Balingen (;

Swabian Swabian or Schwabian, or ''variation'', may refer to: * the German region of Swabia (German: "''Schwaben''") * Swabian German, a dialect spoken in Baden-Württemberg in south-west Germany and adjoining areas (German:"''Schwäbisch''") * Danube S ...

: ''Balenga'') is a town in

Baden-Württemberg Baden-Württemberg (; ), commonly shortened to BW or BaWü, is a German state () in Southwest Germany, east of the Rhine, which forms the southern part of Germany's western border with France. With more than 11.07 million inhabitants across a ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwee ...

, capital of the

district A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivision ...

of Zollernalbkreis. It is located near the

Swabian Jura The Swabian Jura (german: Schwäbische Alb , more rarely ), sometimes also named Swabian Alps in English, is a mountain range in Baden-Württemberg, Germany, extending from southwest to northeast and in width. It is named after the region of ...

, approx. 35 km to the south of

Tübingen Tübingen (, , Swabian: ''Dibenga'') is a traditional university city in central Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is situated south of the state capital, Stuttgart, and developed on both sides of the Neckar and Ammer rivers. about one in three ...

, 35 km northeast of Villingen-Schwenningen, and 70 km south southwest of

Stuttgart Stuttgart (; Swabian: ; ) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Baden-Württemberg. It is located on the Neckar river in a fertile valley known as the ''Stuttgarter Kessel'' (Stuttgart Cauldron) and lies an hour from the Sw ...

. It is home to the

Bizerba Bizerba SE & Co. KG is a German provider of weighing and slicing technologies for industry and trade and is a worldwide leading specialist in industrial weighing and labeling technologies. It was founded in 1866 Andreas Bizer in Balingen. Its na ...

and Ideal companies.

History

Balingen is first mentioned in 863. Initially a possession of the lords of Haigerloch, in 1162 it was acquired by the

count of Hohenberg The Counts of Hohenberg (or Margraves of Hohenberg) were an ancient Swabian dynasty in the southwest of the present-day Germany the state of Baden-Württemberg. In the 13th century, the dynasty of Hohenberg was one of the most prominent lineag ...

. In the 13th century it received the title of city from Friedrich der Erlauchte, it was largely rebuilt on the left bank of the river Eyach. In 1403 it was sold to the County of Württemberg, whose chancellor maintained a residence there until the 18th century. Balingen became part of the unified Germany in 1870.

Main sights

The city was destroyed by a fire in 1809, from which only the Protestant church, the castle and a few other edifices escaped. The Protestant church's construction finished in 1541; it has a characteristic

sundial A sundial is a horological device that tells the time of day (referred to as civil time in modern usage) when direct sunlight shines by the apparent position of the Sun in the sky. In the narrowest sense of the word, it consists of a f ...

in the apse. The castle was reconstructed in 1935.

Sulfor spring

In Balingen there is the enclosed, publicly accessible sulfur spring, whose water is said to have healing powers and support the immune system. As with the medicinal springs in Bad Sebastiansweiler, the spring is made up of dissolved, sulfur-containing sodium hydrogen carbonate (Na-HCO3) from the rock (Black Jura). When the rock containing pyrites (pyrite) is weathered, the oxidation of the pyrite with subsequent bacterial reduction of the sulfate ion produces hydrogen sulfide (H2S). It gives the mineral water the smell of rotten eggs. It contains dissolved substances and hydrogen sulfide. Visitors who regularly drink from it should note that the daily intake of hydrogen sulfide does not exceed the limit of 100 mg.

Nickname

World Capital

Balingen call'' Waagenstadt'' the metropolis of

scales Scale or scales may refer to: Mathematics * Scale (descriptive set theory), an object defined on a set of points * Scale (ratio), the ratio of a linear dimension of a model to the corresponding dimension of the original * Scale factor, a number w ...

. The father

Philipp Matthäus Hahn Philipp Matthäus Hahn (25 November 1739 in Scharnhausen (today part of Ostfildern), Duchy of Württemberg – 2 May 1790 in Echterdingen (today part of Leinfelden-Echterdingen)) was a German pastor, astronomer and inventor. In about 1763 he d ...

behind the original idea. Frommern call ''Möbelstadt'' the metropolis o of

furniture Furniture refers to movable objects intended to support various human activities such as seating (e.g., stools, chairs, and sofas), eating ( tables), storing items, eating and/or working with an item, and sleeping (e.g., beds and hammocks) ...

in the time of

Wirtschaftswunder The ''Wirtschaftswunder'' (, "economic miracle"), also known as the Miracle on the Rhine, was the rapid reconstruction and development of the economies of West Germany and Austria after World War II (adopting an ordoliberalism-based social ma ...

. In Frommern a line of high polished industrial production ( fine veneered wood) take up the ideas of the royal ''Hofebenist''. In the ''Haus der Volkskunst''of the Schwäbischer Albverein the traditional '' Himmelbett'' is use as a hotel bed.

Notable people

* Gregor Reisch (1470–1525), university teacher and monk, representative of the philosophical school of the late scholastic realists *

Joseph Weiß Joseph Weiß (born 1486 or 1487; died 1565) was a German Renaissance painting, Renaissance painter. Weiss was born and died in Balingen. He came from a family of painters: his father, Marx Weiß the Elder (died 1518), and brother, Marx Weiß t ...

(c. 1487–1565), also '' Joseph White painter of Balingen '' and possibly the ''

Master of Meßkirch The Master of Meßkirch (German: Meister von Meßkirch; active c. 1515 - 1540) was an anonymous German Renaissance painter. Biography The so-called Master of Meßkirch is named after the eleven altarpieces (one main altarpiece and ten auxiliar ...

'', painter of the

Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history marking the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and covering the 15th and 16th centuries, characterized by an effort to revive and surpass ide ...

Marx Weiß Marx Weiß the Younger (c. 1518 - 25 February 1580; also known as Marx Weiß of Balingen) was a late Gothic German painter. He was born in Balingen, the son of painter Marx Weiß the Elder, and the brother of painter Joseph Weiß. He died in � ...

(c. 1518–1580), the Younger, also '' Marx White from Balingen '', painter of Late Gothic Image Johann Tobias Beck

Johann Tobias Beck Johann Tobias Beck (22 February 1804 in Balingen, Württemberg – 28 December 1878 in Tübingen) was a German theologian. Biography Graduating from the University of Tübingen in 1826, he was ordained a minister, but later accepted an appoin ...

(1804–1878), Protestant theologian * Heinrich Lang (1826–1876), theologian * Martin Haug (1827–1876), orientalist * Robert Wahl (1882–1955), entrepreneur and local politicians * Heinrich Haasis (born 1945), mayor, Member of Parliament, President of the German Savings Bank Association (2006–2012) * Joachim Schmid (born 1955), painter *

Martin Schaudt Martin Schaudt (born 7 December 1958 in Balingen, Baden-Württemberg) is a German equestrian and Olympic champion. He won a gold medal in ''team dressage'' at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and m ...

(born 1958), dressage rider * Michael Hennrich (born 1965), politician (CDU), Member of Parliament * Christoph Sieber (born 1970), comedian * Kathrin Lang (born 1986), biathlete * Frank Lehmann (born 1989), soccer goalkeeper * Pascal Bodmer (born 1991), ski jumper * Florian Kath (born 1994), football player

Personalities who have worked locally

* Johann Murer, Karsthans (1490–1525), Lutherean priest, arrested at the Church of Balingen, was a prisoner in the tower of Balingen *

Karl Friedrich Reinhard Karl may refer to: People * Karl (given name), including a list of people and characters with the name * Karl der Große, commonly known in English as Charlemagne * Karl Marx, German philosopher and political writer * Karl of Austria, last Austri ...

(1761–1837), French diplomat, statesman and writer of German origin, grew partly up in Balingen * Andreas Bizer (1839–1914), mechanic and industrialist, co-founder of

Geography

Climate

Using the 0 °C isotherm, Balingen has a

humid continental climate A humid continental climate is a climatic region defined by Russo-German climatologist Wladimir Köppen in 1900, typified by four distinct seasons and large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers and freez ...

( Köppen: ''Dfb'').

Twin towns – sister cities

Balingen is twinned with: * Royan, France

Natural Sport

* trail mountainbike Tieringen Albtrauf to Balingen-Weilstetten Lochenpass 4,7 km car road, bike trail 1,9 km downhill.Outdoor
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References

External links

Official website
{{Authority control Towns in Baden-Württemberg Zollernalbkreis Württemberg