Rothenburg ob der Tauber

Markusturm and Röderbogen

Rothenburg ob der TauberTime passed Rothenburg by, but history did not leave it alone. After a medieval golden period the legacy of its later isolation was preservation, leaving travellers with a fully walled picture of the past and a rich stock of stories.

Now a small town, Rothenburg was long an important centre close to key events. The location lent itself to a fortress and in the 11th century the first castle was constructed. It was handed to the imperial Hohenstaufen line in the 12th century and a bigger castle was built and used as a seat by Konrad, duke of Swabia, later king of Germany as Konrad III. The town proper was founded in 1170 and the first walls were built, later being twice extended. It soon found itself a junction of two pilgrimage routes, one between Denmark and Rome.

In 1274 Rothenburg was granted the status of free imperial city, placing it directly under the emperor. In this period its Jewish community was prominent and one of the great medieval Jewish scholars, the rabbi Meir ben Baruch, lived in the town. But in 1298 the town’s Jewish community fell victim to slaughter amid the hysteria of Franconia’s Rintfleisch massacres.

An earthquake in 1356 destroyed the castle and damaged parts of the town. But it recovered and, during the late 14th century mayoral term of Heinrich Toppler, the town was one of the most populous in the Holy Roman empire.

But Toppler’s independent policy made enemies, especially the prince-bishop of Würzburg. An alliance of enemies assaulted the town but was forced to retire and come to terms. Toppler, however, had fallen foul of town politics and was seized and jailed in 1408. Two months later he died mysteriously.

The peasant revolt of 1525 saw Rothenburg on the losing side of the peasants. During the Thirty Years War the town was besieged three times and, according to tradition, its council was saved only by the ex-mayor Georg Nusch’s Meistertrunk, the long draught celebrated in the glockenspiel above the Marktplatz.

Thereafter Rothenburg lost its importance. Its affluence gone, its burgers made do with their surroundings much as they were. But the value of its street environments and location were recognised and exploited for tourism in the 20th century and its unaltered state now attracts more than a million tourists a year. Heavy damage from a 1945 air attack was repaired with worldwide donations and now preservation laws protect building styles covering 500 years, including about 50 barns of various types and sizes, within the almost uniquely complete medieval walls.

Altstadt The centre of the old town is a pedestrian zone for much of the day and walking is easy anywhere. Marktplatz (also signposted Markt) is the starting point for any stroll and in parts the parapets are accessible via stairways, notably around the southern gate Spitalbastei

and the nearby Spitalhof, the Rödertor on the east side and the Galgentor at the north-east end of Galgenstraße. Some of the older preserved buildings are in the Schrannenplatz precinct inside the north wall.

InformationThe Rothenburg Tourismus Service office at Marktplatz 2 opposite the Rathaus is closed Sundays off-season, apart from short hours at Easter and during Advent Christmas markets late in November and during December. The website is www.tourismus.rothenburg.de.

The Schöning Verlag City Guide Rothenburg ob der Tauber in English (€4.90) at more than 100 pages is an excellent colour guide to more than 30 locations in and around the town. Willi Sauer Verlag’s Rothenburg ob der Tauber Guide is also available at €4.90. The L. Pyczak Buchhandlung at Georgengasse 9 has books and plenty of maps to browse through.

TransportThe main all-year transport link is the regional train shuttle between Rothenburg and Steinach

(hourly, 15 minutes) to connect with main-line Frankfurt-Munich services. The station building is open short hours (M-F 8-18, Sa 9-13) but tickets are available from a platform machine and there are outside lockers. The Deutsche Touring Romantische Straße bus departs (mid Apr-late Oct M-Su) north for Würzburg and Frankfurt and south for Dinkelsbühl, Augsburg and Munich, stopping at Rothenburg rail station (15.45 northbound and 12.55 southbound) and Schrannenplatz (16.35 and 12.50) at the north end of the old town.

In summer Berlin Linien Bus runs Dresden-Bamberg-Würzburg-Rothenburg ob der Tauber-Ulm (W & Sa, return Th & Su) and Berlin-Bamberg-Würzburg-Rothenburg ob der Tauber-Ulm (W & Sa, return Th & Su), stopping at the rail station. This service links with BLB buses running from Berlin and Leipzig. FlixBus has a direct service to Würzburg (and on to Berlin). To the south passengers have to change at Memmingen for Munich.

Rothenburg is at the west end of the VGN transport network centred on Nuremberg.

RAVEN QUICK GUIDETourist information & accommodation service: Marktplatz 2 (tel 09861-404800, email info@rothenburg.de, May-Oct M-F 9-18, Sa-Su 10-17, Nov-Apr M-F 9-17, Sa 10-13).Money: Commerzbank, Galgengasse 23 (M, W & F 9-12.30, 13.30-16, Tu & Th 9-12.30, 13.30-18); VR-Bank, Marktplatz 1 (M-F 9-12.30).Lockers: Bahnhof platform (€3/2 per day).Post: Zentro, Bahnhofstraße 4 (M-F 9.30-17, Sa 8-12).Internet: Rothenburg Tourismus Service, Marktplatz 2; Cafe Wunderbar, Spitalgasse 7 (M-Su 10-19). Laundry: Wäscherei Then, Johannitergasse 9 (M-F 8-18, Sa 8-14).Police: tel 110; Ansbacher Straße 72 (tel 09861-9710).Pharmacy: Marien-Apotheke, Marktplatz 10 (M-F 8-18, Sa 8.30-13); Landwehr Apotheke, Bahnhofstraße 15 (M-Sa 8-20); Reichsstadt Apotheke, Ansbacher Straße 2 (M, W & F 8-18, Tu & Th 8-19.30, Sa 8.30-13).Ambulance: tel 112.Hospital: Klinik Rothenburg, Ansbacher Straße 131 (tel 09861-7070).

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The Plönlein with the Siebersturm is the classic Rothenburg scene.

© 2014 RAVEN TRAVEL GUIDES GERMANY

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MUSEUMS During December’s Christmas markets some attractions can be open slightly longer hours than normal winter times and it is worth checking with the tourist office. Key museums are open daily.The Reichsstadtmuseum Rothenburg (Apr-Oct M-Su 9-17, Nov-Mar M-Su 13-16, €4/3.50, families €8) in the cloisters of the former Dominican convent at Klosterhof 5 contains medieval and Baroque collections, paintings from all periods including the Rothenburger Passion (1494) by Martinus Schwarz, Renaissance armour and weapons including a matchlock musket more than 2m long, the Meistertrunk tankard and the equipped convent kitchen.The Mittelalterliches Kriminalmuseum (Apr M-Su 11-17, May-Oct M-Su 10-18, Nov-Mar M-Su 14-16, €5/3.50, families €13) in four storeys at Burggasse 3 is unique in its focus on the business of justice. Exhibits include bizarre and grotesque instruments of punishment, and fascinating insights into laws and sanctions from the 12th to 19th centuries with seals and documents.More tortures, cells and dungeons – and recreated scenes and history of the Thirty Years War period – are exhibited daily at the vaults of the Historiengewölbe mit Staatsverlies (Mar M-Su 12-16, Apr M-Su 10-16, May-Oct M-Su 9.30-17.30, Nov M-F 13-16, Sa-Su 10-16, €2.50/2, families €6) in the Rathaus courtyard (enter from Herrngasse). Here too is the cell where Heinrich Toppler was jailed in the 15th century. It is also open during Christmas markets – check with the tourist office for dates and times.Dolls and toys over three centuries are displayed at the Puppen & Spielzeugmuseum (Mar-Dec M-Su 9.30-18, Jan-Feb M-Su 11-17, €4/3.50, families €10) at Hofbronnengasse 13. About 1000 dolls and their doll houses, clothing and other paraphernalia are included. The Alt-Rothenburger Handwerkerhaus (Easter-Oct M-F 11-17, Sa-Su 10-17, Dec M-Su 14-16, €2.50/1.80) is in a building dating from 1270 at Alter Stadtgraben 26. Little is changed from the days it housed craftsmen at their work, with tools and household items from the 15th to 19th centuries. Christmas is celebrated all year at the Deutsches Weihnachtsmuseum (Mar-Dec M-Su 10-17.30, mid Jan-Mar Sa-Su 11-16, €4/2.50, families €7) at Herrngasse 1. The museum runs in concert with the more commercial Käthe Wohlfahrt Weihnachtsdorf.

hours, €10 per day for a week or more.

Tours Daily guided 90-minute tours in English (Easter-Oct and Dec before Christmas, €7/4, children under 12 free) leave from the Rathaus main entrance at Marktplatz at 14.00.

The idea of a nightwatchman tour is not unique to Rothenburg but the town has one of the best English tours of the type (one hour, Apr-Dec and early Jan M-Su 20, mid Jan-Mar Sa 20, €7/4, children under 12 free) with an entertaining mixture of history and humour, starting from the Rathaus entrance.

An audio guide tour is available for up to four hours (€7.50) from the tourist office, telling a tale of 14th century Rothenburg from the imagined viewpoint of mayor Heinrich Toppler. Leaflets in English with two self-guided walks are also available at the tourist office.

Coach rides along the Tauber valley with English commentary can be booked with the help of the tourist office.

ViewsThe overall view of the town is from the Rathaus tower climb (€2). The fee is paid near the narrow opening at the top after visitors negotiate a green-red light system in the upper hall.

The tall Rödertor has accessible high gallery sections either side on the east wall. The tower of the fortified St-Wolfgangs-Kirche commands the north-west bastion precinct. There are superb views of the Tauber valley from the Burggarten and the sweep of the western walls allows excellent vistas of the north part of town, especially from the round Strafturm.

A still wider landscape is available from the basket of a balloon. Happy Ballooning (tel 09861-87888) at Spitalgasse 19 offers flights at €195, with group tickets from €160 per person.

It is no vantage point but the most-photographed scene in Rothenburg is at the street fork at the Plönlein, with the low road leading down to Kobolzeller Tor. Another is the half-timbered Gerlachschmiede near Rödertor.

Parks & gardensRothenburg in summer is crowded rather than bustling but the Burggarten is close at hand, outside the main walls with its blooms and a peaceful valley outlook. The area is illuminated at night. The walled Dominican Klostergarten (Apr-Oct M-Su 8-19) at Klosterhof maintains a herb garden on medieval patterns.

MarketsChristmas merges with the tourist industry in Rothenburg and the Advent Reiterlesmarkt (Su-Th 11-19, F-Sa 11-20) stirs many of the town’s attractions from winter hibernation from the last days of November until a few days before Christmas. In the best traditions of German Christmas markets these take place in Marktplatz against the illuminated backdrop of the Rathaus, offering trinkets, regional pastries and festive wine.

EventsThe event of the year is the costumed Whitsun re-enactment in the Rathaus of the Meistertrunk of 1631, in which Georg Nusch

The Rathaus (late Mar-early Oct M-Su9.30-12.30, 13-17) is in two parts. The earlier Gothic section (1380) includes the main Kaisersaal and tower (see Views). TheRenaissance building (1578) replaced a section burnt in a fire in 1501 and includes the present main entrance facing the Marktplatz, although the arcades are 17th century additions. The stairway tower above leads to a hall flanked by the coats of arms of Rothenburg’s patrician families. The Swedish king Gustav II Adolf stayed in the building while occupying the town during the Thirty Years War. The portal to the older building shows a feature surviving on a few medieval town halls, the local measurement systems mounted as iron rods.

Regional bus 814 connects Rothenburg and Dinkelsbühl, but there is no railway link. Connections with Nuremberg can be made using regional the trains, with changes at Steinach and Neustadt. The bus station is adjacent to the rail station platform. Tickets costing €10.10/5.10 (including bicycles) are valid for single journeys in the network for up to four hours. Day (or weekend) tickets for up to six people, including up to two adults (or for three people transporting bicycles) can use a TagesTicketPlus at €16.80. Visit www.vgn.de for details in English.

In the north-west of the Altstadt (west of Weißer Turm and Markusturm and north of Wenggasse) there is a vehicle-free zone (M-Su 6-19, see town maps) and there are other restrictions on vehicular use at festival times. However car and parking permits are available from accommodation houses and large parking areas are outside the walls and at Schrannenplatz. The tourist information office can indicate relevant areas on a map. Taxis

The Doppelbrücke in the Tauber valley.

queue at the rail station or can be ordered on tel 09861-7227 or 09861-2000.

Bicycle hire is available at Rad & Tat (tel 09861-87984, M-F 9-18, Sa 9-13) of Bensenstraße 17 at €12 per day or €9 for six

The Herterichsbrunnen depicting the triumph of St Georg and the Marien-Apotheke in the Jagstheimer Haus are at the head of Herrngasse, which preserves what was the top end of town in its heyday, a precinct of the fine houses and business headquarters of patrician late medieval citizens. This prime real estate adjacent to the Marktplatz and Rathaus includes the imposing Staudtsches Haus (Herrngasse 18), although the beautiful inner courtyards are not readily accessible. On some of the gables the beams still overhang from the days they were used for hoisting supplies to the roof cavities.

The 12th century Burgtor with the town’s arms is the oldest and highest of the town’s gate towers. The Burggarten is the site of the Hohenstaufen castle (1142) built by Konrad III and destroyed by the earthquake of 1356. The castle occupied what was before the development of the town a raised tongue of land dominating the Tauber. The keep or kernel tower was near the point to the south side. The remains of the castle were put to use in the town’s defences, except for what is now the Blasiuskapelle – now a war memorial – part of which survived the earthquake and was restored. The tower gate formerly had a drawbridge but the guardhouse and customs house remain.

The St-Jakobs-Kirche (consecrated 1464, M-Sa 9-17.30, Su 10.45-17.30, €2/0.50) with its asymmetric towers, now the Evangelical parish church, marks the end of the St Jakob pilgrimage route from Speyer. As well as the saint, the visitor is in the presence of the great Würzburg sculptor Tilman Riemenschneider, whose Heilig-Blut-Altar (1505) upstairs, depicting the Last Supper, is among the great works of German art. It was commissioned for a reliquary cross venerated at the shrine of a chapel, probably the centre of a 13th century church. Riemenschneider or his school supplied two other altars, to the Virgin and St Franz. Part of the town has been painted into the high altar depiction of the saint (1467) by Friedrich Herlin.

The 1492 St-Wolfgangs-Kirche (Apr-Sep W-M 10-13, 14.30-17, Oct W-M 10-16, Dec Sa-Su 11-16), also known as the Schäferkirche, is an example of a fortified church in a rare state of preservation. Right at the town’s northern gate Klingentor, its design merges with the bastion and had its own gun emplacements. But the defences go further, including a secret stone passage under the church that can be inspected by visitors. Before the church was built shepherds gathered at the site in worship of a shrine to St Wolfgang, protector of herds, and later returned annually in thanksgiving. The saint’s legends are depicted in the church.

is said to have met the challenge at a court martial held by the imperial field marshal Tilly to down a tankard at one gulp and save the town council from execution. Tickets are in three place categories (€14/14, €9/5 and €6/3.50). The festival includes other open-air activities during the week and a festival pass covering these admissions costs €12.

Further performances of the play take place during the costumed Reichsstadt-Festtage weekend early in September and early in October. Tickets can be booked online at www.meistertrunk.de, where annual dates are provided. These events are accompanied by the folk custom of the shepherd’s dance or Schäfertanz in Marktplatz. It was said to drive away – and keep away – plague.

In the first week of November the Märchenzauber draws on fairytale imag-ination for a series of evening events designed for all ages, but without a command of German only the music will be truly entertaining.

FoodTypical German fare is easy to find at the many Gasthöfe inside the walls and the bratwurst kitchens are several, though other cuisines are on offer. Restaurant Landsknechtstübchen (tel 09861-3323), Galgengasse 21, serves solid standard dishes from the German heartland, mostly under €12 for a main course.

The tiny medieval tavern known as Zur Höll (tel 09861-4229) at Burggasse 8 by the west town wall revels in its devilish identity, serving a traditional repast in something approaching medieval surroundings.

The sweet-toothed should not miss the chance to try the local pastry delicacy Schneeballen at a local Konditorei – just pick from whatever is on display. These balls of short-crust pastry strips can be brushed with sugar or glazed and flavoured with chocolate, nuts or even rum.

Meet & drinkZur Höll (see Food) offers beers and Franconian wines. Cafe-Konditorei Uhl (M-Su 8-21) at Plönlein 6 under the Siebersturm serves coffee, icecream and Schneeballen as well as traditional Franconian meals next to the postcard landmark.

Performance In St-Jakobs-Kirche there are about 100 concerts through the year featuring the church organ and visiting ensembles and choral groups.

AccommodationFamily pensions and budget hotels are the mainstays of Rothenburg accommodation, part of a long tradition in which family businesses offer meals, cafe snacks or lodgings and often all three. Private hostels are few. The accommodation booking service at the tourist office has a list of private rooms but budget stays can easily be booked online by following the tabs at www.tourismus.rothenburg.de to the catalogue. Further budget rooms are listed online at www.deutsche-pensionen.de/pension-rothenburg.

Inexpensive options are inside the town walls. Pension Hofmann-Schmölzer (tel 09861-3371, www.hofmann-schmoelzer.de) at Rosengasse 21 offers singles/doubles with full facilities from €32/58 with breakfast and parking, plus a three-bed room at €82. The small Pension Birgit (tel 09861-6107, birgit-

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Every tower in Rothenburg’s walls would tell many stories. Weißer Turm bridging Georgenstraße marks the old inner-ring defences of the 12th and 13th centuries but has additions from the 18th century. Beside is the Judentanzhaus, a Jewish community centre, with a small memorial to the medieval Talmud scholar and Rothenburg rabbi Meir ben Baruch. Also aligned to the earliest stage of fortifications is the Markusturm on Hafengasse with its arch Röderbogen.

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pension.de) at Wenggasse 16 has singles with breakfast at €30, doubles from €40.

Pension Becker (tel 09861-3560, www.pension-becker.com) at Rosengasse 23 has rooms with breakfast and all facilities starting at €28/48. Family rooms are also available.

Close to but just outside the town is Hotel Klingentor Garni (tel 09861-3468, hotel-klingentor.de), 150m outside the north gate at Mergentheimer Straße 14, with singles/doubles including full facilities and breakfast starting at €38/65 and two and three-bed rooms starting at €65/95. Parking space and bicycle hire are free.

A small family pension is Gästehaus Eberlein (tel 09861-4672, www.eberlein.rothenburg.de) at Winterbachstraße 4 outside the town walls with singles at €45, doubles from €65, triples at €90. Walk about 100m south-west from the station along Bahnhofstraße, left at Ansbacher Straße and right at Schlachthofstraße to sight the house.

Traditional mill buildings in the Tauber valley below the town offer a different ambience. Pension Fuchsmühle (tel 09861-92633, www.fuchsmuehle.de) is just across the river west of the town walls at Taubertalweg 103 (if on foot best reached from the Burgtor, although the path is steep). There are specials at the website and free beds for small children but standard bed and breakfast starts at €44/62 with three and four-bed rooms starting at €74 and €111. Extra beds cost €16 (plus €7 for breakfast). Apartments and a common room with library are also available. Pension Herrnmühle (tel 09861-2176, www.herrnmuehle-rothenburg.de) at Taubertalweg 54 has rates for a two-night stay starting at €34/54 a night with breakfast and full facilities, three-bed rooms starting at €90. Apartments for three nights or more are available. Expect a taxi fare of €8-10 to reach either from the rail station.

The DJH hostel is Jugendherberge Rothenburg ob der Tauber (tel 09861-94160, email rothenburg@jugendherberge.de) in the old mill building Roßmühle at Mühlacker 1 at the south end of the old town, offering mostly dorm-style rooms but also several family rooms, doubles and triples with facilities. Bed rates start at €22.10.

Today’s Kapellenplatz was the centre of the old Jewish community and the synagogue site before it was banished outside the walls in 1390, after which the Marienkapelle was built. The Jews moved to the other side of the old wall, around Judengasse, and a synagogue was built at Schrannenplatz. Graves are in the small courtyard at the corner of Judengasse and Galgengasse under the tower, with a memorial to Holocaust victims. Much of this area was destroyed by 1945 bombing, including the second synagogue.

The powerful 16th century Spitalbastei is a complex on three levels involving multiple gates at the southern tip of the old town and visitors can walk around inside the bastion, where casemates and some of the defensive hardware in the form of cannon is still in place. The parapets of the defences are half-timbered and half-enclosed parapet walkways are accessible by steps. The area was part of later extensions to the town wall (previously gated at the Siebersturm) and the bastion was named for the much older Heilig-Geist-Spital, built outside the earlier wall circuit. The Spitalhof with the 1281 Gothic Spitalkirche (M-Su 9-17, summer sometimes to 18.00) and the towered so-called Hegereiterhaus remain at the south end of Spitalgasse.

The Roßmühle, now the main building of the DJH hostel, with its sweeping roofline and eyebrow dormers, once housed four large millstones and the 16 horses needed to drive them. This building supplied flour during sieges or when other circumstances dried up supplies from surrounding mills. Among nearby barn buildings the Zehntscheune (1699), later the Reichsstadthalle, one of Rothenburg’s biggest barns, was named for taking a tithe of one-tenth of the local grain supply. Part of the Spitalhof complex, it is now a conference venue.

A walk along Taubertalweg in the valley below Rothenburg leads to Heinrich Toppler’s 1388tower-style house, now called the Topplerschlößchen, is a 20-minute walk down a steep path from the Burggarten. It was reputedly elevated to allow for defensive flooding if necessary, which according to legend did not endear the mayor to many of the townspeople. A minute away to the south is the Fuchsmühle, one of the handful of late medieval mill buildings strung along the road heading south to the rebuilt medieval double stone bridge Barbarossabrücke. Another path leads back up to the town through the Kobolzeller Tor.

A day excursion from Rothenburg is available at the Fränkisches Freilandmuseum (Mar-Apr Tu-Su 9-18, May-Sep M-Su 9-18, Oct-mid Dec Tu-Su 11-16), at Bad Windsheim, a short distance to the north-east. On one of the biggest open-air museums in Europe more than 100 Franconian rural and town buildings covering 700 years have been collected and restored, representing all classes, styles and purposes. The Spitalkirche, Alterbauhof and old pharmacy in the nearby town quarter can also be visited. Admission to all is €6/5, families €15. Take the DB regional shuttle train to Steinach and change for Bad Windsheim (20 minutes, check connections at Rothenburg station). From the Bad Windsheim station walk straight through the town centre to the south side and take Eisweiherweg to the museum’s entry complex. By road, pick up the A7 north to B470 and drive to Bad Windsheim, turning south at Südring, then Eisweiherweg.

The Meistertrunk glockenspiel on the Ratstrinkstube at Marktplatz plays hourly (M-Su 11-15 & 20-22).