The word
burgstall is of medieval origin and comes from
Burg = "castle" and
Stelle = "place" or "site" and originally just meant a castle, a castle hill or, later, a small castle. Today it refers to the purported site of a castle that has yet to be confirmed or to a place where a castle once stood, but whose walls have completely or largely been levelled. Many castles that survive today only as
burgställe were
slighted in the
Middle Ages or left to decay naturally after being attacked and destroyed. But many were also deliberately abandoned as a result, for example, of the roof tax in Austria. Local names often still refer to the fortifications that once stood on these sites and many of them still have visible piles of rubble or recognisable, albeit levelled, courtyards, because they usually occupy relatively inaccessible sites. However many were also used as a "quarry" for nearby buildings and have entirely disappeared. In some instances only the earthworks remain visible above the ground – features such as
ditches and ramparts. The result is that
burgställe are often only recognisable as uneven terrain and some are only visible in
aerial photographs. Today most are protected as
heritage monuments. Usage of
burgstall in comparison with a ruin or castle: •
Castle (German:
Burg): a fortified complex of buildings with a defensive character, an
enceinte and a residential area. • Castle
ruin (German:
Burgruine): castle that is no longer habitable due to at least partial collapse or demolition. There are still some above-ground remains. •
Burgstall: site or faint remains of a castle where there are no significant above-ground remains and a reconstruction of the building plan and functions of the buildings is no longer possible. Even a ruin in which remnants of the foundation walls enable some sort of reconstruction, is not considered much more than a
burgstall in the technical castle literature. • Lost castle (German:
abgegangene Burg or
abgekommene Burg, lit. gone or lost castle): a "lost" castle is one where there are no traces left, which is common in the case of
hillside or
spur castles, where erosion and landslides have cleared them away. The term also covers castles whose exact historical location is unknown. A large number of castles have not survived in their original form but have simply been incorporated into a later structure, such as an early modern
fortress or later modern
schloss, where they form elements such as individual wings (often parts of the
inner bailey), buildings or part of the fortifications or are simply used for the foundations of newer buildings or creation of garden terraces. == Examples ==