Budingen is another gem only 40 kilometers from Frankfurt. It deserves special attention as a true example of a medieval town. Often the term medieval is misunderstood. The medieval period represented actually covers a thousand years from 500 AD to 1500 AD. This town is sufficiently old and retains vestiges of nearly every century within that period of time. It lies along the famous Fairy Tale Road and there is evidence that the Grimm Brothers likely received some of the inspiration for their well known fairy tales here. It also has retained the walls of the ancient town with signs of even an older inner wall. It has its castle (schloss) which also kept its original design in spite of the prevailing baroque modifications that took place in other castles and palaces of Germany. The abundance of half timbered houses is particularly appealing. These houses were left untouched during the 2nd World War. Around every corner are prime examples of the craftsmanship of the carpenters and masons of the period. Marks and seals identifying individual artisans can be found in various locations throughout the town if one is observant or has the benefit of a guided tour. This was one place where
we enjoyed the company of an excellent native Budingen who entertained us with various and sundry details about this fascinating place. This town deserves several hours of focused attention and study. The colourful history is replete with stories a plenty. A number of such stories were shared. One
recounted to us tells the story of a Count who was wisely counselled by his wife to not go out on a boar hunt. She had seen in a dream that he would suffer death if he did. Nevertheless, he went any way and had a successful hunt. The boars were lined up
in an impressive line after the hunt; apparently there was a large party of hunters involved. The Count thinking he had escaped harm as his wife predicted was admiring the day's kill and was walking along the line of (supposedly) dead boars when one of them in the last throws of death lashed out and cut the Count's leg. Two weeks later he died of blood poisoning. The message here--you better listen to your wife when she tells you not to do something!
Another interesting aspect of this town is that it was originally built in a marshy area and consequently was under-girded with oak posts. If covered in water, they were not subject to rot as quickly. However, the town was subject to periodic flooding. Signs of centuries old floods are recorded on the walls of some of the houses. Over the centuries, with the infill from the floods and the gradual buildup of soil, the actual foundation of nearly all the older buildings is several feet below the present ground level. An 11th century church provides a good example, as the original entry (no longer used) is several feet below the ground. Windows on a number of houses are quite low. Residents just built up to accommodate the changing terrain.
Characteristic of several towns and villages in Germany, the residents fell victim to plague and fires from time to time. We were told that many of the residents here can trace their ancestry back centuries. In fact, the present owner of the castle can trace his lineage back a thousand years and generations have lived in the same castle for that length of time. Unbelievable!
There is a story told of how the count acquired his ruling status. Frederick I Barbarossa (1122 – 10 June 1190) was a German Holy Roman Emperor. He was elected King of Germany at Frankfurt on 4 March, 1152 and crowned in Aachen on 9 March, crowned King of Italy in Pravia in 1155, and finally crowned Roman Emperor by Pope Adrian IV, on 18 June, 1155 and two years later in 1157, the term "sacrum" (i.e. "holy") first appeared in a document in connection with his Empire. The name Barbarossa came from the northern Italian cities he attempted to rule, and means "red beard" in Italian – a mark of both their fear and respect. One time, while on a hunt he got lost. It was during the winter and getting dark when he noticed the lights of a man making coke from coal, late at night, in the woods near Budingen. His nighttime efforts proved a lifesaving stroke of luck for Barbarossa. Barbarosa went to him and received directions to return home. The next day Barbarosa returned and made this humble man Count of Budingen and the surrounding villages.
Years later, in 1522, a story is told of the young Count of Budingen who had just married Elizabeth of Wied in her home county and was returning with his young bride to Budingen. A royal welcome accompanied her arrival, banners, gun salutes, a lavish banquet and ceremonial addresses all proved very exhausting for the 13 year old bride. Alas, when the long day was over she no doubt welcomed a refreshing night's rest. That was not to be. Given the castle's fortified position next to an extensive moat of impenetrable swamp, her nightly rest was accompanied by the chorus of croaking frogs. One fitful night was followed by a second and a third with little sleep, at which point in open rebellion, she threatened to return to her own town. In desperation, the Count rallied the towns folk to assist in resolving the situation. The idea was to collect all the frogs and dispose of them by some means away from the town. This is where the story begins to take on legendary proportions. Their dilemma was how and where to dispose of all these frogs. One version states that they deposited them on the far side of the town only to discover that frogs can climb and were soon back over the walls, making their presence felt all over the town, on the streets, in the square and populating every nook and cranny. Now, once a year, they have a frog festival to commemorate this memorable "frog drive".
