Propylaeum

Of the once numerous medieval castles in the Markgräflerland and in the Breisgau, only a few survived the eventful and warlike centuries of the early modern period on the Upper Rhine. A small number of more or less well-preserved ruins are contrasted by a considerable number of vanished castles, of which only written records and field names still bear witness. The Castle Book, which was compiled in the Department of Regional History at the Historical Seminar of the University of Freiburg i. Br., contains a richly illustrated catalog of all castles and castle sites in the Breisgau region in its medieval extension and thus offers for the first time a complete inventory of the high and late medieval castle landscape there. It will be published in four volumes, the first two parts covering the northern Breisgau, two more are planned for the southern Breisgau.

Of the once numerous medieval castles in the Markgräflerland and in the Breisgau, only a few survived the eventful and warlike centuries of the early modern period on the Upper Rhine. A small number of more or less well-preserved ruins are contrasted by a considerable number of vanished castles, of which only written records and field names still bear witness. The Castle Book, which was compiled in the Department of Regional History at the Historical Seminar of the University of Freiburg i. Br., contains a richly illustrated catalog of all the castles and castle sites of the Breisgau region in its medieval extension and thus offers for the first time a complete inventory of the high and late medieval castle landscape there. It will be published in four volumes, the first two parts covering the northern Breisgau, two more are planned for the southern Breisgau.

Of the once numerous castles in medieval Breisgau, only a few survived the turbulent and warlike centuries of the early modern period on the Upper and High Rhine. A small stock of more or less well-preserved ruins contrasts with a considerable number of vanished castles, of which only written records and field names still bear witness. The Burgenlexikon, which was compiled in cooperation between the Department of Regional History of the Historical Seminar of the University of Freiburg i. Br. and the Historical Institute of the Technical University of Dortmund, contains a richly illustrated catalog of all castles and castle sites of the Breisgau region in its medieval extent and thus offers for the first time a complete inventory of the high and late medieval castle landscape there. It will be published in four parts, of which so far the two volumes for the northern Breisgau and with this volume now also the first for the southern Breisgau are available.

On October 28 and 29, 1994, the Freiburg Research Network "Archaeology and History of the First Millennium in Southwest Germany" organized a colloquium at the University of Freiburg with the topic "The Southwest in the 8th Century from a Historical and Archaeological Perspective".
During the colloquium in 1994 such a period of upheaval was to be looked at more closely with the 8th century. This period, which cannot be strictly defined as a century, shows its transitional character in various respects, e.g. in political history with the striking end of the Alemannic duchy in the middle of the century and the integration of Alemannia into the Frankish Empire, in settlement archaeology with the flowing end of the row grave custom, the typical burial custom in the Merovingian Empire, and thus of the so-called row grave civilization. It was the intention of the colloquium to work out selective and long-term changes of this kind in the concentration on a region characterized by manifold historical traditions (Celts, Romans, Alemanni) as well as in the specific comparison with other historical landscapes and to approach the topic both in a general overview and in individual case studies.

Die in Freiburg erst vor wenigen Jahren in Gang gekommene archäologische Erforschung des Stadtgrundes und der frühen Siedlungselemente, die vor allem in den Kellerbereichen von später neu errichteten Bauten erhalten blieben, hat die Diskussion um die Entstehung Freiburgs und um die Frühzeit der von den Zähringern begründeten städtischen Siedlung neu aufleben lassen. Die ältere Auffassung, die meinte, man halte mit dem berühmten Marktprivileg Konrads von Zähringen aus dem Jahre 1120 den urkundlichen Beweis für eine planmäßig durchgeführte Gründung der Stadt auf weitgehend unvorbereitetem Gelände in der Hand, sieht sich nun wieder mit der gegenteiligen, durch die archäologischen Befunde gestützten Ansicht konfrontiert, die die Entstehung Freiburgs als einen zeitlich gestreckten Vorgang zu deuten geneigt ist. Damit aber tritt auch das andere, von den Marbacher Annalen überlieferte, durch Eduard Heycks frühes Verdikt nie recht ernst genommene »Gründungsjahr« Freiburgs, nämlich 1091, wieder in das Blickfeld des Interesses. Es zwingt dazu, die Frage nach den Anfängen statt nach dem Anfang - von Markt und Stadt zu stellen. Diesen Versuch unternahm im »Jubiläumsjahr« 1991 die im vorliegenden Band vereinigte, vom Historischen Seminar der Universität und vom Stadtarchiv Freiburg veranstaltete Reihe von sieben Vorträgen. Es zeigte sich: Seit spätrömischer Zeit bot der gut strukturierte, durch Verkehrswege erschlossene weitere Raum um Freiburg günstige Voraussetzungen für eine wirtschaftliche Nutzung und intensive Besiedlung und damit für die Entstehung stadtähnlicher Zentren mit zentralörtlichen Funktionen wie Breisach, Sasbach, Riegel und die befestigte Großsiedlung auf dem Zähringer Burgberg. Seit den 1090er Jahren lagen die politischen Voraussetzungen vor für eine Konsolidierung der wirtschaftlichen Prosperität mit der Anlage einer jetzt archäologisch nachgewiesenen, unter dem Schutz der Burg auf dem Schloßberg stehenden Siedlung. Die Marktprivilegierung von 1120 schloß die vorausgegangene Phase organisatorisch und rechtlich ab. Auf diesem Fundament bildete sich der herrschaftliche Markt zur mittelalterlichen Stadt aus, deren sozial- und verfassungsgeschichtliche Entwicklung in den ersten anderthalb Jahrhunderten zwar im ganzen nur umrißartig, gelegentlich aber, vor allem im Hinblick auf die führenden Familien, unerwartet detailliert dargestellt werden kann.

A new, preferably unbiased view of spatial structures proves to be a decisive prerequisite for freeing research from rigid assumptions and models. This makes it possible to replace previous and necessarily highly simplified ladder counts with complex reconstructions. Beyond large lines, spatial relationships and structures prove to be flexible and changeable. The contributions collected in this volume underline how different approaches and perspectives can be, even if they deal with the seemingly self-evident "space". In this opening beyond deterministic concepts and conceptions of space, which geography has long since completed, there are new opportunities for archaeological and historical studies.

The research association "Archäologie und Geschichte des ersten Jahrtausends in Südwestdeutschland", founded in 1984, has set itself the goal of exploring the early history of the German southwest in an interdisciplinary conversation. The first volume of the series of the same name contains 15 contributions by renowned historians who present the latest results of research from their fields of activity - provincial Roman and early historical archaeology and medieval regional history. The geographical focus of the investigations is the area between the upper Rhine and the upper Danube, between the Swiss Jura and the Swabian Alb, the Burgundian Gate and the Franconian Ries. The time span ranges from the Celtic period and the Roman occupation of the country to the era of the formation of high medieval noble houses and sovereign territories. The research association pays special attention to periods of upheaval in history, the change of populations and the transformation of social and economic structures as well as the introduction of technical innovations. The book, which is equipped with an extensive index and many illustrations, provides a clear introduction to the methodology and working methods of ancient history. It is therefore an indispensable compendium for students and scholars, but also for the layman interested in regional studies.

Scholars from several nations and disciplines met in March 2009 in the former Cluniac Priory of St. Ulrich near Bollschweil to discuss aspects of medieval castles. The invitation was extended by the project group "The Castles in Medieval Breisgau" at the Universities of Dortmund and Freiburg i. Br., which aims at a complete survey of the castles of an old medieval landscape. At the conference, the results of many years of research were placed in a scientific context and compared on a supra-regional level.

Based on the papers presented at an international and interdisciplinary symposium (October 1990) in Freiburg/Br., this volume offers an overview of the latest montanarchaeological investigations in almost all of Europe. The more than 40 contributions span the time from prehistoric to early modern mining. The mining of gold and silver, of non-ferrous metals as well as of iron is taken into account, whereby the path from ore mining via smelting to the further processing of the raw metals is shown and keywords such as working conditions and environmental influences indicate the thematic diversity of the volume. The book, which is equipped with an extensive index of locations and more than 300 illustrations, vividly illustrates the research approaches, methods and previous results of mining archaeology.

A new, preferably unbiased view of spatial structures proves to be a decisive prerequisite for freeing research from rigid assumptions and models. This makes it possible to replace previous and necessarily highly simplified dominant narrative with complex reconstructions. Beyond large lines, spatial relationships and structures prove to be flexible and changeable. The contributions collected in this volume underline how different approaches and perspectives can be, even when they deal with the seemingly self-evident "space". In this opening beyond deterministic concepts and conceptions of space, which geography has long since completed, there are new opportunities for archaeological and historical studies.