Rottweil facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Rottweil
Town
A bird's-eye view of the whole city
Coat of arms
Location of Rottweil within Rottweil district
Rottweil Location in Germany Show map of Germany Rottweil Location in Baden-Württemberg Show map of Baden-Württemberg
Country	Germany
State	Baden-Württemberg
District	Rottweil
Area
• Total	71.76 km2 (27.71 sq mi)
Highest elevation	609 m (1,998 ft)
Lowest elevation	557 m (1,827 ft)
Population  (2022-12-31)
• Total	25,513
• Density	355.53/km2 (920.82/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+01:00 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+02:00 (CEST)
Postal codes	78628, 78652 (Unterrotenstein)
Dialling codes	0741, 07427 (Neukirch)
Vehicle registration	RW
Website	www.rottweil.de

Aerial view

Rottweil is a historic town in southwest Germany. It is located in the state of Baden-Württemberg. For almost 600 years, Rottweil was a special "free imperial city." This meant it was independent and ruled itself.

Over 25,000 people live in Rottweil today (2022). It is located between the beautiful Black Forest and the Swabian Alps. The town is famous for its old medieval center. It is also known for its traditional carnival, called "Fasnet" by locals. Rottweil is the oldest town in Baden-Württemberg. Its look has not changed much since the 1500s.

The town also gave its name to the Rottweiler dog breed.

History of Rottweil

Tourist sign reading „Älteste Stadt Baden-Württembergs“ ("Oldest town of Baden-Württemberg")

Rottweil has a very long history. People lived here as far back as 2000 BC. The Romans founded the town in AD 73. They called it Arae Flaviae. It became a municipium, which was a Roman town with special rights. Roman baths and a beautiful Orpheus mosaic from around AD 180 have been found here.

Before 771, the town became a court for dukes and kings. In 1268, it became a free imperial city. This meant it was directly under the rule of the Holy Roman Emperor.

Rottweil and the Swiss Confederacy

In 1463, Rottweil joined the Swiss Confederacy. This was a group of independent states in Switzerland. In 1476, people from Rottweil fought alongside the Swiss. They helped in the Battle of Morat against Charles the Bold.

In 1512, Pope Julius II gave the city a special "Julius banner." This was for their help in a war between 1508 and 1510. In 1519, Rottweil left its old alliance with the Swiss. But they quickly joined a new, lasting one called the "Eternal Covenant." This made Rottweil an important center for the Swiss Confederation.

However, relations between Rottweil and the Swiss cooled down. This happened during the Protestant Reformation. Still, when Rottweil faced wars, it often asked the Swiss for help.

A Difficult Time in History

From 1546 to 1661, Rottweil experienced a sad period. During this time, 266 people were accused of being witches or wizards. They were executed in the city. On April 15, 2015, the city council officially apologized for these events. They also gave these people a pardon, which means their names were cleared.

Rottweil lost its special status as a free city in 1803. This happened when Napoleon conquered the region. It also lost its alliance with the Swiss Confederacy.

Leaders of Rottweil

Since the 1800s, Rottweil has had many important leaders. They are called "Lord Mayors" or "Schultheiß" (an older title). Here are some of them:

• 1820–1833: Max Joseph von Khuon
• 1833–1845: Max Teufel
• 1845–1848: Karl Dinkelmann
• 1848–1851: Kaspar Rapp
• 1852–1887: Johann Baptist Marx
• 1887–1923: Edwin Glückher
• 1924–1943: Josef Abrell
• 1943–1944: Otto Mann
• 1944–1945: Paul Fritz
• 1945–1946: Franz Mederle
• 1946–1965: Arnulf Gutknecht
• 1965–1985: Ulrich Regelmann
• 1985–2001: Michael Arnold
• 2001–2009: Thomas Engeser
• 2009–2022: Ralf Broß
• 2022–present: Christian Ruf

Weather in Rottweil

Economy and Jobs

During the Middle Ages, Rottweil was a very busy and rich city. It had a lot of economic and cultural power. In 1868, a railway line connected Rottweil to Stuttgart. This helped the local economy grow even more.

Today, most companies in Rottweil are small or medium-sized businesses. It is a good place for trading and shopping. The city is known for being innovative. It has good schools and transport links. Many industrial companies are here. More and more people work in jobs that need special knowledge and skills.

Rottweil has a high rate of people with university degrees, at 7.9%. This is one of the highest in the region.

Local News and Media

You can find out about local events in Rottweil from several sources:

• The daily newspaper Schwarzwälder Bote
• The Stadtanzeiger
• The weekly print edition Neue Rottweiler Zeitung [de]
• The TV station Regio TV Bodensee [de]
• The local radio station antenne 1 Neckarburg Rock & Pop [de], which is based in the area.

Getting Around Rottweil

Roads

You can reach Rottweil by car using the Bundesautobahn 81. This highway connects Stuttgart and Singen. Just take the Rottweil exit. The city is also on other main roads. These include the Bundesstraße 27 (between Schaffhausen and Stuttgart). The Bundesstraße 14 runs from Stockach on Lake Constance to Rottweil. It then goes on to Stuttgart. The Bundesstraße 462 goes from Rottweil through the Black Forest. It leads to Freudenstadt and Rastatt.

Biking

Rottweil is part of the Neckartal-Radweg [de]. This is a bike path along the Neckar River. You can bike from Rottweil to places like Horb, Tübingen, Stuttgart, Heilbronn, Heidelberg, and Mannheim.

Air Travel

Rottweil-Zepfenhan airfield

About 12 kilometers (7.5 miles) away is the Flugplatz Rottweil-Zepfenhan [de]. This is a small airfield for small planes. For bigger flights, the closest airports are Stuttgart Airport and Zurich Airport.

Education in Rottweil

Rottweil has many schools for different age groups:

• High Schools (Gymnasien): Albertus-Magnus-Gymnasium, Droste-Hülshoff-Gymnasium, Leibniz-Gymnasium
• Middle School (Realschule): One Realschule
• Special Needs School (Förderschule): Achert-Schule
• Elementary Schools (Grundschulen): Eichendorff-Grundschule, Grundschule Neufra, Grundschule Neukirch
• Combined Elementary and Middle Schools (Hauptschulen): GHS Göllsdorf, Johanniter-Grund- und Hauptschule, Konrad-Witz-Grund- und Hauptschule, Römer-Grund- und Hauptschule

Amazing Places to See

Main Street

Rottweil has many interesting sights, especially its old buildings:

• Minster of the Holy Cross: This church was built starting around 1270. It has both Romanesque and Gothic styles. Inside, you can see a crucifix by Veit Stoss and beautiful Gothic sculptures.
• Kapellenkirche: Built between 1330 and 1340, this Gothic church has a tall tower. It also has three doorways decorated with statues.
• Church of St. Lawrence: This church from the 1500s is in the late Gothic style. It holds about 200 artworks by Swabian artists. You can also see Gothic altarpieces from the 1300s and 1400s.
• Town Museum: The town's museum has a famous Roman mosaic. It shows the story of Orpheus.
• Town Hall: The town hall is a beautiful building from 1521, built in the late Gothic style.
• St. Pelagius Church: This Romanesque church dates back to the 1100s. When they dug here, they found Roman baths underneath!
• Dominican Museum of Rottweil: This museum is a local branch of the Landesmuseum Württemberg.
• Rottweil Test Tower: The company ThyssenKrupp built this huge tower. It is 807 feet (246 meters) tall and cost $45 million. It is a research center to test new elevator cars and technologies. When it was finished in 2017, it was the tallest elevator test tower in the world. It has 12 elevator shafts inside!

Sister Cities

Rottweil has "twin towns" or "sister cities" in other countries. This means they have a special friendship and cultural exchange:

• L'Aquila, Italy
• Brugg, Switzerland
• Hyères, France
• Imst, Austria

Famous People from Rottweil

Franz Xavier Wernz, 1910

Many notable people have come from Rottweil:

• Konrad Witz (1400s), a painter.
• Adam of Rottweil (1400s), a scholar and printer.
• Johann Georg Herbst (1787–1836), an expert in Eastern languages.
• Franz Xavier Wernz (1842–1914), a leader of the Society of Jesus.
• Erwin Teufel (born 1939), a politician who was a former minister president of Baden-Württemberg.
• Rüdiger Safranski (born 1945), a philosopher and writer.
• Matthias Hölle (born 1951), an opera singer.
• Anne Haigis (born 1955), a musician and songwriter.
• Wolfgang Stryi (1957–2005), a jazz musician.
• Andreas Schwab (born 1973), a politician and member of the European Parliament.
• Johannes Erath (born 1975), an opera director.
• Heike Heubach (born 1979), a politician who is deaf.

Sports Stars

• Klaus-Dieter Sieloff (1942–2011), a footballer who played for West Germany.
• Marcus Trick (born 1977) & Armon Trick (born 1978), brothers who were international rugby players.
• Simone Hauswald (born 1979), a former biathlete and Olympic medalist.
• Markus Fuchs (born 1980), a footballer.
• Christoph Burkard (born 1983), a Paralympic swimmer and medalist.
• Maximiliane Rall (born 1993), a female footballer who played for Germany.
• Joshua Kimmich (born 1995), a famous footballer who plays for Germany.

Fun Facts

• The Rottweiler dog breed is named after this town! These dogs used to help butchers in the region.
• "Das Mädchen aus Rottweil" (The Girl from Rottweil) is a song by the German band Die Toten Hosen.

Gallery

• 
• 

  Depiction of St. Veronica's sudarium over the portal of the Minster of the Holy Cross

• 

  A statue for Rottweiler dogs in Rottweil

• 

  Rottweiler "Fasnet"

• 

  Rottweil Test Tower

• 

  Rottweil station with ThyssenKrupp Test Tower in the background

See also

In Spanish: Rottweil para niños