First Castle to the Boner Family
Belgium
Towns
Antwerp
The Old Town
Bruges
Medieval Bruges
Ghent
Medieval Ghent
Tongeren
Medieval Buildings
Roman Remains
Atuatuca Tungrorum / Tongeren
Roman Remains in the Town
Luxembourg
Towns
Luxembourg City
A Tour of the Town
City Trips
Strasbourg (France)
A Tour of the Town
St. Petersburg (Russia)
Impressions from the Neva River
Landscapes and Geology
Germany
Baltic Sea Coast
Flensburg Firth
Impressions from Rugia
Rugia: Flint Fields
Rugia: Jasmund Peninsula and Kap Arkona
Rugia: The Pier of Sellin
A Tour on the Wakenitz River
Lüneburg Heath
Hiking in the Lüneburg Heath
Harz National Park
A Collection of Tours
Arboretum Bad Grund / Hübichenstein
Bode Valley and Rosstrappe Cliff
Daneil's Cave
Devil's Wall
Ilse Valley and Ilse's Rock
Klus Rock
Lonau Falls
Oderteich Reservoir
Rappbode Reservoir
Rhume Springs
Southern Harz Karst
National Park Hainich
Oberderdorla and Hainich National Park
Nature Park Meissner-Kaufunger Wald
Blue Dome near Eschwege
Hiking in the Meissner
Hessian Switzerland
Rossbach Heath
Salt Springs at the Werra
Nature Park Reinhardswald
Old Forest at the Sababurg
Nature Park Solling-Vogler
The Forest Pasture Project
Hannover Cliffs
Raised Bog Mecklenbruch
Pretty Places in Göttingen
Spring in the Parks of Göttingen
Winter Impressions
Rivers and Lakes
Autumn at Werra/Weser
The Danube in Spring
Edersee Reservoir
A Rainy Rhine Cruise
Vineyards at Saale/Unstrut
Weser River Ferry
Weser Skywalk
Wildlife
Zoo am Meer Bremerhaven
Harz Falcon Park
Ozeaneum Stralsund: Baltic Sea Life
Ozeaneum Stralsund: North Sea Life
Red squirrels
Fossils and Rocks
Fossilized Ammonites
Baltic Countries
Baltic Sea Cruise
Lithuania
Beaches at the Curonian Spit
Geology of the Curonian Spit
Central Europe
Fossils and Rocks
Loket Meteorite (Czechia)
Great Britain
The East Coast
By Ferry to Newcastle
Impressions from the East Coast
Scottish Sea Shores
Crossing to Mull
Mull: Craignure to Fionnphort
Dunollie and Kilchurn
Highland Mountains: Inverness to John o'Groats
Pentland Firth
Staffa
Summer in Oban
Scotland by Train
West Highland Railway
Wildlife
Sea Gulls
Scandinavia
The
Hurtigruten-Tour
A Voyage into Winter
Light and Shadows
Other Norway Cruises
Fjords of South-Western Norway
Norway by Train
From Oslo to Bergen
From Trondheim to Oslo
Wildlife
Bearded Seals
Dog Sledding With Huskies
Eagles and Gulls in the Trollfjord
Photo Collections
Photo Parade 2023
Photo Parade 2024
Medieval History
Medieval Life
Warfare
Trebuchets
Late Medieval Swords
Medieval Art
The Choir Screen in the Cathedral of Mainz
The Gospels of Heinrich the Lion
The Hunting Frieze in Königslutter Cathedral
Medieval Monster Carvings
The Viking Treasure of Hiddensee
Craftmanship
Goldsmithery
Medical Instruments
The Hanseatic League
History of the Hanseatic League
Introduction and Beginnings
Hanseatic Architecture
Examples of Brick Architecture
Hall Houses (Dielenhäuser)
Goods and Trade
Stockfish Trade
Towns of the Hanseatic League
Riga
Stralsund
Tallinn / Reval
The Order of the Teutonic Knights
The Northern Crusades
The Conquest of Danzig
The Siege of Vilnius 1390
Vikings
Viking Material Culture
The Viking Treasure of Hiddensee
Viking Ships
The Nydam Ship
Germany
Geneaology
List of Medieval German Emperors
Anglo-German Marriage Connections
Kings and Emperors
The Salian Dynasty
King Heinrich IV
Staufen against Welfen
Emperor Otto IV
Princes and Lords
House Welfen
Heinrich the Lion's Ancestors
The Dukes of Braunschweig-Grubenhagen
Otto I of Braunschweig-Göttingen
The Landgraves of Thuringia
The Ludowing Landgraves of Thuringia
Albrecht II and Friedrich I of Thuringia
Dukes and Princes of other Families
Prince Wilhelm Malte of Putbus
Counts and Local Lords
The Marshals of Ebersburg
The Counts of Everstein
The Counts of Hohnstein
The Lords of Plesse
The Counts of Reichenbach
The Counts of Winzenburg
Feuds and Rebellions
Royal Troubles
Otto IV and Bishop Adalbert II of Magdeburg
Local Feuds
The Lüneburg Succession War
The Thuringian Succession War
The Star Wars
Great Britain
Kings of England
House Plantagenet
Richard Lionheart in Speyer
King Henry IV's Lithuanian Crusade
Normans, Britons, Angevins
Great Noble Houses
The Dukes of Brittany
The Earls of Richmond
Kings of Scots
House Dunkeld
Malcolm III and Northumbria
Struggle for the Throne: Malcolm III to David I
King David and the Civil War, 1
King David and the Civil War, 2
Houses Bruce and Stewart
The Early Stewart Kings
Welsh Princes
The Princes of Gwynedd
The Rise of House Aberffraw
Scotland and England
The Wars of Independence
Alexander of Argyll
The Fight for Stirling Castle
Wales and England
A History of Rebellion
Llywellyn ap Gruffudd to Owain Glyn Dŵr
Scandinavia
Kings of Denmark
House Knýtlinga
Harald Bluetooth's Flight to Pomerania
Kings of Norway
Foreign Relations
King Eirik's Scottish Marriages
King Håkon V's Swedish Politics
Beginnings of the Kalmar Union
Danish Rule in the Baltic Sea
The Duchy of Estonia
Danish Kings and German Sword Brothers
Feuds and Rebellions
Alv Erlingsson of Tønsberg
Livonia and Lithuania
(Livonia: Latvia and Estonia)
Lithuanian Princes
The Geminid Dynasty
Troublesome Cousins - Jogaila and Vytautas
The Northern Crusades
The Wars in Lithuania
The Siege of Vilnius 1390
Conflicts in Livonia
The History of Riga
The History of Reval (Tallinn)
Poland
Royal Dynasties
The Jagiełłonian Kings
Władysław Jagiełło and the Polish-Lithuanian Union
The Northern Crusades
The Conquest of Pomerania and Prussia
The Conquest of Danzig
Bohemia
Royal Dynasties
The Bohemian Kings of House Luxembourg
King Sigismund and the Hussite Wars
Luxembourg
House Luxembourg
King Sigismund
Roman History
The Romans at War
Forts and Fortifications
The German Limes
The Cavalry Fort Aalen
Limes Fort Osterburken
Limes Fort Saalburg
The Hadrian's Wall
Introduction
The Fort at Segedunum / Wallsend
Border Life
Exercise Halls
Mile Castles and Watch Towers
Soldiers' Living Quarters
Cavalry Barracks
Campaigns and Battles
Maps
The Romans in Germania
The Pre-Varus Invasion in Germania
Roman Camp Hedemünden
New Finds in 2008
The Battle of the Teutoburg Forest
Museum Park at Kalkriese
The Battle at the Harzhorn
Introduction
The Batavian Rebellion
A Short Introduction
Roman Militaria
Armour
Early Imperial Helmets
Late Roman Helmets
The Negau B Helmet
Weapons
Weapon Finds at Hedemünden
The pilum
Daggers
Swords
Other Equipment
Roman Saddles
Infrastructure
Roman River Transport
Roman Life and Religion
Religion and Public Life
Religion
Curse Tablets and Good Luck Charms
Isis Worship
Memorial Stones
The Mithras Cult
Domestic Life
Roman
villae
Villa Urbana Longuich
Villa Rustica Wachenheim
Everyday Life
Bathing Habits
Children's Toys
Face Pots
Other Times
Neolithicum to Iron Age
Germany
Development of Civilisation
European Bread Museum, Ebergötzen
The Hutewald Project in the Solling
Open Air Museum Oerlinghausen
Neolithic Remains
Stone Burials of the Funnelbeaker Culture
The Necropolis of Oldendorf
Bronze Age / Iron Age
The Nydam Ship
Scotland
Neolithic Orkney
The Neolithic Landscape of Orkney
Ring of Brodgar
Skara Brae
Life in Skara Brae
Bronze Age / Iron Age
Clava Cairns
The Brochs of Gurness and Midhowe - Their Function in Iron Age Society
Scandinavia
Bronze Age / Iron Age
The Ship Setting of Gnisvärd / Gotland
Post-Medieval History
Development of Technologies
Otto von Guericke and the Magdeburg Hemispheres
Attempts at Raising the Vasa Wreck
History of the Zoo am Meer, Bremerhaven
Explorers
Fram Expedition to the North Pole
Fram Expedition to the South Pole
Arts and Literature
The Weimar Classicism