Rastatt

Rastatt
Coat of arms
Rastatt
Location of Rastatt within Rastatt district
Coordinates:
Country	Germany
State	Baden-Württemberg
Admin. region	Karlsruhe
District	Rastatt
Government
• Mayor	Hans Jürgen Pütsch
Area
• Total	59.02 km2 (22.79 sq mi)
Population (2013-12-31)
• Total	47,110
• Density	800/km2 (2,100/sq mi)
Time zone	CET/CEST (UTC+1/+2)
Postal codes	76401-76437
Dialling codes	07222, 07229
Vehicle registration	RA
Website	rastatt.de

Rastatt (German: [ˈʁaʃtat]) is a town and baroque residence in the District of Rastatt, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is located in the Upper Rhine Plain on the Murg river, 6 km (3.7 mi) above its junction with the Rhine and has a population of around 50,000 (2011). Rastatt was an important place of the War of the Spanish Succession (Treaty of Rastatt) and the Revolutions of 1848 in the German states.

History

Schloss Rastatt

The fortress of Rastatt in 1849

Mercedes-Benz factory in Rastatt

Until the end of the 17th century, Rastatt held little influence, but after its destruction by the French in 1689, it was rebuilt on a larger scale by Louis William, margrave of Baden, the imperial general in the Austro-Ottoman War known popularly as Türkenlouis. It then remained the residence of the margraves of Baden-Baden until 1771. It was the location of the First and Second Congress of Rastatt, the former giving rise to the Treaty of Rastatt. In the 1840s, Rastatt was surrounded by fortifications to form the fortress of Rastatt. For about 20 years previous to 1866, it was occupied by the troops of the German Confederation. The Baden revolution of 1849 began with a mutiny of soldiers at Rastatt in May 1849 under Ludwik Mieroslawski and Gustav Struve, and ended there a few weeks later with the capture of the town by the Prussians. (See The Revolutions of 1848 in the German states and History of Baden.) For some years, Rastatt was one of the strongest fortresses of the German empire, but its fortifications were dismantled in 1890.

In 1997, a new Mercedes-Benz car factory started production in Rastatt.

Local attractions

Rastatt and the surrounding area is home to a variety of historical buildings, includes palaces and castles such as Schloss Rastatt and Schloss Favorite. In the vicinity of Rastatt is the Black Forest and the French border.

International relations

See also: List of twin towns and sister cities in Germany

Rastatt is twinned with:

• Fano, Italy.
• Guarapuava, Brazil.
• Woking, United Kingdom.
• New Britain, Connecticut, United States
• Ostrov, Czech Republic.

References

•  This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: 

External links

• Official site
• Rastatt: pictures
•  
• The last half of Chapter 7 in Volume One of The Reminiscences of Carl Schurz describes Carl Schurz's recollections as an involuntary inhabitant of Rastatt before its surrender to the Prussians in 1849, and his escape through a sewer after the surrender.