1200 Years – Olnhausen
781-1981
Introduction
The translation of portions of this book compiled in 1981, was done to provide historical information on the origins of the name OHLHAUSEN. Many thanks to Herb Schuster for this translation.
Introduction by Hans Hain
Does a little village like Olnhausen have a historical past? This question needs to be asked of the present day inhabitants. For some time now, I have been trying to shed light on that, and with this little publication, the present generation will have a chance to look into our past.
In our fast moving age, we need to record today what soon might be lost. 1200 years is a long time. As we celebrate this anniversary, it is a good time to reach back into the past and bring to mind the courage, the diligence, frugality and spirit of enterprise of our forefathers.
He who loves his home, roots himself, not just in the present, but also in the past. Significant sources of information were official documents from the Olnhausen town hall, the Munich State Archives and the Jagsthausen church and town records.
Everyone who contributed to this research is gratefully thanked. Special thanks to Hermann von Olnhausen, who assisted me during my lengthy illness, and for his contributions on the noble families of the area; Mr. Arzt for his supervision of the who project, my children Kari & Hans-Jurgen and my son-in-law Werner, for their preparation of the manuscript; and the members of the community of Jagsthausen, who made this book possible, as well as the local residents for their pictures and information.
May this small book deep our knowledge of our community and thus strengthen our bonds to it.
First Records of the Area
Before Christ’s Birth
Discoveries in this area point back many long years. The earliest indications of inhabitation in southern Germany were found near Heidelberg, where a human jawbone was found dating back about 700,000 years; also at Steinheim a.d. Murr a skull was found dating back over 250,000 years.
During the early and middle Stone Ages, hunters lived in numerous caves in the Swabian Alps. Our area, however, seemed to be sparsely inhabited. During the later Stone Age era, the area was invaded by people from the southeast who weren’t just hunters. These people had learned to use stone tools for pounding, scraping and making holes and also how to make weapons. They were no longer mere cave dwellers – but built homes of wood close to their fields and pastures. They were fa4rmers who raised cattle, sheep, goats and pigs. Using wooden and stone plows, they made their living off the land – planting wheat, oats, miller, emmer (a special form of wheat), peas, lentils, flax and corn to be ground into coarse meal and flour, which they then used to bake bread. They stored their harvest in clay and pottery vessels. Out of these products, they developed occupations such as potters, herdsmen and weavers.
Artifacts such as stone axes and arrowheads have been found in this and other nearby areas and testify about the presence of these people. In the 1950’s, Hans Peter Beckenbach, a schoolboy, found a stone axe dating from the late Stone Age at the foot of a cliff near the house of Heinrich Wellig. It is 16 cm X 7.5 cm and has a hole about 3 cm diameter drilled in it.
The High Road
On a ridge between Kocher and Jagst, lies the “High Road”, later called Emperor’s Road. It runs from Speyer, past Wimpfen and Rothenburg towards Nurmberg. Numerous references, oral and written, indicate that this road goes back at least a thousand years – for example, names used in the vicinity, i.e. High Lane and High Road.
Already at the time of the Celts, this road was an important trade route for the import of bronze items and weapons and also for the salt merchants of Bad Friedrichshall & Niederhall. It was a route that opened the area for further settlement. The great number of ancient burial mounts found along the High Road is very interesting and tells us that many people lived and settled along this important road.
In our vicinity, there is a burial mound in the “Bannholz” near the edge of the forest and a group of mounds (four) near “Grassholz” near the High Road in the Hardthausen Forest, where it borders Olnhausen and Sindringen-Kochersteinfeld.
It is to be noted that the High Road was also used as the border for various municipalities. Many roads cross and lead off from the High Road. One branch led through the Gassengrund Forest down into the valley of the Jagst, passed through Olnhausen, which the people called the “Roman Way”. It carried on through to Jagsthausen. The ford was about 250 steps from the filtering plant and the stones were plainly visible until the new mill channel was built. This connecting way from the High Road to the Castle at Jagsthausen was frequently used by the Roman Legionaries.
Roman Discoveries
In the old church records, it was recorded that in the latest “Carte von Swaben unter den Romern” (Maps of Swabia under Roman Times), a Roman holy shrine was shown near where our church is located. Pastor Zimmerman (1860-1902) wrote in his church report that in Jagsthausen and Olnhausen from 138-250 A.D., maybe even earlier, that there was a Roman garrison stationed here. This was true for Jagsthausen, but not likely for Olnhausen. If there had been a large number of Romans or Germans who served the Roman army here, most artifacts would have been found, like those found at Jagsthausen.
It is true that we have imbedded in our church, four Roman holy stones, but these were not found in the Olnhausen area. They were brought here from other places when our church was built. They were likely found between Olnhausen and Jagsthausen Castle, and were donated to us by five different people. Our altar stone is referred to in “Die Romer in Baden-Wurttemberg” (S.443) with the following notation – “this stone was found between Olnhausen and the castle Jagstausen”.
There were two reasons for incorporating the altar stones in our church, as has been done in other locations. On the one hand, we incorporated the pagan altar stone into our church to recognize the spiritual life of the previous inhabitants, and thus relate them to our own Christian tradition. They also form an important part of the church structure itself. Two of them strengthen the outer wall of the church tower and the other two form part of the base of the choir pillars. All four stones are built into the building so that their inscriptions are easily read.
One of the original stones in the church dates back to the year 186 AD. Its size (height, 127 cm, width 52 cm, depth 43 cm). Since two sides are whitewashed, the best preserved and readable script is easily seen on the front side.
In the Neckarsulm town records for the year 1881 (P.228), the words of the inscription are recorded:
“Jupiter, the high; the greatest; the goddess of Juno and this station has Titus Flavius Vitalis, of Augsburg (relia Augustus), soldier of the 22nd Legion, first and foremost a conscientious loyal soldier of the Consul, served for 26 years, totally dedicated to his beloved Caesar, Commondus Pius Felix”.
This is the first official documentation that Titus Flavius came from Augsburg. Since the normal tour of duty was 25 years, he was now in his 26th year and thereby released from menial duties and was in command of the Police Station at Jagsthausen, a border station.
The second stone at the opposite end of the Choir arcade was taken out in 1905 when construction for the furnace was begun. The church of Olnhausen sold it in exchange for a plaster cast of the stone for 50 DM to the Royal Antiquities. Today it can be found at the Wurttenberg Landesmuseum at Stuttgart. With this stone (117cm x 47 cm), the Centurion of the first German company, honored himself and his company. The stone was dedicated to the god Jupiter, so we know for sure that there was a German company based at the castle.
The Hohenlohische court legislator, Hanselmann, searching for Roman artifacts in the late 18th century found the other two stones in the outer wall and wrote about them. For awhile they were covered by stones. Only in the late 19th century, were the stones again seen, restored almost to the original state. They were taken to Jagsthausen as port of the archives. They were imbedded into the walls of the Jagsthausen castle, along with other Roman stones that have been found in the area. One of these original stones is at the Goetzenburg Museum today. Date of that stone is 179 AD, and its size is 139cm x 63cm x 22cm. Its inscription says that it belonged to the 8th Legion; probably made as a memorial for the loyal service of the soldiers.
On the front of that altar stone, a bull head is shown between a boy and a bird. On one side panel is depicted a frying pan, jug and rod; while on the other side are depicted 3 knives in a bag, a pointed axe and half of a crown – these probably representing unknown sacrificial offering utensils.
On the southeast corner of our building the last and fourth stone was imbedded. This one was first found in 1905 after a long search for it by Pastors Gerok and Dr. Goessler. It was found covered and hidden beside the entrance to the present day sacristy.
Dr. Goessler reported in the Schwabish Merkur on February 24, 1906, about this stone “Because the inscriptions are carved into soft sandstone, they have suffered from erosion and destruction by the whitewash and were hard to read”. One side was badly worn, especially the left side, but the right side was almost as good as new with wonderful clear relief carvings – fresh as if done yesterday, a very vital piece in the collection.
The seven line inscription is only readable in the upper four lines and reads as follows: “Jovi Optimo Maximo Juoni Regginae Genio loci Diti patri” which means that a soldier of this border garrison has dedicated this stone to Jupiter, the Great One and to the Goddess Juno, the Genius of this place.
Dr. Goessler also described the relief carving found on it – “The right side depicted a large pineapple with its recurved leaves depicted with slanted lines. Various sheds or buildings are also depicted with slanted lines. Above them, on the two corners sit two crested eagles. The stem of the ‘cone’ is covered by a pitcher. The left side of the pine is a long handle of an axe, and over this is a knife. These seem to refer to articles of sacrificial offerings of worship.” This stone is found at the Wurttemberg Landesmuseum today.
It is not proven that they had some Roman farms or estates in the areas around the Castle. It is sure, however, that at Simonsberg traces of homes have been found – which Burgemeister Fenschel remembered seeing and playing around the ruins as a child. Civic records in 1881 (S.625) record traces of a rectangular stone foundation about 70 fuss[1] were found in the Simonsberg Forest, which could have been Roman.
Olnhausen, village of Ollan(?)
After the Alemans (original Germanic tribes) in 260 A.D. conquered and overran the Lines (the Roman border wall) and drove out the Romans, the castle was demolished and the Alemans former their own villages. They avoided, maybe because of superstition and fear of the Roman gods, the places where the Romans had settled. Their settlements can be easily determined - they added to the name, the ending “ingen” (i.e. Sintero – Sindringen; Bero – Bieringen).
After the victoreous war of the Frankisch King, Chlodwig, against the Alemans in 496 A.D., new settlements arose, identified by the ending “heim” (i.e. Adelsheim, Lorghein). The later Frankish settlements of the 7th and 8th centuries were identified by “hofen”, “weiler” and “hausen”. Jagsthausen is most likely the oldest of the “hausen” settlements, it had merely been called “Husen” in the earliest times. The village of Olnhausen belongs to this era.
On the Coat-of-arms of the Family land Town Olnhausen; a man holds in his right hand an eel, and on his shield is a fish-weir-basket (Fisschreuse). From these symbols we can assume that there were many eels and ell houses in the Jagst River area. Another name for “eel” in the vernacular is “ohl” and in the old records, the name “Ohlhusen” or “Ohlhausen” appears many times. Therefore, the author assumes that a clan leader of the Franks whose name was Ollan gave the settlement its name. This assumption has generally accepted. As further proof, there is in the earliest years of the Cloister Lorch, in the records “ad Ollanhusen” – referring to all as the house of Ollan. Other ancient clan leaders were also aware of these two names, i.e. Upper Hofstatt (by Widdern) and Lower Hofstatt (by Jagsthausen).
In historical documents for the year 1278, the name “Ollinhusen” appears, as well as “Ollanhusen”. Not to prove anything else, but yet it is likely that these names evolved as Ollanhusen, Ollinhusen, Ohlhausen, and then finally as Olnhausen.
First Documented Mention
In the 1902 chronicles of Pastor Zimmerman, we found the following lines (written in Latin, and roughly translated into English) – “It is noted that Frau Wirdun in Olnhalusen gave . . .”.[2].
The above gift of a small cloister at Baumerlenback to the Cloister Lorsch is recorded in the Historical Archives.
In the manuscripts of the Cloister Lorsch a.d. Bergstrasse, we find Document 3480 (11 March 776? – Register 1502) registered.
“Gift from Sigem(ar) of Olnhausen, under jurisdiction of the Abbot Gundeland and King Karl. In the name of God, we undertake, Sigemar and my wife Glismut, guardians of the holy martyr Mazarus; his body rests in Lorsch Cloister, which belongs to the honorable Abbot Gundeland (7650778). This gift is our desire and is freely given. We bestow all what we have in “pago-Jagesoew” (in Jagstgau) in Ollanhusen (Olnhausen by Berlichingen/Jagst n. Heilbronn a. Neckar. Sworn to at Lorsch Cloister on 11 March in 13th year of King Karl. (Statt XIII. Year-781, or VIII-776.)
The year of the signing, where 776 or 778 is debatable. The Latin text reads plainly in Roman numerals the year XIII, in the 13th year of the reign of King Karl, who came to the throne in 768, so the year 781 could seem to be correct. But it is also recorded that the Abbot Gundeland died in 778. However, other historical evidence indicates that Abbott Gundeland, even after his death, was considered the head of the Cloister, so the year 781 could well be the date of the gift.
History from the 13th Century On
The ruling nobles “von Olnhausen”
The Neckarsulm Chronicles (p.626) record very little on the noblemen “von Olnhauser” except for a Ramungus de Olhusenin 1245, and in 1457 a Heinz von Olnhusen. In the Chronicles of the kingdom of Wurttemberg, there is only one mention (p.536) in the 13th century of a village-nobility that belonged to the sovereignty of the Count von Durn and later to the bishop of Wurzburg.
In 1300 a von Olnhausen served as Steward to the Count von Durn, and later the Bishop of Wurzburg. There are similar references in the neighboring towns of Widdern and Mockmuhl and many other villages in that jurisdiction. When the town chronicles for places above were translated by Geo. Malcherik of Mockmuhl, we learned a little more about the above Count. There may be more information in the Cathedral of Wurzburg records or other as yet unevaluated archives. Unlike at Widdern, the disappearance of names from their homelands does not indicate that the bloodline has died out. As found in Neckarsulm, there are still descendants from the original families found there. The Neckarsulm Heimatbuch presumes that the descendants of the Olnhausen family are so many that the main settlement (vorderre hofstatt (didn’t have enough living space, so they found it necessary to build another settlement (hinterenn hofstatt).
Where did so many of the residents go?
Well, we find in Hersfeldischen from 1300-1490 there was a family “von Alnhausen”. Unfortunately, their place of origin remains unknown. In 1452, the families von Olnhausen and von Alhausen, along with other nobles of Hersfeld, were involved in a feud between Horneck v. Hornberg against Hohenlohe. There are also found amongst the nobility in Swabia families by the name of Alenhausen.
A family tree drawn up in the year 1762, which now is found in the State Archives at Vienna, shows the oldest proven family line dating back to the 15th century in an accurate way. There is not only information about the Ramunges de Olhusen for 1245, but there is additional information of a family story about a parson and superintendent in Pfedelbach named Ludwig Gottfried von Olnhausen. This story cannot be discounted with research to date and is: “Heinrich con Oettingen (Oettingen was a Hohenlohe domain) was knighted with the name “von Olnhausen” through a ceremony in which he received the ‘Knight’s Cross’ for his participation in the Crusade’s. (This is recorded only in the Hohenlohe archives). It is hard to find any proof when one gets so co-operation from many archives. Helmut Neumeir is also aware of bad water well damage at Bauland. Be that as it may, maybe more information can be found at the Wurzburg and Karlsruhe Archives (which have information for Bauland and Pfalz-Mosbach). We do know that we can find Heinrich (I) v. Olnhausen in 1423 and the feud document of 1452 names Heintz von Olnhausen, the Younger. Another feud document of 1457, names only Heintz v. Olnhausen, who assisted in a feud with Hans v. Falkerstein, the Younger. Heinrich (I) v. Olnhausen (of 1423) above died probably between 1452 and 1457.