The Königstuhl (ˈkøːnɪçˌʃtuːl), translated "Kings seat", is a 567 metre high hill in the Odenwald

Odenwald

The Odenwald is a low mountain range in Hesse, Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg in Germany.- Location :The Odenwald lies between the Upper Rhine Rift Valley with the Bergstraße and the Hessisches Ried in the west, the Main and the Bauland in the east, the Hanau-Seligenstadt Basin – a subbasin of...

 Mountains and in the city of Heidelberg

Heidelberg

-Early history:Between 600,000 and 200,000 years ago, "Heidelberg Man" died at nearby Mauer. His jaw bone was discovered in 1907; with scientific dating, his remains were determined to be the earliest evidence of human life in Europe. In the 5th century BC, a Celtic fortress of refuge and place of...

, 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...

. The Königstuhl summit allows visitors a spectacular view of the city of Heidelberg and the River Neckar

Neckar

The Neckar is a long river, mainly flowing through the southwestern state of Baden-Württemberg, but also a short section through Hesse, in Germany. The Neckar is a major right tributary of the River Rhine...

 as well as the Rhine Valley. On days with good conditions the view extends to the Pfaelzerwald (Palatinate Forest), which is roughly 40–50 km away.

The hill is linked to Kornmarkt, in Heidelberg's Altstadt, by the Heidelberger Bergbahn

Heidelberger Bergbahn

The Heidelberger Bergbahn, or Heidelberg Mountain Railway, is a two section funicular railway in the city of Heidelberg, Germany. The first section runs from a lower station at Kornmakt in Heidelberg's Altstadt, via an intermediate station at Heidelberg Castle, to an upper station at Molkenkur...

, a two section historic funicular

Funicular

A funicular, also known as an inclined plane or cliff railway, is a cable railway in which a cable attached to a pair of tram-like vehicles on rails moves them up and down a steep slope; the ascending and descending vehicles counterbalance each other.-Operation:The basic principle of funicular...

 railway that stops at the Heidelberg Castle

Heidelberg Castle

The Heidelberg Castle is a famous ruin in Germany and landmark of Heidelberg. The castle ruins are among the most important Renaissance structures north of the Alps....

, located on the lower slopes of the Königstuhl, and the Molkenkur restaurant/hotel and the ultimate stop at the mountain top which host a restaurant, an entertainment park for kids and various walking paths.

The Max Planck Institute for Astronomy

Max Planck Institute for Astronomy

The Max-Planck-Institut für Astronomie is a research institute of the Max Planck Society. It is located in Heidelberg, Baden-Württemberg, Germany near the top of the Koenigstuhl, adjacent to the historic Landessternwarte Heidelberg-Königstuhl astronomical observatory.The institute was founded in...

 is located near the summit of the Königstuhl, as is the historic Landessternwarte Heidelberg-Königstuhl

Landessternwarte Heidelberg-Königstuhl

The Heidelberg-Königstuhl State Observatory is an historic astronomical observatory located near the summit of the Königstuhl hill in the city of Heidelberg in Germany...

 astronomical observatory, established in 1898. Between 1912 and 1957, Karl Wilhelm Reinmuth

Karl Wilhelm Reinmuth

Karl Wilhelm Reinmuth was a German astronomer.He was a prolific discoverer of asteroids , beginning with 796 Sarita in 1914, working at the Landessternwarte Heidelberg-Königstuhl astronomical observatory on the Königstuhl hill above Heidelberg, Germany from 1912 to 1957.His most notable...

 discovered almost 400 asteroid

Asteroid

Asteroids are a class of small Solar System bodies in orbit around the Sun. They have also been called planetoids, especially the larger ones...

s whilst working from this observatory.

Several telecommunications facilities are located on the Königstuhl, including the Fernsehturm Heidelberg

Fernsehturm Heidelberg

The Fernsehturm Heidelberg is a transmission tower for FM and DVB-T on the Königstuhl hill of Heidelberg at . It was the property of the City of Heidelberg and sold to the SWR...

 (Digital TV (DVB-T), Radio and Microwave), the Telecom Telecommunication Tower Heidelberg

Telecom Telecommunication Tower Heidelberg

Telecom Telecommunication Tower Heidelberg is a 102 meter tall telecommunication tower built of reinforced concrete in the late 1950s at on the mountain Königsstuhl near Heidelberg, Germany. Close to it, there is Fernsehturm Heidelberg and Telecommunication Tower of US-Forces Heidelberg...

 (Microwave and FM) and the now inactive Telecommunication Tower of US-Forces Heidelberg

Telecommunication Tower of US-Forces Heidelberg

Telecommunication Tower of US-Forces Heidelberg is an 80 metre tall telecommunication tower of the US-Army in Europe on the mountain Königsstuhl which is part of the City of Heidelberg at . The Telecommunication Tower of US-Army in Europe is one of the few military communication towers built of...

(Microwave).