Zwingenberg (Baden)

coat of arms	Germany map
	Coordinates: 49 ° 25 '  N , 9 ° 3'  E
Basic data
State :	Baden-Württemberg
Administrative region :	Karlsruhe
County :	Neckar-Odenwald district
Height :	148 m above sea level NHN
Area :	4.7 km 2
Residents:	694 (December 31, 2018)
Population density :	148 inhabitants per km 2
Postal code :	69439
Area code :	06263
License plate :	MOS, BCH
Community key :	08 2 25 113
Address of the municipal administration:	Alte Dorfstrasse 8 69439 Zwingenberg
Website :	www.zwingenberg-neckar.de
Mayor :	Norman Link ( CDU )
Location of the municipality of Zwingenberg in the Neckar-Odenwald district

View from Schloss Zwingenberg upstream over the Neckar bend with the village of Zwingenberg also on the east bank

Village party in Zwingenberg

Zwingenberg is the Neckar-Odenwald belonging municipality in Baden-Württemberg . It belongs to the European metropolitan region of Rhine-Neckar (until May 20, 2003 the Lower Neckar region and until December 31, 2005 the Rhine-Neckar-Odenwald region ). She became known nationwide through the open-air theater in Zwingenberg Castle.

geography

location

Zwingenberg is located in the Neckar Valley about 40 km east of Heidelberg in the Neckartal-Odenwald Nature Park at an altitude of 130 to 420 meters.

Community structure

The community of Zwingenberg includes the village of Zwingenberg, the castle " Schloss Zwingenberg " and the homestead Zwingenberger Hof.

The village is located in a small right widening of the Neckar valley, the castle on the same side about a kilometer down the valley on the mouth of the Wolfschlucht gorge , the farm a little further down the valley on the opposite bank.

history

The history of Zwingenberg is closely linked to the history of the castle of the same name, today's Zwingenburg Castle . Remains of Fürstenstein Castle can still be found above the Zwingenburg . The place Zwingenburg probably originated in the 14th century from a small fishing settlement at the foot of the first castle, which was built in the 13th century. The earliest written mention of the name Zwingenberg dates from 1326.

The castle and town of Zwingenberg changed hands more frequently in the late Middle Ages and in the modern era, and the town only received the status of an independent municipality at the beginning of the 19th century. In 1939 230 inhabitants were counted, at the end of 1945 there were 281.

politics

Municipal council

The municipality council has eight honorary members who are elected for five years. In addition, the mayor acts as the municipal council chairman with voting rights.

The 2019 local elections led to the following result (in brackets: difference to 2014):

Municipal Council 2019
Party / list	Share of votes	Seats
Civic community	60.9% (+11.8)	5 (+1)
SPD	22.1% (−9.6)	2 (± 0)
CDU	17.0% (−2.2)	1 (−1)
Turnout: 74.5% (+2.4)

mayor

From 1978 to 2013 Peter Kirchesch was mayor of Zwingenberg. On June 9, 2013, Norman Link was elected the new honorary mayor with 336 votes (97.7%). Link is in personal union at the same time mayor of the neighboring village Neckargerach .

coat of arms

Blazon : In blue three (2: 1) silver (white) goosenecks with golden (yellow) beaks.
The three goosenecks were taken from the coat of arms of the nobles von Zwingenberg .

Economy and Infrastructure

Most of today's residents live in the two new development areas above and below the railway line in the south of Zwingenberg. Even today, only a few of the workers find work in local companies; most of them have to work as commuters, e.g. Sometimes cover long distances every day.

traffic

Zwingenberg is located on the Neckar Valley Railway ( Heidelberg - Bad Friedrichshall ), which has been served every half hour by the RheinNeckar S-Bahn since 2003 .

Bike trails

The following cycle paths lead along the Neckar and through the urban area :

• The Neckar Valley Cycle Path runs for 410 kilometers from the origin of the Neckar in Villingen-Schwenningen along the Neckar to its confluence with the Rhine near Mannheim .
• The 225 km long 3-country cycle route leads as a circular route through the triangle of Hesse, Baden-Württemberg and Bavaria. The route explores the Odenwald along the Mümling, Neckar and Main rivers.
• The Castle Road Cycle Path runs for approx. 1,200 kilometers parallel to the Castle Road tourist route between Mannheim and Prague .
• The Odenwald-Madonnen-Radweg leads over 135-160 kilometers through the Odenwald, the Neckar valley and the Rhine plain.

Culture and sights

theatre

A special attraction are the annual open-air plays in Zwingenberg Castle , the centerpiece of which is the romantic opera “ Der Freischütz ” by Carl Maria von Weber . In addition, constantly changing pieces and operas that are often rarely performed are performed.

Buildings and sights

Town hall in Zwingenberg (front left, photo in front of the bridge)

• The well-preserved castle - today Zwingenberg Castle - was built in the 13th century, razed in 1364 and later rebuilt. Above Zwingenberg Castle (currently still inhabited), the foundation walls of the “ Fürstenstein ” castle ruins can be found in the forest , which were built between 1338 and 1340 by the then bishop of Mainz , Heinrich III. von Virneburg , was built - this because of disputes with the nobles von Zwingenberg . Fürstenstein presumably also had a blind position . After a later arbitration, Fürstenstein Castle had to be razed in 1344 and was largely forgotten. The castle was a few hundred meters northwest of the current castle and about a hundred meters higher.
• Half-timbered houses with winding streets and steep stairs of the old village.
• The 215-meter-long, single-lane Neckar Bridge with footpath and bike path is a double-hip , steel cable-stayed bridge that was opened in 2011 and replaces a ferry . In 2010, the 150-ton central bridge part was cable-stayed bridge of Lindach of floated and strand jacks in the incremental launching method created, shore-side parts fitted. The two Y-shaped pylons are on the bank.
• The Wolf Gorge , which is said to have inspired Carl Maria von Weber for his opera Der Freischütz , is a wild and romantic gorge cut into the red sandstone blocks of the valley behind the Zwingenburg by the water of a stream flowing into the Neckar.

• 

  Zwingenberg Castle

• 

  Wolfsschlucht

Individual evidence

1. ↑ State Statistical Office Baden-Württemberg - Population by nationality and gender on December 31, 2018 (CSV file) ( help on this ).
2. ^ The state of Baden-Württemberg. Official description by district and municipality. Volume V: Karlsruhe District Kohlhammer, Stuttgart 1976, ISBN 3-17-002542-2 . Pp. 309-310
3. ↑ Communications from the Württ. And Bad. State Statistical Office No. 2: Results of the population census on December 31, 1945 in North Baden
4. ↑ State Statistical Office of Baden-Württemberg: Municipal council elections 2019, Zwingenberg ; Municipality of Zwingenberg: municipal council election 2019 ; accessed June 22, 2019.
5. ↑ Norman Link signed up as the new mayor of Zwingenberg , Rhein-Neckar-Zeitung , 23 September 2013; accessed June 22, 2019.
6. ↑ Zwingenberger Neckar Bridge. In: Structurae
7. ↑ The middle section of the Neckar Bridge in Zwingenberg is being installed on 08/08/2010. Retrieved April 30, 2014 (video of the swimming in the middle section of the bridge). 

Web links

Commons : Zwingenberg  - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Wikivoyage: Zwingenberg (Baden)  - travel guide

• Discover regional studies online, Zwingenberg. LEO-BW, accessed on November 9, 2019 . 
• Zwingenberg / Neckar Official website of the community
• Zwingenberg Castle Website of the Zwingenberg Castle
• The Wolfsschlucht near Zwingenberg (Baden)
• Zwerrenberg nature reserve
• Schlossfestspiele Zwingenberg Official website of the Schlossfestspiele