Fürer Castle

Haimendorf Castle, owned by the Fürer family, is one of the best-preserved Renaissance manor houses in Franconia. Its building fabric has remained largely unchanged since its renovation between 1562 and 1567. The complex likely originated from a seat of ministeriales, who can be traced back to the early 13th century. With Heroldus de Heimendorf as a witness, the place appears in the document of the powerful imperial ministerialis Ulrich von Königstein from 1238, in which Reicheneck Castle is also first attested. A (or perhaps two) Fritz von Haimendorf appears between 1300 and 1329, a younger Friedrich then between 1373 and 1407. In 1404, Elisabetha von Haimendorf was buried in the Nuremberg Dominican monastery. A Berthold Pfinzing, a member of one of the leading Nuremberg families, is referred to as a relative of Katharina von Haimendorf, a nun from Engelthal who died before 1426.

According to Müllner's annals from 1623, the seat is said to have passed from the Haimendorfers to the Feuchters and from them to the Strobels; Christian Feuchter is said to have owned it in 1381. In 1386, Heinrich Strobel issued a feudal letter for an estate in Haimendorf, and in 1387, his son Ulrich resided in Haimendorf. After 1387, the property passed to the extremely wealthy mining entrepreneur Herdegen Valzner. After the death of the widow Margaretha Valzner, the von Seckendorff family followed in 1448, who in turn sold Haimendorf in 1452 to the Nuremberg patrician Herdegen Tucher. In 1476, the property finally came to Sigmund Fürer with the marriage of Anna Tucher. This transfer established a family ownership that continues to this day. The Fürers have been traceable in Nuremberg since the late 13th century, where they were involved in mining and long-distance trade for centuries.

August Gebessler and Gustav Voit assumed a seat that had existed since the 13th century, which is said to have been destroyed in the Landshut War of Succession. Although the destruction in 1504 during this war is not attested, the mention of a "Burgstall" (site of a former castle) in the early 16th century apparently led to this assumption. It is noteworthy, however, that the survey of the Nuremberg Council over the rural area, ordered before the outbreak of the Landshut War of Succession, did not identify a seat in Haimendorf. It is probable that the Haimendorf seat had already been in ruins since the First Margrave War in 1449, as at that time the campaign of the Nuremberg field captain Erhart Schürstab into the villages behind Moritzberg had been devastating [cf. Offenhausen]. Haimendorf, as property of the Seckendorffs, who were among the Margrave's first followers, must have been a particular target.

It can be assumed that Christoph III. Fürer was the one who, as he once stated himself, had a new manor house built in 1512. According to the tradition of the Fürer archive, it was a half-timbered building on a high solid base floor. Nuremberg's chronicler Johannes Müllner also recalled in 1623 that Fürer, who died in 1537, had "rebuilt and fortified" the seat in Haimendorf.

The second Haimendorf Castle did not last long: on May 31, 1552, the Fürers had to accept the renewed destruction of the complex by fire during the Second Margrave War. Only in 1561, under Carl Fürer, shortly after his inauguration as administrator and with financial contributions from his brothers Sigmund, Christoph, and Moritz, did reconstruction begin. It took place mainly from 1562 to 1566. During this time, not only constructive work was carried out, but also largely the fixed furnishings were installed. By the spring of 1567, some improvements and supplementary work were completed. Only during the restoration measures in 2006 did it become clear that considerable parts of the older complex were still integrated into the ground floor. However, it also became apparent that the constructions from the time of the reconstruction from 1562 to 1566, including those of the roof and its battens, are completely preserved.

Haimendorf Castle is a three-story manor house, whose enclosures feature ashlar masonry of sandstone and, in the lower area, also rubble stone zones of the predecessor building. The building, covered by a half-hipped roof, has two corner towers to the northeast and southwest, which protrude only slightly from the other facades. The uppermost tower floors bear curved spires. The building appears today with exposed stone, but remnants of plaster testify to a light red facade paint with a white false joint network during the construction period.

The manor house once stood within an inner moat, which was followed at a distance of about 10 meters by a high inner rampart. This was surrounded by a second moat, partly preserved to this day, also lined with ashlar masonry. From the outer bailey located south of the castle, one originally reached the castle via drawbridges over the moats. The inner bridge led directly to the round-arched, rusticated portal in the southern enclosure. Here, a Fürer coat of arms and the year "1565" commemorate the reconstruction. In the 19th century, the ramparts on the south and west sides were removed, the moats filled in, and transformed into gardens.

The ground floor of the manor house is accessed via a western hall. The rooms have largely retained their original constructions and furnishings: plank ceilings in the living rooms and chambers, only on the second floor to the west is there a stucco ceiling subsequently installed in the 18th century. The main halls are spanned by beam-and-clay ceilings and still feature their historic brick floors. The Renaissance doors with their original casings are noteworthy. On the first floor, a smoke kitchen with its brick hearth has been preserved.

The castle underwent no major changes after 1567. In 1613, the Fürer family was granted 88 logs of timber, including 28 oaks, from the Reichswald for a construction project, which apparently took place in one of the outbuildings. The large castle barn in the forecourt, built in 1605, was so damaged in 1750 that it was to be renewed under Carl Gottlieb Fürer. The Voithaus was rebuilt in 1758 and equipped with a bell tower with a striking clock. The attached stable is said to date back to 1881.

The castle complex is still owned by the Fürer heirs and is maintained by them with great dedication and according to monument preservation principles.