Burg Liebenburg

The Liebenburg stands on a spur high above the eastern slopes of the Salzgitter ridge in Lower Saxony. Built between 1292 and 1302 as a medieval spur castle, it once had seven towers and was counted among the strongest fortresses in the Harz foothills. After centuries of war damage, the Hildesheim prince-bishop Clemens August ordered its demolition in 1750 and replaced it with an unfinished Baroque hunting lodge and the church of St Mary’s Annunciation. Today only fragments remain: three towers, stretches of curtain wall restored in the 1990s, and the foundations of a fourth. The Hausmannsturm, added at the end of the 15th century as an outer keep, has walls several metres thick and many loops for arrows. After decades of decay it was closed until 1991, when a spiral staircase was installed and the tower reopened for views across the countryside. The Flankierungsturm on the east side was rebuilt in 2003 with a modern flat roof and now hosts events. The Schoolmaster’s Tower survives as a small viewing platform after partial restoration in 2002. During wall repairs in 2005 workers uncovered a secret passage 2.2 m high and 0.7 m wide, once used to supply the Hausmannsturm. The castle’s history is marked by sieges and changing owners. In 1542 troops of the Schmalkaldic League took the fortress and expelled the duke; in 1625 Wallenstein made it his headquarters during the Thirty Years’ War. Swedish forces surprised the imperial garrison in 1633 and left through the secret tunnel. The hunting lodge begun in the 18th century was never finished, yet it housed the district office and court until 1959. Since 1974 the artist Gerd Winner has lived and worked in the castle, keeping its story alive.