Elmsburg Castle

The origins of Elmsburg date back to the 11th century. In 1213, Emperor Otto IV bequeathed the church located there to the monastery in Scheverlingenburg of Walle. As this monastery did not last, the emperor gifted both institutions to St. Blasius Abbey in Braunschweig in 1218. Just three years later, in 1221, Count Palatine Heinrich transferred the castle to the Teutonic Order, which established a commandry there. Under Duke Otto the Child, the property of the order's complex was expanded around 1240. Due to spatial constraints, the commandry was likely moved to Lucklum around 1264, but a small house commandry remained in Elmsburg until 1318.