Schwetzingen (; ) is a German

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 northwest

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 ...

, around southwest of

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 ...

and southeast of

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 ...

. Schwetzingen is one of the five biggest cities of the Rhein-Neckar-Kreis district and a medium-sized centre between Heidelberg and Mannheim. The city is most famous for Schwetzingen Palace and the Schlosstheater. The palace grounds also feature a mosque, the oldest in Germany. Although not functional, it was used by Muslim prisoners in the

Franco-Prussian War The Franco-Prussian War or Franco-German War, often referred to in France as the War of 1870, was a conflict between the Second French Empire and the North German Confederation led by the Kingdom of Prussia. Lasting from 19 July 1870 to 28 Janua ...

Geography

Schwetzingen is located in the ''

Rhine The Rhine ( ) is one of the List of rivers of Europe, major rivers in Europe. The river begins in the Swiss canton of Graubünden in the southeastern Swiss Alps. It forms part of the Swiss-Liechtenstein border, then part of the Austria–Swit ...

Neckar The Neckar () is a river in Germany, mainly flowing through the southwestern States of Germany, state of Baden-Württemberg, with a short section through Hesse. The Neckar is a major right tributary of the Rhine. Rising in the Schwarzwald-Baar ...

-triangle'' in the plain of the

river, lying west of the

Odenwald The Odenwald () is a low mountain range in the Germany, German states of Hesse, Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg. Location The Odenwald is located between the Upper Rhine Plain with the Bergstraße Route, Bergstraße and the ''Hessisches Ried' ...

and in the east of the

. A small stream, the Leimbach, runs through the city before joining the

Climate

Schwetzingen is located in Germany's warmest summer region, the " Rhine shift". In summer, temperatures sometimes rise up to and higher. The

Köppen Climate Classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...

subtype for this climate is " Cfb" (Marine West Coast Climate/

Oceanic climate An oceanic climate, also known as a marine climate or maritime climate, is the temperate climate sub-type in Köppen climate classification, Köppen classification represented as ''Cfb'', typical of west coasts in higher middle latitudes of co ...

), bordering closely on a

humid subtropical climate A humid subtropical climate is a subtropical -temperate climate type, characterized by long and hot summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents (except Antarctica), generally between ...

(Cfa), with summer months often averaging above 21 degrees (71 F).

Neighbouring municipalities

The following municipalities, listed clockwise beginning in the north, border on the city limits of Schwetzingen:

, Plankstadt, Oftersheim,

Hockenheim Hockenheim () is a town in northwest Baden-Württemberg, Germany, about 20 km south of Mannheim and 10 km west of Walldorf. It is located in the Upper Rhine Plain, Upper Rhine valley on the tourist theme routes "Baden Asparagus Route" ( ...

, Ketsch and Brühl. The municipal area of Schwetzingen is completely consolidated with Oftersheim. The limits of Plankstadt are only separated by one street from the limits of Schwetzingen.

History

Schwetzingen was mentioned as "Suezzingen" for the first time in 766, recorded in the late twelfth-century

Codex Aureus of Lorsch The ''Codex Aureus of Lorsch'' or Lorsch Gospels (Biblioteca Apostolica Vaticana, Pal. lat. 50, and Alba Iulia, Biblioteca Documenta Batthyaneum, s.n.) is an illuminated Gospel Book written in Latin between 778 and 820, roughly coinciding with ...

, but there are already traces of settlement from the

Stone Age The Stone Age was a broad prehistory, prehistoric period during which Rock (geology), stone was widely used to make stone tools with an edge, a point, or a percussion surface. The period lasted for roughly 3.4 million years and ended b ...

. Originally it consisted of two settlements, Ober- and Unterschwetzingen, that grew together in the course of the 17th and 18th century. Originally the town belonged to the diocese of

Worms The World Register of Marine Species (WoRMS) is a taxonomic database that aims to provide an authoritative and comprehensive catalogue and list of names of marine organisms. Content The content of the registry is edited and maintained by scien ...

, but later passed to the Counts of the Palatinate in the 12th century. The moated castle of Schwetzingen is mentioned for the first time in 1350. It was destroyed in the

Thirty Years' War The Thirty Years' War, fought primarily in Central Europe between 1618 and 1648, was one of the most destructive conflicts in History of Europe, European history. An estimated 4.5 to 8 million soldiers and civilians died from battle, famine ...

and in the following War of the Palatinate Succession; it was rebuilt by count Johann Wilhelm and his predecessor. From 1720 it served temporarily as the residence of the Elector Karl III Philip (1716–1742) after he moved away from

. Later on it served as a summer residence of the Elector of the Palatinate and their

court A court is an institution, often a government entity, with the authority to adjudicate legal disputes between Party (law), parties and Administration of justice, administer justice in Civil law (common law), civil, Criminal law, criminal, an ...

. Schwetzingen Castle began as a simple aristocratic fishing retreat (much like

Versailles The Palace of Versailles ( ; ) is a former royal residence commissioned by King Louis XIV located in Versailles, Yvelines, Versailles, about west of Paris, in the Yvelines, Yvelines Department of Île-de-France, Île-de-France region in Franc ...

and

Karlsruhe Karlsruhe ( ; ; ; South Franconian German, South Franconian: ''Kallsruh'') is the List of cities in Baden-Württemberg by population, third-largest city of the States of Germany, German state of Baden-Württemberg, after its capital Stuttgart a ...

which began as hunting lodges) and had an eventful architectural history, in several phases of construction, especially during the reigns of the Elector Karl III Philip and Karl IV Theodor (1742–1799) who, as their answer to Versailles, embellished the castle gardens with some of the finest and most elaborate formal water

parterre A ''parterre'' is a part of a formal garden constructed on a level substrate, consisting of symmetrical patterns, made up by plant beds, plats, low hedges or coloured gravels, which are separated and connected by paths. Typically it was the ...

s in Germany

gardens A garden is a planned space, usually outdoors, set aside for the cultivation, display, and enjoyment of plants and other forms of nature. The single feature identifying even the wildest wild garden is ''control''. The garden can incorporate bot ...

. As it evolved, the high central Baroque block of the ''Castle'' was extended to either side (from 1747 onwards) in matching curved ranges of glazed arcades that were punctuated by pavilions which followed the arc of the vast garden circle. They partly enclose the circle bisected by a wide gravel axis flanked by parterres which centers on a spring-fed water-basin inspired by the ''bassin'' of Diana at Versailles, but here expressing the more appropriately water-centered Greek myth of the poet

Arion Arion (; ) was a kitharode in ancient Greece, a Dionysiac poet credited with inventing the dithyramb. The islanders of Lesbos claimed him as their native son, but Arion found a patron in Periander, tyrant of Corinth. Although notable for his mu ...

and the dolphins. On the other side at the entrance, a mulberry-tree

allée In landscaping, an avenue (from the French), alameda (from the Portuguese and Spanish), or allée (from the French), is a straight path or road with a line of trees or large shrubs running along each side, which is used, as its Latin source ' ...

stretched from the centre of the ''Castle'' to the city of

, 10 km away on the horizon, truly a remarkable feat of autocratic landscaping. The curving outbuildings of Schwetzingen inspired the smaller Rococo perfections of

Schloss Benrath Schloss Benrath (Benrath Palace) is a Baroque-style ''maison de plaisance'' (pleasure palace) in Düsseldorf-Benrath, Benrath, which is now a borough of Düsseldorf. It was erected for the Elector Palatine Charles Theodore, Elector of Bavaria, ...

, with its quarter arcs of matching ''corps de logis'' embracing a formal sheet of water, built for Carl Theodor near

Düsseldorf Düsseldorf is the capital city of North Rhine-Westphalia, the most populous state of Germany. It is the second-largest city in the state after Cologne and the List of cities in Germany with more than 100,000 inhabitants, seventh-largest city ...

, 1756–1770. In 1759 Schwetzingen received permission to host markets and was developed into a

baroque The Baroque ( , , ) is a Western Style (visual arts), style of Baroque architecture, architecture, Baroque music, music, Baroque dance, dance, Baroque painting, painting, Baroque sculpture, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished from ...

city through the 18th century. In 1803 all the territories of the Palatine electorate east of the

, including Schwetzingen were absorbed into the

Grand Duchy of Baden The Grand Duchy of Baden () was a German polity on the east bank of the Rhine. It originally existed as a sovereign state from 1806 to 1871 and later as part of the German Empire until 1918. The duchy's 12th-century origins were as a Margravia ...

and the castle became a residence of the Grand Dukes of Baden. In 1833 Schwetzingen was elevated to city status by Leopold, Grand Duke of Baden. The beginning of

industrialization Industrialisation (British English, UK) American and British English spelling differences, or industrialization (American English, US) is the period of social and economic change that transforms a human group from an agrarian society into an i ...

in Schwetzingen in the year 1850 made the city an important seat of cigar factories and canneries. Also, the cultivation of asparagus gained importance and has remained one of Schwetzingen's claims to fame.

Population development

These figures are estimates only, official census results (¹) or statistics of the resident's registration office. ¹ official census results

Politics

Local council

The local council of Schwetzingen has 26 members since the last elections in June 2009. Elections in May 2014:

Mayors

*1833 – 1838: Daniel Helmreich *1838 – 1851: Carl Welde *1851 – 1855: Josef Vetter *1855 – 1865: Johann Wilhelm Ihm *1865 – 1883: Heinrich Wittmann *1883 – 1898: Karl Mechling *1898 – 1904: Heinrich Häfner *1904 – 1910: Jean Wipfinger *1910 – 1914: Wilfried Hartmann *1914 – 1923: Jakob Reinhard *1914 – 1918: Georg Pitsch *1923 – 1929: Johannes Götz *1929 – 1930: Leopold Stratthaus *1930 – 1933: Dr. Arthur Trautmann *1933 – 1945: Arthur Stober *1945: Ernst Karl *1945 – 1948: Dr. Valentin Gaa *1948 – 1954: Franz Dusberger *1954 – 1961: Hans Kahrmann *1961 – 1962: Adolf Schmitt *1962 – 1981: Kurt Waibel *1981 – 1982: Walter Bährle *1982 – 1998: Gerhard Stratthaus *1999 – 2007: Bernd Kappenstein *2007 – 2008: Bernd Junker *since 2008: René Pöltl

Coat of arms

The coat of arms of Schwetzingen consists of a divided shield with a golden lion on the upper half on a black background and on the lower half there is a silver ring on blue background. The city flag is white and blue. The lion symbolizes the Palatine Electorate, of which Schwetzingen was a member until 1803. The ring was originally a wheel originating from the seal of an inhabitant who had contacts to the castle of Schwetzingen.

Twin towns

Schwetzingen is twinned with:

Economy and infrastructure

Transport

Schwetzingen lies relatively favourably between the two

autobahn The (; German , ) is the federal controlled-access highway system in Germany. The official term is (abbreviated ''BAB''), which translates as 'federal motorway'. The literal meaning of the word is 'Federal Auto(mobile) Track'. Much of t ...

s A 5 (with the junction Heidelberg/Schwetzingen) and A 6 (with the junctions Schwetzingen/Hockenheim and Mannheim/Schwetzingen). Schwetzingen station was opened in 1870 on the Rhine Railway, connecting Mannheim and Karlsruhe. Between 1910 and 1938 there was a tramline connecting Schwetzingen and Ketsch, between 1927 and 1973 there was also a tramline connecting Heidelberg with Schwetzingen.

Media

In Schwetzingen the daily newspaper is the "Schwetzinger Zeitung", which is a local newspaper published by the "Mannheimer Morgen".

Public institutions

In Schwetzingen there is a district court, a notary's office, an internal revenue service, a customs office and an employment office.

Education

The city maintains the Hebel- Gymnasium, the Karl-Friedrich-Schimper-

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 ...

, the Hilda

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 ...

, four elementary schools (Grundschule Hirschacker, Johann-Michael-Zeyher Grundschule, Nordstadt-Grundschule and Südstadt-Grundschule) as well as a special school, the Kurt-Waibel-Förderschule. Furthermore there are two vocational schools (Carl-Theodor- and Erhart-Schott-School) and the

Comenius John Amos Comenius (; ; ; ; Latinization (literature), Latinized: ''Ioannes Amos Comenius''; 28 March 1592 – 15 November 1670) was a Czech Philosophy, philosopher, Pedagogy, pedagogue and Theology, theologian who is considered the father of ...

-School for mentally handicapped. In the left wing of Schwetzingen's castle there is an advanced technical college for administration of justice, maintained by the state of

Main sights

Theatre

The Schlosstheater Schwetzingen, which was built as the ''Schlosstheatre'' ("castle theatre") in 1751–1752 by

Nicolas de Pigage Nicolas de Pigage (3 August 1723 – 30 July 1796) was a French builder. Pigage was born in Lunéville. His father was a stonemason. In 1743 he began his studies at the École Militaire, changing to the Académie Royale d'Architecture aft ...

, is located in the complex of Schloss Schwetzingen, which hosts, among other events, the annual opera and music festival, the ''

Schwetzingen Festival The Schwetzingen Festival (German: Schwetzinger Festspiele, now Schwetzinger SWR Festspiele) is an early summer festival of opera and other classical music presented each year from May to early June in Schwetzingen, Germany. In 1952, the broadca ...

''. The theatre fell into disuse by the late 19th century, but was renovated in 1937 and given its present name after its

Rococo Rococo, less commonly Roccoco ( , ; or ), also known as Late Baroque, is an exceptionally ornamental and dramatic style of architecture, art and decoration which combines asymmetry, scrolling curves, gilding, white and pastel colours, sculpte ...

style of architecture and used by the Festival since 1952. Between 1971 and 1974, it was modernized and re-opened with 450 seats for opera and 510 seats for drama. It is the oldest surviving theatre in Europe with boxless circles.

Buildings

Schwetzingen Castle is the city's most famous landmark. Its gardens are also notable, as there are elements of French Baroque and the

English garden The English landscape garden, also called English landscape park or simply the English garden (, , , , ), is a style of "landscape" garden which emerged in England in the early 18th century, and spread across Europe, replacing the more formal ...

style, with statuary by Peter Anton von Verschaffelt. Also worth seeing are the theatre, the orangery, the bath and various follies, including the temples of

Apollo Apollo is one of the Twelve Olympians, Olympian deities in Ancient Greek religion, ancient Greek and Ancient Roman religion, Roman religion and Greek mythology, Greek and Roman mythology. Apollo has been recognized as a god of archery, mu ...

, Mercury and

Minerva Minerva (; ; ) is the Roman goddess of wisdom, justice, law, victory, and the sponsor of arts, trade, and strategy. She is also a goddess of warfare, though with a focus on strategic warfare, rather than the violence of gods such as Mars. Be ...

, the Mosque (built 1778–1791) and the fountain of

. The city hall was built in 1821 and expanded in 1889, 1912 and 1919. 2010

There are four churches in Schwetzingen: *Catholic church St. Pankratius (built 1736-38, modified 1763-65) *Catholic church St. Maria (built 1958) *Catholic church St. Josef *Protestant church (built 1756, expanded 1884-88 and 1912-13)

Regular events

* Schwetzinger Festspiele (late April to early June) *Mozartfestival (September/October) *European Concours d'Elegance
the castle square party
* Spargelfest
Fiesta Mexicana
*Christmas fair

Scenic byways

Schwetzingen is located on three major tourist or theme routes: * The Baden Asparagus Road, leading from Schwetzingen to Lichtenau-Scherzheim. * The

Bertha Benz Memorial Route The Bertha Benz Memorial Route is a German tourist and theme route in Baden-Württemberg and member of the European Route of Industrial Heritage. It opened in 2008 and follows the tracks of the world's first long distance road trip by a vehi ...

, leading from

Pforzheim Pforzheim () is a List of cities and towns in Germany, city of over 125,000 inhabitants in the federal state of Baden-Württemberg, in the southwest of Germany. It is known for its jewelry and watch-making industry, and as such has gained the ...

and back via Schwetzingen. * The Castle Road, leading from Mannheim via Schwetzingen to

Prague Prague ( ; ) is the capital and List of cities and towns in the Czech Republic, largest city of the Czech Republic and the historical capital of Bohemia. Prague, located on the Vltava River, has a population of about 1.4 million, while its P ...

Notable people

(1723–1796), a French builder, helped build Schwetzingen Palace, died locally * Johann Peter Hebel (1760–1826), poet and theologian, eponym of the local Hebel-Gymnasium, died locally. *

Franz Danzi Franz Ignaz Danzi (15 June 1763 – 13 April 1826) was a German cellist, composer and conductor, the son of the Italian cellist Innocenz Danzi (1730–1798) and brother of the noted singer Franzeska Danzi. Danzi lived at a significant time i ...

(1763–1826), composer, conductor and cellist * Franz Cramer (1772–1848), an English violinist and conductor, born locally. *

Karl Drais Karl Freiherr von Drais (full name: Karl Friedrich Christian Ludwig Freiherr Drais von Sauerbronn; 29 April 1785 – 10 December 1851) was a noble German people, German forest official and significant inventor in the Biedermeier, Biedermeier pe ...

(1785–1851), inventor of the original bicycle, local teacher at a private educational institution * Karl Friedrich Schimper (1803–1867), naturalist, botanist, geologist and poet * Karl Theodor Hartweg (1812–1871), botanist, collected plants in Central America * Louis Lingg (1864–1887), trade unionist and anarchist * Rudolf Louis (1870–1914), a German music critic and conductor * Max Ilgner (1899–1966), chemical industrialist, died locally * Otto Abetz (1903–1958), ambassador of Nazi-Germany in Vichy France, convicted of crimes against humanity * , (born 1952), writer and crime writer * Gerrit Müller (born 1984), football player, played over 260 games * siblings Moritz Lampert (born 1992) & Karolin Lampert (born 1995), professional golfers

Aristocracy

* Countess Palatine Maria Franziska of Sulzbach (1724–1794), Countess Palatine of Zweibrücken-Birkenfeld by marriage * Countess Palatine Maria Anna of Zweibrücken-Birkenfeld (1753–1824), Countess Palatine of Birkenfeld-Gelnhausen and Duchess in Bavaria, by marriage *

Maximilian I Joseph of Bavaria Maximilian I Joseph (; 27 May 1756 – 13 October 1825) was Duke of Zweibrücken from 1795 to 1799, prince-elector of Bavaria (as Maximilian IV Joseph) from 1799 to 1806, then King of Bavaria (as Maximilian I Joseph) from 1806 to 1825. He was ...

(1756–1825),

King of Bavaria The King of Bavaria () was a title held by the hereditary Wittelsbach rulers of Bavaria in the state known as the Kingdom of Bavaria from 1805 until 1918, when the kingdom was abolished. It was the second time Bavaria was a kingdom, almost a t ...

, 1806-1825

References

External links

homepage of Schwetzingenhomepage of the Rhein-Neckar-districtMore information about the Schloss and its garden
{{Authority control Rhein-Neckar-Kreis