Kitzingen

Coat of arms

Kitzingen

Location of Kitzingen within Kitzingen district

Coordinates: 49°44′N 10°10′E / 49.733°N 10.167°ECoordinates: 49°44′N 10°10′E / 49.733°N 10.167°E

Country

Government

• Lord Mayor

Siegfried Müller ("Unabhängige soziale Wählergruppe")

Area

• Total

46.99 km² (18.14 sq mi)

Population (2015-12-31)

• Total

20,756

• Density

440/km² (1,100/sq mi)

CET/CEST (UTC+1/+2)

97301–97318

09321

Website

Kitzingen is a town in the German state of Bavaria, capital of the district Kitzingen. It is part of the Franconia geographical region and has around 21,000 inhabitants. Surrounded by vineyards, Kitzingen County is the largest wine producer in Bavaria. It is said to be Franconia's wine trade center.

According to legend, Kitzingen was founded when the Countess of Schwanberg lost her jeweled scarf while standing on the ramparts of her castle. The castle was located high above the fertile section of the Main River Valley where Kitzingen now lies. The Countess promised to build a cloister on the spot where the scarf was found. When it was found by a shepherd named Kitz, she kept her word and built a cloister which she called Kitzingen. That Benedictine cloister, founded in the 8th century on the site of the present town of Kitzingen, defended the ford across the Main River.

Kitzingen's history is closely tied to Würzburg. Kitzingen became a free imperial city around the year 1000. During the next century the town changed rulers often, mostly being ruled by Würzburg prince-bishops who sold the town twice to fill their empty treasury.

In 1629, Prince-Bishop Philipp Adolf von Ehrenberg of Würzburg took up his option to repurchase Kitzingen after the Peasants' Revolt in 1525. He abolished Protestantism and forced more than 1,000 residents to leave the town. This blow to the town's strength was followed by the Swedish three-year occupation during the Thirty Years' War.

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Wikipedia