Walt Disney and his creatives scanned the world before most Americans had had the chance to travel far and wide. Through retellings of Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, Pinocchio and more, they imprinted fairy-tale settings on the formative minds of many of us who grew up in the latter half of the 20th century.
But real, and really wonderful, places provided the settings for the animated stories. In the 1950s, Disney visited La Cité de Carcassonne (the famous medieval fortified city only a few kilometers from our home); the report is that his experiences there inspired Sleeping Beauty’s castle. Or was it Neuschwanstein Castle in the Bavarian Alps? (We’ll visit Neuschwanstein in an upcoming blog post.) Despite Pinocchio’s village being Italian, Rothenburg ob der Tauber in Bavaria reportedly served as its inspiration.
Once you walk a bit among Rothenburg’s colorful half-timbered buildings, you’ll agree with Disney’s choice.
We arrived on an autumn afternoon that was the first clear day we’d had in quite a while. So our initial outing was to climb the 220 steps in the Röderturm, one of the city-wall towers. Rothenburg contains 46 towers! The payoff for the climb was lovely views over the steep roofs of the town.
That pair of towers is St. Jacob’s Church from the fifteenth century.
We strolled along the top of the city walls. With beginnings in 1142, these walls of stone protected the young trading center here and a royal castle. By 1400, when Berlin and Munich were just wide spots in the road, Rothenburg was Germany’s second-largest city, with a whopping population of 6,000. ※
By the way, some of what we saw from atop the city walls has been reconstructed since World War II. An American air raid in the last weeks of the Second World War destroyed about 45 percent of city in the walls. ※
Our hotel for a few nights was the Romantik Hotel Markusturm, right there in the middle of things, just to the right of Markus Tower. We mention this personal bit because the stay there was all that a local hotel should be. Our hostess is a member of the fourth generation of the family that runs the hotel. The tower and parts of the hotel date back to the 13th century. At that time, the tower was part of the first city ring wall, and a small tollhouse at its base provided shelter for travelers. This hotel embodies the experience of Rothenburg: heritage over centuries, picturesque moments everywhere, reconstructed where needed after World War II, and welcoming of visitors like us.
Let’s take a walk around town.
Plonlein. This is the Instagram view that has become the emblem for the town. A narrow half-timbered house with a small fountain in front of it, framed by the Kobolzeller Tor and the higher Siebersturm, lovingly renovated town houses. The word Plönlein comes from the Latin word “planum”, which means “flat place”.
Ratstrinkstube. The councilors once met here for a drink after town business meetings. The city clock at the front dates from 1683, the sundial from 1768.
Town hall with town hall tower. The western part has been preserved to this day; the eastern part fell victim to a fire in 1501. The arcade building in the Baroque style was built in 1681. The historical dungeon is located in the atrium.
Gerlachschmiede. The building is a loving replica; it was completely destroyed in an air raid in 1945.
And lots of other little streets and squares:
Most shops and businesses announce themselves with unique artisanal signs. We’ve found these kinds of signs throughout our travels in this part of Europe (such as in Lucerne and Strasbourg), and they always grab our attention — that is their purpose, after all. Their heritage goes back to the times of guilds, a time when most people could not read; they could, however, recognize the symbols of the businesses. While the exact origin of these signs is unknown, many think they originated in the Alps region of Germany. In medieval times:
The wrought-iron signs were commissioned by local tradesmen who were members of a particular guild, such as bakers, shoemakers or tailors. Guilds are associations of artisans or merchants who control the practice of their craft. In medieval cities, craftsmen tended to form associations based on their individual trade or skill. In the Middle Ages, all craftsmen were members of guilds. The guild’s senior craftsmen controlled the working hours and conditions of work of their members. They also made sure work was of proper quality by setting standards and using apprenticeships to teach younger workers the skills and techniques they would need to succeed in their chosen trade. (source)
Christmas is big business in Rothenburg. There’s a famous and picturesque Christmas market each year, the Reiterlesmarkt. But even in the off seasons, there are quite a few stores the specialize on Christmas ornaments and objects.
For David, in December, it always takes him a few weeks to let that Christmas spirit in. Christmas commerce and decorations wear him down like a brook can carve a chasm. In Rothenburg, after first three days, he started longing for sparkly Christmas trees. Sneaky!
Glocke Gasthaus, Rothenburg ob der Tauber
October 2024