The Ungerecht Family Tree

A picture of me with my "Ungerecht Trucking" hat in front of the Walldorf Church. This is the oldest known location that our Ungerechts would have visited. They lived in Walldorf until the late 1600's, records before the 1600's were lost (probably because of the 1634 fire during the 30 Years War). This church was first mentioned in documents in 982 AD.

The church door.

The door has a seal above it with the year 1587 carved into it. The church was burned "to the masonry" twice, once in 1634 and once in 2012. It is currently undergoing reconstruction, but they're also performing an archeological dig in the process, as they find burials everywhere, some not even a foot underground.

Looking inside the church, you can see it's been completely gutted. They're putting in a heated floor, and some charred boards form a crude cross near the entrance. Our ancestors would have sat in this church in the 1600's and probably many years before that. They quite likely helped fund the original building of this church.

Looking out toward the north side of town you can see how rural this part of Germany still is.

These windows on the north side of the church are so unique. There are peaked arches (Gothic style), round arches (earlier Romanesque), round windows, square, and even a slit window (for firing arrows through). One window is dated 1597 and looks like it was put over an earlier window. There is a carving of a person's head high on the wall, is this Jesus?

Philip emulating the archers that would have defended the church from these walls (originally there would have been a catwalk built along the stone supports, one of which he is standing on). The walls were built in 1008 AD, if I read the history correctly. But they weren't enough to defend against all the troubles of the 30 Year War. Armies from the Holy Roman Empire from the south and newer Protestant forces from the north roamed the countryside, and they were both expected to feed and fund themselves by pillaging the villages.

These pictures were taken on our drive a few miles from Walldorf, typical scenery of the area along the Werra valley. It is not as prosperous here as in the larger towns, but they are surrounded by beautiful scenery. Many of the people here are farmers and I saw several logging trucks, reminding me of home in Minnesota.

See also my pictures of Meiningen, Helba, Walldorf (this page) and Eisenach. See also the overview of Ungerecht locations.