At the time Guttenberg Castle was built, in the 12th century, a proper gentleman wore a suit of armor forged very carefully from iron. It took many trips to the tailor before the suit was finished. After it was done, woe to the man who gained weight.
The people who wore the armor were the Emperor's prime battlefield soldiers. They needed practice, and, at the same time, they didn't want to get their clothes dirty, bent, or rusty. To get some serious practice, the Emperor would set a time and place for a jousting tournament, which would become a grand event, something to be likened to Olympic contests.
The first tournament to be recorded in the book of the Emperor's contests was held in 936. The last, 36 Imperial Tournaments later, was held in the year 1487. By then, armor was obsolete, due to the use of gunpowder. Maximilian, who was Emperor then, called himself the last Knight of Germany.
The central events of a jousting tournament were duels between two Knights. In full armor, they sat on their horses, armed with shields and blunt wooden lances. They rode at full speed toward their opponent, and tried to push him out of his saddle. The one who fell off was the loser.
Prior to gunpowder, castles and city walls provided excellent protection if the two sides were otherwise matched evenly. The high point of castle construction was in the 13th century. Fortresses replaced castles in the 16th century.
Early firearms were very primitive, not much more than an iron tube similar to, but smaller than, a cannon. The rate of fire was very slow, as the tube got hot and one could not reload until it cooled down. As defensive measures in the castle, other techniques were used also. Throw-stones were stored on the top of the wall and towers, and one threw these at any enemy who approached too closely. Because the stone was thrown downward, it gained velocity and became a very powerful missile.
Guttenberg Castle was never seriously involved in any attack, and, therefore, it has survived almost intact. In part, this was due to luck, but the owners were also careful in their preparations. During The
Thirty Years' War
, they took out insurance by buying protection from both sides. The insurance was effective and the castle survived. Gemmingens still live in one part of the castle, while another part has been converted to a museum. Also on the grounds is an activity devoted to helping hurt birds of prey, eagles especially, recover.
(30 Jun 00)
We gratefully acknowledge the work of John Blankenbaker who published over 2,500 Germanna History Notes via the Germanna-L@rootsweb.com email list from 1997 to 2008. We are equally thankful to George Durman (Sgt. George) for hosting the list and republishing the notes via rootsweb.com.