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The highest butter-churn tower - the bergfried at Rheinfels Castle, 1607

A butter-churn tower (Template:Lang-de) is a two-part defensive tower in which the upper section has a smaller diameter than the lower section. This design provides a ledge or fighting platform about half-way up that acts as a chemin de ronde whilst the narrower tower that rises from this platform acts as a raised observation point. The two sections of the tower are usually cylindrical, but in rarer cases butter-churn towers may have a square plan. Its name derives from its shape which is similar to that of an upright butter churn: a cylindrical container with a shorter, narrower top section.

The design appeared in the 14th century, being especially employed for the bergfriede of castles in Europe, but also for wall towers or watch towers on city walls. Its fighting or defensive value was not much greater than ordinary defensive towers, but it offered better observation over a greater distance. The reason for the construction of butter-churn towers may have more symbolic than strategic.

In the late Middle Ages a number of butter-churn towers were erected in the Middle Rhine-South Hesse-Taunus region. Examples include those in Bad Homburg (the White Tower), Friedberg (the Adolfsturm), Idstein (Witches' Tower, the bergfried of Idstein Castle), Oberwesel (Oxen Tower), and the Marksburg above Braubach am Rhein (whose square bergfried was given a small butter-churn turret in 1468 that burned down in 1705 and was replaced in 1905). One of the tallest towers is the 56-metre-high Round Tower, the symbol of the town of Andernach, which dates to 1453 and has an unusual variation: an octagonal upper turret with a stone gable roof. The highest bergfried of a hill castle with a butter-churn top (1370) was that of Rheinfels Castle above Sankt Goar am Rhein which was 54 metres high at the intermediate platform; it was destroyed in 1797. The third-highest surviving bergfried in Germany is at the Osterburg near Weida in Thuringia; it is 53 metres high. It is also one of the oldest surviving bergfrieds, dating to 1193. It measures 24 metres to the platform and has an octagonal, stone conical roof dating to the 15th century.

Literature

Horst Wolfgang Böhme, Reinhard Friedrich, Barbara Schock-Werner (eds.): Wörterbuch der Burgen, Schlösser und Festungen. Reclam-Verlag, Stuttgart, 2004; ISBN 3-15-010547-1, pp. 103−105.
Otto Piper, Burgenkunde. Weltbild-Verlag, Augsburg, 1994; ISBN 3-89350-554-7, p. 217.

External links

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 The design appeared in the 14th century, being especially employed for the [[bergfried]]e of [[castle]]s in Europe, but also for [[wall tower]]s or [[watch tower]]s on [[city wall]]s. Its fighting or defensive value was not much greater than ordinary defensive towers, but it offered better observation over a greater distance. The reason for the construction of butter-churn towers may have more symbolic than strategic.
-In the late Middle Age a striking number of butter-churn towers were erected in the [[Middle Rhine]]-South Hesse-[[Taunus]] region. Examples include those e.g. in [[Bad Homburg vor der Höhe|Bad Homburg]] [[Weißer Turm (Bad Homburg)|(the ''White Tower'')]], [[Friedberg (Hesse)|Friedberg]] (the ''Adolfsturm''), [[Idstein]] ([[Witches' Tower]], the bergfried of [[Idstein Castle]]), [[Oberwesel]] ''(Oxen Tower)'' And on the [[Marksburg]] above [[Braubach]] am Rhein, whose square bergfried was given a small butter-churn turret in 1468, which burnt down in a fire in 1705 and was replaced in 1905. One of the tallest towers is the 56-metre-high [[Round Tower, Andernach|Round Tower]], the symbol of the town of [[Andernach]], which dates to 1453 and has an unusual variation: an octagonal upper turret with a stone gable roof. The highest bergfried of a hill castle with a butter-churn top (1370) was that of [[Rheinfels Castle]] above [[Sankt Goar]] am Rhein which was 54 metres high at the intermediate platform, but was destroyed in 1797. The third-highest surviving bergfried in Germany is at the [[Osterburg (Weida)|Osterburg]] near [[Weida, Thuringia|Weida]] in [[Thuringia]]; it is 53 metres high and also designed as a butter-churn tower. It is also one of the oldest surviving bergfrieds, dating to 1193. It measures 24 metres to the platform and has an octagonal, stone [[conical roof]] dating to the 15th century.
+In the late Middle Ages a number of butter-churn towers were erected in the [[Middle Rhine]]-South Hesse-[[Taunus]] region. Examples include those in [[Bad Homburg vor der Höhe|Bad Homburg]] [[Weißer Turm (Bad Homburg)|(the White Tower)]], [[Friedberg (Hesse)|Friedberg]] (the ''Adolfsturm''), [[Idstein]] ([[Witches' Tower]], the bergfried of [[Idstein Castle]]), [[Oberwesel]] (Oxen Tower), and the [[Marksburg]] above [[Braubach]] am Rhein (whose square bergfried was given a small butter-churn turret in 1468 that burned down in 1705 and was replaced in 1905). One of the tallest towers is the 56-metre-high [[Round Tower, Andernach|Round Tower]], the symbol of the town of [[Andernach]], which dates to 1453 and has an unusual variation: an octagonal upper turret with a stone gable roof. The highest bergfried of a hill castle with a butter-churn top (1370) was that of [[Rheinfels Castle]] above [[Sankt Goar]] am Rhein which was 54 metres high at the intermediate platform; it was destroyed in 1797. The third-highest surviving bergfried in Germany is at the [[Osterburg (Weida)|Osterburg]] near [[Weida, Thuringia|Weida]] in [[Thuringia]]; it is 53 metres high. It is also one of the oldest surviving bergfrieds, dating to 1193. It measures 24 metres to the platform and has an octagonal, stone [[conical roof]] dating to the 15th century.
 == Literature ==