Pons Aeni

Crucial to the establishment of Rosenheim were the Inn and the corresponding Inn valley. The Romans arrived in the year 15 BC under the leadership of Drusus and Tiberius. They founded the province Noricum to the East of the Inn and Rhaetia to the west of the Inn. The colonizers built a road through the Brenner to Castra Regina, and an east–west road from Iuvavum to Augusta Vindelicum. The intersection of these two enormously important trade routes were protected by a military station whose name was "Pons Aeni". Less frequently used terms were "Ponte Aoni", "Ad enum" or "stations Enensis". The Romano Celtic settlement existed for some 500 years with that name. Pons was between Aeni Isinisca (Aying) and Bedaium (today part of Seeon-Seebruck), as shown on the Roman road map Tabula Peutingeriana from the 4th century. The name "Pons Aeni" can still be recognised in local place names, "Pfunzen" in the name of the district "Langenpfunzen" and "Leonhardspfunzen".^[3]

Schloss Rosenheim in 1900, watercolour by Michael Kotz

Etymology

The origin of the city's name is not completely clear. First mentioned in 1234, Rosenheim castle is on the eastern bank of the Inn, on today's castle hill, overlooking a new bridge over the Inn. Perhaps the name comes from the Rosenheim Rose emblem of the Wasserburger Earl Hall, who built the castle. Another theory is that originally the name Ross was derived from the Rössern steeds that were used in medieval times to pull the river transport vessels, and for which there were large stables in Rosenheim. Still in use today the street names Am Esbaum (the tree on which the horses were grazing) or Am Roßacker are possible indications.

Another theory suggests that there could be a kindred word Roas, Roze or Ried, that used to mean swamp and peat bogs, which are still to be found around Rosenheim – evident also by the name of the neighboring town of Rosenheim Kolbermoor. An example of the old names, the nearby village of Riedering. Maybe the name is also derived from Rosenheim personal names Roso/Hrodo. The most beautiful word for word theory is that formerly 'Rose' used to mean a beautiful girl. It was well known among the Inn boatmen that there were many beauties to admire in this town. The sailors of the town liked to control what was called "home of the Rose" – in other words Rosenheim.

Development of Rosenheim

At about the time the first mention of Rosenheim castle in 1234, a settlement of boatmen developed on the western shore. The area around the Inn Bridge was not developed for a long time due to marshy soil at the proximity of the mouth of the river Mangfall, so the settlement was located several hundred meters away. The centre of Rosenheim is therefore not directly on the riverside.

Rosenheim and new Inn bridge on the postcard

Market Rosenheim

The town quickly grew in importance as a hub for all types of goods that were transported on the Inn (livestock, grain, silk, arms, salt) and in 1328 received Market town status. The Rosenheim ship masters made Rosenheim very wealthy during this era through the transport of goods, due to the location between Hall in Tirol the Inn and onwards to the Danube down to Vienna and Budapest. Until about 1600 the settlement had grown into one of the largest and most important markets in Bavaria, even though town privileges were only attained in 1864 from the Bavarian King Ludwig II.

Rosenheim experienced economic decline during the 17th century in the wake of the decline of Inn Shipping Company and the consequences of the Thirty Years' War. There was also a plague epidemic in 1634 and a market fire in 1641.

Rosenheim in the 19th century; the Inn river in the foreground; the Alps in the background

In the 19th century Rosenheim developed as an economic centre in the Southeast of Bavaria due to brine. In 1810 an early type of wooden pipeline brought brine from the Reichenhall and Traunstein salt mines to Rosenheim. Boiling the brine to make salt made Rosenheim the centre of Bavarian salt production until 1958.

Expansion of the railways brought early connection to the railway network. In 1858 Rosenheim station was inaugurated, however it would soon be too small and prove a hindrance for further urban development. In 1876 the station moved to its present site. The old railway line was the straight through road (now the city hall and Prince Regent Street, main Rosenheimer transport axis, from the northwest to the southeast of the city), the roundhouse of the original station is now an exhibition centre. The old station is directly opposite the 1878 City Hall and is used in the ZDF evening series "Die Rosenheim-Cops" as the police headquarters backdrop.

Rosenheim about 1860

The economic boom of the late 19th and early 20th century made the Gründerzeit – and Art Nouveau (and its regional characteristics, the Swiss chalet style) the most important architectural style, which now determines the townscape. The evangelical Church of the Redeemer was built in the neo-Gothic clinker brick style, which is rare for Rosenheim, for the growing Evangelical Lutheran congregation in the official district around today's town hall.

At the beginning of the 20th century, Rosenheim had nine breweries which are preserved in the names of some restaurants (Duschl-, Hof-, Mail-, Pernloher-, Stern-, Weißbräu). The only survivors being "Auerbräu" and "Flötzinger Bräu" who supply the "Märzen" for the "Rosenheimer Herbstfest" as well as the Bierbichler Weißbräu, among others.

Rosenheim in the Nazi era

Nepomuk statue

Redeemer church

The number of Jews living in Rosenheim was high compared to other Bavarian cities. At the start of the 20th century the Jewish community consisted of about 50 people. A request was made to the city council for establishment of a separate Jewish religious association, with reference to the Bavarian-Jewish legislation, but it was refused, so the Rosenheim Jews remained attached to the state capital, where their dead also had to be buried. Even the funeral of the First World War fallen son of a Jewish merchant based in Rosenheim at the city cemetery was refused and was "the biggest disappointment and the bitterest pain" for the father.

Mittertor, old city entrance

With the creation of the first local Nazi group outside of Munich in 1920, the Rosenheim Jews saw increasing hostility. Centre of hate campaigns was the Rosenheim School. A scandal occurred in June 1920, after a reader accused the writer of a letter titled "Rosenheimer Jews" in the local press, who wanted to repeal the provisions of the Versailles Treaty and held military exercises at the Rosenheim School. Seven members of the high school and a member of the "Chiemgau" then raided a villa inhabited by Jews in the Herbststrasse. The college of the city of Rosenheim, on 29 July 1920 came to the conclusion that

... es sei bedauerlich, dass die Bewegung zur Bekämpfung eines volksausbeuterischen Judentums [...], die in ihrem Wesen gewiß berechtigt sei, durch solche Auswüchse in Mißkredit komme.

"... it was regrettable that the people's movement to fight exploitative Jews[...], which certainly was justified in its nature, has been discredited." Protests of the Bavarian Jewish Central Association were unsuccessful, only an unmistakable message of the Bavarian Interior Ministry September 1920 was able to maintain peace.

Lokschuppen exhibition centre

On 1 April 1933, shortly after the Nazi seizure of power, guards were set up in front of Jewish shops, warning against buying in these stores but to desist assault and criminal damage. A large proportion of the population ignored these calls. The shops were therefore still frequented, much to the annoyance of Nazi activists who acted with the backing of then-Mayor Gmelch. Despite the support of the population, six of the eleven Jewish business owners gave up their businesses by 1937.

The assassination of German diplomat Ernst vom Rath by the Polish Jewish teenager Herschel Grynszpan on 7 November 1938 in Paris was taken as the pretext for Krystallnacht, a final opportunity to strike against the Jews. The SA came with 8 to 10 men on 10 November at 3–4 o'clock in the morning to the last two Jewish shops and destroyed their inventory and merchandise.

The fate of many Rosenheim Jews is documented. Those who could emigrate did so, mostly to the United States. However many failed entry and exit applications and many died in concentration camps.^[4]

Bombing during World War II

St. John the Baptist church and Bavarian Alps

From the beginning of bombing raids on German cities in the spring of 1942, Rosenheim was not spared. In November 1943 there were shelters for only 650 people for a population of approximately 22,000. However, by February 1944 shelters had been built for about 6400 people and in conjunction with other shelters a total of 10,525 people could be protected.

During 14 bomb attacks, 201 people were killed and 179 injured. The focus of the air attacks was the railway station and the railway tracks, as Rosenheim was an important transportation hub between Munich, Salzburg and Innsbruck. The neighbouring communities of Ziegelberg, Stephanskirchen, Westerndorf St. Peter and Oberpfaffenhofen were also hit. The first air attack was on 20 October 1944 at lunch time from 12:47 to 13:17 o'clock with over a hundred aircraft dropping 1,000 bombs, leaving 27 dead and 59 wounded. The heaviest air raid took place on 18 April 1945. From 14:40 to 14:55 around 200 aircraft dropped around 1300 bombs in the area around the station, resulting in 53 dead and 36 injured. This attack also made 800 people homeless. The station building was almost completely destroyed and railway tracks were destroyed over a length of 20 kilometres. The last air attacks were made on 19 and 21 April 1945. During the war the majority of at least 173 unexploded bombs were recovered. In 1964, the Oberbayerisches Volksblatt reported that the approximate location of 38 undiscovered unexploded ordnance was known.^[4]

Historical timeline

Railway bridge (Munich – Salzburg line) crossing the river Inn

Pedestrian zone Münchener Str. with Gillitzerblock

Population growth

Population growth in Rosenheim since 1840

Riedergarten

Coat of arms

Rosenheim's coat of arms shows a white rose on a red background. The white rose on a red background can be traced back to the former coat of arms of Wasserburg am Inn, as Wasserburg ruled Rosenheim until 1247. The oldest known seal of Rosenheim was built in 1374 and already shows the rose, which has not changed since. The only exception is a picture by Philipp Apian, which was painted around the year 1568 and shows a border around the rose.^[17]

The city of Rosenheim also has a logo and the same rose from the coat of arms can be found on it.

Theatre

The Kultur- und Kongresszentrum Rosenheim (KU'KO) (Culture and Congress Centre) was built on the site of the brine works, demolished in 1967. Inaugurated on 2 October 1982 as the city hall, now the Rosenheim Culture and Congress Centre has evolved over the years into a national event centre. Today in the 3000-square-meter multipurpose building approximately 400 events are held annually.

Museums

Ludwigsplatz

Confluence of the river Mangfall and the river Inn

Since 1885, the Mittertor has housed the Municipal Museum with a large collection (about 5000 exhibits) of the cultural history of the city and district of Rosenheim, from the prehistory and early history and Roman times to the recent city history in the 20th century. It is one of the most important regional history collections in South East Upper Bavaria.

The Inn Museum houses the hydraulic engineering and marine technology collection of the Rosenheim Water Management Office and is located in the historic river master's Bruckbaustadel at the Inn Bridge. With many original objects, the museum displays the Inn Shipping Company, the source of Rosenheim's prosperity in the Middle Ages, in the past centuries. In addition, the museum provides facts about the river landscape and river engineering, geology, settlement history, marine engineering, bridge design and the development of waterways.

The Wood technology Museum was established in 1990 in the listed Ellmaierhaus. It is housed on the first floor, which is accessed via the so-called Jacob's ladder. Over 400 square meters of exhibition space this unique museum displays wood as a raw material, its importance and processing past and present, which is closely related to the timber town of Rosenheim and its training centres for wood occupations. The exhibition shows not only the end products, but also their production and the necessary tools. Regular special exhibitions complete the offer of the Wood technology Museum.

The Municipal Gallery of 1935–1937 was built by German Bestelmeyer. Every year, six art exhibitions are held here. In addition to contemporary art, also exhibitions of works from the 19th and 20th century are held. A thematic focus is the art from the region and the Munich School.

The Lokschuppen is an internationally renowned exhibition centre with annually changing exhibitions in the former railway locomotive round house.

The brine pump house is one of the few monuments in the city which recall time from 1810 to 1958 of Rosenheim's brine industry.^[18] As part of the National Exposition salt makes history, the city renovated the historic listed building and set up an exhibition room about Rosenheim's brine history. Admission is only possible with city guides or by agreement with the Metropolitan Museum.

The Klepper museum houses various exhibits, on the one hand the history of the Klepper folding boat, coats and tents. On the other hand, it is also dedicated to the development of the company Klepper, who was once the biggest employer in Rosenheim.

Architecture

City hall (old railway station) with the "Lokschuppen" (old engine shed) in the background

The Mittertor (the sole survivor of five market gates) was the eastern gate of the market town before 1350, which was then protected with a double ditch. Since the 15th century, it separated the interior from the exterior of the market town and served as a customs office. Until the 19th century it also contained several municipal facilities such as the city clerk's office. After the great fire in 1641 the Rosenheim onion dome was built and later extended into a long building. At its core is the Mittertor, the oldest building in the city. On the façade facing the square is the emblem of Louis Rosenheim, with the white rose against a red background. The Bavarian crest can also be seen here.

Ludwigsplatz

The street Münchener Strasse follows the Gillitzerblock, that is also called "small pedestrian zone." Immediately apparent are the magnificently restored Gründerzeit fronts. The name Gillitzerblock come from its builder Thomas Gillitzer. At the end of the 19th century he obtained a relatively large area of land for its day, and built 15 houses, including the Hotel Deutscher Kaiser. Since the 1960s, the once solely Gründerzeit ensemble has been altered with new construction and renovations. Only the façades in Münchener Strasse have been preserved and restored to the original.

The Quest-Kunstmühle was built from 1855 to 1916 in several phases as industrial complexes. Kunstmühle was at these times the name for technically advanced mills which were generally not powered by water or wind – German Kunst meaning art, therefore implying artificially powered in English (Steam, Diesel, etc.). The mill was renovated in the 1990s and now serves as a restaurant and office space. The Quest-Kunstmühle Power station is located on the Mangfallkanal. The former mill houses the exhibition halls of the Rosenheim arts club. The approximately 200-square-metre (2,153 sq ft) upper floor holds exhibitions of contemporary artists, exchange exhibitions with other art associations and activities accompanying the exhibition.

The Rosenheim ballroom was built in the former Rosenheim Hofbräus buildings. The hall with ballroom and vaulted cellar was built in 1878. It was renovated in 1994 and since 2001 has been used as an event space, with its many possible uses of the centre of the eastern city of Rosenheim.

The city's landmark is the gothic spire (65 m (213 ft)) of the parish church St. Nikolaus (1,450 m (4,757 ft)) with its baroque onion dome (1,641 m (5,384 ft)).

Parks

The Kunstwiese shows three-dimensional contemporary art works by artists from Rosenheim all year round.

The Riedergarten was created in 1729 as a private herb garden by Rosenheim pharmacist Johann Rieder. It was sold to the town in 1925 by physician Herman Rieder for use as a summer garden. In 2002 the garden was redesigned by the opening up of a previously culverted stream, adding a modern character.

Since 1987 the Salingarten, in front of the Culture and Congress Centre Ku'Ko, has been used as a sculpture garden. Large sculptures by important sculptors from Rosenheim and environment can be seen here.

Ice hockey

Starbulls Rosenheim is the local ice hockey club, currently playing in the DEL2, Germany's second highest professional league. Their former team, the Sportbund Rosenheim, won the German championship three times (1982, 1985, 1989).

Football

TSV 1860 Rosenheim and Sportbund Rosenheim are the local football clubs, currently playing in Germany's sixth and ninth highest league, respectively.