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A Brief History of Heidelberg
A Brief History of Heidelberg
For five centuries, Heidelberg was the principal residence of the Prince Electors of the Kurpfalz. It was therefore an important political center and its position was enhanced by the foundation of the first German university here in 1386. The castle was damaged in 1537 by a thunderbolt but soon after rebuilt as one of the most beautiful Renaissance palaces north of the Alps.
In 1619, Prince Friedrich V, married to Princess Elizabeth Stuart, daughter of James I of England, was elected King of Bohemia, although a family member of the Emperor already held the position. The resulting defenestration (throwing out the window!) of an imperial delegation in Prague was a direct cause of the Thirty Years’War and made Heidelberg an immediate target of the Imperial Army. In the 1620s, both Heidelberg and its castle were destroyed. The famous library, the Biblioteca Palatina was taken as war booty and is still currently in the Vatican. The region lost three-quarters of its population during the war but both town and castle were rebuilt soon afterwards.
During the War of the Palatinate Succession, French troops of King Louis XIV occupied and eventually destroyed the town and castle in 1688, 1689, and 1693. As a result, Heidelberg’s old town has no buildings from the Middle Ages. A religious dispute between the Elector and the town saw the residence moved to nearby Mannheim and the castle was never completely rebuilt. Most of the restored parts of the castle date from the 19th century when Heidelberg castle became the focus of romantic movements. The town suffered only minor damage during World War II – the town council handed it over to the advancing American Army but the retreating Nazis blew up the Old Bridge.
Last updated September 23, 2011
Posted in Germany | Heidelberg
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