Bad Wildbad is a town in

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 ...

, in the state of

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 ...

. It is located in the government district (''

Regierungsbezirk A ' () means "governmental district" and is a type of administrative division in Germany. Four of sixteen ' ( states of Germany) are split into '. Beneath these are rural and urban districts. Saxony has ' (directorate districts) with more res ...

'') of

Karlsruhe Karlsruhe ( , , ; South Franconian: ''Kallsruh'') is the third-largest city of the German state (''Land'') of Baden-Württemberg after its capital of Stuttgart and Mannheim, and the 22nd-largest city in the nation, with 308,436 inhabitants. ...

and in the district (''

Landkreis In all German states, except for the three city states, the primary administrative subdivision higher than a '' Gemeinde'' (municipality) is the (official term in all but two states) or (official term in the states of North Rhine-Westphalia ...

'') of Calw. Its coordinates are 48° 45' N, 8° 33' E. About 10,130 people live there. The current

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well ...

is Mauro Gauger. The current town of Bad Wildbad is an amalgamation of several communities brought together under local government reform in 1974. The member communities are Wildbad, Calmbach, Sprollenhaus, Nonnenmiß and Aichelberg, along with the hamlets of Hünerberg und Meistern. The town was named only Wildbad until 1991, when it was given its current name ("Bad" is

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

for "bath", a reference to the town's status as a

spa town A spa town is a resort town based on a mineral spa (a developed mineral spring). Patrons visit spas to "take the waters" for their purported health benefits. Thomas Guidott set up a medical practice in the English town of Bath, Somerset, B ...

It is picturesquely situated 420 m above

sea level Mean sea level (MSL, often shortened to sea level) is an average surface level of one or more among Earth's coastal bodies of water from which heights such as elevation may be measured. The global MSL is a type of vertical datuma standardis ...

, in the romantic pine-clad gorge of the Enz, a tributary of the

Neckar The Neckar () is a river in Germany, mainly flowing through the southwestern state of Baden-Württemberg, with a short section through Hesse. The Neckar is a major right tributary of the Rhine. Rising in the Schwarzwald-Baar-Kreis near Schwen ...

in the

Black Forest The Black Forest (german: Schwarzwald ) is a large forested mountain range in the state of Baden-Württemberg in southwest Germany, bounded by the Rhine Valley to the west and south and close to the borders with France and Switzerland. It is ...

. The town is 45 km west 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 ...

, 50 km southeast of

, 30 km south of Pforzheim, and 23 km east of

Baden-Baden Baden-Baden () is a spa town in the state of Baden-Württemberg, south-western Germany, at the north-western border of the Black Forest mountain range on the small river Oos, ten kilometres (six miles) east of the Rhine, the border with Fra ...

. The town has a direct Tram link to Pforzheim by Line S6 which runs from the Kurpark in the town, along King Karl Street itself to the town's old railway station before heading out into the country via Calmbach, Höfen an der Enz, Neuenbürg and

Birkenfeld Birkenfeld () is a town and the district seat of the Birkenfeld district in southwest Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is also the seat of the like-named ''Verbandsgemeinde''. The town itself has approximately 7,000 inhabitants. Geography ...

. Towering above Bad Wildbad is a small

mountain A mountain is an elevated portion of the Earth's crust, generally with steep sides that show significant exposed bedrock. Although definitions vary, a mountain may differ from a plateau in having a limited summit area, and is usually higher ...

, the Wildbader Sommerberg, whose top may be reached by the Sommerbergbahn, a

funicular railway A funicular (, , ) is a type of cable railway system that connects points along a railway track laid on a steep slope. The system is characterized by two counterbalanced carriages (also called cars or trains) permanently attached to opposite en ...

. It covers a vertical difference of about 300 m. It is historically a popular medicinal spa. The neighbourhood is picturesque, the most attractive spot being the Wildsee—a small lake some distance from the town itself, measuring 2.3 ha, and at about 900 m above sea level. The annual Rossini in Wildbad opera festival, held in July, brings an international audience to the Kurhaus and the Kurtheater to hear belcanto works by

Gioachino Rossini Gioachino Antonio Rossini (29 February 1792 – 13 November 1868) was an Italian composer who gained fame for his 39 operas, although he also wrote many songs, some chamber music and piano pieces, and some sacred music. He set new standards ...

and his contemporaries. It is the scene of the early pages of '' Armadale'' by Wilkie Collins. A part of Bad Wildbad is Aichelberg. There is a path: Fautsburg Path.

Transportation

Bad Wildbad is connected to Germany's national rail network through the

Karlsruhe Stadtbahn The Karlsruhe Stadtbahn is a German tram-train system combining tram lines in the city of Karlsruhe with railway lines in the surrounding countryside, serving the entire region of the middle upper Rhine valley and creating connections to neighbo ...

, line S6, running on the Enz Valley Railway. Being located deep in the northern Black Forest, Bad Wildbad has no direct connection with any

Autobahn The (; German plural ) is the federal controlled-access highway system in Germany. The official German term is (abbreviated ''BAB''), which translates as 'federal motorway'. The literal meaning of the word is 'Federal Auto(mobile) Track' ...

. The nearest one is just west of Pforzheim.

Famous residents

* Ludwig Hofacker, (1798–1828), was born in Wildbad, Württemberg author, politician (Paulskirche) and translator (Aristophanes) * Justinus Kerner (1786–1862), poet, writer and physician * The Holocaust denier Ernst Zündel was born 1939 in Calmbach and grew up here and would live out his last years here following his deportation from Canada. * ATP professional Marcello Graca grew up in Bad Wildbad * The economist and financial scientist Rudolf Nickel (born 1942 in Nuremberg), grew up in Bad Wildbad.

Persons with reference to Bad Wildbad

Duke Karl Alexander signed his contract (Schutzbrief) with the jewish merchant and bankier Joseph Ben Isachar Süßkind Oppenheimer in Bad Wildbad. Charles Alexander and his relationship with Oppenheimer is fictionally portrayed in

Veit Harlan Veit Harlan (22 September 1899 – 13 April 1964) was a German film director and actor. Harlan reached the highpoint of his career as a director in the Nazi era; most notably his antisemitic film '' Jud Süß'' (1940) makes him controversia ...

's 1940 Nazi propaganda film titled '' Jud Süß''.

Transportation

Famous residents

Persons with reference to Bad Wildbad

Notes

References

Further reading