The Lost Fort

My Travel and History Blog, Focussing mostly on Roman and Mediaeval Times


4 Jan 2011
  Limes Fort Osterburken - Part 3: The Cohort castellum

The cohort fort has been researched by Karl Schumacher before it was built over in mid-20th century, so we know the lay of the walls, the position of the gates and some interior buildings. The fort was somewhat smaller than the Saalburg; the walls of 186 (north/south) x 115 (east/west) metres enclosed 2.14 hectares. The foundation of the north wall was much broader (2.50 m) than the south wall (1.5 m) which is due to the fact that the north wall was built on the sandy ground just above the flood level of the Neckar river while the ground beneath the south wall was rocky. The original height of the walls is estimated to be about 4 metres with an additional chemin de ronde and battlements that added another 1.80 metres. The walls had been chalked and decorated with red lines in a stone pattern.

View from the annex fort over the part of Osterburken where the main fort has been

A V-shaped trench can be proven - and is still visible along the south wall where the cohort castellum connects with the annex fort - but not two like often are found at Limes forts (cfr. the Saalburg trenches). The fort had four gates, with the north and the south gate being situated slighty off the middle. This may be due to the terrain which forced the Romans to chose a rectangular shape with too long north/south sides compared to the standard layout of 2nd and 3rd century forts.

Connection of the forts across the trench
(The south wall foundations are the only surviving part of the main fort)

Schumacher had researched the east gate, the porta praetoria (the one facing the Limes), more closely, and we can assume the other gates followed a similar pattern. It was a double gate flanked by two towers. The interior of one tower held the remains of an altar. There is a layer of burnt material with the inclusion of a Migration Time fibula which proves that the fort has been attacked and damaged at least once. After that, one door of the double gate seems to have been walled in (and another gate of the fort as well) and towers were added to the corners of the fortifications, albeit only one of those has been excavated.

Annex fort, foundations on the north side

The principia has been more closely researched though the efforts were hampered by a modern building covering part of it. The principia included a cellar where the money for pay and funds was locked in. We can see an example of this in Segontium (Caernarfon, Wales; photo below). The principia was built in stone, and stone foundations of a granary have been found as well, but the barracks seem to have been built in half-timbered style. Neumaier* makes some efforts to reconstruct the possible interior buildings and their positions by using discoveries from other forts at the Odenwald Limes. His drawing looks slightly different than in the model in the introductory post about Osterburken except for the position of the principia.

Segontium, Wales; the cellar under the principia

There are no traces of a prior timber construction of the fortifications and the principia, which adds to the signs that the forts and turrets of the Outer Odenwald Limes were erected directly in stone. We remember that the Saalburg started out as smaller timber fort with turf walls.

I've posted about the garrison of the main fort, the cohors III Aquitanorum equitata civium Romanorum, here. The next post will be about the annex fort.

*Sources:
Helmut Neumaier, Die Kastelle von Osterburken - Eine Grenzstation am obergermanischen Limes. Osterburken 1991
 
Comments:
Did you take the photos? They're quite nice. Do bits of your novel take place in that fort? I'm trying to imagine the gloominess of the rock structure--strong, but gloomy.
 
Vicky, 98% of the photos on my blog are by me, including the ones of Osterburken (and Segontium). It was a rainy day and the place looked gloomy indeed. I doubt the Limes was high on the list of places a Roman would want to be posted. ;)

A LAND UNCONQUERED takes place long before the Limes was built; back then the Romans tried to push all the way to the Elbe river. But I have ideas for a novel taking place in the 3rd century that could well feature Osterburken (and the battle at the Harzhorn/Kalefeld, the newly discovered battlefield near where I live).
 
I put some pictures of Othello's Tower up on my blog. Nice little Lusignan castle, overlooking Famagusta harbour. One can almost hear Othello crying into his beer on the the wall walk....grin!
 
One of the portals of a double gate at Birdoswald fort on Hadrian's Wall was also walled up in the late Roman period. Easier to defend with a reduced garrison, perhaps.
 
Thanks for the pointer, Stag.

Carla, it does make sense. The number of gates in the Hadrian's Wall has been reduced in the late 3rd century, if I remember correctly - probably around the same time the Limes was abandoned and the frontier drawn back to the Rhine. Looks like those Picts were as bad as the Alamanni. *grin*
 
Thank you. You are an indefatigable resource.
 
Post a Comment

<< Home




The Lost Fort is a travel and history blog based on my journeys in Germany, the UK, Scandinavia, the Baltic Countries, and central Europe. It includes virtual town and castle tours with a focus on history, museum visits, hiking tours, and essays on Roman and Mediaeval history, illustrated with my own photos.


This blog is non-commercial.

All texts and photos (if no other copyright is noted) are copyright of Gabriele Campbell.

GDPR Privacy Policy



My Photo
Name:
Location: Goettingen, Germany

I'm a blogger from 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 still hasn't got an Instagram account.
(See here for Archives for mobile devices)


Historical Places

Germany
- Towns
- Castles
- Abbeys and Churches
- Roman Remains
- Neolithicum and Bronze Age
- Museums

Great Britain
- England
- Scotland
- Wales

Scandinavia
- Denmark
- Finland
- Norway
- Sweden

Baltic States
- Estonia
- Latvia
- Lithuania

Central Europe
- Czechia
- Poland

Benelux States
- Belgium
- Luxembourg

Hiking Tours and Cruises

City Trips
Germany
Baltic Sea
Great Britain
Scandinavia


Historical Places

Germany

Towns

Bad Sooden-Allendorf
Historical Town and Graduation Tower
Bruchteiche Reservoir

Binz
A Seaside Resort

Braunschweig
Lion Benches in the Castle Square
The Quadriga

Erfurt
Medieval Erfurt

Goslar
Medieval Goslar
Chapel in the Klus Rock

Heiligenstadt
Churches St.Martin and St.Mary

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: Architecture
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
Introduction

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

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

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
Shrine of the Standards

Romans in North Rhine-Westphalia
Playmobil Romans, LWL Museum Haltern
Varus Statue, Haltern am See

Romans at the Moselle
The Villa Urbana in Longuich

Romans at the Rhine
Boppard - The Roman Baudobriga
The Villa at 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


Other Countries

England

Towns

Chester
Roman and Medieval Chester

Hexham
The Abbey - Introduction
The Old Gaol

York
Clifford Tower
The Guild Hall
Monk Bar Gate with Richard III Museum
Museum Gardens
Houses in the Old Town
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

Wall Fort Birdoswald
The Dark Age Timber Halls

Wall Fort Segedunum
Museum and Viewing Tower
The Baths

Other Roman Sites
The Mithraeum at Brocolita
The Signal Station at Scarborough


Scotland

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
The Caves Under the Castle

Roman Remains

Isca Silurum / Caerleon
The Amphitheatre
The Baths in the Legionary Fort


Denmark

Museums

Viking Museum Roskilde
To come


Finland

Towns

Porvoo
Medieval Porvoo


Norway

Castles and Fortresses

Akershus Fortress in Oslo
Kings and Pirates
The Time of King Håkon V
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


Estonia

Towns

Tallinn
The History of Medieval Tallinn


Latvia

Towns

Riga
The History of Medieval Riga


Lithuania

Towns

Vilnius
Photo Impressions


Czechia

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

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


Hiking Tours and Cruises

City Trips

St.Petersburg (Russia)
Impressions from the Neva River

Strasbourg (France)
A Tour of the Town


Germany

Baltic Sea Coast
Flensburg Firth
Rugia: Jasmund Peninsula and Kap Arkona
Rugia: Photo Impressions
Rugia: The Pier of Sellin
A Tour on the Wakenitz River

Lüneburg Heath
Hiking Tours in the Lüneburg Heath

Harz National Park
Arboretum (Bad Grund)
Bode Valley and Rosstrappe Cliff
Devil's Wall
Ilse Valley and Ilse's Rock
Oderteich Reservoir
Rappbode Reservoir
Views from Harz mountains

Nature Park Meissner-Kaufunger Wald
Bruchteiche / Bad Sooden Allendorf
Hessian Switzerland

Nature Park Solling-Vogler
The Forest Pasture Project
Raised Bog Mecklenbruch

Nature Park Reinhardswald
Old Forest at the Sababurg

Thuringian Forests
Oberderdorla and Hainich National Park

Rivers and Lakes
The Danube in Spring
Edersee Reservoir
A Rainy Rhine Cruise
Vineyards at Saale and Unstrut
Weser River Ferry
Weser Skywalk

Wildlife
Harz Falcon Park
Ozeaneum Stralsund: The Baltic Sea Life
Ozeaneum Stralsund: The North Sea Life
Red squirrels

Seasons
Spring Impressions from Göttingen
Spring in the Hardenberg Castle Gardens
Spring in the Meissner
Memories of Summer
Summer Hiking Tours 2016
Autumn in the Meissner
Autumn at Werra and Weser
Winter at the 'Kiessee' Lake


The Baltic Sea

A Baltic Sea Cruise

The Curonian Spit in Lithuania
Beaches at the Curonian Spit
Geology of the Curonian Spit


Great Britain

The East Coast
By Ferry to Newcastle
Highland Mountains: Inverness to John o'Groats
Impressions from the East Coast

Scottish Sea Shores
Crossing to Mull
Mull: Craignure to Fionnphort
Dunollie and Kilchurn: Photo Impressions
Pentland Firth
Staffa
Summer in Oban

Scotland by Train
West Highland Railway

Wales
Views of Snowdownia

Wildlife
Sea Gulls


Scandinavia

Coast of Norway: Hurtigruten-Tour
A Voyage into Winter
Along the Coast of Norway - Light and Darkness

Norway by Train
From Oslo to Bergen
From Trondheim to Oslo

Wildlife
Bearded Seals
Dog Sledding With Huskies
Eagles and Gulls in the Trollfjord



Medieval History

General Essays

Medieval Life
Hanseatic League
Teutonic Knights
Vikings

Essays by Country

Germany
Great Britain
Scandinavia
Lithuania and Livonia
Poland
Bohemia
Luxembourg

Roman History

The Romans at War
Life and Religion

Other Times

Neolithicum to Iron Age
Post-Medieval History

Geology

Geological Landscapes
Fossils and Rocks











Medieval History

General Essays

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

The 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


Essays by Country

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 the Quarrelsome 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


Roman Life and Religion

Religion and Public Life

Religion
Curse Tablets and Good Luck Charms
Isis Worship
Memorial Stones
The Mithras Cult

Public Life
Roman Transport: Barges
Roman Transport: Amphorae and Barrels
Roman Water Supply

Architecture
Roman Public Baths

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 / Iron Age
The Ship Setting of Gnisvärd / Gotland


Post-Medieval History

Explorers and Discoveries

Explorers
Fram Expedition to the North Pole
Fram Expedition to the South Pole

Discoveries
Otto von Guericke and the Magdeburg Hemispheres
Raising a Wreck, Now and Then (Vasa Museum in Stockholm)

History and Literature

The Weimar Classicism
Introduction


Geology

Geological Landscapes

Germany

Baltic Sea Coast
Chalk Cliffs on Rugia
Flint Fields on Rugia

Harz Mountains
Bode Valley and Rosstrappe Cliffs
Daneil's Cave
Devil's Wall
Hübichenstein Rock
Klus Rock
Lonau Falls
Rhume Springs
Southern Harz Karst

Meissner / Kaufunger Wald
'Blue Dome' near Eschwege
Diabase and Basalt Formations
Hoher Meissner Karst
Salt Springs at the Werra

Solling-Vogler
Raised Bog Mecklenbruch
Hannover Cliffs

Great Britain

The Shores of Scotland
Staffa

Baltic Sea

Lithuania
Geology of the Curonian Spit


Fossils and Rocks

Fossilized Ammonites
Loket Meteorite (Czechia)



Powered by Blogger