Rottenburg am Neckar (until July 10, 1964 only
Rottenburg) is a medium-sized town in the administrative district (
Landkreis) of Tübingen in
Baden-WürttembergBaden-Württemberg is one of the 16 states of the Federal Republic of Germany. Baden-Württemberg is in the southwestern part of the country to the east of the Upper Rhine—but one which has some of its major cities straddling the banks of the Neckar River...
. It rests about 50 km southwest of the provincial capital
StuttgartStuttgart is the capital of the state of Baden-Württemberg in southern Germany. The sixth-largest city in Germany, Stuttgart has a population of 600,038 while the metropolitan area has a population of 5.3 million ....
and about 12 km southwest of the district town
TübingenTübingen, a traditional university town in Baden-Württemberg, Germany, is situated 30 km southwest of Stuttgart, on a ridge between the Neckar and Ammer rivers.-History:...
. Rottenburg is the second largest city of the district after Tübingen and makes up a secondary center for the surrounding community.
Rottenburg am Neckar (until July 10, 1964 only
Rottenburg) is a medium-sized town in the administrative district (
Landkreis) of Tübingen in
Baden-WürttembergBaden-Württemberg is one of the 16 states of the Federal Republic of Germany. Baden-Württemberg is in the southwestern part of the country to the east of the Upper Rhine—but one which has some of its major cities straddling the banks of the Neckar River...
. It rests about 50 km southwest of the provincial capital
StuttgartStuttgart is the capital of the state of Baden-Württemberg in southern Germany. The sixth-largest city in Germany, Stuttgart has a population of 600,038 while the metropolitan area has a population of 5.3 million ....
and about 12 km southwest of the district town
TübingenTübingen, a traditional university town in Baden-Württemberg, Germany, is situated 30 km southwest of Stuttgart, on a ridge between the Neckar and Ammer rivers.-History:...
. Rottenburg is the second largest city of the district after Tübingen and makes up a secondary center for the surrounding community. Since May 1, 1972, Rottenburg am Neckar is a district town (
Große Kreisstadt). Rottenburg agreed to an administrative collectivity with the municipalities of
HirrlingenHirlingen is a municipality in the district of Tübingen in Baden-Württemberg in Germany....
,
NeustettenNeustetten is a municipality in the district of Tübingen in Baden-Württemberg in Germany...
and
StarzachStarzach is a municipality in the district of Tübingen in Baden-Württemberg in Germany....
.
Rottenburg is the seat of a Catholic bishop, being the official centre of the diocese of Rottenburg-Stuttgart.
Geography
Rottenburg is divided into a city core and seventeen (suburban) districts.
Suburban districts of Rottenburg:
Bad NiedernauBad Niedernau is a suburban district of Rottenburg am Neckar in the administrative district of Tübingen in Baden-Württemberg .- Geography :...
,
BaisingenBaisingen is a suburban district of Rottenburg am Neckar in the administrative district of Tübingen in Baden-Württemberg .- Geography :...
,
BieringenBieringen is a suburban district of Rottenburg am Neckar in the administrative district of Tübingen in Baden-Württemberg .- Geography :Bieringen is located 9 km southwestern from Rottenburg am Neckar in the Neckar valley.- Extent :...
,
DettingenDettingen is a suburban district of Rottenburg am Neckar in the administrative district of Tübingen in Baden-Württemberg .- Geography :...
,
EckenweilerEckenweiler is a suburban district of Rottenburg am Neckar in the administrative district of Tübingen in Baden-Württemberg .- Geography :...
,
ErgenzingenErgenzingen is a suburban district of Rottenburg am Neckar in the administrative district of Tübingen in Baden-Württemberg .- Geography :...
,
FrommenhausenFrommenhausen is a suburban district of Rottenburg am Neckar in the administrative district of Tübingen in Baden-Württemberg .- Geography :...
,
HailfingenHailfingen is a suburban district of Rottenburg am Neckar in the administrative district of Tübingen in Baden-Württemberg .- Geography :Hailfingen is located 9 km northwestern from Rottenburg am Neckar and 9 km southern from Herrenberg....
,
HemmendorfHemmendorf is a suburban district of Rottenburg am Neckar in the administrative district of Tübingen in Baden-Württemberg .- Geography :...
,
KiebingenKiebingen is a suburban district of Rottenburg am Neckar in the administrative district of Tübingen in Baden-Württemberg .- Geography :...
,
ObernauObernau is a suburban district of Rottenburg am Neckar in the administrative district of Tübingen in Baden-Württemberg .- Geography :...
,
OberndorfOberndorf is a suburban district of Rottenburg am Neckar in the administrative district of Tübingen in Baden-Württemberg .- Geography :...
,
SchwalldorfSchwalldorf is a suburban district of Rottenburg am Neckar in the administrative district of Tübingen in Baden-Württemberg .- Geography :...
,
SeebronnSeebronn is a suburban district of Rottenburg am Neckar in the administrative district of Tübingen in Baden-Württemberg .- Extent :The area of the district is 811 hectares...
,
WeilerWeiler is a suburban district of Rottenburg am Neckar in the administrative district of Tübingen in Baden-Württemberg .- Geography :...
,
WendelsheimWendelsheim is a suburban district of Rottenburg am Neckar in the administrative district of Tübingen in Baden-Württemberg .- Geography :Wendelsheim is located 4 km northern from Rottenburg and 11 km southwestern from Tübingen....
and
WurmlingenWurmlingen is a suburban district of Rottenburg am Neckar in the administrative district of Tübingen in Baden-Württemberg .- Geography :...
.
History
Rottenburg was originally founded as a Roman town,
Sumelocenna, probably around the year
98Year 98 was a common year starting on Monday of the Julian calendar.-Roman Empire:* January 27—Nerva is succeeded by Trajan....
, and was one of the most important Roman towns in the southwest of Germany. It had a line of walls built to defend it from the attacks of the
AlamanniThe Alamanni, Allemanni, or Alemanni were originally an alliance of Germanic tribes located around the upper Main river . One of the earliest references to them is the cognomen Alamannicus assumed by Roman Emperor Caracalla, who ruled the Roman Empire from 211–17 and claimed thereby to be their...
, who nevertheless destroyed it in 259-260.
The name
Rottenburg is thought to derive from a Germanic root that is also present in the English word 'rotten', in an older meaning of 'destroyed'. According to this hypothesis, the town would have received its name when, in the early Middle Ages, Alemannic people founded their settlement in the vicinity of the ruins of Roman Sumelocenna. An alternative etymology of Rottenburg as "red borough" is also considered possible, however.
Rottenburg became the seat of a Catholic bishop as late as 1821-28, when, after the
secularizationSecularization or secularisation generally refers to the transformation by which a society migrates from close identification with religious institutions to a more separated relationship...
and the Napoleonic wars, a reorganisation of Catholic life in south west Germany had become necessary.. It was then decided not to choose the more important nearby places of Stuttgart or Tübingen as a diocesan town, as these were firmly protestant.
Main sights
Dom St. Martin has been the city's cathedral since 1821. Its tower, dating from 1486, is its most prominent feature.
Spanning various architectural periods, the
Stiftskirche St. Moriz incorporates a
GothicGothic architecture is a style of architecture which flourished during the high and late medieval period. It evolved from Romanesque architecture and was succeeded by Renaissance architecture....
core with elements from an earlier church and a later Baroque hall church. The Gothic feel is what persists, from 14th and 15th centuries frescoes on the pillars to the 15th-century painting of the
Four EvangelistsIn Christian tradition the Four Evangelists refers to the authors attributed with the creation of the four Gospel accounts in the New Testament that bear the following titles:*Gospel according to Matthew*Gospel according to Mark*Gospel according to Luke...
on the ceiling in the choir. In the north aisle stands an ornamented column depicting various princes, donated in 1470 by Archduchess Mechthild, the wife of
Ludwig ILudwig I , Count of Württemberg. The son of count Eberhard IV and Henriette of Montbéliard. He reigned from 1419 until 1450....
and mother of
Eberhard the BeardedEberhard I . From 1459 till 1495 he was count as Eberhard V. From July 1495 he was the first Duke of Württemberg. He is also known as Eberhard im Bart .- Life :...
. A copy also stands in the city's
MarktplatzA marketplace is the space, actual or metaphorical, in which a market operates. The term is also used in a trademark law context to denote the actual consumer environment, ie...
.
There are two museums in town, the
Sülchgau Museum, specializing in pre- and early history and Roman influences on the area, and the diocesan museum, focusing on ecclesiastical art, painting, and sculpture.
In nearby Weggental is the
pilgrimageIn religion and spirituality, a pilgrimage is a long journey or search of great moral significance. Sometimes, it is a journey to a shrine of importance to a person's beliefs and faith. Members of many major religions participate in pilgrimages...
church of
Wallfahrtskirche St. Maria, rebuilt in 1682-1695 in
BaroqueBaroque architecture, starting in the early 17th century in Italy, took the humanist Roman vocabulary of Renaissance architecture and used it in a new rhetorical, theatrical, sculptural fashion, expressing the triumph of absolutist church and state. New architectural concerns for color, light and...
style, but containing a medieval
pietàthumb|[[Michelangelo]]'s St Peter's Pieta.The Pietà is a subject in Christian art depicting the Virgin Mary cradling the dead body of Jesus, most often found in sculpture. As such, it is a particular form of the Lamentation of Christ, a scene from the Passion of Christ found in cycles of the Life...
and a very fine rendition of the Virgin swooning during the
depositionStations of the Cross refers to the depiction of the final hours of Jesus, and the devotion commemorating the Passion. The tradition as chapel devotion began with St...
of
ChristChrist is the English term for the Greek meaning "the anointed". It is a translation of the Hebrew . The term "Christ" was a title rather than a proper name. In the four gospels in the New Testament, the word "Christ" is nearly always preceded by the definite article...
from the cross.
A more modern landmark is the Eckenweiler Water Tower. Built of reinforced concrete in the 1970s, its unusual design is notable.
Honorary citizens
The Town of Rottenburg am Neckar and respectively the former municipalities, which have been incorporated, have awarded the honorary citizenship to the following persons:
Rottenburg
- 1901: Hermann Friedrich Wittich, Regierungsrat
- 1904: Gustav Holzherr, independent gentleman
- 1909: Karl Bitzenauer, parish priest of the town
- 1924: Paul Wilhelm von Keppler, Bishop of Rottenburg
- 1930: Karl Landsee, merchant
- 1931: Alois Kremmler, Oberstudiendirektor (principal)
- 1931: Eugen Bolz
Eugen Anton Bolz was a German politician and a member of the resistance to the Nazi régime.- Life :Born in Rottenburg am Neckar, Eugen Bolz was his parents' twelfth child. His father, Joseph Bolz, was a salesman. His mother was Maria Theresia Bolz . Bolz studied law in Tübingen and there became a...
(1881–1945 (executed in Berlin-Plötzensee)), politician and member of the resistance
- 1947: Johannes Baptista Sproll
Johannes Baptista Sproll was a German Bishop and prominent opponent of the Nazi regime.Sproll was born in Schweinhausen, near Biberach, the son of a street mender, Josef Sproll, and his wife, Anna Maria née Freuer. He attended the Latin school in Biberach and the Gymnasium Ehingen...
, Bishop of Rottenburg
- 1947: Max Kottmann, vicar general
A vicar general is the principal deputy of the bishop of a diocese for the exercise of administrative authority. As vicar of the bishop, the vicar general exercises the bishop's ordinary executive power over the entire diocese and, thus, is the highest official in a diocese or other particular...
- 1949: Josef Schneider, Mayor of Rottenburg and Kanzleidirektor (retired)
- 1958: Franz Anton Buhl, schoolmaster and local historian
- 1961: Josef Eberle, poet and publisher
- 1967: Alfred Planck, fabrikant
- 1968: Carl Joseph Leiprecht
Karl Joseph Leiprecht was the Bishop of Rottenburg.Born in the town of Hauerz in the Allgäu, Leiprecht studied philosophy and theology at the University of Tübingen from 1923 to 1927. On March 24, 1928, he was ordained a priest by Bishop Johannes Baptista Sproll at the Rottenburg Cathedral...
, Bishop of Rottenburg
- 2003: Winfried Löffler, Lord Mayor of Rottenburg (retired)
- 2008: Walter Cardinal Kasper, former Bishop of Rottenburg-Stuttgart and present Cardinal of the Roman Curia
Bad NiedernauBad Niedernau is a suburban district of Rottenburg am Neckar in the administrative district of Tübingen in Baden-Württemberg .- Geography :...
- 1891: Kilian von Steiner
Kilian von Steiner was a German banker and industrialist.Born in Laupheim as the eighth child of Jewish merchant Viktor Steiner and his wife Sophie, Kilian Steiner spent his youth in the small Upper Swabian town...
, banker
ErgenzingenErgenzingen is a suburban district of Rottenburg am Neckar in the administrative district of Tübingen in Baden-Württemberg .- Geography :...
- 1919: Hieronymus Baur, Mayor of Ergenzingen (retired)
- 1961: Alfons Leykauf, parish priest
- 1965: Maximilian Schier, schoolmaster
FrommenhausenFrommenhausen is a suburban district of Rottenburg am Neckar in the administrative district of Tübingen in Baden-Württemberg .- Geography :...
- ?: Rudolf Franziskus de Paula Joseph Fidel Freiherr von Wagner, Warminister of Württemberg
- 1908: Ludwig Franz Freiherr von Wagner, Lieutenant General
KiebingenKiebingen is a suburban district of Rottenburg am Neckar in the administrative district of Tübingen in Baden-Württemberg .- Geography :...
- 1938: Karl Franz Ferdinand Viktor Osterwald, factory manager of the power station
ObernauObernau is a suburban district of Rottenburg am Neckar in the administrative district of Tübingen in Baden-Württemberg .- Geography :...
- ?: Ignaz Kleiner, parish priest
- 1947: Otto Heine, parish priest
WurmlingenWurmlingen is a suburban district of Rottenburg am Neckar in the administrative district of Tübingen in Baden-Württemberg .- Geography :...
- 1905: Sebastian Bauer, dean
- 1953: Franz Josef Fischer, auxiliary bishop
- 1968: Stefan Kruschina, parish priest
Sons and daughters of the town
Prominent persons that were born in Rottenburg:
- Meinrad von Einsiedeln (ca. 797–861), hermit
- Albert II. von Hohenberg, (1303–1359), Bishop of Freising
- Franz Anton Hoffmeister
Franz Anton Hoffmeister was a German composer and music publisher.Born in Rottenburg am Neckar, he went to Vienna at the age of fourteen to study law...
(1754–1812), composer and music publisher
- Ottilie Wildermuth (1817–1877), authoress
- Theodor Schnell der Ältere (1836–1909), sculptor and church outfitter
- Eugen Bolz
Eugen Anton Bolz was a German politician and a member of the resistance to the Nazi régime.- Life :Born in Rottenburg am Neckar, Eugen Bolz was his parents' twelfth child. His father, Joseph Bolz, was a salesman. His mother was Maria Theresia Bolz . Bolz studied law in Tübingen and there became a...
(1881–1945), politician (ZentrumThe German Centre Party was a Catholic political party in Germany during the Kaiserreich and the Weimar Republic...
) see: honorary citizens
- Josef Eberle (also known as Sebastian Blau, 1901–1986), publicist, poet and newspaper publisher (Stuttgarter Zeitung) see: honorary citizens
- Walter Bader (1901–1986), archaeologist and preservationist
- Ewald Bucher (1914–1991), politician (FDP
The Free Democratic Party is a classical liberal, pro-business political party in Germany. International counterparts include the Liberal Democrats of the United Kingdom, Yabloko in Russia and the Democratic Alliance in South Africa. It is a member of the Liberal International...
/DVPThe Democratic People's Party was a short-lived German political party established in 1945 in the area which formed from 1946 on the State of Württemberg-Baden, which in 1952 merged with two other states into today's state of Baden-Württemberg.Co-founded by Reinhold Maier and Theodor Heuss, in...
), Member of the West German Parliament, West German Minister of Justice, West German Minister for regional planning, construction and urban development
- Dieter Planck (* 1944), president of the state office for preservation of historical monuments in Baden-Württemberg
- Winfried Hermann (* 1952), politician (Greens
The Alliance '90/The Greens is a green political party in Germany which originated from the merger of the German Green Party and Alliance 90 in 1993. Its leaders are Claudia Roth and Cem Özdemir...
), current member of the German Parliament
Gallery
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| Railway station in Rottenburg |
Eckenweiler water tower |
Gothic fountain |
Episcopal Palace at the Eugen-Bolz-Square |
External links
Sources