The emperors governed their territories by traveling from palace to palace
(Latin "palatium", German "Pfalz"). Most visits lasted from several days to
a few weeks. Nearly all sojourns took place in the tenth century. All visits,
except one, occurred during this one hundred year time frame. Because of the
immorality and havoc, this period has been known, since the sixteenth century,
as the dark ages.
Werla is situated near the crossing of two important roads: the first called
Hellweg (salt road) connected the lower Rhine with the river Elbe. The other,
Silver Road or King's Road, lead from Hamburg in the extreme North through the
Harz Mountains and then on to southern Germany. In the eleventh century
the nearby city of Goslar began to flourish due to its new silver mines. Thus
the emperors constructed new residences there, which became more convenient for
stays in Lower Saxony.
Werla lost its economical value when in 1086 a sovereign gave half of it,
together with the nearby village of Schladen to the bishop of Hildesheim. The
new owner's main interests were with Schladen and so began the
decline of Werla.
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