The name is derived from the period of
witch trials. Many of these towers were used to incarcerate those suspected or found guilty of
witchcraft. Other witch towers were named later, for example in the 19th century when they were used as prisons or ordinary towers in the city walls. Witch towers are found in many German towns and cities such as
Aschersleben,
Coburg,
Frankenberg (Eder),
Fulda,
Gelnhausen,
Geseke,
Heidelberg,
Herborn,
Hofheim am Taunus,
Idstein,
Jülich,
Kaufbeuren,
Lahnstein,
Landsberg am Lech,
Marburg,
Markdorf,
Memmingen,
Olpe,
Rheinbach,
Rüthen,
Treysa,
Windecken. Today these towers are sometimes renovated and used to house museums. According to legend, witches were burnt at the stake at the Witches' Tower at the
Wildensteiner Burg. With trials from the region of the
Upper Danube valley may be seen in the archives. In
Babenhausen, a special beer, the
Hexe ("Witch") is brewed which depicts on its label the local witch tower. In
Salzburg there is a witch tower in the city walls dating to the 15th century that was used as a prison and, later, as a store. In 1944 it was destroyed by a bomb and the ruins were torn down. Only a picture on the facade of
Wolf Dietrich Straße and
Paris Lodron Straße recalls this building. == Surviving examples ==