The history of the moated castle began in the first decade of the 14th century.
Heinrich von Schenck, who was initially called Heinrich von Dövenstedt, Schenck, whereby Schenck is derived from the court office of Schenk, received Flechtingen as a
fief from
Herman, Margrave of Brandenburg-Salzwedel for his services. As early as 1307, he and his brother Alverich called themselves Schencken von Dönstedt and Lords of Flechtingen Castle. This was also the first written mention of the facility. So it must have been built before that date. The castle was built on a rocky base in a swampy lowland. The
bergfried, the foundation walls of the main castle and the buildings of the
outer bailey can be dated to the time when the complex was built. It is assumed that the master builder was the same one who designed or built the castle in nearby
Bahrdorf. Contractually
Louiss II, Elector of Brandenburg. In 1359, he stipulated in the feudal letter that the castle had to be available to him and his descendants as a place of refuge in times of war. Similar agreements existed with the
Duchy of Brunswick and
the Archdiocese of Magdeburg, so the castle was often used as a place of refuge. At the beginning of the 15th century, the moated castle was structurally modified and used as a hunting castle or hunting lodge. The readiness to defend no longer played the central role. Further modifications followed. The outer walls of what later became the castle garden in the south of the complex were built later in their current form after embankments had gained appropriate space. The old castle walls ran closer to the buildings. A farm building in the north of the outer bailey had been a residential building before it was converted. The coach house was in the east. To the south was a stable converted or used as a
riding hall in the middle of the 19th century. collection After a fire in 1483 severely damaged the old
Palas in what is now the castle's outbuilding, residential buildings next to the keep in today's main castle were expanded under Rudolf Schenk, creating a new Palas. This construction measure was financed by a loan of 300 gold
guilders, which the sons of Rudolf had taken out at a St. Bonifatius chapter in
Helmstedt. In the main castle area is the southern building of the
cabinet, built in 1526 by
the Erbschenk of the Hochstift Halberstadt and the hereditary treasurer of
Kurmark Borgward Schenk. The western connection was the
brewery of the castle. During the conversion in 1526, this was placed on a floor containing the armoury. Also, in the 16th century, a connecting building was erected between the palace and the cabinet wing, creating two separate courtyards. In 1619, Kersten von Schenck had a
staircase tower built in the bailey. In 1692, alterations were made in the Palas area. Around 1860, Eduard von Schenck, who, born von Peucker, came into possession of the property as a result of being adopted by his childless uncle, laid out the castle park on the bank southwest of the castle in its present form. A connecting dam was built in 1864 to the west of the complex to provide direct access from the castle to the park. Also under Eduard, when he ruled the property between 1860 and 1897, a new
merlon was added to the keep. The original merlon consisted of three battlements and two battlement windows on each side. Until 1881, there were conversions on the upper floor of the cabinet wing. A Castle garden and terrace were also created as part of these significant renovation measures. Because of the air raids on Magdeburg in the
Second World War, works of art were also removed from
Magdeburg Cathedral: the sculpture of Saint Mauritius and valuable grave slabs from archbishops and canons came to the Flechtingen castle. Until the end of the Second World War, the castle remained in the Schenck family's possession. Immediately after the end of the war, as part of the land reform, all property of the noble family in the
Soviet occupation zone of Germany was expropriated without compensation. Pieces of furniture from the castle came to
Magdeburg,
Halle and
Altenhausen, and parts of the castle library went to what later became the city and district library of Magdeburg, today's city library, and other parts were sold. The Flechtingen castle has been owned by ADN Investment group since 2019. The interior and the roof have been partially renovated. ==See also==