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Meeting Place SPEYER The 2,000 Year-OldSPEYER City on the Rhine Table of Contents Noviomagus – Civitas Nemetum – Spira – these three names have stood, over the course of more Emperors and Bishops 5 than 2,000 years, for an urban settlement on the left bank of the Rhine. Today this settlement is Imperial Diets and the Reformation 6 called Speyer, the Cathedral City, the Imperial City with its proud, powerful and historically sig- Science and Administration 7 nificant examples of religious architecture, its smart building facades from different architectural Art and Culture 8 periods, its quiet squares and side streets that are full of nooks and crannies. Festivals and Hospitality 10 Celts, Roman soldiers, wars and revolutions, ecclesi- A Walk Through the City 13 astical and secular rulers, and above all, the will of its citizens have shaped the face of the city. Already The Rhine-Neckar Metropolitan Region 24 determined to have been a settlement during Celtic times, the first Roman military camp came into exist- Shopping in Speyer 25 ence in the year 10 B.C. between what are today the Bishop’s Residence and City Hall. The civilian settle- Interesting Sights and Museums 26 ment that developed, first called “Noviomagus” and then “Civitas Nemetum” grew, despite many set- Imprint 27 backs, into a regional government and commercial center. In the 6th century, it was referred to as “Spira” in documents. View of the City of Speyer/Stadtansicht Meeting Place SPEYER · The 2,000 Year-Old City on the Rhine 3 Emperors and BishopsSPEYER During the rule of the Salian emperors (1024 – 1125), In 1111, the last Salian, Heinrich IV bestowed basic Speyer rose to become one of the most important freedoms on the populace. The first step on the long centers of the Holy Roman Empire. The decisive journey to self-government had been taken. In 1294, factor – also for the continued development of the Church rule of the city came to an end and Speyer city – was the laying of the cornerstone to the ca- became one of the few “Free Imperial Cities” of the thedral during the rule of Konrad II in 1030. The Holy Roman Empire’s German Nation. cathedral was consecrated in 1061. This roman- esque structure became the burial place of the A visible external sign of Speyer’s political and com- Salian ruling house; the splendid crypt remains mercial importance during this period is the Old Gate, until today in its unaltered form. Eight emperors built during the 13th century as part of the defensive and empresses in all, including four Salian emper- wall that surrounded the central city during the Mid- ors were interred there. This, the largest surviv- dle Ages. It is one of the highest (55 meters) and ing and most representative church of the Roman- most noteworthy city gates in Germany. This symbol esque period, dominates the city’s skyline to this of civil liberty continues to be connected to this very day. The papal basilica was added to the list of day to the great Cathedral through the “via trium- UNESCO World Heritage Sites in 1981. phalis” – still one of the most imposing streets pre- served from the Middle Ages. The Cathedral of Speyer UNESCO World Heritage Site – global recognition and responsibility for Speyer. In 1076, Heinrich IV began his pilgrimage to Canossa from his beloved city of Speyer. In this same time frame, there were more and more written references to Jewish inhabitants of the city. The sacred community of Speyer was, together with those of Mainz and Worms, among the most influential Jewish communities of Middle Eu- rope. Only the synagogue (1104) and the ritual bath- house (built before 1120) with its bathing shaft at 10 me- ter depth remain from the once rambling Jewish quarter. Crypt/Krypta Meeting Place SPEYER · Emperors and Bishops 5 Imperial Diets andSPEYER the Reformation The Parliament of the Holy Roman Empire (more Speyer’s days in the sun came to an abrupt end with commonly known as the Imperial Diet) met 50 times the destruction of the city on New Year’s eve in 1689. in Speyer, bringing the city not only political but On order of Ludwig XIV, the city was burned down in commercial advantages. In the first half of the 16th the War of the Palatine Succession. Only the eastern century, Speyer was once again the focus of Euro- portion of the cathedral, the Old Gate and a few pean attention. The imperial diets of 1526 and 1529 buildings at the city wall survived. It was not until prepared the Roman Empire for the final splitting another 10 years had passed, in 1698, that the in- away of the Roman Church. The Memorial Church habitants were permitted to return and start rebuild- (Gedächtnis kirche), built between 1893 and 1904, ing. Despite all the new baroque buildings like the is a reminder of the establishment of Protestant- City Hall (Historisches Rathaus) (1712 – 1726) and the ism which was carried out in Speyer in 1529. In Trinity Church (Dreifaltigkeitskirche) (1701 – 1717), 1527, one of the most important institutions for the city’s street plan from the Middle Ages has been civil rights in the old empire was moved to Speyer: retained. It is a fan-shaped plan oriented on the the Supreme Court of the Holy Roman Empire. C a t h e d r a l . Memorial Church/Gedächtniskirche 6 Meeting Place SPEYER · Imperial Diets and the Reformation SPEYER Science and AdministrationSPEYER In 1797, during the French Revolution, Speyer was An independent city in the Rhine-Neckar region annexed by France; then in 1816, it became part since 1946, the Speyer of today is a competitive of the Bavarian Kingdom and seat of the regional urban resource center with over 50,000 residents. government for that part of the Palatinate on the Just under 22,000 are able to earn their living in the left bank of the Rhine. The face of the city changed city. A major portion of these jobs range from the as the build-up of the Bavarian governmental customer service sector across the spectrum to the apparatus brought many functionaries to the Speyer University for Public Administration, the only aspiring city. The city earned the reputation it still postgraduate training center for the upper ranks of enjoys today: a city of schools, governmental of- civil servants in Germany. fices, religion, records and libraries. The Historic City Hall/Historisches Rathaus Meeting Place SPEYER · Science and Administration 7 Art and CultureSPEYER Speyer is a tourist destination that holds much city. Regular exhibitions by local art associations appeal to those seeking artistic and cultural-his- and by the municipal gallery in the Kulturhof Flach- torical stimulation. It is not just the the big cultural gasse and the Künstlerhaus in the Sämergasse offer monuments like the imperial cathedral, Trinity- the art lover many interesting insights into the ac- Church, Memorial Church and the Jewish courtyard complishments of Speyer’s painters and sculptors. that draw visitors’ attention. It is also the collec- The Kulturhof Flachgasse and the Künstlerhaus are tions and special exhibitions in private and munici- located right next to the Skulpturengarten; both are pal galleries and cultural centers that attract visi- cared for by the Artists’ League of Speyer. Under the tors to Speyer. Also fascinating to many are visits to motto, “Art in the Outdoors”, more than 20 modern the Historical Museum of the Palatinate (Histo- sculptures by male and female sculptors have been risches Museum der Pfalz Speyer), the Technology installed in recent years at various places in the city, Museum (Technik Museum Speyer) with its IM- including the Sculpture Garden. New contact oppor- AX Theater, and the big aquarium known as Sea tunities and new possibilities for interaction be- Life Speyer. More information about those later. tween artists and the public have been highlighted, with the object of helping the public better under- Artists and intellectuals of every stripe feel them- stand art and artistic endeavor. Several other galler- selves right at home in Speyer. That is why at ies contribute to this effort with rich exhibition pro- present, there are over 60 visual artists living in the grams of their own. Theatre for Children and Young People Speyer/Kinder- und Jugendtheater Speyer 8 Meeting Place SPEYER · Art and Culture SPEYER Cultural Courtyard/Kulturhof Flachsgasse The life’s work of two of the most revered artistic Whether classical, jazz, rock or pop, professional so- sons of Speyer: Anselm Feuerbach (1829 – 1880) and loists and ensembles offer visitors some unforgetta- Hans Purrmann (1880 – 1966) are commemorated with ble impressions. Known and recognized far beyond permanent exhibitions in the houses in which they the region’s boundaries are the organ, choir and or- were born. Purrmann’s name is also carried on the chestral concerts that make up the International City of Speyer’s Award for the Advancement of the Music Days of the Cathedral of Speyer. This classical Visual Arts, an honor recognized throughout Germany. concert festival has been luring music lovers to Speyer during August and September for over 20 years. Last but not least, the variety of the cultural scene is en- hanced by the growing number of theater and cabaret Our Tip: programs which find their audiences throughout the year Oldtime Jazz Festival – national and interna- on the stages and plazas of the city. Examples include tional bands impress their listeners annually the cultural program that takes place around the old in mid-August in the marvelous inner court- Municipal Auditorium, the classical concert series in the yard of the historic City Hall.