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Wandering through the Old Town

Conquering new sights

There are many features of this city that are best experienced on a stroll through the city’s streets. We have put together a tour that will bring you to the places most worth seeing.

	The Kielmeyer House used to be home to the wine presses of the important Katherinenspital, or St. Catherine’s Hospital, located in today’s market square up to 1811. This explains the St. Catherine’s Shield on this magnificent timber-frame house. Today, you will find the STADTINFORMATION tourist information centre here.
	Not only is the Marktplatz, or market square, a good place to buy fresh fruit and vegetables twice a week, this is a place for celebration – the Zwiebelfest, or Onion Festival, Bürgerfest city fair, and the Christmas fair attract droves of visitors from far and wide every year.
	The twin towers at Stadtkirche St. Dionys (parish church of St. Dionys) were built in 1275 (northern tower) and 1310 (southern tower), and later connected for structural reasons. Inside, the late-Romanesque pillars, rood screen, high altar, sacramental chapel and choir stalls are particularly worth seeing. The glass windows above the choir stalls are especially beautiful, amongst the finest in Europe (1280-1330).
	The Münster, or Minster, of St. Paul is one of Germany’s oldest completely preserved churches belonging to a mendicant order. The church was annexed to the adjoining Dominican monastery, and was consecrated by Saint Albertus Magnus, a universal scholar, in 1268.
	The monastic courtyard and garden still show traces of the former cloister of the Dominican monastery.
	From the market square, you can still see the impressive walls of the Salem “Pfleghof”. Pflegehöfe were centres of trade and administration for monasteries that were based outside of Esslingen and had property inside the city; in particular, wine was stored here. Today, you will see the charmingly quaint JF Schreiber Museum here, with its famous picture books and paper models on show.
	The Frauenkirche, or Church of Our Lady, was one of the oldest Gothic hall church to be built in south-west Germany, and was completed at the beginning of the sixteenth century. The magnificent portals on the southern side with the sculptures of the Day of Judgement and the Life of Mary are especially worth seeing.
	The Schwörhof was named after the ritual where the citizens of the city and the mayor swore allegiance in rights and obligations up to the year 1801. This tradition was revived in the final years of the twentieth century. The Schwörhof adjoins the Schwörhaus, which is a branch of the Schreiber Museum.
	The Agnesbrücke, or Bridge of St. Agnes, leads the way to the Schelztor tower. This was once a gate to the historical city centre through its walls that were built in 1228.
	The walk back towards the market square will give you a fine view of Esslinger Burg, Esslingen’s castle. Unlike other castles in Germany, this was never a noble residence, but served the city’s fortifications on its northern side. The castle was fortified with towers and walls between 1519 and 1531. The “dicker Turm”, or thick tower, that was given a roof in 1887 also originates from this period. The watchtower built on top of the city walls that can be reached from the city via steep steps was mainly used as a vantage point for the city’s fire brigade.
	Returning to the Stadtkirche, or Parish Church, of St. Dionys, the excavation museum is well worth a visit. You will find the archaeological remains of former church buildings in the crypt, ancient relics of buildings that go back to the year 777.
	The Stadtarchiv, or city records, are to be found to the south of the Stadtkirche in the former Allerheiligenkapelle, or Chapel of All Saints. The building was extended to a city records office by Heinrich Schickart in 1610.
	Across the way, you will find the former Pfleghof of the Speyer cathedral chapter, which is currently home to the oldest wine cellars for sparkling wine in Germany, Sektkellerei Kessler, established in 1826.
	Down the Schleifbergele hill and through the Kanzleitörle gate, and you will find the Kesselwasen. The path will take you past water wheels on the Rossneckar Canal. Esslingen’s citizens named the view from the canal bridge to the historical inner bridge Klein Venedig, or “Little Venice”. Esslingen’s canal walls were reinforced during the industrial revolution, and the canals drive thirteen water wheels to this day.
	As you walk on through the bridges, you will arrive at the the Maille, a city park named after the ballgame Paille-Maille, or pall mall, that used to be played on the reclaimed land between Rossneckar and Wehrneckar weir.
	From the Maille, you can see the Baroque Reichsstädtische Rathaus, or imperial city hall, built from 1705, which is now the district courthouse.
	The Nikolauskapelle, or Chapel of St. Nicholas, was first officially mentioned in 1350. It served as a workshop or market stall from the sixteenth century, but was turned into a memorial to the victims of the Nazi regime in 1956.
	The chapel steps will take you up to the Inner Bridge. It used to be part of the trade route from Flanders to Italy, and is one of Germany’s oldest stone bridges.
	The Postmichelbrunnen fountain is a reminder of an Esslingen saga. Its hero was a righteous and upstanding post rider executed despite his innocence; he appeared to the people of Esslingen by night until justice was meted out to the actual villain. The sculptures on the fountain tell this terrible tale.
	Moving on, you will reach the rear of the Altes Rathaus, or Old City Hall, which was erected as a trade and excise house in 1420. The noble southern front shows the “Swabian Man” timber-frame construction style, with joists and beams forming the figure of a man reaching up with his arms.
	After passing along the houses on the eastern side of the City Hall square, you will reach Hafenmarkt behind the Old City Hall. The alleys leading up to Hafenmarkt make up Germany’s oldest row of timber-frame houses.
	You will find the Gelbe Haus, or “Yellow House”, on Hafenmarkt, which is now home to the city museum. The Hafenmarkt name refers to the pots (from the Swabian “Häfele”) that used to be sold here.
	The Bebenhäuser Pfleghof from the thirteenth century is now the city library.
	Now converted into a pub, the former Fürstenfelder Pfleghof is located at the entrance to Heugasse. The former building belonging to the Fürstenfeld Cistercian monastery was rebuilt after the great city fire of 1701. You can still marvel at the elaborate decorations on the stucco ceiling.
	The wine cellar in Webergasse is another witness to the city’s long tradition of winemaking. Winegrowing and trade was one of medieval Esslingen’s economic mainstays.
	The Baroque Konstanzer Pfleghof with its Rococo front is a typical Esslingen Pfleghof.
	Also a Baroque building, the Neue Rathaus, or New City Hall, used to be the city residence of the influential Palm family. It has been the lord mayor’s house since 1841.
	Across the way, you will see the northern front of the Old City Hall, one of Esslingen’s hallmarks. The building was reconstructed in the Renaissance style by Heinrich Schickhardt between 1586 and 1589, and is crowned with a glockenspiel tower that plays its melodies five times a day. The astronomical clock and the figures are driven by the original movement that dates back to 1591.