Ratshausen is a municipality the

Zollernalbkreis The Zollernalbkreis is a Districts of Germany, ''Landkreis'' (district) in the middle of Baden-Württemberg, Germany. The district is located in the Swabian Alb, and contains the second highest elevation of this range, the high ''Oberhohenberg'' ...

district, 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 betwe ...

History

In 1805, Ratshausen, previously a possession of the Austrian

County 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 ...

, was annexed by the

Kingdom of Württemberg The Kingdom of Württemberg (german: Königreich Württemberg ) was a German state that existed from 1805 to 1918, located within the area that is now Baden-Württemberg. The kingdom was a continuation of the Duchy of Württemberg, which exist ...

. Ratshausen was assigned to , and remained in that district until it was dissolved into in 1938. The town transformed after

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

from a rural and agricultural town to a commercial center. Residential space was added to the southwest in the 1950s. As part of the , the district of Balingen was dissolved and Ratshausen reassigned to the newly-created district of Zollernalb. Further development took place in the 1990s in the north and south.

Geography

The municipality (''

Gemeinde Gemeinde (; plural: Gemeinden) is a German word translating to "community", "town", "parish", or "municipality". Gemeinde may refer to: * An administrative division encompassing a single village, town, or city: ** Gemeinde (Austria) ** Gemeinde (G ...

'') of Ratshausen is located in the Zollernalb district of

, one of the 16 states of the

Federal Republic of 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 between ...

. It is located at the southwest end of the district and borders Tuttlingen district to the south. Ratshausen is physically located primarily in the , in the valley of the

Schlichem Schlichem is a river of Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It passes through Schömberg, Zollernalbkreis, Schömberg and flows, away, into the Neckar in Epfendorf. Geography Course Its source is located north of Tieringen (district of Meßstett ...

, which flows through Ratshausen itself. Elevation above sea level in the municipal area ranges from a high of

Normalnull ("standard zero") or (short N. N. or NN ) is an outdated official vertical datum used in Germany. Elevations using this reference system were to be marked (“meters above standard zero”). has been replaced by (NHN). History In 187 ...

(NN) at the top of the

Plettenberg Plettenberg (; Westphalian: ''Plettmert'') is a town in the Märkischer Kreis, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Geography Plettenberg is located to the west of the Sauerland hills. The highest elevation of the town area is in the ''Ebbegebir ...

to a low of NN on the Schlichem. A portion of the Federally-protected Ortenberg, , and

nature reserves A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, or features of geological or o ...

is located in Ratshausen's municipal area.

Coat of arms

Ratshausen's coat of arms depicts a

white White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White on ...

trowel upon a

field Field may refer to: Expanses of open ground * Field (agriculture), an area of land used for agricultural purposes * Airfield, an aerodrome that lacks the infrastructure of an airport * Battlefield * Lawn, an area of mowed grass * Meadow, a grass ...

red Red is the color at the long wavelength end of the visible spectrum of light, next to orange and opposite violet. It has a dominant wavelength of approximately 625–740 nanometres. It is a primary color in the RGB color model and a secondar ...

. This pattern is derived from a

seal Seal may refer to any of the following: Common uses * Pinniped, a diverse group of semi-aquatic marine mammals, many of which are commonly called seals, particularly: ** Earless seal, or "true seal" ** Fur seal * Seal (emblem), a device to impr ...

used in the 19th century by the local

Schultheiß In medieval Germany, the ''Schultheiß'' () was the head of a municipality (akin to today's office of mayor), a ''Vogt'' or an executive official of the ruler. As official (''villicus'') it was his duty to order his assigned village or county (' ...

that portrayed a oval shield with a wreath and a trowel upon it. The tool itself is a reference to the compulsory labor inhabitants of Ratshausen were expected to perform in the summer, usually the laying of bricks. The

tincture A tincture is typically an extract of plant or animal material dissolved in ethanol (ethyl alcohol). Solvent concentrations of 25–60% are common, but may run as high as 90%.Groot Handboek Geneeskrachtige Planten by Geert Verhelst In chemistr ...

, a reference to the County of Hohenberg, was decided by the provisional post-WWII

Württemberg-Hohenzollern Württemberg-Hohenzollern (french: Wurtemberg-Hohenzollern ) was a West German state created in 1945 as part of the French post-World War II occupation zone. Its capital was Tübingen. In 1952, it was merged into the newly founded state of Bad ...

government that awarded this coat of arms to Ratshausen on 27 March 1950. A corresponding flag was issued by the Zollernalb district office on 21 May 1991.

Transportation

Local public transportation is provided by the .

Notable people

* Michael Reitz, accused witch burned at the stake in 1580. * Barbara Hengstallerin, accused witch burned at the stake in 1618.

References

External links

* (in German) {{Authority control Württemberg