Jakobsberg (Porta Westfalica)
Encyclopedia
The Jakobsberg is a hill, , that forms the westernmost peak of the Wesergebirge
chain and is the eastern guardian of the Weser gorge, the Porta Westfalica
or "Westphalian Gate", in North Rhine-Westphalia
(Germany
).
The summit is the site of the Jakobsberg Telecommunication Tower
, which stands on the site of a former Bismarck Tower
, near the Bismarckburg Inn, the Schlageter Monument and the Porta Bluff. Its name has been commonly used since 1788, when a Prussian publican (Zöllner), by the name of Jakob, cultivated a vineyard on its southern slopes.
The Jakobsberg rises at the western end of the Wesergebirge hills in the district of Minden-Lübbecke
directly northwest of the town of Porta Westfalica
and about 6 km south of the town of Minden
which lies beside the Minden Aqueduct. It is located due east of the gorge of Porta Westfalica, which is on the northern perimeter of the Weser Uplands and southern boundary of the North German Plain
, and through which the River Weser flows from the hill country northwards into the plain. The hill on the opposite side of the gorge to the west, the Wittekindsberg
, which is the eastern guardian of the Wiehen Hills, defines the western side of this gorge.
The Jakobsberg is surrounded by the extreme eastern parts of the North Teutoburg Forest-Wiehen Hills Nature Park that runs from just in front of the Bückeburg
into the Wiehen Hills.
was built on the highest point of the Jakobsberg im memory of the old imperial Reich Chancellor, Otto von Bismarck
(1815–1898), by his admirers. The tower consisted of sandstone
blocks, was 22 m high and was looked after by the Bismarck Federation (Bismarkbund). On its 50th anniversary (1952) it was torn down in order to make way for the first transmission tower on the Jakobsberg. The sandstone blocks of the Bismarck Tower were used to rebuild the town hall in Minden
that had been destroyed in the Second World War.
to the Jakobsberg. Disused galleries of an old iron ore mine were developed. Such galleries run through many parts of the Wiehen Hills and Wesergebirge, their entrances are usually walled up nowadays and made unrecognisable. In Hausberge and Barkhausen there was a satellite of Neuengamme concentration camp with over a thousand prisoners, of which a considerable number worked in the Jakobsberg. Women from the area also worked, under much better conditions, in the hill. After the end of the war the local population used their surviving knowledge of the mine system running through the hills to collect material from the production facilities and sell it on the black market. The British occupation forces brought this to an end with a demolition that caused pictures to fall from the walls up to a distance of 15 kilometres away and that created part of the present-day riverside front of the Jakobsberg.
was built in 1952. It was also called the Bismarck Tower. The Deutsche Bundespost
, who had bought the land needed for the tower from the Bismarck Federation, was contractually committed as the owner of the transmission tower to establish a Bismarck memorial on the new tower and a public viewing platform.
(known locally as Langer Jakob or "Long James") was built on the site of the old Bismarck Tower from 1974 to 1978, also in concrete and steel. It is a 142 m high transmission tower (standard tower
).
The Deutsche Bundespost, as owners of the tower, was once again contractually obliged to have a Bismarck memorial and an observation platform on the new tower. Today the tower is owned by Deutsche Telekom
.
The Jakobsberg Telecommunication Tower
has an operations room at a height of 50 m and an observation platform open to the public at a height of 23.26 m, from which a good all-round view may be enjoyed, for example over parts of the Weser Uplands and the North German Plain as well as the Kaiser Wilhelm Monument on the Wittekindsberg.
as well as being a popular local destination. It adapted to changing circumstances over time by undergoing several conversions; but has since become empty and fallen into disrepair.
) west of the Bismarckburg Inn at a height of are the ruins of the Schlageter
Monument. Built in 1933/34, it was never completed, probably for ideological reasons. On a plinth was a large cross. This only stood there for a short time before being moved to Minden's North Cemetery (Nordfriedhof). There it was integrated into a memorial for those who fell in the First World War.
In 1958 the authorities of the town of Porta Westfalica had the ruins of the monument made accessible and erected an observation platform on the plinth, that gives visitors a far-reaching view to the south and west, for example to the Kaiser Wilhelm Monument on the Wittekindsberg.
In 1887 the crag, as the Porta Bluff, was made accessible by members of the Hausberge Tourism Club. From there it offers a good view of the Kaiser Wilhelm Monument on the Wittekindsberg and over the River Weser in the Porta Westfalica gorge.
.
motorways not far to the south as well as side roads that lead to the hill.
In addition the Jakobsberg is linked to the Deutsche Bahn
railway network by Porta station, which is part of Porta Westfalica and situated at the western foot of the hill on the east bank of the Weser.
The Jakobsberg is covered by a good network of walking trails, including the European long-distance path E11
over which the points of interest on the hill may be reached. Access for private vehicles is the village of Hausberge.
Wesergebirge
The Wesergebirge is a low mountain chain up to high in the Weser Uplands in the German states of North Rhine-Westphalia and Lower Saxony....
chain and is the eastern guardian of the Weser gorge, the Porta Westfalica
Porta Westfalica (gorge)
thumb|Weser watershedThe Porta Westfalica is a gorge and water gap, where the Weser river runs through the passage between the mountain chains of the Wiehengebirge in the west and the Wesergebirge in the east...
or "Westphalian Gate", in North Rhine-Westphalia
North Rhine-Westphalia
North Rhine-Westphalia is the most populous state of Germany, with four of the country's ten largest cities. The state was formed in 1946 as a merger of the northern Rhineland and Westphalia, both formerly part of Prussia. Its capital is Düsseldorf. The state is currently run by a coalition of the...
(Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
).
The summit is the site of the Jakobsberg Telecommunication Tower
Jakobsberg Telecommunication Tower
Jakobsberg Telecommunication Tower is a 142 metre tall TV tower built of reinforced concrete on the 238 metre high elevated Jakobsberg near Porta Westfalica...
, which stands on the site of a former Bismarck Tower
Bismarck tower
Bismarck Towers are a unique genre of German monument, built to honour the ex-chancellor of Prussia, Otto von Bismarck. A total of 240 of these towers were built between German unification and the National Socialist takeover, i.e. between 1869 and 1934...
, near the Bismarckburg Inn, the Schlageter Monument and the Porta Bluff. Its name has been commonly used since 1788, when a Prussian publican (Zöllner), by the name of Jakob, cultivated a vineyard on its southern slopes.
Geography
Minden-Lübbecke
Minden-Lübbecke is a Kreis in the northeastern part of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Neighboring districts are Diepholz, Nienburg, Schaumburg, Lippe, Herford, Osnabrück.-Geography:...
directly northwest of the town of Porta Westfalica
Porta Westfalica
Porta Westfalica is a town in the district of Minden-Lübbecke, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. The name “Porta Westfalica” is Latin and means “gate to Westphalia”. Coming from the north, the gorge is the entry to the region of Westphalia...
and about 6 km south of the town of Minden
Minden
Minden is a town of about 83,000 inhabitants in the north-east of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. The town extends along both sides of the river Weser. It is the capital of the Kreis of Minden-Lübbecke, which is part of the region of Detmold. Minden is the historic political centre of the...
which lies beside the Minden Aqueduct. It is located due east of the gorge of Porta Westfalica, which is on the northern perimeter of the Weser Uplands and southern boundary of the North German Plain
North German plain
The North German Plain or Northern Lowland is one of the major geographical regions of Germany. It is the German part of the North European Plain...
, and through which the River Weser flows from the hill country northwards into the plain. The hill on the opposite side of the gorge to the west, the Wittekindsberg
Wittekindsberg
The Wittekindsberg is a hill, , which forms the easternmost peak of the Wiehen Hills and is also the western guardian of the Weser gorge, the Porta Westfalica, in North Rhine-Westphalia ....
, which is the eastern guardian of the Wiehen Hills, defines the western side of this gorge.
The Jakobsberg is surrounded by the extreme eastern parts of the North Teutoburg Forest-Wiehen Hills Nature Park that runs from just in front of the Bückeburg
Bückeburg
Bückeburg is a town in Lower Saxony, Germany, on the border with North Rhine Westphalia. It was once the capital of the tiny principality of Schaumburg-Lippe and is today located in the district of Schaumburg close to the northern slopes of the Weserbergland ridge...
into the Wiehen Hills.
Bismarck Tower, Porta Westfalica
In 1902 a Bismarck TowerBismarck tower
Bismarck Towers are a unique genre of German monument, built to honour the ex-chancellor of Prussia, Otto von Bismarck. A total of 240 of these towers were built between German unification and the National Socialist takeover, i.e. between 1869 and 1934...
was built on the highest point of the Jakobsberg im memory of the old imperial Reich Chancellor, Otto von Bismarck
Otto von Bismarck
Otto Eduard Leopold, Prince of Bismarck, Duke of Lauenburg , simply known as Otto von Bismarck, was a Prussian-German statesman whose actions unified Germany, made it a major player in world affairs, and created a balance of power that kept Europe at peace after 1871.As Minister President of...
(1815–1898), by his admirers. The tower consisted of sandstone
Sandstone
Sandstone is a sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized minerals or rock grains.Most sandstone is composed of quartz and/or feldspar because these are the most common minerals in the Earth's crust. Like sand, sandstone may be any colour, but the most common colours are tan, brown, yellow,...
blocks, was 22 m high and was looked after by the Bismarck Federation (Bismarkbund). On its 50th anniversary (1952) it was torn down in order to make way for the first transmission tower on the Jakobsberg. The sandstone blocks of the Bismarck Tower were used to rebuild the town hall in Minden
Minden
Minden is a town of about 83,000 inhabitants in the north-east of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. The town extends along both sides of the river Weser. It is the capital of the Kreis of Minden-Lübbecke, which is part of the region of Detmold. Minden is the historic political centre of the...
that had been destroyed in the Second World War.
Underground manufacturing facility
In the closing phase of the Second World War, most likely in March 1944, the manufacture of pipes by the firm of Philips was moved from the NetherlandsNetherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
to the Jakobsberg. Disused galleries of an old iron ore mine were developed. Such galleries run through many parts of the Wiehen Hills and Wesergebirge, their entrances are usually walled up nowadays and made unrecognisable. In Hausberge and Barkhausen there was a satellite of Neuengamme concentration camp with over a thousand prisoners, of which a considerable number worked in the Jakobsberg. Women from the area also worked, under much better conditions, in the hill. After the end of the war the local population used their surviving knowledge of the mine system running through the hills to collect material from the production facilities and sell it on the black market. The British occupation forces brought this to an end with a demolition that caused pictures to fall from the walls up to a distance of 15 kilometres away and that created part of the present-day riverside front of the Jakobsberg.
Transmission towers
Old transmission tower
On the site of the former observation tower, the Bismarckturm Porta Westfalica, a steel and concrete transmission towerTransmission tower
A transmission tower is a tall structure, usually a steel lattice tower, used to support an overhead power line. They are used in high-voltage AC and DC systems, and come in a wide variety of shapes and sizes...
was built in 1952. It was also called the Bismarck Tower. The Deutsche Bundespost
Deutsche Bundespost
The Deutsche Bundespost was created in 1947 as a successor to the Reichspost . Between 1947 and 1950 the enterprise was called Deutsche Post...
, who had bought the land needed for the tower from the Bismarck Federation, was contractually committed as the owner of the transmission tower to establish a Bismarck memorial on the new tower and a public viewing platform.
New transmission tower
The Jakobsberg Telecommunication TowerJakobsberg Telecommunication Tower
Jakobsberg Telecommunication Tower is a 142 metre tall TV tower built of reinforced concrete on the 238 metre high elevated Jakobsberg near Porta Westfalica...
(known locally as Langer Jakob or "Long James") was built on the site of the old Bismarck Tower from 1974 to 1978, also in concrete and steel. It is a 142 m high transmission tower (standard tower
Typenturm
A Typenturm is a standardised telecommunications tower built of reinforced concrete the former German federal post office . Different types of tower were developed and built at different locations, like the series FMT 1 to FMT 16...
).
The Deutsche Bundespost, as owners of the tower, was once again contractually obliged to have a Bismarck memorial and an observation platform on the new tower. Today the tower is owned by Deutsche Telekom
Deutsche Telekom
Deutsche Telekom AG is a telecommunications company headquartered in Bonn, Germany. It is the largest telecommunications company in Europe....
.
The Jakobsberg Telecommunication Tower
has an operations room at a height of 50 m and an observation platform open to the public at a height of 23.26 m, from which a good all-round view may be enjoyed, for example over parts of the Weser Uplands and the North German Plain as well as the Kaiser Wilhelm Monument on the Wittekindsberg.
Bismarckburg Inn
A few metres west of the Jakobsberg transmission tower is Gaststätte Bismarckburg, an inn that was built at the end of the 18th century and is rich in tradition. It acted as a falconryFalconry
Falconry is "the taking of wild quarry in its natural state and habitat by means of a trained raptor". There are two traditional terms used to describe a person involved in falconry: a falconer flies a falcon; an austringer flies a hawk or an eagle...
as well as being a popular local destination. It adapted to changing circumstances over time by undergoing several conversions; but has since become empty and fallen into disrepair.
Schlageter Monument
On the crest of the Jakobsberg towards the southwest and just under 650 m (as the crow fliesAs the crow flies
"As the crow flies" or beelining is an idiom for the shortest route between two points; the geodesic distance.An example is the great-circle distance between Key West and Pensacola, at either end of the U.S...
) west of the Bismarckburg Inn at a height of are the ruins of the Schlageter
Albert Leo Schlageter
Albert Leo Schlageter was a member of the German Freikorps. His activities sabotaging French occupying troops after World War I led to his arrest and eventual execution by French forces. His death created an image of martyrdom around him, which was cultivated by German nationalist groups, in...
Monument. Built in 1933/34, it was never completed, probably for ideological reasons. On a plinth was a large cross. This only stood there for a short time before being moved to Minden's North Cemetery (Nordfriedhof). There it was integrated into a memorial for those who fell in the First World War.
In 1958 the authorities of the town of Porta Westfalica had the ruins of the monument made accessible and erected an observation platform on the plinth, that gives visitors a far-reaching view to the south and west, for example to the Kaiser Wilhelm Monument on the Wittekindsberg.
Porta Bluff
About 150 m northwest of the Schlageter Monument on the western slopes of the Jakobsberg above a steep, southwest dipping crag is the Porta Bluff (Porta Kanzel), a natural observation platform.In 1887 the crag, as the Porta Bluff, was made accessible by members of the Hausberge Tourism Club. From there it offers a good view of the Kaiser Wilhelm Monument on the Wittekindsberg and over the River Weser in the Porta Westfalica gorge.
Military training area
On the northern parts of the Jakobsberg (around the village of Lerbeck) is the Minden-Bückeburg training area, a military training area for the German Armed Forces, the BundeswehrBundeswehr
The Bundeswehr consists of the unified armed forces of Germany and their civil administration and procurement authorities...
.
Transport links
Near the Wittekindsberg the B 61, B 65 and B 482 federal roads cross one another. These provide links to the A 2 and A 30Bundesautobahn 30
is a highway in northwestern Germany. It runs from west to east, starting at the Dutch border. On the border it connects with the Dutch A1 motorway, hence, the A 30 is part of the important European connection Berlin - Amsterdam...
motorways not far to the south as well as side roads that lead to the hill.
In addition the Jakobsberg is linked to the Deutsche Bahn
Deutsche Bahn
Deutsche Bahn AG is the German national railway company, a private joint stock company . Headquartered in Berlin, it came into existence in 1994 as the successor to the former state railways of Germany, the Deutsche Bundesbahn of West Germany and the Deutsche Reichsbahn of East Germany...
railway network by Porta station, which is part of Porta Westfalica and situated at the western foot of the hill on the east bank of the Weser.
The Jakobsberg is covered by a good network of walking trails, including the European long-distance path E11
European walking route E11
The E11 European long distance path or E11 path is one of the European long-distance paths, running 2500 km west-east from The Hague in the Netherlands through Germany and Poland....
over which the points of interest on the hill may be reached. Access for private vehicles is the village of Hausberge.