Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
TownHallandTower:
Rothenburg'stallestspireistheTownHalltower(Rathausturm).
At 200 feet, it stands atop the old Town Hall, a white, Gothic, 13th-century building. Notice
thetouristsenjoyingthebestviewintownfromtheblacktopofthetower(€2andarigorous
but interesting climb, 214 steps, narrow and steep near the top—watch your head, April-Oct
daily9:30-12:30&13:00-17:00,closedNov-March,enteronMarketSquarethroughmiddle
arch of new Town Hall). After a fire in 1501 burned down part of the original building, a
new Town Hall was built alongside what survived of the old one (fronting the square). This
half of the rebuilt complex is in the Renaissance style from 1570.
Meistertrunk Show:
At the top of Market Square stands the proud Councilors' Tavern
(clocktowerfrom1466).Initsday,thecitycouncil—therichguyswhoranthetowngovern-
ment—drank here. Today, it's the TI and the focus of most tourists' attention when the little
doorsoneithersideoftheclockflipopenandthewoodenfigures(from1910)dotheirthing.
Be on Market Square at 11:00, 12:00, 13:00, 14:00, 15:00, 20:00, 21:00, or 22:00 for the
ritual gathering of the tourists to see the less-than-breathtaking re-enactment of the Meister-
trunk (“Master Draught”) story:
In 1631, in the middle of the Thirty Years' War, the Catholic army took the Protestant
townandwasabouttodoitsrape,pillage,andplunderthing.Aswastheetiquette,themayor
had to give the conquering general a welcoming drink. The general enjoyed a huge tank-
ard of local wine. Feeling really good, he told the mayor, “Hey, if you can drink this entire
three-liter tankard of wine in one gulp, I'll spare your town.” The mayor amazed everyone
by drinking the entire thing, and Rothenburg was saved.
While this is a nice story, it was dreamed up in the late 1800s for a theatrical play de-
signed(effectively)topromotearomanticimageofthetown.Inactuality,ifRothenburgwas
spared, it happened because it bribed its way out of a jam. It was occupied and ransacked
several times in the Thirty Years' War, and it never recovered—which is why it's such a
well-preserved time capsule today.
For the best show, don't watch the clock; watch the open-mouthed tourists gasp as the
old windows flip open. At the late shows, the square flickers with camera flashes.
BottomofMarketSquare:
Atthebottomendofthesquare,thecream-coloredbuilding
onthecornerhasafine
printshop
aroundback(describedunder“ShoppinginRothenburg,”
later). Adjoining that is the
Baumeister Haus,
featuring a famous Renaissance facade with
statuesofthesevenvirtuesandthesevenvices—theformersupportingthelatter.Thestatues
are copies; the originals are in the Imperial City Museum (described later on this walk). The
green house below that is the former home of the 15th-century Mayor Toppler (it's now the
recommended Gasthof Goldener Greifen).
Keepcirclingtothebig17th-century
St.George'sfountain.
Thelongmetalguttersslid,
routing the water into the villagers' buckets. Rothenburg had an ingenious water system.
Built on a rock, it had one real source above the town, which was plumbed to serve a series
