Mosbach

Mosbach
Mosbach
Location of the town of Mosbach within Neckar-Odenwald-Kreis district
Coordinates	49°21′8″N 9°8′48″E / 49.35222°N 9.14667°E / 49.35222; 9.14667Coordinates: 49°21′8″N 9°8′48″E / 49.35222°N 9.14667°E / 49.35222; 9.14667
Administration
Country	Germany
State	Baden-Württemberg
Admin. region	Karlsruhe
District	Neckar-Odenwald-Kreis
Town subdivisions	6
Mayor	Michael Jann (CDU)
Basic statistics
Area	62.23 km2 (24.03 sq mi)
Elevation	156 m  (512 ft)
Population	24,490 (31 December 2010)[1]
- Density	394 /km2 (1,019 /sq mi)
Other information
Time zone	CET/CEST (UTC+1/+2)
Licence plate	MOS
Postal codes	74801–74821
Area code	06261
Website	www.mosbach.de

Mosbach is the capital of the Neckar-Odenwald district in the north of Baden-Württemberg, Germany, about 58 km east of Heidelberg. Its geographical position is 49.21'N 9.9'E.

It has a population of approximately 25,000 people distributed in six boroughs: Mosbach Town, Lohrbach, Neckarelz, Diedesheim, Sattelbach and Reichenbuch.

Geography

Mosbach is situated south of the Odenwald mountains at a height of 134-354m at the confluence of the Neckar and the Elz. The town is part of the conservation area Naturpark Neckartal-Odenwald and the UNESCO Geopark Bergstraße-Odenwald.

History

The settlement of Mosbach developed around the Benedictine monastery of Mosbach Abbey ("Monasterium Mosabach"), the first written record of which dates from the 9th century. In 1241 rights and privileges had been granted to Mosbach as an Imperial free city. These rights were lost in 1362 when Mosbach became part of the Electoral Palatinate. With the division of the lands of King Rupert in 1410, Mosbach became the capital of a small principality known as Palatinate-Mosbach as the inheritance for his son Otto I. With the death of his brother John, Count Palatine of Neumarkt 1443, the territory of Palatinate-Neumarkt was added in a personal union to Palatinate-Mosbach creating the territory of Palatinate-Mosbach-Neumarkt. This principality was dissolved with the death of Count Palatine Otto II in 1499. The city and adjoining territory reverted to the Electoral Palatinate, and Mosbach became the capital of the administrative district of "Oberamt Mosbach". In 1806 the city was made part of the Grand Duchy of Baden. In World War II, the Mosbach area was the location of an underground airplane engine factory.^[2]

The etymology for Mosa- is related to the words Marsh, Mosses, Mousse etc. Bach- is literally Beck in English, and Bogg in Norse. It generally means river in Germany... Because we are talking about a geographic location Mosbach and its alternate spelling Musbach basically mean Marsh-River.

International relations

Main article: List of twin towns and sister cities in Germany

Mosbach is twinned with:

• Château-Thierry (France)
• Pesthidegkút (Hungary)
• Pößneck (Thüringen)
• Finike (Turkey)
• Lymington (England)

Points of interest

Its historic sites include:

• the historic town centre with the pedestrian area and timber-framed houses, such as:
  • the Palm House built in 1610, which is the town’s emblem
  • the Salzhaus, which is the oldest timber-framed house
• old town hall with tower
• the former collegiate church, now a parish church, of which the nave is used by the Protestants, and the chancel by the Roman Catholics
• the Tempelhaus in Neckarelz, which has the character of both a castle and a church.

Mosbach lies on the following heritage routes:

• the Deutsche Fachwerkstrasse (“German Half-timbered Road”), joining the locations of many of the best German half-timbered buildings
• the Burgenstrasse (“Castle Road”), linking many historic castles

• 

  Kickelhain House

• 

  The “Palmsche Haus” at the market place

• 

  Market place, opposite side to the “Palmsche Haus”

• 

  Town hall

• 

  A picturesque corner

• 

  Mosbach and the other cities on the Neckar River

References

1. ^ "Bevölkerung und Erwerbstätigkeit" (in German). Statistisches Landesamt Baden-Württemberg. 31 December 2009. http://www.statistik-bw.de/Veroeffentl/Statistische_Berichte/3126_10001.pdf. 
2. ^ Gurney, Gene (Major, USAF) (1962), The War in the Air: a pictorial history of World War II Air Forces in combat, New York: Bonanza Books, pp. p220