Ottrott () is a

commune A commune is an alternative term for an intentional community. Commune or comună or comune or other derivations may also refer to: Administrative-territorial entities * Commune (administrative division), a municipality or township ** Communes of ...

in the

Bas-Rhin Bas-Rhin (; Alsatian: ''Unterelsàss'', ' or '; traditional german: links=no, Niederrhein; en, Lower Rhine) is a department in Alsace which is a part of the Grand Est super-region of France. The name means 'Lower Rhine', referring to its low ...

department Department may refer to: * Departmentalization, division of a larger organization into parts with specific responsibility Government and military *Department (administrative division), a geographical and administrative division within a country, ...

Grand Est Grand Est (; gsw-FR, Grossa Oschta; Moselle Franconian/ lb, Grouss Osten; Rhine Franconian: ''Groß Oschte''; german: Großer Osten ; en, "Great East") is an administrative region in Northeastern France. It superseded three former administrat ...

in north-eastern

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

.INSEE commune file
/ref> It lies southwest of

Strasbourg Strasbourg (, , ; german: Straßburg ; gsw, label=Bas Rhin Alsatian, Strossburi , gsw, label=Haut Rhin Alsatian, Strossburig ) is the prefecture and largest city of the Grand Est region of eastern France and the official seat of the Eu ...

. The vineyards in and around Ottrott produce the red Rouge d'Ottrott, a geographical denomination within the registered designation of origin

Alsace AOC Alsace wine or Alsatian wine (french: Vin d'Alsace; german: Elsässer Wein; gsw, label=Haut Rhin Alsatian, d'r Wii vum Elsàss; gsw, label=Bas Rhin Alsatian, de Win vum Elsàss) is produced in the Alsace region in France and is primarily whi ...

History

The village was first mentioned in 1059, in Latin in the ordnance survey of

Heinrich IV Henry IV may refer to: People * Henry IV, Holy Roman Emperor (1050–1106), King of the Romans and Holy Roman Emperor * Henry IV, Duke of Limburg (1195–1247) * Henry IV, Duke of Brabant (1251/1252–1272) * Henryk IV Probus (c. 1258–1290), Du ...

. The area rose to prominence in the 13th century when a number of castles were built. Many such as Château du Birkenfels stand but are in ruins today. Château du Birkenfels was built by Burkhard Berger, a

vassal A vassal or liege subject is a person regarded as having a mutual obligation to a lord or monarch, in the context of the feudal system in medieval Europe. While the subordinate party is called a vassal, the dominant party is called a suzerain. W ...

of the

bishop of Strasbourg {{Unreferenced, date=December 2009 These persons were bishop, archbishop or prince-bishop of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Strasbourg (including historically Prince-Bishopric of Strasbourg): Bishops and prince-bishops *Amandus *Justinus vo ...

. The castle's position allowed surveillance of the old Roman road running from

Mont Sainte-Odile , photo = Ottrott Mont Sainte-Odile.JPG , photo_caption = Mont Sainte-Odile and the Monastery , elevation_m = 764 , elevation_ref = Official maps of IGN available on the ''Géoportail''. , prominence_m = , prominence_ref= , range = Vos ...

to and the valley of the Bruche. The castle belonged to the Berger family who ruled Ottrott until 1532, then power fell to the Mundolsheim family until the

French Revolution The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in November 1799. Many of its ideas are considere ...

. The castle fell into ruins after the

Thirty Years' War The Thirty Years' War was one of the longest and most destructive conflicts in European history The history of Europe is traditionally divided into four time periods: prehistoric Europe (prior to about 800 BC), classical antiquity (80 ...

and was taken over by the town of Obernai, becoming part of the continuous forest between Obernai and Bernardswiller.

Demographic evolution

Geography

Neighboring communes

Bœrsch Bœrsch (; ) is a commune in the Bas-Rhin department in Grand Est in north-eastern France. Notable person * Charles Spindler See also * Communes of the Bas-Rhin department The following is a list of the 514 communes of the Bas-Rhin depa ...

Saint-Nabor Saint-Nabor (; german: Sankt Nabor) is a commune in the Bas-Rhin department in Grand Est in north-eastern France. See also * Communes of the Bas-Rhin department The following is a list of the 514 communes of the Bas-Rhin department of Fra ...

* Neuviller-la-Roche *

Barr Barr may refer to: Places * Barr (placename element), element of place names meaning 'wooded hill', 'natural barrier' * Barr, Ayrshire, a village in Scotland * Barr Building (Washington, DC), listed on the US National Register of Historic Places ...

Le Hohwald Le Hohwald (german: Hohwald) is a commune in the Bas-Rhin department in Alsace in north-eastern France. Geography Climate Le Hohwald is a hill village, with altitude above sea level in the commune ranging from 450 meters to nearly 1100 meters ...

* Bernardswiller *

Obernai Obernai ( Alsatian: ''Owernah''; german: Oberehnheim) commune in the Bas-Rhin department in Alsace in north-eastern France. It lies on the eastern slopes of the Vosges mountains. Obernai is a rapidly growing city, its number of inhabitants havin ...

Landmarks

* Château du Birkenfels, (13th century) * Château de Dreistein, (13th century) * Château du Hagelschloss, (13th century) * Château de Kagenfels, (13th century) * Château de Koepfel *

Château de Lutzelbourg The château du Lutzelbourg is a château founded by Pierre de Lutzelbourg in the 11th century on a rocky promontory overlooking the Zorn valley in France at an altitude of 322m, in Lutzelbourg (Moselle). It has been classified as a Historic Monu ...

, (13th century) * Château de Rathsamhausen, (13th century - (15th century) * Château de Windeck, (13th century - (14th century) * Chapelle Saint Nicolas (17th century) * Église Saints Simon et Jude, Built 1771. *