Museum Burg Arras

Anno 350 Arras Castle is closely linked to Germany's eventful history from the end of Roman times to the end of the Middle Ages. At the height of the migration of peoples in 350, the Western Roman Emperor Magnentius, who resided in Trier, built a fortified site (Latin arrha = fortified hill) above a road junction as a defence against the invading Franks. Anno 950 Around 900, the devastating Norman raids that began 500 years later and completely destroyed Trier prompted one of the highest-ranking officials of the Carolingian royal court, the Count Palatine of Lorraine with his official residence in Aachen, to build Arras Castle to protect his rich possessions on the Moselle. The three shields in the castle's coat of arms are still a reminder of this history. The castle was completed in 950, making it the oldest fortification in the region, including the Middle Rhine area. Emperor Maximilian Anno 1512 The high reputation of the Lords of Arras in the early Middle Ages resulted from the close relations they maintained with the sovereigns of Trier. In 1105, the castle chapel dedicated to St. Laurentius was consecrated by the powerful Archbishop Bruno. The latter had determined imperial policy for over 20 years as advisor to the last Salian Emperor Henry V during the difficult times of the German Empire. This esteem for the Knights of the Arras is also evidenced by many other subsequent events, and is particularly evident in the visit of Emperor Maximilian I on 7 March 1512, who was subsequently accompanied by the Knights of the Arras to the Imperial Diet in Trier. A son of the castle, Dietrich von Metzenhausen, led the negotiations at this Imperial Diet with the French royal family, who did not want to leave the Duchy of Burgundy to the Habsburgs. These disputes were the cause and starting point of the so-called hereditary enmity with France, which then began and lasted until our century. The destruction of Arras Castle and the expulsion of its inhabitants in the Palatinate War of Success were the consequences in 1689. The Elector of Trier, Johann von Metzenhausen (1492-1540), who was responsible for fighting the Anabaptists from Münster, also came from Arras Castle. His family was granted perpetual right of residence in the castle in a document that still exists today. Anno 1624 An inventory of the castle buildings from 1624, kept in the state archives, provides information about the living conditions at that time. The wine cellar, which still exists, has a capacity of 32 barrels of wine - one barrel is 1,000 litres in the Moselle region - and was used for the castle's own supplies. There are also seven small cellars for fruit, vegetables and grain. Stables for horses, cattle and pigs were accessible from one of the three inner courtyards. The living quarters alone comprised eight living rooms and 14 sleeping chambers. The castle chapel was located next to the knights' hall. In addition to salmon and pike fishing in the Moselle and the Alfbach, the lords of the castle were entitled to hunt in the neighbouring Kondelwald forest as far as Bad Bertrich, whose warm springs also once belonged to them. After the withdrawal of the French at the end of the Palatinate War of Success, the castle slowly fell into disrepair. The ruins were used by the local population as a quarry. However, the 1000-year-old tower, which is 4 m thick on the ground floor, withstood all attempts at destruction and is therefore probably the oldest structure between Koblenz and Trier. Anno 1900 Reconstruction. Around 1900, the mine director Traugott Wilhelm Dykerhoff from Herne made the castle habitable again by incorporating the remaining masonry. We hope you enjoy your visit to the castle grounds and the castle museum with its memorial to the former Federal President Heinrich Lübke - a relative of the present owners. Immerse yourself in a bygone era and experience the special atmosphere of a medieval knight's castle.