Bad Staffelstein is a town in the

Bavaria Bavaria, officially the Free State of Bavaria, is a States of Germany, state in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the list of German states by area, largest German state by land area, comprising approximately 1/5 of the total l ...

n Administrative Region of

Upper Franconia Upper Franconia (, ) is a (administrative 'Regierungs''region 'bezirk'' of the state of Bavaria, southern Germany. It forms part of the historically significant region of Franconia, the others being Middle Franconia and Lower Franconia, wh ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

. It has around 10,000 inhabitants. Bad Staffelstein is known for several landmarks, such as the Basilica of the Vierzehnheiligen designed by Balthasar Neumann, the former monastery of

Banz Abbey Banz Abbey (), now known as Banz Castle (), is a former Benedictine monastery, since 1978 a part of the town of Bad Staffelstein north of Bamberg, Bavaria, southern Germany. History The abbey was founded in about 1070 by Countess Alberada o ...

, now Banz Castle, and the 540 meter high

Staffelberg The Staffelberg is a hill in Bavaria, Germany. It is part of the Franconian Switzerland and one of the most important landmarks in Franconia. First settlements date from the Neolithic. Ancient Rome, Romans, Celts and Franconians followed. Duri ...

. Most recently, it has been the thermal salt water spa, for which the town received the title ''Bad'' (spa) in 2001, that has made Staffelstein a tourist attraction.

Geography

Location

The municipal territory of Bad Staffelstein extends on both banks of the

Main river The Main () is the longest tributary of the Rhine, one of the major European rivers. It rises as the White Main in the Fichtel Mountains of northeastern Bavaria and flows west through central Germany for to meet the Rhine below Rüsselsheim, ...

. It is located northeast of

Bamberg Bamberg (, , ; East Franconian German, East Franconian: ''Bambärch'') is a town in Upper Franconia district in Bavaria, Germany, on the river Regnitz close to its confluence with the river Main (river), Main. Bamberg had 79,000 inhabitants in ...

in the district of Lichtenfels.

Subdivisions

Bad Staffelstein consists of the following ''Stadtteile'':

History

Staffelstein was first mentioned around 800 and received its town status in 1130. In 1846, with the construction of the Ludwig South-North Railway, the town was connected to the Bavarian rail network. The status of spa was awarded in 2001.

''Stadtteile'' (quarters)

Kaider

Kaider is known for its stone industry, as well as for St. Mary's Chapel. Kaider was earlier known as ''Dabermannsdorf''; the change to the name ''Kaider'' has been proven to have taken place no later than 1542. Kaider was first mentioned on 12 December 1299. On that day, Albert von Giech, knight of

, sold with the agreement of his wife Elisabeth and his brother Kunimund, a

canon Canon or Canons may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Canon (fiction), the material accepted as officially written by an author or an ascribed author * Literary canon, an accepted body of works considered as high culture ** Western canon, th ...

Bamberg Cathedral Bamberg Cathedral (, official name Bamberger Dom St. Peter und St. Georg) is a church in Bamberg, Germany, completed in the 13th century. The cathedral is under the administration of the Archdiocese of Bamberg and is the seat of Archbishop of ...

, all of his lands in Nuweseze (Neuses am Main), Obristfeld, and Dabermannsdorf (now Kaider) to Langheim Abbey. The selling price was 126 Pfund Bamberg

Denar The denar (; paucal: denari / ; Currency symbol, abbreviation: den / ; ISO 4217, ISO code: MKD) is the currency of North Macedonia. Though subdivided into one hundred deni (), coins with a denomination of less than one denar have not been in ...

Schwabthal

Schwabthal lies 7 km east of Bad Staffelstein and has around 200 residents.

Incorporation

The District Reform of 1972 brought many changes to Staffelstein. Except for the District Office all other central administrations were dissolved. With the Municipal Territory Reform in 1978, the loss of administrative power and centrality became more balanced.

Demographics

*1900: 1,724 *1977: 4,985 (before the Municipal Territory Reform) *1978: 9,881 (after the Municipal Territory Reform) FRSchweiz

Culture and landmarks

Museums

*Museum of the town of Bad Staffelstein *Fossil Collection at Banz Castle

Buildings

On 5 July 1684, a fire destroyed almost the entire town center. Therefore, most houses in Staffelstein today date from after the fire. * The town hall (built from 1684 to 1687), is a three-story Franconian

half-timbered Timber framing () and "post-and-beam" construction are traditional methods of building with heavy Beam (structure), timbers, creating structures using squared-off and carefully fitted and Woodworking joints, joined timbers with joints secure ...

house and dominates the town's market square. * The Bamberg Tower (commonly referred to as the ''Stadtturm'') is the only remaining tower from the town fortifications. For some time, it has been used to exhibit art. *

and castle * Basilica of the Vierzehnheiligen BadStaffelstein

Regular Events

*''Staffelsteiner Autofrühling'' (March) *Songs an einem Sommerabend (July) *''Altstadtfest'' (End of July) *''Beerbrewerfest '' (Assumption of Mary, 15th of August) *''Obermain-Marathon'' (April)

Sports

* TSV 1860 Staffelstein

Notable people

* Adam Riese (1492–1559), mathematician :His arithmetic books were used for instruction in schools well into the 18th century. Even today, one hears the German expression "Das macht nach Adam Ries(e)..." (''"According to Adam Ries, that gives us..."''). Ries

* (1855-1929), teacher and educational writer * (1920-2013), painter and sculptor

References

*''The information in this article is based on a translation of its German equivalent.''

External links

* {{Authority control Spa towns in Germany Lichtenfels (district) Populated places on the Main basin Populated riverside places in Germany