Bodelschwingh Castle - History (1300 - 1550)

Around the year 1300 Knight Giselbert I, named Speke, built a two-chambered house on oak poles. Large parts of the current moated castle still remain on these poles, which have been conserved by the surrounding water. The free-standing and striking tower, known as the "Vogtsturm", originates from the Middle Ages and probably served the Speke named Bodelschwingh as living quarters until they moved into the two-chambered house.

In 1302 Knight Giselbert I assigned the house to the marquises, referred to as Markgrafen, and in return received it for feudal tenure. This first documented mention of the house of "Bodelsvenge" already includes the symbol which adorns the coat of arms of the family of Bodelschwingh to this day: a diamond shaped clasp, decorated at the corners.

In 1322 the chapel donated by Giselbert I, now the castle church, was inaugurated in the village of "Bodelschwinghe". 300 years later (around 1600) his descendent Gisbert III introduced the reformation in Bodelschwingh.

The heir of Knight Giselbert, Ernst I, already named himself "de Bodelswinge" and in 1336 purchased the local jurisdiction. This privilege was extended during the course of the following centuries, and ensured prestige and wealth for the lords of the manor of Bodelschwingh.

Lucrative and famous trials took place below the "Hawthorn" in front of Bodelschwingh Castle. Petty criminals were punished at the pillory in the village of Bodelschwingh; the gallows stood in the parish of Nette.

Although the free courts, known as "Freistühle", declined in significance after the 16th century, the barons continued to judge the fate of the people of Bodelschwingh here in the castle grounds right up to the 18th century. The tree under which the trials took place for centuries, a rotten whitethorn, fell victim to a storm in 1901.
It was not until 1808 that the French removed the right to self-jurisdiction of Bodelschwingh Castle once and for all. This marked the end of an era, since this privilege enjoyed for almost 500 years was associated with substantial revenues: taxes, tolls, pasture fees, as well as various levies and services to be provided by the tenants for the respective lords of the judicial district.

For centuries the wealth of the family was extended and secured thanks to shrewd marriages, division of estates and land purchase. The rural village and the neighbouring "Freiheit Bodelschwingh", where tenants were free from obligation to pay taxes to the lord of the manor, also profited from this and continued to flourish under the protection of the lords of Bodelschwingh. By the 15th century, Bodelschwingh boasted three mills and a large concentration of farmers, craftsmen and grocers.
The family of Bodelschwingh purchased and inherited stately homes in Westphalia and the Rhine. Wealth, prestige and high offices ensured a place among the influential and leading Westphalian nobility.