HEIDELBERG
History
History I
Sightseeing I
Practical I Hotels in Heidelberg
(Information
courtesy of
Historic
Highlights of Germany - an excellent tourist guide for the
Heidelberg area)
Heidelberg is first mentioned in a
document of Schönau Monastery dated 1196. But its history goes back to
the year 40 AD when Roman encampments here were conquered by the
Allemanians. Majestically perched high above the narrow lanes and
picturesque roofs of the Old Town are the ruins of Heidelberg Castle –
the magnificent red sandstone structure that crowns the city. For five
centuries it was the glamorous residence of the Electors Palatine.
In 1386 Count Ruprecht I founded Heidelberg University. Germany's oldest
institution of higher learning. It played a leading role during the age
of Humanism and the Reformation. Luther was received here with great
honors and defended his 95 theses. Heidelberg became the favorite of an
illustrious group of poets including Arnim, Brentano, Hölderlin,
Eichendorff and Goethe, to name but a few. No city was so beloved by the
Romantic poets as Heidelberg.
Due not least of all to her enchanting location on the Neckar River
amidst mountains, woods and sloping vineyards. Down through the ages
this urbane and vital city has been a magnet for many artists – as it is
today. Its opera, drama and ballet performances, for instance, are
highly acclaimed throughout the entire German theater world. Especially
worth seeing are the Schlossfestspiele, summer festivals of concerts and
music theater. Behind her romantic settings, the facades of simple town
houses and splendid palaces, bustles a forward-looking city with
world-class scientific and economic institutions.
