Faltertor and Männerturm, Dettelbach

Old city gate at the Dettelbach city wall.

The Faltertor was built in 1550. Right next to it is the "Männerturm" and the former city prison.

The Faltertor (address Falterstraße 35, formerly house number 25) is part of the city fortifications of Dettelbach. The characteristic ensemble of gate tower and the neighboring men's tower makes it a landmark of the Lower Franconian city. Of the former five city gates, only the Faltertor and the Brückertor have survived. Today the Kolping and Crafts Museum is housed in the gate tower.
The Moth Gate got its name from the characteristic defensive elements with which it was equipped. A portcullis could be found here that prevented potential attackers from storming the city. The name Faltertor was later derived from the term "Fall-Tor". The gate could be reached with a drawbridge over the moat, which also served a protective function. At the same time, the gate formed a "bottleneck" and was the only connection to the Dettelbach area. It connected the town with the nearby ferry in Sommerach and the neighboring town of Volkach.
The ensemble at the Faltertor before 1888, the customs house still existsSimilar to the Brückertor, where more springs exist, the city used a gate closer or guard for the Faltertor. He was responsible for traffic monitoring at the respective gate as well as unlocking and locking in the morning and evening. The gate closers were obliged to be punctual and risked fines or tower penalties for non-compliance. The Faltertor was probably renovated for the first time in 1550, whereby the coat of arms of the Bishop of Würzburg, Melchior Zobel, was probably attached. Possibly the German Peasants' War made it necessary to improve defense technology.[2] The older literature dates the construction to this time.Already in the Thirty Years' War the city wall of Dettelbach could not oppose the guns of the advancing Swedes. In 1631, the Protestant Swedes occupied the city without a fight. In the centuries that followed, the city fortifications became less and less important and the gates only fulfilled an economic function, because as customs posts they regulated the movement of goods to and from the city. However, the city no longer invested any money in its walls.