Wartbergturm, Observation tower in Alzey, Germany
The Wartbergturm is a stone observation tower in Alzey that rises about 28 meters above ground. Its viewing platform provides wide views across the rolling countryside of the region.
The tower was first documented in 1420 as a military watch post and survived multiple destructions. It was rebuilt after war damage, including during the Thirty Years War.
The tower's name comes from the Wartberg, the hill on which it stands; "Wart" refers to watching, recalling its role in a medieval early-warning chain. Since 1985 the ACV, a local customs-preservation association, has held patronage over the tower, and Alzey citizens and clubs funded its 1988–89 rebuilding.
The tower stands on the northeast slope of the Wartberg at 275 m, about two kilometres south of Alzey's centre, reached via Landesstraße 401. The viewing platform is reached by a staircase, and the tower is not wheelchair accessible. On clear days the view reaches the Frankfurt skyline, and the Petersberg, Donnersberg, Soonwald and Taunus lie in other directions.
In January 1945 American bomber pilots spared Alzey from air raids after mistaking the tower for a church steeple. This confusion protected the town during World War II.
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