Brandsburg

The Brandsburg stands in Alten-Buseck, a village in the Gießen district of central Hesse. Once surrounded by a moat, the site now holds a symmetrical two-storey manor house with a tall mansard roof and regularly spaced windows. A modern extension from 1959 on the east side once housed a cigar factory, reflecting the region’s long tobacco industry. First recorded in 1490, the Brandsburg passed from the von Buseck family to the Landgrave of Hesse and later became a barock manor in 1735. After serving as a cigar factory from 1867, it now contains offices, a youth centre, a public library and the village archive. A protected barn nearby has its own preservation association, set up at the end of 2014. Visitors find a quiet courtyard framed by the manor and the old factory wing. Inside, rooms host exhibitions, meetings and the local history archive. The site also offers a glimpse of Alten-Buseck’s vanished moat and the vanished Zaunburg, Hofburg and Eitelsburg once noted in local charters.