Raven Guides: Germany - Rothenburg

Rothenburg ob der Tauber
Markusturm and Röderbogen

Rothenburg ob der Tauber
Time 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
The Plönlein with the Siebersturm
is the classic Rothenburg scene.
and the nearby Spitalhof, the Rödertor on
the east side and the Galgentor at the northeast
end of Galgenstraße. Some of the older
preserved buildings are in the Schrannenplatz
precinct inside the north wall.
Information
The 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.
Transport
The main all-year transport link is the regional
train shuttle between Rothenburg and Steinach
RAVEN QUICK GUIDE
Tourist 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).
(hourly, 15 minutes) to connect with mainline
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.
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RAVEN TRAVEL GUIDES GERMANY - Rothenburg 1

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
MUSEUMS
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
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.
The Rathaus (late Mar-early Oct M-Su
9.30-12.30, 13-17) is in two parts. The earlier
Gothic section (1380) includes the main
Kaisersaal and tower (see Views). The
Renaissance 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.
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 selfguided
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.
Views
The 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 mostphotographed
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 & gardens
Rothenburg 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.
Markets
Christmas 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.
Events
The event of the year is the costumed
Whitsun re-enactment in the Rathaus of the
Meistertrunk of 1631, in which Georg Nusch
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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 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.
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 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.
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.
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 imagination
for a series of evening events designed
for all ages, but without a command of German
only the music will be truly entertaining.
Food
Typical 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 & drink
Zur 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.
Accommodation
Family 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-
RAVEN TRAVEL GUIDES GERMANY - Rothenburg 3

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 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.
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 halfenclosed
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.
A walk along Taubertalweg in the valley below
Rothenburg leads to Heinrich Toppler’s 1388
tower-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.
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, hotelklingentor.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 fourbed
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.
The Meistertrunk glockenspiel on the
Ratstrinkstube at Marktplatz plays
hourly (M-Su 11-15 & 20-22).
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.
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