Regicide
In the Middle Ages, The Old Court was the scene of a momentous crime. King Philip of Swabia, who was about to be elected Emperor, was murdered on the 21st of June of the year 1208 in his chambers, by Count Palatine Otto VIII von Wittelsbach. He had come to Bamberg to attend the wedding of his niece Beatrice of Burgundy. At first, Von Wittelsbach was able to escape, but later he was caught and executed at Regensburg. Philipp von Schwaben was at first buried in the Cathedral of Bamberg and in 1214 finally transferred to Speyer.
The “Beautiful Gate”“
Even today you can enter the area through the, originally painted, “beautiful gate”, created by the artist Pankraz Wagner. You can there see two lying figures, of which the man symbolizes the Main and the woman the Regnitz. The Regnitz is portrayed with a playful putto, which cheekily pinches her toes, to represent the vibrancy of the river. The Main, on the other hand, is depicted with a sleeping dog. This points to the Celtic name Main, which means something like “lazy snake”, because of the snake shape of the river. In the center we recognize the Mother of God, which is framed by Emperor Henry II and his wife Cunegonde.
To the times of Emperor Heinrich II reminds today also the single tower next to the “beautiful gate”, in whose basement are the Chapels of St. Thomas and St. Catherine. St. Thomas chapel was consecrated in 1020 by Pope Benedict, when during a trip he spent Easter in Bamberg with Emperor Henry II.
Claims of the clergy
The Old Court was amplified over the centuries by further extensions and the fortified courtyard. The Court, which at that time consisted of several rows of multi-story buildings with pitched roofs, could nevertheless never achieve the complete satisfaction of the lords due to the narrowness of space. Many bishops and clergymen therefore tried to adapt the area to their needs through their own renovation work, or they searched for more suitable alternatives inside the city. Thus, numerous and quite impressive new buildings were built in the then urban area. In this period also the castle of the family Geyer, today known as Castle Geyerswörth, was renovated, receiving its present appearance. It was not until the 17th century that the bishops finally found a home to meet their needs with the construction of the New Residence.
Insights on the medieval Court
The courtyard, which was built just after the demolition of a building that divided it, is formed by half-timbered houses from the 14th/15th century. It is surrounded by arcades that, especially in the summer months, offer a charming view with rich floral decoration. On the ground floor were the rooms of the “Marstaller”, the yard horse masters. The stables, which offered space for 29 horses, were decorated at the exterior by baroque arcades. In the courtyard can still be found the mangers, the barn, and a sandstone covered pool with a watering hole.
On the adjacent Zwerchhaus (typical German structure composed by a transversal roof to the main roof), recognizable for its protruding oriel windows, the grain sacks were transported through the two hatches inside the interior of the storage grounds. On the courtyard side, there are three wonderful stitch arch windows, installed in 1576. The northwestern side of the building has only two floors. The upper floors were reached by a staircase on the driveway.
The Old Court today
Since 1961, the use of the premises is prohibited because of fire protection reasons. The backdrop of the Old Court is the annual venue of the Calderon Festival in summer. In 2010 some scenes from the film “The Three Musketeers” by director Paul W.S. Anderson were shot there, in which the Old Court represents the Paris of the 17th century.
Reaching the Old Court is indeed a very easy matter today. Emperor Henry II, on the other hand, would have had much more trouble doing so, not least because, as tradition says, he had a lame leg. According to the records, the relatively shallow access across Karolinenstraße was not created until the 18th century. Also as regards the existence of paved roads, there is no proof of it at the time of Emperor Henry II.
