Cleebronn () is a

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality'' may also mean the go ...

in the district of

Heilbronn Heilbronn () is a List of cities and towns in Germany, city in northern Baden-Württemberg, Germany, surrounded by Heilbronn (district), Heilbronn District. With over 126,000 residents, it is the sixth-largest city in the state. From the late Mid ...

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 ...

in southern

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 betwe ...

Geography

Cleebronn is in the Zabergäu in the south of the district of Heilbronn, directly in the north of the Stromberg mountain with an elevation of . The landscape is characterised by wine-growing. The symbol of the municipality and the whole Zabergäu is the Michaelsberg, which has an elevation of .

Neighbouring municipalities

Neighbouring towns of Cleebronn are (clockwise from the west):

Güglingen Güglingen () is a town in the district of Heilbronn in Baden-Württemberg in southern Germany. It is situated 18 km southwest of Heilbronn. Geography Güglingen is situated in a valley called Zabergäu in the southwest district of Heilbron ...

Brackenheim Brackenheim () is a town in the ''Landkreis'' Heilbronn in Baden-Württemberg in southern Germany. It is southwest of Heilbronn. With of vineyards, it is the biggest grape-growing municipality of Württemberg. Geography Geographical positio ...

(both in the district of Heilbronn),

Bönnigheim Bönnigheim () is a town in the German administrative district ( Kreis) of Ludwigsburg which lies at the edge of the areas known as ''Stromberg'' and ''Zabergäu''. The nearest large towns are Ludwigsburg and Heilbronn. Geography District ...

and

Sachsenheim Sachsenheim () is a town in the district of Ludwigsburg, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is situated 11 km northwest of Ludwigsburg. Buildings * The most important attraction is the water castle in Großsachsenheim. Built in the 14th cent ...

(both in the district of Ludwigsburg). Cleebronn has combined with Brackenheim to form a joint association.

Municipal structure

Cleebronn includes the villages of Treffentrill and Katharinenplaisir.

History

The first documented mention of Cleebronn was in 1279 as ''Kleberen''. In the 13th century there were some possessions of the Principality of Mainz around the Michaelsberg being rented to Cleebronn's Lords of Magenheim. In the 14th century

Württemberg Württemberg ( ; ) is a historical German territory roughly corresponding to the cultural and linguistic region of Swabia. The main town of the region is Stuttgart. Together with Baden and Hohenzollern, two other historical territories, Würt ...

acquired around two-thirds of the village as ''Württembergisch Cleebronn''. The other third stayed in the possession of the principality as ''Mainzisch Cleebronn''. In 1785 Württemberg acquired this last third, but stayed independent. These municipalities which independent until 1843 were called ''Alt-Cleebronn'' and ''Neu-Cleebronn'' until 1811. These two remaining parts were not united with the rest until January 1, 1844. Cleebronn has a Protestant parish.

Politics

District council

The district council of Cleebronn has 12 seats. The mayor is also a member of the district council and its chairman.

Culture and sights

Notable buildings

* The Protestant ''Raphaelskirche'' has Gothic parts and was redeveloped in 1900–01. Next to the church is the old vicarage. * The current town hall was built in 1736 and has been redeveloped several times. * The ''Bürgerhaus'' was built in 1902 as a school instead of the old town hall. The school ended in 1994, until it was modernised in 1997. * The wine-press of the village dates from 1907 and formerly was the biggest wine-press of Württemberg. * The ''Backhaus'' was built in 1930 and redeveloped in 1985; it contains two functional ovens. * Above the village on a hill is Magenheim Castle, which the Staufers built in 1250, formerly seat of the Lords of Magenheim. * On the ''Michaelsberg'' there is a Romanic church and a spital of 1739 (today's youth hostel). * The hamlet ''Katharinenplaisir'' is a Baroque estate built in 1733 and named after the builder's wife. * Situated on the communal land of Cleebronn with an elevation of is the highest point of the Stromberg mountain ridge. A telecommunications tower was built on it in 1969. Image:Cleebronn-rathaus1736-web.jpg, town hall Image:Cleebronn-backhaus1930-web.jpg, ''Backhaus'' of 1930 Image:Cleebronn-kelter1907-web.jpg, wine-press of 1907 Image:20060903 Michaelsberg Michaelskirche Alterraum.jpg, inside the ''Michaelskirche''

Economy and infrastructure

Wine-growing

On the ''Michaelsberg'' vines have been grown for 1200 years. There are different

varietal A varietal wine is a wine made primarily from a single named grape variety, and which typically displays the name of that variety on the wine label.The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition, 2000.winepros.com.au. ...

s like

blaufränkisch Blaufränkisch (German for ''blue Frankish'') is a dark-skinned variety of grape used for red wine. and California, DNA profiling has shown that Blaufränkisch is a cross between Gouais blanc (Weißer Heunisch; male parent) and Blaue Zimmettr ...

trollinger Trollinger, Schiava, or Vernatsch, is a red German/Italian wine grape variety that was likely first originally cultivated in the wine regions of South Tyrol and Trentino, but today is almost exclusively cultivated on steep, sunny locations in t ...

riesling Riesling (, ; ) is a white grape variety that originated in the Rhine region. Riesling is an aromatic grape variety displaying flowery, almost perfumed, aromas as well as high acidity. It is used to make dry, semi-sweet, sweet, and sparkling wh ...

and Kerner. Most wine-growers belong to the ''Weingärtnergenossenschaft Weingärtner Cleebronn-Güglingen eG''.

Transportation

There are connections to the long-distance rail network via

Lauffen Lauffen am Neckar () or simply Lauffen is a town in the district of Heilbronn, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is on the river Neckar, southwest of Heilbronn. The town is famous as the birthplace of the poet Friedrich Hölderlin and for its ...

and Kirchheim ( B 27). Public transport is provided by buses of the HNV. The ''Zabergäubahn'', being shut down for several years, has a station in the neighbouring Frauenzimmern.

Local businesses

A well-known employer is ''Zink Feuerwerk GmbH'', producing

fireworks Fireworks are a class of Explosive, low explosive Pyrotechnics, pyrotechnic devices used for aesthetic and entertainment purposes. They are most commonly used in fireworks displays (also called a fireworks show or pyrotechnics), combining a l ...

. Founded in 1949, the company originated in an older company with fireworks founded in 1852. It is one of the last producers of fireworks in Germany and produces both rockets and big fireworks, with 20 employees. Both the founder Paul Zink and his son and successor Walter became honorary citizens of Cleebronn.History
at zink-feuerwerk.com (retrieved on May 18, 2008)
Joachim Rüeck: ''Der Rummel kam erst nach dem 70. Geburtstag''. In: ''Heilbronner Stimme'' of July 19, 2004
Klaus Thomas Heck: ''Die dicke Berta kommt aus China''. In: ''Heilbronner Stimme'' of December 30, 2006

Media

The daily paper ''Heilbronner Stimme'' south-west edition has local news.

Education

The primary school ''Friedrich-Hölderlin-Grundschule'' in Cleebronn has had a new building since 1994. Secondary schools are situated in Cleebronn's neighbouring towns. There are two kindergartens held by the Protestant church. Also, Cleebronn has a small library within its ''Bürgerhaus'' as well as a separate book store selling used books.

Leisure

Below the ''Michaelsberg'' is the

Erlebnispark Tripsdrill Erlebnispark Tripsdrill is a wildlife and theme park near Cleebronn in Southern Germany. Covering in total, the park offers 29 attractions, including museums, animal petting and feeding, roller coasters, playgrounds, and a theatre. Opened in 19 ...

. Next to it is the ''Wildparadies Stromberg'' (wildlife park). On a surface of there are around 100 attractions, zoological institutions and museums to visit. Near the park is the tennis ground of the ''TC Cleebronn'', which has five tennis courts to play and a further one to play beach-volleyball.

Sons of the community

Sigismund Wilhelm Koelle Sigismund Wilhelm Koelle or Kölle (July 14, 1823 – February 18, 1902) was a German missionary working on behalf of the London-based Church Missionary Society, at first in Sierra Leone, where he became a pioneer scholar of the languages of Africa ...

(1820-1902), missionary and linguistic researcher * Carl Krauch (1853-1934), chemist

References

External links

www.cleebronn.de
(in German) {{Authority control Heilbronn (district) Württemberg