Reutlingen

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With a population of clearly over 100,000 this is already one of the larger cities in the German state of Baden-Wurttemberg. Reutlingen is about 40 kilometers south of Stuttgart.

Like so many places in this region, the Alamanni took the city in the 5.-7.th century.

The most obvious landmark of Reutlingen, St. Mary's Church, was completed in the 14th century. Reutlingen was later awarded the important status of an 'Imperial City'.

A peculiarity of Reutlingen's judicial system in the 15th century was the 'Asylum of Reutlingen' that granted all manslayers asylum in the city if they committed their crime unintentionally (I'm not sure if that's still the case today...)!

With the notable exception of Nuremberg, Reutlingen was in 1530 the only Imperial City in Germany to sign the "Confessio Augustana" , the declaration of belief in the Protestant faith.

The period of the Thirty Years' War (1618-1648) in Reutlingen was characterized by lootings, billetings and occupations by Imperial, Bavarian, Swedish, and French troops.

The effects of the devastating big town fire of 1726 on the townscape can unfortunately still be seen today.

The enforced political conformity (Gleichschaltung) in 1936 gave the Nazi party virtually overnight the majority in the town council. The last 2 Jewish businesses were forced to close in 1938.

The city was able to recover from the horrible effects of the 2nd World War. Today, among the city's worthwile attractions are the Nikolaichurch, several historic gates, the museum of local history, several fountains, St. Mary's church, and the historic market square with the Spital building (see photo).

The "New Spital" was was for the first time mentioned in a document in 1333. In the Middle Ages the building served as a hospital. Later on it became a home for the upper class elderly. The Spital was heavily damaged during the town fire of 1726. In 1849 the Spital was the venue of the convention of Democrats of Wuerttemberg. From 1922 until 1978 the building served as a home for educational institutions. Today it plays its part in the cultural live of the city: In the basement there's a locally well-known theater, called "Die Tonne" (the barrel). Performances take place regularly.

Reutlingen's sister cities are Roanne (France), Ellesmere Port (UK), Bouake (Ivory Coast), Aarau (CH), Szolnok (Hungary), and Dushanbe (Tajikistan).

Phone: [phone], [e-mail]

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Photos

Reutlingen
Reutlingen - Spital building on market square