Reutlingen

Reutlingen (ˈʁɔʏtlɪŋən; Swabian: Reitlenga) is a city in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is the capital of the eponymous district of Reutlingen. As of June 2018, it has an estimated population of 116,456. Reutlingen has a university of applied sciences, which was founded in 1855, originally as a weavers' school. Today, Reutlingen is home to an established textile industry and also houses machinery, leather goods and steel manufacturing facilities. It has the narrowest street in the world, Spreuerhofstraße (width 31 cm). Reutlingen is located about south of the State capital of Baden-Württemberg, Stuttgart. It lies in the Southwest corner of Germany, right next to the Swabian Jura, and that is why it is often called The gateway to the Swabian Jura (Das Tor zur Schwäbischen Alb). The Echaz river, a tributary of the Neckar, flows through the city centre. Along with the old university town of Tübingen (about to the west), Reutlingen is the centre of the Neckar-Alb region. It is also part of the larger Stuttgart Metropolitan Region. The first settlements in the area are believed to date from the 4th or 5th century. Some time around 1030, Count Egino started to build a castle on top of the Achalm, one of the largest mountains in Reutlingen district (about 706 m). One of the towers of this castle was rebuilt in the 19th century and is open to visitors. The name Reutlingen was first mentioned in writing in the so-called Bempflingen Treaty (Bempflinger Vertrag) which is dated approximately 1089–90. Around 1180, Reutlingen received market rights and, between 1220 and 1240 it was promoted to city status and city-walls and fortifications were built. Shortly thereafter, from 1247 to 1343, the city's landmark, the St. Mary's Church (Marienkirche) was built. In 1377 Reutlingen was the scene of a victory by the Swabian League, formed in the previous year by 14 Swabian cities, led by Ulm, over the Count of Württemberg. In 1519, a later Swabian League came to Reutlingen's help when Ulrich, Duke of Württemberg attempted to seize the city; the League landed a crushing blow, conquering Württemberg and selling it to Charles V.