Rottweil (; Alemannic: ''Rautweil'') is a

town A town is a type of a human settlement, generally larger than a village but smaller than a city. The criteria for distinguishing a town vary globally, often depending on factors such as population size, economic character, administrative stat ...

in southwest Germany in the

state State most commonly refers to: * State (polity), a centralized political organization that regulates law and society within a territory **Sovereign state, a sovereign polity in international law, commonly referred to as a country **Nation state, a ...

Baden-Württemberg Baden-Württemberg ( ; ), commonly shortened to BW or BaWü, is a states of Germany, German state () in Southwest Germany, east of the Rhine, which forms the southern part of Germany's western border with France. With more than 11.07 million i ...

. Rottweil was a free imperial city for nearly 600 years. Located between the

Black Forest The Black Forest ( ) is a large forested mountain range in the States of Germany, state of Baden-Württemberg in southwest Germany, bounded by the Rhine Valley to the west and south and close to the borders with France and Switzerland. It is th ...

and the

Swabian Alps The Swabian Jura ( , more rarely ), sometimes also named Swabian Alps in English, is a mountain range in Baden-Württemberg, Germany, extending from southwest to northeast and in width. It is named after the region of Swabia. It is part of th ...

, Rottweil has over 25,000 inhabitants as of 2022. The town is famous for its

medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with the fall of the West ...

center and for its traditional

carnival Carnival (known as Shrovetide in certain localities) is a festive season that occurs at the close of the Christian pre-Lenten period, consisting of Quinquagesima or Shrove Sunday, Shrove Monday, and Shrove Tuesday or Mardi Gras. Carnival typi ...

(called " Fasnet" in the local Swabian dialect). It is the oldest town in Baden-Württemberg, and its appearance has changed very little since the 16th century. The town gives its name to the

Rottweiler The Rottweiler (, , ) is a breed of domestic dog, regarded as medium-to-large or large. The dogs were known in German as , meaning Rottweil butchers' dogs, because their main use was to herd livestock and pull carts laden with butchered mea ...

dog breed.

History

Rottweil was founded by the Romans in AD 73 as Arae Flaviae and became a ''

municipium In ancient Rome, the Latin term (: ) referred to a town or city. Etymologically, the was a social contract among ('duty holders'), or citizens of the town. The duties () were a communal obligation assumed by the in exchange for the privileges ...

'', but there are traces of human settlement going back to 2000 BC.

Roman baths In ancient Rome, (from Greek , "hot") and (from Greek ) were facilities for bathing. usually refers to the large Roman Empire, imperial public bath, bath complexes, while were smaller-scale facilities, public or private, that existed i ...

and an

Orpheus mosaic Orpheus mosaics are found throughout the Roman Empire, normally in large Roman villas. The scene normally shown is Orpheus playing his lyre, and attracting birds and animals of many species to gather around him. Orpheus was a popular subject in ...

of c. AD 180 date from the time of Roman settlement. The present town became a ducal and a royal court before 771 and in 1268 it became a free imperial city. In 1463 Rottweil joined the

Swiss Confederacy The Old Swiss Confederacy, also known as Switzerland or the Swiss Confederacy, was a loose confederation of independent small states (, German or ), initially within the Holy Roman Empire. It is the precursor of the modern state of Switzerlan ...

under the pretence of a temporary alliance. In 1476 the Rottweilers fought on the Swiss side against

Charles the Bold Charles Martin (10 November 1433 – 5 January 1477), called the Bold, was the last duke of Burgundy from the House of Valois-Burgundy, ruling from 1467 to 1477. He was the only surviving legitimate son of Philip the Good and his third wife, ...

in the

Battle of Morat The Battle of Morat took place during the Burgundian Wars (1474–1477) that was fought on 22 June 1476 between Charles the Bold, the Duke of Burgundy, and a Swiss Confederation army at Morat ( Murten), about 30 kilometres from Bern ...

. In 1512, Pope Julius II gave the city a valuable "Julius banner" for its services in the 1508–1510 "Great Pavier Campaign" to expel the French. In 1519, the Rottweilers left the old Swiss alliance. They joined a new one in which their membership was extended indefinitely – the so-called "Eternal Covenant". Rottweil thus became a centre of the Swiss Confederation. The relations between the Swiss Confederation and Rottweil cooled rapidly during the Protestant Reformation. When Rottweil was troubled by wars, however, it still asked the Confederates for help. In the Rottweil Witch Hunts from 1546 to 1661, 266 so-called witches, wizards and magicians were executed in the imperial city of Rottweil. On April 15, 2015, they were given a posthumous pardon. An official apology was given by the City Council about 400 years after their violent deaths. Rottweil lost both its status as free city and its alliance with the Swiss Confederacy with the conquest of the region by

Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte (born Napoleone di Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French general and statesman who rose to prominence during the French Revolution and led Military career ...

in 1803.

Lord mayors since the 19th century

* 1820–1833: Max Joseph von Khuon, Schultheiß * 1833–1845: Max Teufel * 1845–1848: Karl Dinkelmann * 1848–1851: Kaspar Rapp * 1852–1887: Johann Baptist Marx * 1887–1923: Edwin Glückher * 1924–1943: Josef Abrell * 1943–1944: Otto Mann * 1944–1945: Paul Fritz * 1945–1946: Franz Mederle * 1946–1965: Arnulf Gutknecht * 1965–1985: Ulrich Regelmann, mayor; from 1970 Lord Mayor * 1985–2001: Michael Arnold * 2001–2009: Thomas Engeser * 2009–2022: Ralf Broß *2022–present: Christian RufOberbürgermeisterwahl Rottweil 2022
Staatsanzeiger.

Climate

Economy

During the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire and ...

, Rottweil used to be a flourishing imperial city with great economic and cultural influence. In 1868, Rottweil was connected to

Stuttgart Stuttgart (; ; Swabian German, Swabian: ; Alemannic German, Alemannic: ; Italian language, Italian: ; ) is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Baden-Württemberg by population, largest city of the States of Germany, German state of ...

by rail, which boosted the economy of the region. Today, most companies in Rottweil are either small or medium-sized. A trading and shopping town with a high level of

innovation Innovation is the practical implementation of ideas that result in the introduction of new goods or service (economics), services or improvement in offering goods or services. ISO TC 279 in the standard ISO 56000:2020 defines innovation as "a n ...

that benefits from its well developed educational and transport infrastructure, Rottweil has many industrial companies and a steadily growing proportion of knowledge-intensive

service Service may refer to: Activities * Administrative service, a required part of the workload of university faculty * Civil service, the body of employees of a government * Community service, volunteer service for the benefit of a community or a ...

jobs. At 7.9%, Rottweil has one of the highest

academic An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of tertiary education. The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, founded approximately 386 BC at Akademia, a sanctuary of Athena, the go ...

rates in the region.

Media

Local events in Rottweil are reported in the daily newspaper '' Schwarzwälder Bote'', the ''Stadtanzeiger'', online and once a week in the print edition ', the TV station ' and the local radio station ', which is based in the district.

Notable former companies

* Moker * * Peter-Uhren * Rhodia * * Brauerei Pflug

Infrastructure

Rail traffic

Rottweil station has regular (at least hourly) regional services to

Villingen Villingen-Schwenningen (; Low Alemannic: ''Villinge-Schwenninge'') is a city in the Schwarzwald-Baar district in southern Baden-Württemberg, in south-western Germany. It had 89,743 inhabitants as of September 2024. History In the Middle Ages, ...

Singen Singen (; Low Alemannic German, Low Alemannic: ''Singe'') is an industrial city in the very south of Baden-Württemberg in southern Germany and just north of the German-Swiss border. Location Singen is an industrial city situated in the far sout ...

, as well as many nearby towns. The hourly Stuttgart-

Zurich Zurich (; ) is the list of cities in Switzerland, largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zurich. It is in north-central Switzerland, at the northwestern tip of Lake Zurich. , the municipality had 448,664 inhabitants. The ...

intercity train also stops at Rottweil. In 2003, the Ringzug concept was established, providing rail service to many previously abandoned stations in the region between Villingen, Rottweil, Tuttlingen and

Donaueschingen Donaueschingen (; Low Alemannic German, Low Alemannic: ''Eschinge'') is a German town in the Black Forest in the southwest of the States of Germany, federal state of Baden-Württemberg in the Schwarzwald-Baar ''Districts of Germany, Kreis''. It ...

, which became a major success.

Road traffic

By car, Rottweil can be reached via the

Bundesautobahn 81 is a motorway in Germany. It branches off the A 3 at the Würzburg-West triangle and ends near the border with Switzerland. The oldest part of the A 81 between the Weinsberg intersection ( A 6) near Heilbronn and Dreieck Leo ...

Stuttgart-Singen, exit Rottweil. The city lies on the Bundesstraße 27 between

Schaffhausen Schaffhausen (; ; ; ; ), historically known in English as Shaffhouse, is a list of towns in Switzerland, town with historic roots, a municipalities of Switzerland, municipality in northern Switzerland, and the capital of the canton of Schaffh ...

and Stuttgart, on the Bundesstraße 14, which runs from

Stockach Stockach () is a town in the district of Konstanz, in southern Baden-Württemberg, Germany. Location It is situated in the Hegau region, about 5 km northwest of Lake Constance, 13 km north of Radolfzell and 25 km northwest of K ...

Lake Constance Lake Constance (, ) refers to three bodies of water on the Rhine at the northern foot of the Alps: Upper Lake Constance (''Obersee''), Lower Lake Constance (''Untersee''), and a connecting stretch of the Rhine, called the Seerhein (). These ...

via Tuttlingen to Rottweil and on via

Horb am Neckar Horb am Neckar is a town in the southwest of the Germany, German States of Germany, state of Baden-Württemberg. It is located on the Neckar river, between Offenburg to the west (about away) and Tübingen to the east (about away). It has aroun ...

to Stuttgart, and on the Bundesstraße 462 from Rottweil through the

Freudenstadt Freudenstadt (, Swabian: ''Fraidestadt'') is a town in Baden-Württemberg in southern Germany. It is the capital of the district Freudenstadt. The closest population centres are Offenburg to the west (approx. 36 km away) and Tübingen to ...

and

Rastatt Rastatt () is a town with a Baroque core, District of Rastatt, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is located in the Upper Rhine Plain on the Murg river, above its junction with the Rhine and has a population of around 51,000 (2022). Rastatt was an ...

Bicycle traffic

Rottweil is located on the along the Neckar River via Horb,

Tübingen Tübingen (; ) is a traditional college town, university city in central Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is situated south of the state capital, Stuttgart, and developed on both sides of the Neckar and Ammer (Neckar), Ammer rivers. about one in ...

, Stuttgart,

Heilbronn Heilbronn () is a List of cities and towns in Germany, city in northern Baden-Württemberg, Germany, surrounded by Heilbronn (district), Heilbronn District. From the late Middle Ages on, it developed into an important trading centre. At the begi ...

and

Heidelberg Heidelberg (; ; ) is the List of cities in Baden-Württemberg by population, fifth-largest city in the States of Germany, German state of Baden-Württemberg, and with a population of about 163,000, of which roughly a quarter consists of studen ...

Mannheim Mannheim (; Palatine German language, Palatine German: or ), officially the University City of Mannheim (), is the List of cities in Baden-Württemberg by population, second-largest city in Baden-Württemberg after Stuttgart, the States of Ger ...

Air traffic

Aerial image of the Rottweil-Zepfenhan airfield

In the neighboring village of Zepfenhan, about away, is the (Rottweil-Zepfenhan airfield), which can be approached by small aircraft. The nearest commercial airports are Stuttgart Airport and

Zurich Airport Zurich Airport is the largest international airport of Switzerland and the airline hub, principal hub of Swiss International Air Lines. It serves Zurich, the largest city in Switzerland, and, with its surface transport links, much of the rest o ...

Education

Rottweil has three Gymnasien (''Albertus-Magnus-Gymnasium'', ''Droste-Hülshoff-Gymnasium'', ''Leibniz-Gymnasium''), one

Realschule Real school (, ) is a type of secondary school in Germany, Switzerland and Liechtenstein. It has also existed in Croatia (''realna gimnazija''), the Austrian Empire, the German Empire, Denmark and Norway (''realskole''), Sweden (''realskola''), F ...

, one Förderschule (''Achert-Schule''), three

Grundschule Education in Germany is primarily the responsibility of individual German States of Germany, states (), with the federal government only playing a minor role. While kindergarten (nursery school) is optional, formal education is compulsory for a ...

n (''Eichendorff-Grundschule'', ''Grundschule Neufra'' and ''Grundschule Neukirch''), and four

Hauptschule A ''Hauptschule'' (, "general school") is a secondary school in Germany, starting after four years of elementary schooling (''Grundschule''), which offers Lower Secondary Education (Level 2) according to the International Standard Classification ...

n (''GHS Göllsdorf'', ''Johanniter-Grund- und Hauptschule'', ''Konrad-Witz-Grund- und Hauptschule'' and ''Römer-Grund- und Hauptschule'').

Main sights

* The late- Romanesque and Gothic–era ''Münster Heiliges Kreuz'' ("Minster of the Holy Cross"), built over a pre-existing church from 1270. It features a

crucifix A crucifix (from the Latin meaning '(one) fixed to a cross') is a cross with an image of Jesus on it, as distinct from a bare cross. The representation of Jesus himself on the cross is referred to in English as the (Latin for 'body'). The cru ...

Veit Stoss Veit Stoss (, also spelled Stoß and Stuoss; ; ; before 1450about 20 September 1533) was a leading German language, German sculptor, mostly working with wood, whose career covered the transition between the late Gothic art, Gothic and the North ...

and noteworthy Gothic sculptures. * ''Kapellenkirche'' (1330–1340), a Gothic church with a tower and with three statue-decorated portals * ''Lorenzkapelle'' ("Church of St. Lawrence", 16th century) in late Gothic style. It houses some two hundred works by Swabian masters and Gothic altarpieces from the 14th and 15th centuries. * The town's museum, including a notable Roman mosaic with the legend of

Orpheus In Greek mythology, Orpheus (; , classical pronunciation: ) was a Thracians, Thracian bard, legendary musician and prophet. He was also a renowned Ancient Greek poetry, poet and, according to legend, travelled with Jason and the Argonauts in se ...

* The late-Gothic town hall (1521) * St. Pelagius, a Romanesque church from the 12th century. Excavations have brought to light Roman baths on the same site. * Dominican Museum of Rottweil – local branch of the Landesmuseum Württemberg *

ThyssenKrupp ThyssenKrupp AG (, ; stylized as thyssenkrupp) is a German industrial engineering and steel production multinational conglomerate. It resulted from the 1999 merger of Thyssen AG and Krupp and has its operational headquarters in Duisburg and E ...

constructed a $45 million, tower, the Rottweil Test Tower. The tower is a research facility for the company and is used to test new elevator cars and technologies. When the tower was completed in 2017, it was the tallest elevator test tower in the world. The tower has 12 elevator shafts.

Twin towns – sister cities

Rottweil is twinned with: *

L'Aquila L'Aquila ( ; ; ) is a city and ''comune'' in central Italy. It is the capital city of the Province of L'Aquila and the Abruzzo region in Italy. , it has a population of 69,902. Laid out within medieval walls on a hill in the wide valley of the A ...

, Italy *

Brugg Brugg (sometimes written as Brugg AG in order to distinguish it from other ''Brugg''s) is a Switzerland, Swiss Municipalities of Switzerland, municipality and a List of towns in Switzerland, town in the canton of Aargau and is the seat of the Bru ...

, Switzerland *

Hyères Hyères (), Provençal dialect, Provençal Occitan language, Occitan: ''Ieras'' in classical norm, or ''Iero'' in Mistralian norm) is a Communes of France, commune in the Var (département), Var Departments of France, department in the Provence-Al ...

, France * Imst, Austria

Notable people

Konrad Witz Konrad Witz (ca.1400/1410 – winter 1445/spring 1446) was a German and Swiss painter, active mainly in Basel. Life He was born probably in Rottweil, Germany. In 1434 he entered the painters’ guild in Basel, where he worked most of his life. ...

(1400/10–1445/46), painter, active mainly in Basel. * Adam of Rottweil, 15th-century scholar and printer * Johann Georg Herbst (1787–1836), a German Orientalist. * Franz Xavier Wernz (1842–1914), the 25th Superior General of the Society of Jesus *

Erwin Teufel Erwin Teufel (born 4 September 1939, in Zimmern ob Rottweil) is a German politician of the CDU. Political career Teufel was the leader of the CDU parliamentary group in the Landtag of Baden-Württemberg from 1978 to 1991. Teufel was Minis ...

(born 1939), politician ( CDU), former minister president of Baden-Württemberg *

Rüdiger Safranski Rüdiger Safranski (born 1 January 1945) is a German philosopher and author. Life From 1965 to 1972, Safranski studied philosophy (among others, with Theodor W. Adorno), German literature, history and history of art at Goethe University ...

(born 1945), philosopher, writer and literary scholar * Matthias Hölle (born 1951), opera bass * Anne Haigis (born 1955), musician, singer and songwriter. * Wolfgang Stryi (1957–2005), jazz musician, composer, clarinetist and tenor saxophonist * Andreas Schwab (born 1973), politician (CDU) and member of the European Parliament * Johannes Erath (born 1975), opera director * Heike Heubach (born 1979), politician, (SPD); she is deaf

Sport

* Klaus-Dieter Sieloff (1942–2011), footballer, brought up locally, played 338 games and 14 for

West Germany West Germany was the common English name for the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) from its formation on 23 May 1949 until German reunification, its reunification with East Germany on 3 October 1990. It is sometimes known as the Bonn Republi ...

*brothers Marcus Trick (born 1977) & Armon Trick (born 1978), retired international rugby union players * Simone Hauswald (born 1979), a former biathlete and bronze medallist at the

2010 Winter Olympics The 2010 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XXI Olympic Winter Games () and also known as Vancouver 2010 (), were an international winter multi-sport event held from February 12 to 28, 2010 in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, with ...

* Markus Fuchs (born 1980), footballer who played over 300 games *

Christoph Burkard Christoph Burkard (born 14 November 1983) is a retired German Paralympic swimmer who specialises in freestyle swimming and breaststroke Breaststroke is a human swimming, swimming style in which the swimmer is on their chest and the torso ...

(born 1983), Paralympic swimmer, medallist at the

2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and Its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 60 ...

2012 Summer Paralympics The 2012 Summer Paralympics, branded as the London 2012 Paralympic Games, were an international Multi-sport event, multi-sport parasports event held from 29 August to 9 September 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. They were the 14th Sum ...

* Maximiliane Rall (born 1993), footballer, played over 200 games and 9 for Germany women * Joshua Kimmich (born 1995), footballer, played over 310 games and 85 for

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 ...

Trivia

* The

dog breed is named after this town; it used to be a butcher's dog in the region. * "Das Mädchen aus Rottweil" is a song by the German band

Die Toten Hosen Die Toten Hosen are a German punk rock band from Düsseldorf. The name is taken from the German slang idiom ''tote Hose'' (literally "dead trousers"), which means "nothing happening"; "boring". The band has had an important success through th ...

Gallery

Rottweil 20.jpg Germany Rottweil Münster Heiliges Kreuz.jpg, Depiction of St. Veronica's sudarium over the portal of the Minster of the Holy Cross Rottweiler Denkmal in Rottweil.JPG, A statue for Rottweiler dogs in Rottweil Rottweiler Fassnacht.JPG, Rottweiler " Fasnet" TyssenKrupp Test Tower, Rottweil.jpg, Rottweil Test Tower Rottweil station, ThyssenKrupp Test Tower (2018).jpg, Rottweil station with ThyssenKrupp Test Tower in the background

Notes

References

External links

*
Feast of Fools: Medieval Carnival Celebrations in RottweilHistory and territory of the former Reichsstadt RottweilPictures of and stories about Rottweil
{{Authority control Towns in Baden-Württemberg Rottweil (district) Associates of the Old Swiss Confederacy Former states and territories of Baden-Württemberg Germania Superior Free imperial cities Former republics States and territories established in 1140 States and territories disestablished in 1802 Populated places on the Neckar basin Populated riverside places in Germany