Bamenohl Castle

Haus Bamenohl is a castle in the village of Bamenohl, municipality of Finnentrop, Olpe district in North Rhine-Westphalia.

The first owners of Haus Bamenohl were presumably the von Hundem gt. Pepersack. Through marriage, the von Heygen (Heggen) family came into possession of Bamenohl. Under Heydenrich van Heyen, the "huyss zu Babenole" was first mentioned in a document in 1379. At that time, he and his brothers swore an oath of fealty (so-called Urfehde) to Archbishop Friedrich III von Saarwerden of Cologne and declared the house and the "hoff zu Overenbabenole" an open house. This does not necessarily have to be the current castle, but the cellar vaults and the walls, up to two meters thick, suggest construction in the 14th or 15th century. At this time, there was already a chapel, first mentioned in a document from 1362.

In 1395, the then owners opened their castle Bamenohl to the Count Palatine of the Rhine, Ruprecht II. In further inheritance, the von Plettenberg family first came to Bamenohl around 1433. Other co-owners in the 14th century were the Lords of Dünschede and the Vögte von Elspe.

15th and 16th Century

After an inheritance division in 1474 and a sale, at the beginning of the 16th century, the von Plettenberg and Vogt von Elspe families each owned half of Bamenohl. In the 16th century, the property was divided into a Lower House and an Upper House. The current castle belonged to the Lower House, while the Upper House was located only a few meters away. In 1580, Bernhard Vogt von Elspe zu Borghausen inherited the other half of Bamenohl and moved his residence there.

In 1647, Adam Vogt von Elspe built an outbuilding, the current east wing, "IN GROSEM KRIG STRYT UND WIDERWERTIGKEIT" as it says on a stone plaque. This construction could only succeed at the end of the Thirty Years' War because the family was in possession of several letters of protection that spared the house from robbery and looting.

17th and 18th Century

After the owners of the Upper House had changed several times (including von Steckenberg, von Calenberg), the last Vogt von Elspe, Moritz Georg gt. Voss, then owner of the Lower House, acquired the Upper House in 1781 by purchase from Abbess Caroline von Dalwigk zu Neuenheerse. Thus, the unification of Upper and Lower Bamenohl was completed.

In the winter of 1784, the buildings of the Oberbamenohl estate were demolished.

In 1778, Moritz Georg Vogt von Elspe gen. Voss zu Rodenberg, Oevinghausen, Schwerte, Westhemmerde, Werl, Bamenohl and Borghausen, among others, bequeathed the Bamenohl estate to his niece, Anna Luise Gisbertine von Bodelschwingh. Through marriage to Karl Wilhelm von Plettenberg, Bamenohl returned to the ownership of the von Plettenberg family.

19th and 20th Century

The Upper House was demolished in 1851 by Carl Gisbert von Bodelschwingh-Plettenberg, who also had the moat filled in, which surrounded the property on three sides. He also erected the tower, on whose main portal are the coats of arms of the Counts of Bodelschwingh-Plettenberg and his wife's family (Quadt-Wyckrath-Hüchtenbrock).

In the last years of the Second World War, a department of the Mannesmann-Werke from Düsseldorf was relocated to Bamenohl. After the war, it served as accommodation for refugees, and later it was converted into a retirement home. This moved out in 1967, leaving behind a severely dilapidated building. After a vacancy of approximately 20 years, three rooms were prepared for the New Apostolic Church community. Subsequently, a successive renovation of the entire ensemble began by the current owners, the von Plettenberg family.

Today

The entire ensemble of the castle, courtyard, and park with ponds is a protected monument. Viewings are possible by prior arrangement. Individual rooms on the ground floor can be rented for events. In particular, civil weddings are possible in the castle.

The annual Jazz Frühschoppen on the 3rd Sunday in August has developed into a popular event.