Hechingen

Hechingen
View to the old town
Coat of arms
Hechingen
Location of Hechingen within Zollernalbkreis district
Coordinates: 48°21′06″N 08°57′48″E / 48.35167°N 8.96333°E / 48.35167; 8.96333Coordinates: 48°21′06″N 08°57′48″E / 48.35167°N 8.96333°E / 48.35167; 8.96333
Country	Germany
State	Baden-Württemberg
Admin. region	Tübingen
District	Zollernalbkreis
Government
• Mayor	Dorothea Bachmann
Area
• Total	66.44 km2 (25.65 sq mi)
Elevation	528 m (1,732 ft)
Population (2015-12-31)
• Total	18,971
• Density	290/km2 (740/sq mi)
Time zone	CET/CEST (UTC+1/+2)
Postal codes	72371–72379
Dialling codes	07471, 07477 (Schlatt)
Vehicle registration	BL or HCH
Website	www.hechingen.de

Hechingen is a town in central Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is situated about 60 kilometres (37 mi) south of the state capital of Stuttgart and 90 kilometres (56 mi) north of Lake Constance and the Swiss border.

The town lies at the foot of the Swabian Alps below Hohenzollern Castle.

The city of Hechingen is subdivided into nine neighborhoods, and the downtown is separated into Oberstadt/Altstadt (Upper Town/Old Town) and Unterstadt (Lower Town).

Other cities in the area include Bodelshausen, Mössingen, Jungingen, Bisingen, Grosselfingen, Rangendingen, and Hirrlingen.

Recent research shows that the battle of Solicinium, fought in 368 between the invading Alamanni and a Roman army led by Emperor Valentinian I, probably took place in the northern part of what is today Hechingen and the lost city Solicinium was located where the Roman museum of Hechingen is located today.

Hechingen is the ancestral home of the Hohenzollern dynasty of princes, electors, kings, and emperors, Brandenburg, Prussia, the German Empire, and Romania. In 1176 the Counts of Hohenberg separated from the Counts of Hohenzollern and seized several cities from the Hohenzollern. In 1218 the Burgraves of Nuremberg gained independence from them.