Wilzenberg, Mountain summit in Schmallenberg, Germany.
Wilzenberg is a 658.3 m high mountain at the western edge of the Rothaargebirge, rising in the municipal area of Schmallenberg between Grafschaft and Oberkirchen. Its summit, in the Oberkirchen district, holds a 17 m high tower from 1891, a pilgrimage chapel from 1633, a 28 m high cross, and two Iron Age and early medieval ring walls.
Two Iron Age ramparts (around 200 BC) and an early medieval ring wall from the 9th–10th century lie on the summit. The smaller early medieval castle is mentioned in documents of Grafschaft Abbey, including a Count of Wilzenberg ("Haoldus comes de Wiltzenberg") recorded once; no proof exists that he ever lived there. Excavations by the Westphalian Antiquities Commission began between 1900 and 1914, and the age of the older rampart remained unknown until 1950.
Pilgrims from Schmallenberg and Grafschaft visit the Wilzenberg, called the "Holy Mountain of the Sauerland", where the pilgrimage sites lie between two concentric Iron Age and early medieval ring walls. The 1633 Marian chapel stands with Stations of the Cross, an open-air altar with a crucifixion group and a 28 m high cross. Legend says the noblewoman Chuniza, linked to the site, killed seven husbands with poison and fled to Burg Nordenau with horseshoes nailed on backwards.
The summit can be reached on foot from several starting points around Schmallenberg, with trails of different lengths and gradients to choose from. Good footwear is recommended since the forest paths can become slippery after rain.
The Wilzenberg is classed as a geographical singularity, a status rarely given to a hill of its size. Its summit carries a 28-metre-high cross, and the 17-metre Wilzenberg tower of 1891 stands in the Oberkirchen district, 800 metres north of Grafschaft.
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