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Witches' Dance Site on the Faßenberg (Hanstedt)

Witches' Dance Site on the Faßenberg (Hanstedt)

Highlight • Structure

Witches' Dance Site on the Faßenberg (Hanstedt)

Recommended by 191 hikers out of 198

This Highlight is in a protected area

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Naturpark Lüneburger Heide

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Location: Lüneburg Heath, Lower Saxony, Germany

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Best Hikes to Witches' Dance Site on the Faßenberg (Hanstedt)

4.7

(109)

351

hikers

1. View over the Lüneburg Heath – Weseler Heide loop from Wesel

22.9km

06:02

190m

Hard hike. Very good fitness required. Easily-accessible paths. Suitable for all skill levels.

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Hard

4.7

(109)

343

hikers

2. View over the Lüneburg Heath – Weseler Heide loop from Dierkshausen

20.9km

05:30

180m

190m

Hard hike. Very good fitness required. Easily-accessible paths. Suitable for all skill levels.

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Hard

4.2

(22)

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3. Witches’ Place on Fassenberg – Pond on the L. Heftilei Trail loop from Dierkshausen

8.78km

02:18

70m

Moderate hike. Good fitness required. Easily-accessible paths. Suitable for all skill levels.

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Moderate

Tips

Kathrin unterwegs

October 24, 2020

The "Hexentanzplatz" has nothing in common with witches and all that. The term was popularly coined and goes back to gymnastics and free-body activities that newcomers carried out on the Fassenberg.
At the beginning of the 20th century, not only did the migratory bird movement emerge, many townsfolk were also increasingly drawn to the countryside, settling down in the great outdoors, gathering and occasionally also setting up small weekend homes. In Hanstedt, this happened primarily on the heights to the right and left of the idyllic Fassenbeke.
This hustle and bustle in the dark forest may have seemed suspicious to the locals and also had something mystical about it. They watched from a respectful distance and may have viewed sun worship and ecstatic dances as a kind of witch cult. The sentence: "There the witches dance!" will quickly have made the rounds and the square already had its name: "Hexentanzplatz".

lueneburger-heide.de/service attraction/3535/hanstedt-hexentanzplatz-auf-dem-fassenberg.html

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Dolle

December 15, 2019

A place with a story that has nothing to do with witch hunts.

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Kathrin unterwegs

September 28, 2020

Hanstedt: "Hexentanzplatz" on the Fassenberg
Hanstedt

It is not known whether the time of the Inquisition and witch hunts left their mark on Hanstedt. It is possible that this evil spirit, which arose in the late Middle Ages, did not stop at the heathland villages.

What is certain, however, is that superstition, sorcery and witchcraft have haunted people for centuries, sometimes even up to the present day. Owls and owls were considered dead birds. If someone died and he was “above the earth for Sunday”, the deceased pulled another person after him. Between Christmas and New Year, women stopped doing the laundry, because violations brought bad luck. So did broken mirrors, while shards generally meant good luck. Many examples of good and bad luck could be mentioned at this point.

The "Hexentanzplatz" has nothing in common with any of this. The term was popularly coined and goes back to gymnastics and free-body activities that newcomers carried out on the Fassenberg.

At the beginning of the 20th century, not only did the migratory bird movement emerge, many townsfolk were also increasingly drawn to the countryside, settling down in the great outdoors, gathering and occasionally also setting up small weekend homes. In Hanstedt, this happened primarily on the heights to the right and left of the idyllic Fassenbeke.

This hustle and bustle in the dark forest may have seemed suspicious to the locals and also had something mystical about it. They watched from a respectful distance and may have viewed sun worship and ecstatic dances as a kind of witch cult. The sentence: "There the witches dance!" will quickly have made the rounds and the square already had its name: "Hexentanzplatz".

After the Second World War, the square was still used for playing fistball for a while before it grew over and disappeared from the Hanstedter's consciousness. Now Ludwig Riebesehl and Erich Gring have hung a replica witch with headscarf and broom high in a pine tree and symbolically reborn the name of the place to defy oblivion. The fathers of this idea want the witch to be understood as a good fairy who protects the forest. They encourage visitors to respect God's nature and keep the forest clean of filth.

Source: lueneburger-heide.de/service attraction/3535/hanstedt-hexentanzplatz-auf-dem-fassenberg.html

Translated by Google •

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Elevation 90 m

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Thursday 11 December

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Location: Lüneburg Heath, Lower Saxony, Germany

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Witches' Dance Site on the Faßenberg (Hanstedt)

1. View over the Lüneburg Heath – Weseler Heide loop from Wesel

2. View over the Lüneburg Heath – Weseler Heide loop from Dierkshausen

3. Witches’ Place on Fassenberg – Pond on the L. Heftilei Trail loop from Dierkshausen

Other Popular Places to Check Out

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