Two Brothers And A Medieval Drama | Castle Bosselstein
When two brothers fight, all you get is murder. We’re The History
Hikers. Welcome to Castle Boselstein. Nestled above the town of Idar-Oberstein
two castles are situated. The older of the two, Burg Bosselstein, will be our focus today.
It was built in the 12th century by the lords of Stein on top of the rocky hill with a
commanding view over the valley. Through inheritance and marriage the Stein family split
into two branches. This of course causes power struggles and property disputes and ultimately
lead to the building of the nearby Schloss Oberstein. In the early modern period Burg
Bosselstein was no longer inhabited. Decay set in leading to the ruin we see today. Not
much besides the keep or Bergfried is visible. What fascinates us most is the legend that
surrounds the castle. There once were two noble brothers, the elder Wyrich and the
younger Emich, who lived in Bosselstein. They both fell in love with a beautiful girl
named Bertha. Neither brother was aware of the other brother’s feelings for her. When Wyrich
was away on some unknown business Emich was able to seduce Bertha and marry her. In a fit
of jealousy and rage Wyrich threw his younger brother out of the window of the castle.
Emich fell to his death on the rocks below. Wyrich was immediately filled with remorse.
With the counsel of a local abbot, he began a long period of penance. It is
around this time that Bertha disappears from the historical record. Many romantics
feel that she died of a broken heart. The abbot suggested that Wyrich should build
a church on the exact place where his brother died as a sign of his remorse. Wyrich worked and
prayed himself into exhaustion. The moment the church was completed he received his sign:
a miraculous spring opened up inside. The legend claims Wyrich died then and there on its
steps. The legend ends with both brothers being buried together inside the Felsenkirche
church which is located below the castle. Of course there is little evidence to prove the
legend is a true story besides the existence of the castle, the church and our protagonists.
There are also many different versions of the same legend, some say it was love, others a property
dispute that ultimately led to Emich’s death. There is even one that mentions a
cat as the culprit. The story does shed a light onto the very real social
dynamics of nobility of the time. Feuds, inheritance divisions and family rivalries
were all very real. In that way the legend functions as a symbolic expression of
these real tensions in the Middle Ages. Burg Bosselstein is real, its rise and
fall are historical. The legend of Wyrich and Emich might not be provable, but it
resonates so well because it has all the makings of the perfect medieval drama: a
castle, a family feud, a love triangle, betrayal, death, guilt and eventually
redemption. And of course it shows the power that a historical place has in
holding on to stories across centuries. What an interesting place of legends and mystery.
I personally am more of a fan about the one where he puts a cat in the boot which made him fall.
Anyway, we’re The History Hikers. Time for the arbitrary subjective castle score. I’m going
to say a five. The castle itself is not that impressive. What do you think? I’m going to
say a four. The castle itself is not really that impressive. Oh well. What do you think? Did
you like the legend? Leave it all in the comments below. Thank you so much for watching. And like,
comment, subscribe, and all that good YouTube stuff if you want to see more of these kind of
castles, and we will see you next time. Bye-bye.
We have two castles on display today and one curious legend. Join us as we walk around Burg Bosselstein and Schloss Oberstein as we recount the tale of Wyrich and Emich. It’s a tale of two brothers and has all the makings of the perfect medieval drama: a castle, a family feud, a love triangle, betrayal, death, guilt and eventually redemption. We are joined by our good friend @OrcaFPV who gave us the stunning drone shots! Be sure to check out his channel!
If you liked the video, then give us a thumbs up and share the castle love with your friends. Comment if you have any remarks or suggestions. If you are interested in tagging along and seeing more of our content, then be sure to subscribe!
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Sources:
https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burg_Bosselstein
https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Felsenkirche_(Idar-Oberstein)
https://xn--kulturerbe-rheinhessen-hunsrck-wfd.de/weitere-monumente/burgruine-stein-sog-bosselstein
https://www.showcaves.com/english/de/caves/Felsenkirche.html
Ausflugstipps im EdelSteinLand – Burgen und Schlösser im Hunsrück
Credits:
Music:
Magic Tavern by Alexander Nakarada (www.creatorchords.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons BY Attribution 4.0 License
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
5 Comments
Absolutely loved this exploration of Castle Bosselstein! The story of Wyrich and Emich is fascinating. Thank you for sharing!
What a sad story, what an amazing place, thank you for your deep diva and video glad you're back!
not far away from Schmidtburg….
I went to a two brothers’ fight, and all I got was this lousy MURDER. =[
Good to see you guys again! Yes, I go low on this one, I give it a 4. Not much to it! I hope you get back to Occitanie one day, those were really interesting walks. Cheers