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Founded: 13th centuryCategory: Castles and fortifications in Germany
Historical period: Hohenstaufen Dynasty (Germany)
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Burg Warberg is a medieval moated castle in the village of Warberg, on the eastern edge of the Elm hills in Lower Saxony. It was built in the early 13th century by the noble family von Warberg as their seat, replacing the nearby Old Castle Warberg, destroyed in 1199.
The castle is divided into Upper and Lower Castle areas. The Upper Castle features a square keep (8×8 m, 19 m tall) with arrow slits and a Renaissance portal from the late 1500s. The Lower Castle has a three-story main house, a chapel from 1346, and timber-framed buildings, including a former distillery. Remnants of a 15-meter-wide moat and an outer defensive wall are still visible.
After the destruction of their earlier fortress, the Warberg lords built the new castle, starting with the keep. It was damaged in 1356 during a conflict with the Archbishop of Magdeburg but later rebuilt stronger. Decline set in during the 16th century, and in 1569, the Warbergs lost their imperial immediacy, holding the castle as a fief from the Dukes of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel.
In 1650, the castle became ducal property and later served as an administrative center and estate (Domäne). In 1938, it was purchased by a school association and remodeled (1938–1942) to house the Reichs Agricultural Trade School, with little regard for the historic structure.
From 1948 to 1955, it was used as a tuberculosis hospital, then became the home of the Federal Training Institute for Agricultural Trade in 1955. Restoration of the Upper Castle began in 1999, supported by the Friends of Burg Warberg, and continued through the 2000s.
Visby Cathedral (also known as St. Mary’s Church) is the only survived medieval church in Visby. It was originally built for German merchants and inaugurated in 1225. Around the year 1350 the church was enlarged and converted into a basilica. The two-storey magazine was also added then above the nave as a warehouse for merchants.
Following the Reformation, the church was transformed into a parish church for the town of Visby. All other churches were abandoned. Shortly after the Reformation, in 1572, Gotland was made into its own Diocese, and the church designated its cathedral.
There is not much left of the original interior. The font is made of local red marble in the 13th century. The pulpit was made in Lübeck in 1684. There are 400 graves under the church floor.