Rothenburg ob der Tauber is a German town in northern Bavaria known for its medieval architecture. Half-timbered houses line the cobblestone lanes of its old town. The town walls include many preserved gate houses and towers, plus a covered walkway on top. St. Jakob’s Church houses an intricate, late Gothic altarpiece by woodcarver Tilman Riemenschneider. The medieval Town Hall has a tower with panoramic views. The name "Rothenburg ob der Tauber" is German for "Red castle above the Tauber". This is so because the town is located on a plateau overlooking the Tauber River. As to the name "Rothenburg", some say it comes from the German words rot (red) and burg (burgh, medieval fortified settlement), referring to the red color of the roofs of the houses which overlook the river. The name may also refer to the process of retting ("rotten" in German) flax for linen production. The city was most likely inhabited by Celts before the 1st-century C.E. In 950, the weir system in today's castle garden was constructed by the Count of Comburg-Rothenburg. In 1070, the counts of Comburg-Rothenburg, who also owned the village of Gebsattel, built Rothenburg castle on the mountain top high above the River Tauber. The counts of the Comburg-Rothenburg dynasty died out in 1116. The last count, Count Heinrich, Emperor Heinrich V appointed instead his nephew Konrad von Hohenstaufen as the successor to the Comburg-Rothenburg properties. In 1142, Konrad von Hohenstaufen, who became Konrad III (1138–52), the self-styled King of the Romans, traded a part of the monastery of Neumünster in Würzburg above the village Detwang and built the Stauffer-Castle Rothenburg on this cheaper land. He held court there and appointed officials called 'reeves' to act as caretakers. #holidayvacation #staycation #merryxmas #holidayvacation#staycation