Gengenbach

Gengenbach is a German city in Black Forest, approximately 11000 inhabitants, pertaining to the Land of Bade-Wurtemberg and the circle of the Ortenau.

Very visited by the tourists, Gengenbach is famous for its souabe-Germanic traditional Carnival, its historical old city (Altstadt) and its calendar of the Avent, largest of the world: with the twenty-four windows of the Town hall (which dates from the XVIIIe century) appear with one of the images during the first twenty-four days of December. Gengenbach shelters a section of the University of sciences applied of Offenbourg.

A Abbaye Bénédictin E was founded there by Saint Pirmin in 725, in the Vallée of the Kinzig. Around it farms and a market seigneurial during the Early middle ages settled. In 1360, Gengenbach, which had received in 1230 the urban right, became imperial city, with like dependences the villages of Reichenbach, Schwaibach, Ohlsbach and Bermersbach. The parish church was up to 1803 Saint Martin's day apart from the fortifications, fortifications of which there remains the tower of the Swedes, the high Door, the Tower of Kinzig and the Tower of Niggel (of XIVe in XVIe century). Gengenbach passed to Protestantism in 1525, returned from force to Catholicism into 1547/48. During the Guerre Thirty Year old the Protestant troops of Bernhard of Weimar plundered the city which was almost completely destroyed by the French troops of Louis XIV during the War of succession of the Palatinat. In 1803, the city was annexed in the Grand Duchy of Bade. In 1975 an administrative reform attached it to the circle of Ortenau.

Gengenbach is twinned with Obernai, in Alsace.

External bonds

http://www.badenpage.de/gengenbach/ (in German)
Images of Gengenbach

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