The remains of the Castle can be visited
RuinAalen-Unterkochen
Kocherburg Castle (Ruin)
Kocherburg Castle, popularly also known as Kochenburg, is a vanished hilltop castle near the Unterkochen district of the city of Aalen in the Ostalbkreis (Baden-Württemberg).
The castle is located about half a kilometer east of the edge of Unterkochen, at the western tip of a large spur of the Härtsfeld plateau, known as Schlossbaufeld, approximately between the spring ravines of the White Kocher and its left tributary, Hässelbach. The castle lies about 80 meters above the Hässelbach Stadium at its feet. About 700 to 800 meters further east, prehistoric ramparts cross the base of the Schlossbaufeld, which slopes noticeably to the west and covers about 0.3 km², shortly before a larger step in the terrain leading to the Härtsfeld plateau.
The Kocherburg was incorporated into a prehistoric fortification (1300: Castrum Kochenburch). In 1136, the Lords of Kochen, who probably resided at Kocherburg, were mentioned for the first time. They were followed by the Ahelfingen, who in 1317 exchanged the castle "under the mountain at Kochenberg," which was a fief of the Lords of Öttingen, along with possessions in the village of Unterkochen, for Ellwangen. The castle subsequently became the seat of the chief bailiff of the Ellwangen district of Kochenburg. In 1627 and 1632, the construction of a new castle, of which only minor wall remnants still bear witness between the rocks, can be proven. During the Thirty Years' War, the Swedes completely destroyed the castle in 1645; the stones were later used to build buildings in the village.
Description+
In 1913, the then chairman of the Albverein and paper manufacturer Adolf Palm (1846–1925) had investigations carried out at the castle. The first excavations took place under the direction of the castle painter and castle researcher Konrad Albert Koch (1869–1945) and uncovered part of the masonry. During later excavations in 1914, commissioned by the History and Antiquities Association of Ellwangen, a vaulted cellar and the adjacent areas of the escape passage and defensive chamber were uncovered.
The "Geschichts- und Altertumsverein Aalen e. V." founded the Kocherburg Ruin Initiative, called INKO. In 2008, after stabilization work, the 12-meter-long, well-preserved eastern wall was uncovered. The wall was drilled and injected with cement to prevent water penetration, after which the masonry was sandblasted.
In the same year, an archaeologist was commissioned with further investigations. INKO laid further paths and made more walls visible. Employees of the Stuttgart University of Applied Sciences designed a plastic 3D model of the Kocherburg, incorporating the topographical surroundings of the castle, and produced a 3D animation film. In 2010, the newly gained insights were presented as a building archaeological inventory in the Bischof-Häfele-Haus in Unterkochen. The Kocherburg Ruin Initiative continues to be involved in the maintenance of the castle complex and is preparing further renovation work on the castle.
Today, the former castle complex is an archaeological cultural monument that offers an archaeological tour through and around the castle area.
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Source: Wikipedia · Licence: CC BY-SA 4.0
This description draws on the facts documented in the linked Wikipedia article; Wikipedia content is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Wording and editing: Mobile History.
Location: 48.8158, 10.1484