Stadt Neuenstadt am Kocher

What Eduard Mörike wrote about Neuenstadt

"Into a friendly little town I stroll,
In its streets lie the red evening glow,
From an open window,
Across the most splendid riot of flowers,
One can hear the gold chimes floating past…"

(Eduard Mörike about Neuenstadt)

Neuenstadt owes its name to the relocation of the mother settlement of Helmbund (first documented in 797) from the Brettach meadow up to the ridge 1km away at the confluence of the Kocher and Brettach Rivers.

It is thought that the new, fortified administrative town of Neuenstadt originated in the 14th century, being initially under Weinsberg and Palatinate rule, and then, from 1504, under Württemberg rule. The legendary lime tree which gave the town its sobriquet "an der Linde" ("By the Lime Tree") stood before the Upper Gate Tower until April 1945.

However, fighting during the closing days of the Second World War destroyed not only this hallmark of the town, but also 80 % of the buildings in the town centre. The Lime Tree Grove with its foliage canopy remained unscathed. It is supported by ornate stone trestles, which have been donated since the Middle Ages by noblemen and wealthy citizens.

During the 17th and 18th centuries, a branch line of the Duchy of Württemberg resided in a Renaissance castle, which today is only partially preserved in its original condition. By holding court there, the family lent the town a certain glamour. The ducal burial place with its beautifully painted pewter coffins in the crypt of the municipal church bear testimony to this period.

The Mörike Pharmacy, a stately half-timbered building (rebuilt in 1801), commemorates the Mörike family, which migrated from Havelland region to Neuenstadt and were proprietors of the pharmacy until 1865. The poet Eduard Mörike was a regular visitor during this period, being a pastor at nearby Cleversulzbach.

His wealthy cousin, who was a chemist, bequeathed his country house (1830) adjacent the Lime Tree Grove to a foundation in favour of elderly single women. Today, it forms the main part of the nursing home on this site.

The "Museum im Schafstall" (Museum in the Sheepfold), one of the buildings in the old feudal sheepfold, today houses an exhibition of artefacts from the heritage of the Duchy Württemberg-Neuenstadt and the Mörike family, as well as historical maps and views of Neuenstadt.

Historical relics from this era include the ruins of the Gothic Helmbund Church, the last surviving remains of the mother settlement, the charming "Franzosen- brueckle" (Bridge of the French) over the Brettach River, the Schoentaler Pfleghof (Schoental Hospice) (1488), which today is an Evangelical dean’s office, and a restored part of the town walls featuring a guard’s walkway.

Post-1945 reconstruction, the development of new residential areas, the settlement of industry and commerce, the linking of the town to the A 81 motorway (1973), as well as the school and municipal reform in the early 1970s have significantly changed the face of the community.

However, Neuenstadt has somehow retained its special charm as a historic small town set in scenic surroundings.