The Sigiburg was a

Saxon The Saxons ( la, Saxones, german: Sachsen, ang, Seaxan, osx, Sahson, nds, Sassen, nl, Saksen) were a group of Germanic * * * * peoples whose name was given in the early Middle Ages to a large country (Old Saxony, la, Saxonia) near the Nor ...

hillfort in Western Germany, overlooking the River

Ruhr The Ruhr ( ; german: Ruhrgebiet , also ''Ruhrpott'' ), also referred to as the Ruhr area, sometimes Ruhr district, Ruhr region, or Ruhr valley, is a polycentric urban area in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. With a population density of 2,800/km ...

near its confluence with the River Lenne. The ruins of the later Hohensyburg castle now stand on the site, which is in Syburg, a neighbourhood in the Hörde district of

Dortmund Dortmund (; Westphalian nds, Düörpm ; la, Tremonia) is the third-largest city in North Rhine-Westphalia after Cologne and Düsseldorf, and the eighth-largest city of Germany, with a population of 588,250 inhabitants as of 2021. It is the la ...

Archaeological Archaeology or archeology is the scientific study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of artifacts, architecture, biofacts or ecofacts, sites, and cultural landscap ...

evidence suggests the site was occupied in the Neolithic era. The hillfort was raised ca. 700 by Westphalian Saxons. During the

Saxon Wars The Saxon Wars were the campaigns and insurrections of the thirty-three years from 772, when Charlemagne first entered Saxony with the intent to conquer, to 804, when the last rebellion of tribesmen was defeated. In all, 18 campaigns were fought ...

, it was taken by the Franks under Charlemagne in 772, retaken by the Saxons (possibly under Widukind) in 774, and taken again and refortified by Charlemagne in 775.Deutsche Biographie ''Widukind''
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References

Hill forts in Germany Medieval archaeological sites in Europe {{Germany-castle-stub