Where is rothenburg

Yet, we found some specific things to do in Rothenburg to best experience the medieval atmosphere the town is famous for.

The first thing we did after checking into our hotel was walk the town wall. I felt like I had gone back in time while walking the wall and did not want to come down!

As you walk the wall you will see stones engraved with names of people from all over the world. Nine of the watchtowers and over 2, feet m of the wall sustained damage. Amazingly, the centre of the Altstadt, or old town, went largely unscathed more on this later.

The house today is the reconstruction of the original building, destroyed in during the war. An interesting detail on the house is the coat of arms. The crowned serpent was created by the legendary blacksmith, Georg Gerlach himself. The forge closed in and is now privately owned. I am betting that this is the most photographed location in Rothenburg. The photogenic, narrow, half-timbered building is framed by the Kobolzell Gate and the higher Siebers Tower which secured entrance to Rothenburg.

An earthquake destroyed the castle in and the stones of the ruins were used to build the city walls. The garden is very beautiful and the outer path along the garden wall offers outstanding views of the valley surrounding Rothenburg. As you leave the gardens and enter under the gate to the Herrngasse, you will see a mask on the wall of the Burgtor gate, which was used to pour hot tar onto attackers.

Inside the gate is a small door within a door, known as the Eye of the Needle, which only afforded enough room for one person to pass through, preventing enemies from sneaking in. This was by far our favourite walking tour we have ever been on! He takes you around town telling captivating stories about daily life in Rothenburg during the Middle Ages, how the town had escaped sieges, invasions and pillage throughout most its history, and its decline during the 30 Years War. In medieval Europe there was only one job that was looked upon as less desirable- the Executioner.

He protected the city by keeping out looters and other unwanted people and watching for fire. I was enthralled the entire time! Rothenburg was bombed by Allied forces on March 31, However, it was an overcast day and the entire medieval city was not visible from the air. Yet, much of the historic centre endured.

After the bombing campaign ended, the Allied Army was scheduled to invade and destroy the city. At the heart sits the Rothenburg Town Hall that dates back to and features two architectural styles, Gothic and Renaissance. Due to limited space, only 20 people can access the tower at a time so allow plenty of time is this is one of your top things to see in Rothenburg.

The Tower is open daily from April to October and at limited times during the rest of the year. More details below. Surrounding Marktplace are an abundance of pastel coloured houses, cafes and tempting shops selling everything from the usual souvenirs to local specialties like the Schneeball. This ball of biscuit dough comes flavoured with all manner of tastes from apple and cinnamon to champagne and truffles and everything in between.

Known as the Reiterlesmarkt, the market features plenty of stalls selling handcrafted souvenirs and gifts, mulled wine and delicious Christmas treats. You can read more about the Rothenburg ob der Tauber Christmas Market on this link. Pretty Marktplatz is surrounded by well-preserved pastel-coloured buildings. One of the things that had attracted me to Rothenburg was a small yellow house that I had seen adorning the pages of many travel brochures over the years.

Of course, I had to see it for myself! With its bright blue shutters, flower boxes brimming with blooms and a small fountain at the front, there could hardly be a prettier house. The Christmas Museum in Rothenburg traces the history of German Christmas celebrations and includes displays of all kinds of Christmas paraphernalia including cards, Advent calendars, trees, music boxes, decorations, Santas and much more. Housed in the same building is the Christmas Village, the most famous Rothenburg Christmas shop.

This is a shop so chock-full of Christmas decorations it will make even the most avid Christmas-hater become a raving fan. The only problem — how do I get them all home? I did contribute to the local economy, though, with a gorgeous Santa and his sleigh accompanying me all the way to Australia from the Rothenburg Christmas store! Allow at least half an hour to browse the exhibits and another half an hour to wander amongst the amazing selection of decorations in the Kathe Wohlfahrt Christmas Village shop.

The Christmas Museum and shop will have even the most avid Christmas-hater feeling festive! Completed in after years of construction, the church was initially Catholic but later became a Protestant church.

It is still the main church in Rothenburg today. Most visitors are drawn to St. Wurzburg woodcarver Tilman Riemenschneider produced the piece, which represents The Last Supper, between and and it is widely regarded as one of the finest examples of his work.

The church is open daily. The twin spires of St Jacobs Church can be seen from afar. In medieval times the 42 towers and numerous gates of the city walls protected the town from invaders and provided excellent lookout points beyond the town. The views from the west side of the Rothenburg wall at Kobolzell Gate Kobolzelltor overlook the beautiful Tauber Valley. It was badly damaged in an Allied air raid in but was rebuilt soon after the war.

Rothenburg ob der Tauber is one of the oldest and most historic of the medieval towns along the Romantic Road. Although there had been settlements in the area and in the neighbouring Tauber valley for many centuries before, the official history of Rothenburg is generally thought to date from the 10th century with the construction of a castle in an easily-defensible position above the River Tauber thus "Rothenburg ob der Tauber" - ober meaning above.

The original line of rulers died out and so the castle and neighbouring town came into the hands of the Hohenstaufen Emperors of Germany, who granted it an official town charter in the 12th century. The town walls and many of the buildings which still exist were constructed during the next century in fact, rapid expansion meant that a new outer wall had to be constructed within 30 years of the former city walls being finished and the town was granted the position of a Free Imperial City.

Despite these fortifications or perhaps they are a sign of the times Rothenburg has a tortuous history of wars and alliances, ranging from involvement in wars between the counts and princes, followed by enthusiastic participation in the Peasants' War which led to mass executions in the market place.

The subsequent Thirty Years' War gave the legend of the "Meistertrunk" to Rothenburg - the town mayor is supposed to have quaffed a massive tankard of local wine as part of a bet to save the Protestant town from pillaging by Catholic forces. In fact, the town was forced to pay a massive amount of money and goods as a bribe to pay off the opposing forces after pleas from the children and womenfolk of the town.

A play was developed around the legendary events towards the end of the 19th century - the town had long since become part of Bavaria - which helped to market the town's medieval charms and led to the interest in the the history and appearance of Rothenburg on an international level and to restrictive laws being introduced to control changes to the "look" of the historic centre.

This was part of the reason for the relative preservation of the town from the destruction experienced by many other places in the Second World War.