Ladenburg is a town in the district of Rhein-Neckar-Kreis

Rhein-Neckar-Kreis

Rhein-Neckar-Kreis is a district in the northwest of Baden-Württemberg, Germany. Neighboring districts are Bergstraße, Odenwaldkreis, Neckar-Odenwald, Heilbronn, Karlsruhe, district-free Speyer, the Rhein-Pfalz-Kreis, and district-free Mannheim and Heidelberg.-History:The district was created in...

, in 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...

, Germany

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...

. It is situated on the right bank of the 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...

, 10 km east of Mannheim

Mannheim

Mannheim is a city in southwestern Germany. With about 315,000 inhabitants, Mannheim is the second-largest city in the Bundesland of Baden-Württemberg, following the capital city of Stuttgart....

, and 10 km northwest 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...

.

It has an old town from the Late Middle Ages. Its history dates back to Celtic and Roman ages.

Ladenburg is located on Bertha Benz Memorial Route

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...

.

Notable people

• The Bavarian war ministers Franz Xaver
  Franz Xaver von Hertling
  Franz Xaver Joseph Ignaz Freiherr von Hertling was a Bavarian Lieutenant General and War Minister from December 12, 1836 until November 11, 1838.- Biography :...
  
   and Friedrich von Hertling
  Friedrich von Hertling
  Johann Friedrich Maximilian Joseph Freiherr von Hertling was a Bavarian Lieutenant General and Acting War Minister from January 28 until June 9, 1839. He was the brother of Franz Xaver von Hertling.- Biography :...
  
   were born in Ladenburg.

• The man who is regarded as the inventor of the automobile, Karl Benz
  Karl Benz
  Karl Friedrich Benz, was a German engine designer and car engineer, generally regarded as the inventor of the gasoline-powered car, and together with Bertha Benz pioneering founder of the automobile manufacturer Mercedes-Benz...
  
  , spent the last days of his life in Ladenburg between 1906 and his death in 1929.

History

The first time this village was populated was between 3000 and 200 BC. It then consisted of a Celtic settlement Lopodunum (="Seatower"). In the year 40 the Romans populated the town as a farmer/military outpost and kept its Celtic name. The local territory formed the civilian district of Civitas Ulpia Sueborum Nicretum ("Neckarsuebi"), of which Lopodunum was the chief town. In 74 AD the Romans founded the town Auxiliarkastelle which included a supply-keeping town, which was the center of the future town. The garrison included a cavalry of the Canaefaten.

External links

• Automuseum Dr. Carl Benz
• Bertha Benz Memorial Route