Heidelberg

There's a very romantic melody, "I lost my heart in Heidelberg...", and when you first arrive in this like-none-other city, you'll instantly know the meaning! The Old Bridge, the beautiful pink castle dominating the skyline and looming over the Old Town, the winding Neckar River, and so many memorable sites it would take weeks and weeks to see, Heidelberg is the favorite German city of thousands of Americans, many of whom choose to make it their permanent home.

YOU MUST SEE

• Universitatsplatz - and the old baroque-style university building
• Student Prison - in Augustinergasse
• Jesuit's Church - on Schulgasse
• Corn Market - with a nice view of the Castle
• Holy Ghost Church - on Marktplatz, where classical music concerts are sometimes held
• Knight's House - just off Marktplatz, which is the oldest private house in Heidelberg (1592), now a hotel (Renaissance style).

Anyone for shopping, cafes, fine restaurants, entertainment? Some of absolutely everything!

And don't forget the Neckar Cruise (2 to 3 hours), viewing lovely old villages and towns, once the route of Wine Merchants.

BRIEF HISTORY

• Approximately 600,000 years ago - the earliest evidence of human living in Europe - estimated by the age of the bones of the "Heidelberg Man", discovered in 1907 at Mauer.
• 5th Century BC - Celts build a fortress of refuge and place of worship
• Since 40 AD - there had been, in what is now the municipal district of Neuenheim, a fort occupied by the 24th Roman Cohort and the 2nd Cyrenaican.
• Circa 80 AD - the Romans maintain a permanent camp and signaling post on the bank of the Neckar, and a wooden bridge. They remained until 260 AD.
• 5th Century AD - the beginning of a permanent settlement.
• 769 - the village of "Bergheim" is mentioned in documents for the first time.
• 764 - the Lorsch Monastery was erected.
• 863 - the Monastery of St. Michael was founded on the Holy Mount.
• Around 1130 - Neuberg Monastery was built in the Neckar valley.
• 1155 - the oldest castle and settlement are taken over by the House of Hohenstaufen, Konrad, of this Dynasty (Count Palatinate).
• 1195 - the Palatinate joins the House of Welfen through marriage.
• 1196 - Heidelberg was first mentioned in a Monastery document.
• 1386 - Count Palatine founded Heidelberg University, which played a leading part in the conflict between Lutheranism and Calvinism in the 15th and 16th Centuries. Martin Luther was received in Heidelberg.
• 1620 - the Protestant Elector Friedrich V, who was married to the eldest daughter (Elizabeth) of James VI of Scotland, accepted the Bohemian crown. He reigned for only one winter and is known as the "Winter King", losing the battle and marking the beginning of the Thirty Years' War.
• 1622 - After a siege lasting 2 months, Heidelberg was captured and the famous Bibliotheca Palatina from the Church of the Holy Ghost was given to the Pope.
• 1649 - Friedrich's son, Karl Ludwig, returned to the Royal Residence.
• 1671 - his daughter, Liselotte, married the Duke of Orleans.
• 1685 - After the death of Liselotte's brother, Louis XIV laid claim to her inheritance. War ensued and in 1689 the castle and the city were captured by French troops and almost totally destroyed in 1693.
• 18th Century - the city was rebuilt on the old Gothic layout but in Baroque style.
• 1803 - the Grand Duke Karl Friedrich of Baden re-founded the university and it gained strong recognition as the royal residence for intellectuals.
• 1815 - the Emperor of Austria, the Czar of Russia and the King of Prussia formed a "Holy Alliance" in Heidelberg.
• 1848 - a German National Assembly was built.
• 1849 - during the Palatinate-Baden Rebellion, Heidelberg was the headquarters of a revolutionary army which was defeated by the Prussian army and occupied by the Prussians until 1850.

In the Second World War, Heidelberg escaped bombing. Today, it has a permanent population of 135,000 and more than 25,000 students from around the world attend Heidelberg University.