Bad Mergentheim
Encyclopedia
Bad Mergentheim is a town in the Main-Tauber
district in the German
state of Baden-Württemberg
.
, who early in the 13th century assigned the greater part of their estates in and around Mergentheim to the Teutonic order. In 1340 Mergentheim got Town privileges
. It rapidly increased in fame, and became the most important of the eleven commanderies of that society. On the secularization
of the Teutonic Order in Prussia
in 1525, Mergentheim became the residence of the grand master, and remained so until the final dissolution of the order in 1809 by Napoleon.
Bad Mergentheim's fortunes were reversed in 1826, when a shepherd by the name of Franz Gehring discovered rich mineral springs in the surrounding area, during the time when spas were expanding in Germany at a rapid pace. The water turned out to be the strongest sodium-sulfate
water in all of Europe
, especially effective for the treatment of digestive disorders.
In the 1970s several neighbouring villages were incorporated during the "Gemeindereform".
Althausen (600), Apfelbach (350), Dainbach (370), Edelfingen (1.400), Hachtel (360), Herbsthausen (200), Löffelstelzen (1,000), Markelsheim (2,000), Neunkirchen (1,000), Rengershausen (480), Rot (260), Stuppach (680), Wachbach (1,300)
The most interesting sight in Bad Mergentheim is the Deutschordenschloss, the medieval castle where the Teutonic Knights
once had their home base. It is a complex of buildings built over a period of eight hundred years. The first buildings of the castle were probably erected as early as the 12th century. The castle was expanded in the late 16th century under Grand Master Walter von Cronberg. Over the course of time a representative Renaissance
complex was built by connecting the individual buildings in the inner palace courtyard to a closed ring of buildings. In 1574, the main architect, Blasius Berwart, also constructed the spiral staircase between the west and north wing still famous today. Today the castle houses the Deutschordensmuseum (Museum
of the Teutonic Order).
The castle complex is dominated by the Schlosskirche (Castle Church), built in 1730 in Baroque
style. Its Rococo
interior features elaborate ceiling fresco
s by the court painter Nikolaus Gottfried Stuber, depicting The Defense of Faith, the Glorification of the Cross in Heaven
and on Earth and the Emperor Constantine's Vision of the Cross. Almost 200 years ago the Schlosskirche became a Protestant church.
with: Digne-les-Bains
, France
Sainte-Marie-du-Mont, Manche
, France
Fuefuki, Japan
Borgomanero
, Italy
Main-Tauber (district)
Main-Tauber-Kreis is a district in the north-east of Baden-Württemberg, Germany. Neighboring districts are Miltenberg, Main-Spessart, Würzburg, Neustadt -Bad Windsheim and Ansbach , and the districts of Schwäbisch Hall, Hohenlohe and Neckar-Odenwald.-History:The district was created in 1973 by...
district in the German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
state of Baden-Württemberg
Baden-Württemberg
Baden-Württemberg is one of the 16 states of Germany. Baden-Württemberg is in the southwestern part of the country to the east of the Upper Rhine, and is the third largest in both area and population of Germany's sixteen states, with an area of and 10.7 million inhabitants...
.
History
Mergentheim is mentioned in chronicles as early as 1058, as the residence of the family of the counts of HohenloheHohenlohe
Hohenlohe is the name of a German princely family and the name of their principality.At first rulers of a county, its two branches were raised to the rank of principalities of the Holy Roman Empire in 1744 and 1764 respectively; in 1806 they lost their independence and their lands formed part of...
, who early in the 13th century assigned the greater part of their estates in and around Mergentheim to the Teutonic order. In 1340 Mergentheim got Town privileges
Town privileges
Town privileges or city rights were important features of European towns during most of the second millennium.Judicially, a town was distinguished from the surrounding land by means of a charter from the ruling monarch that defined its privileges and laws. Common privileges were related to trading...
. It rapidly increased in fame, and became the most important of the eleven commanderies of that society. On the secularization
Secularization
Secularization is the transformation of a society from close identification with religious values and institutions toward non-religious values and secular institutions...
of the Teutonic Order in Prussia
Prussia
Prussia was a German kingdom and historic state originating out of the Duchy of Prussia and the Margraviate of Brandenburg. For centuries, the House of Hohenzollern ruled Prussia, successfully expanding its size by way of an unusually well-organized and effective army. Prussia shaped the history...
in 1525, Mergentheim became the residence of the grand master, and remained so until the final dissolution of the order in 1809 by Napoleon.
Bad Mergentheim's fortunes were reversed in 1826, when a shepherd by the name of Franz Gehring discovered rich mineral springs in the surrounding area, during the time when spas were expanding in Germany at a rapid pace. The water turned out to be the strongest sodium-sulfate
Sodium sulfate
Sodium sulfate is the sodium salt of sulfuric acid. When anhydrous, it is a white crystalline solid of formula Na2SO4 known as the mineral thenardite; the decahydrate Na2SO4·10H2O has been known as Glauber's salt or, historically, sal mirabilis since the 17th century. Another solid is the...
water in all of Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
, especially effective for the treatment of digestive disorders.
In the 1970s several neighbouring villages were incorporated during the "Gemeindereform".
| Year | Population |
|---|---|
| 1660 | 1,064 |
| 1855 | 2,917 |
| 1900 | 4,372 |
| 1933 | 6,191 |
| 1945 | 9,300 |
| 1950 | 10,184 |
| 1961 | 11,608 |
| 1975 | 19,895 |
| 1990 | 21,567 |
| 2005 | 22,486 |
Villages
(inhabitants)Althausen (600), Apfelbach (350), Dainbach (370), Edelfingen (1.400), Hachtel (360), Herbsthausen (200), Löffelstelzen (1,000), Markelsheim (2,000), Neunkirchen (1,000), Rengershausen (480), Rot (260), Stuppach (680), Wachbach (1,300)
Main sights
Teutonic Knights
The Order of Brothers of the German House of Saint Mary in Jerusalem , commonly the Teutonic Order , is a German medieval military order, in modern times a purely religious Catholic order...
once had their home base. It is a complex of buildings built over a period of eight hundred years. The first buildings of the castle were probably erected as early as the 12th century. The castle was expanded in the late 16th century under Grand Master Walter von Cronberg. Over the course of time a representative Renaissance
Renaissance
The Renaissance was a cultural movement that spanned roughly the 14th to the 17th century, beginning in Italy in the Late Middle Ages and later spreading to the rest of Europe. The term is also used more loosely to refer to the historical era, but since the changes of the Renaissance were not...
complex was built by connecting the individual buildings in the inner palace courtyard to a closed ring of buildings. In 1574, the main architect, Blasius Berwart, also constructed the spiral staircase between the west and north wing still famous today. Today the castle houses the Deutschordensmuseum (Museum
Museum
A museum is an institution that cares for a collection of artifacts and other objects of scientific, artistic, cultural, or historical importance and makes them available for public viewing through exhibits that may be permanent or temporary. Most large museums are located in major cities...
of the Teutonic Order).
The castle complex is dominated by the Schlosskirche (Castle Church), built in 1730 in Baroque
Baroque
The Baroque is a period and the style that used exaggerated motion and clear, easily interpreted detail to produce drama, tension, exuberance, and grandeur in sculpture, painting, literature, dance, and music...
style. Its Rococo
Rococo
Rococo , also referred to as "Late Baroque", is an 18th-century style which developed as Baroque artists gave up their symmetry and became increasingly ornate, florid, and playful...
interior features elaborate ceiling fresco
Fresco
Fresco is any of several related mural painting types, executed on plaster on walls or ceilings. The word fresco comes from the Greek word affresca which derives from the Latin word for "fresh". Frescoes first developed in the ancient world and continued to be popular through the Renaissance...
s by the court painter Nikolaus Gottfried Stuber, depicting The Defense of Faith, the Glorification of the Cross in Heaven
Heaven
Heaven, the Heavens or Seven Heavens, is a common religious cosmological or metaphysical term for the physical or transcendent place from which heavenly beings originate, are enthroned or inhabit...
and on Earth and the Emperor Constantine's Vision of the Cross. Almost 200 years ago the Schlosskirche became a Protestant church.
Twin towns — sister cities
Bad Mergentheim is twinnedTown twinning
Twin towns and sister cities are two of many terms used to describe the cooperative agreements between towns, cities, and even counties in geographically and politically distinct areas to promote cultural and commercial ties.- Terminology :...
with: Digne-les-Bains
Digne-les-Bains
Digne-les-Bains or simply and historically Digne is a commune of France, capital of the Alpes-de-Haute-Provence department.-History:...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
Sainte-Marie-du-Mont, Manche
Sainte-Marie-du-Mont, Manche
Sainte-Marie-du-Mont is a commune in the Manche department in Normandy in north-western France.-World War II:It is best known for being the scene of military engagement between the American 101st Airborne Division and the German Wehrmacht on D-Day, June 6, 1944.-Heraldry:-References:*...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
Fuefuki, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
Borgomanero
Borgomanero
Borgomanero is a comune in the Province of Novara in the Italian region Piedmont, located about 90 km northeast of Turin and about 30 km northwest of Novara....
, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
Notable residents and natives
- Heinrich von HohenloheHeinrich von HohenloheHeinrich von Hohenlohe was the seventh Grand Master of the Teutonic Order, serving between 1244 and 1249. He was the son of one of the richest and most powerful feudal lords in Württemberg and had four brothers and one sister....
, buried in the church in Mergentheim - Ottmar MergenthalerOttmar MergenthalerOttmar Mergenthaler was an inventor who has been called a second Gutenberg because of his invention of the Linotype machine, the first device that could easily and quickly set complete lines of type for use in printing presses...
, (1854–1899), inventor of the LinotypeLinotype machineThe Linotype typesetting machine is a "line casting" machine used in printing. The name of the machine comes from the fact that it produces an entire line of metal type at once, hence a line-o'-type, a significant improvement over manual typesetting.... - Felix FechenbachFelix FechenbachFelix Fechenbach was a German-Jewish journalist, poet and political activist, who was murdered by the Nazis....
, (1894–1933) German journalist, poet and political activist, who was murdered by the Nazis - Barbara StammBarbara StammBarbara Stamm is a German politician of the CSU. She joined the CSU in 1969, and is currently vice-chair of the CSU and president of the Bavarian parliament....
, German politician and vice-chairwoman of the CSU - Fritz KuhnFritz KuhnFritz Kuhn is a German politician. He was co-chairman of Alliance '90/The Greens, the German Green party, from June 2000 to December 2002.- Early years :...
, German politician and former co-chairman of the German Green Party - Martin LanigMartin LanigMartin Lanig is a German football midfielder playing for 1. FC Köln in the Bundesliga.In July 2008 he transferred from Greuther Fürth to VfB Stuttgart. Lanig scored his first goal for VfB Stuttgart on 5 October 2008 against Werder Bremen.In July 2010, he moved to 1...
, German footballer - Eduard MörikeEduard MörikeEduard Friedrich Mörike was a German Romantic poet.-Biography:Mörike was born in Ludwigsburg. His father was Karl Friedrich Mörike , a district medical councilor; his mother was Charlotte Bayer...
, German poet, lived in Bad Mergentheim from 1844-1851. - Ludwig van BeethovenLudwig van BeethovenLudwig van Beethoven was a German composer and pianist. A crucial figure in the transition between the Classical and Romantic eras in Western art music, he remains one of the most famous and influential composers of all time.Born in Bonn, then the capital of the Electorate of Cologne and part of...
, was viola player in the court's musical establishment of the HochmeisterHochmeisterThe grand master is the holder of the supreme office of the Teutonic Order. It is equivalent to the grand master of other military orders and the superior general in non-military Roman Catholic religious orders...
(Grand Master) of the Teutonic KnightsTeutonic KnightsThe Order of Brothers of the German House of Saint Mary in Jerusalem , commonly the Teutonic Order , is a German medieval military order, in modern times a purely religious Catholic order...
Maximilian Franz of Austria in 1791. - Edvard HjeltEdvard HjeltEdvard Hjelt was a Finnish chemist, politician and a member of the Senate of Finland. Hjelt studied chemistry in Finland and in Germany and became rector of the University of Helsinki in 1899. He opposed the increasing influence of Russia in the Grand Duchy of Finland and started his career in...
, Finnish chemist and politician, died July 2, 1921 in Bad Mergentheim
See also
- Wildpark Bad MergentheimWildpark Bad MergentheimThe wild game park Wildpark Bad Mergentheim was founded in 1973. The park is located on a hill in the forest about 1.5 kilometers southeast of Bad Mergentheim....