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Welzheim

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Welzheim
Town
Town hall of Welzheim
Town hall of Welzheim
Flag of Welzheim
Flag
Coat of arms of Welzheim
Coat of arms
AllmersbachAllmersbachAlthütteAuenwaldBacknangBacknangBurgstettenFellbachGroßerlachKaisersbachKaisersbachKaisersbachKaisersbachKirchberg an der MurrLeutenbachLeutenbachLeutenbachMurrhardtOppenweilerPlüderhausenPlüderhausenPlüderhausenRudersbergSchorndorfSchwaikheimSpiegelbergSulzbach an der MurrWaiblingenWaiblingenWaiblingenWeissach im TalWelzheimWinnendenWinterbachAspachBerglenBerglenWeinstadtKernenUrbachAlfdorfAlfdorfKorbRemshalden
Location of Welzheim within Rems-Murr-Kreis district
Map
Interactive map of Welzheim
Welzheim is located in Germany
Welzheim
Location within Germany
Welzheim is located in Baden-Württemberg
Welzheim
Location within Baden-Württemberg
Coordinates: 48°52′29″N 09°38′04″E / 48.87472°N 9.63444°E / 48.87472; 9.63444
CountryGermany
StateBaden-Württemberg
Admin. regionStuttgart
DistrictRems-Murr-Kreis
Government
 • Mayor (2026–34)Thomas Bernlöhr[1]
Area
[2]
 • Total
37.99 km2 (14.67 sq mi)
Elevation
503 m (1,650 ft)
Population
 (2025-12-31)[3]
 • Total
11,268
 • Density296.6/km2 (768.2/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+01:00 (CET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+02:00 (CEST)
Postal codes
73642
Dialling codes07182
Vehicle registrationWN
Websitewww.welzheim.de

Welzheim (German pronunciation: [ˈvɛltsˌhaɪm] ⓘ) is a town in the Rems-Murr district, in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is located 35 km east of Stuttgart and 15 km northwest of Schwäbisch Gmünd, in the Welzheimer Wald, part of the Swabian-Franconian Forest. Welzheim has been a state-recognised health resort (Luftkurort) since 1943.[4]

The surrounding area is largely rural and forested, and forestry and timber have traditionally been important to the local economy.[citation needed]

Sights

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Natural attractions near Welzheim include the Ebnisee, a lake near neighbouring Kaisersbach, and the Mühlenwanderweg (mill hiking trail), a 37 km circular route through the Welzheimer Wald linking eleven historic mills, with five shorter signposted loops.[5][6]

In the town, the Archäologischer Park Ostkastell occupies the site of the eastern Roman fort on the Upper Germanic Limes, part of a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Its west gate and part of the fort wall were reconstructed in 1980 after excavations in 1976–77, and the site was expanded into an archaeological park in 1993.[7][8] Other sights include the Protestant St. Gallus Church, consecrated in 1499, with late-Gothic sandstone figures and stained-glass windows by Gottfried von Stockhausen,[9] and the town hall.

History

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Roman period

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Around 150 AD, after the Roman frontier was moved forward, Roman troops built two forts at Welzheim, the West and East forts, with a civilian settlement between them. The site was abandoned by the Romans in 260.[10] Linguists have reconstructed the Latin name as (Castra) Valentia on the basis of the town's medieval name, Wallenzin.[11]

Middle Ages to 20th century

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Welzheim is first mentioned in 1181 as Wallenzin, when its church belonged to Lorch Abbey.[10] A document from 1266, during Hohenstaufen rule, refers to a mayor and citizens of Welzheim, and the town dates its town rights to that year.[10] Whether it actually held full town rights in the Middle Ages is uncertain, however: until it was formally granted town status in 1840, it was generally described as a village or market town.[12] In 1335 the castle and settlement were sold to the Schenk von Limpurg family.[10] The St. Gallus Church was consecrated in 1499.[13]

After the Limpurg line died out in 1713, Welzheim passed to Württemberg. In 1718 Duke Eberhard Ludwig granted it to his mistress, Wilhelmine von Grävenitz. In 1726 a fire destroyed much of the town, including the church, which was rebuilt the following year;[13] a new town hall followed in 1731.[citation needed] The duke took Welzheim back from Grävenitz in 1732.[12]

From 1806 Welzheim was the seat of a Württemberg district (Oberamt), apart from 1810 to 1819, when the district administration was moved to Lorch. The district was dissolved in 1938 and Welzheim became part of the district of Waiblingen; since 1973 it has belonged to the Rems-Murr-Kreis.[4] From 1824 until 1977 the town was also the seat of a Protestant deanery.[14]

Nazi era

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From 1935 to 1945 the Gestapo headquarters in Stuttgart ran a camp in Welzheim's former local court prison. Officially called the Polizeigefängnis Welzheim ("Welzheim police prison"), it was commonly known as KZ Welzheim.[15] It served as a Gestapo prison for political and other prisoners, as a transit camp for prisoners being sent to concentration camps and for Jews before deportation, and, during the war, as a labour camp for foreign forced labourers. The International Tracing Service estimated that 10,000 to 15,000 men passed through it. The camp was evacuated in April 1945.[16]

At least 65 death sentences were carried out by hanging or shooting, mostly in a quarry near the town.[17] Prisoners included the resistance fighter Hermann Schlotterbeck, brother of Friedrich Schlotterbeck, who was shot by a Nazi execution squad near Riedlingen in April 1945.[17] Memorials include the victims' graves in the cemetery on Rudersberger Straße and the former execution quarry; in 2020 the square in front of the former camp headquarters was renamed Hermann-Schlotterbeck-Platz.[15]

Religion

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Besides the Protestant St. Gallus Church and the Catholic Christ the King Church (Christkönigskirche), Welzheim has congregations of the Süddeutsche Gemeinschaft, the Baptists, the Evangelical Methodist Church, the New Apostolic Church and the Evangelischer Brüderverein, as well as a mosque.[9]

Notable people

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References

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  1. ↑ "Bürgermeisterwahl Welzheim 2026". Staatsanzeiger (in German). 8 March 2026. Retrieved 6 October 2026.
  2. ↑ "Alle politisch selbständigen Gemeinden mit ausgewählten Merkmalen am 31.12.2018 (4. Quartal)" (in German). Federal Statistical Office of Germany. Retrieved 10 March 2019.
  3. ↑ "Tabellengruppe 12411: Fortschreibung des Bevölkerungsstandes zum 31. Dezember 2025" [Update of the population as of 31 December 2025] (in German). Statistisches Landesamt Baden-Württemberg.
  4. 1 2 "Welzheim". LEO-BW (in German). Landesarchiv Baden-Württemberg. Retrieved 6 October 2026.
  5. ↑ "Mühlenwanderweg – Gesamt". Welzheim Aktiv (in German). Retrieved 6 October 2026.
  6. ↑ "Mühlenwanderweg" (in German). Schwäbischer Wald Tourismus. Retrieved 6 October 2026.
  7. ↑ "Archäologischer Park Ostkastell". kunst-und-kultur.de (in German). Retrieved 6 October 2026.
  8. ↑ "Archäologischer Park Ostkastell Welzheim" (in German). Stuttgart-Marketing. Retrieved 6 October 2026.
  9. 1 2 "Kirchen" (in German). Stadt Welzheim. Retrieved 6 October 2026.
  10. 1 2 3 4 "Überblick" (in German). Stadt Welzheim. Retrieved 6 October 2026.
  11. ↑ Werner Besch (et al.): Sprachgeschichte – Ein Handbuch zur Geschichte der deutschen Sprache und ihrer Erforschung, 2nd edition, 4th volume, de Gruyter, Berlin 2004, p. 3466
  12. 1 2 "Welzheim – Altgemeinde/Teilort". LEO-BW (in German). Landesarchiv Baden-Württemberg. Retrieved 6 October 2026.
  13. 1 2 "Welzheim: evang. Galluskirche (Stadtkirche)". kirchbau.de (in German). Retrieved 6 October 2026.
  14. ↑ "Evangelisches Dekanatamt Schorndorf (1569–1966)" (in German). Landeskirchliches Archiv Stuttgart. Retrieved 6 October 2026.
  15. 1 2 "Gedenkstätte KZ Welzheim" (in German). Gedenkstätten in Baden-Württemberg. Retrieved 6 October 2026.
  16. ↑ "Konzentrationslager Welzheim (Schutzhaftlager)" (in German). European Holocaust Research Infrastructure. Retrieved 6 October 2026.
  17. 1 2 "Sehenswürdigkeiten" (in German). Stadt Welzheim. Retrieved 6 October 2026.
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