Mulhouse, France - AT THE CROSSROADS
OF THREE COUNTRIES
Mulhouse, France is set in the Alsace Region found in the
South Eastern border of France and Germany. It was a couple of hours on
the highway from Zurich. It's a mere stone's throw away from Switzerland and
Germany, at the gateway to the attractive Sundgau region. Mulhouse is the second
biggest town in Alsace with a population of some 200 000 inhabitants and a
bi-national airport unique in its kind in Europe, is a true «crossroads of
Europe».
Its past history has turned it into a major industrial centre
with future orientated activities such as communications, town-planning,
research, along with a vocation for sport and its famous university. In bygone
days a small market town of wine-growers and craftsmen, the town was rebuilt
after the war. Easily recognizable at a distance by its high tower, the Tour de
l'Europe, is it any wonder that any visit to the town begins by a view over its
rooftops from the top of this very same tower. From up high one can see the
Place de la Reunion (Meeting square), the historic heart of the free Republic of
Mulhouse, with its Town-Hall which is characteristic of the Rhine Renaissance
style of architecture and was referred to by the French writer Montaigne as a
magnificent golden palace. The allegorical figures on its facade whose colours
have been brightened up countless times, were painted by Jean Gabriel in 1699.
We can also find in the same square the Mieg house, with its Renaissance style
turrets which has preserved all the charm of the old bourgeois residence it once
was; The Temple of St Steven with its remarkable 14th c. stained glass windows
and its 17th c. stalls.
Here is what you really must see in a jumbled up order : the
Pharmacie «Au Lys» (1646), the Cour des Chaines which became a bourgeois
residence in the 16th c., the Tour du Diable (Devil's Tower) in which women
accused of witchcraft were imprisoned, the 13th c. St John's Chapel which houses
many lapidary fragments, the so-called uLcewenfels» house which is rightly
regarded as the most beautiful example of 18th c. architecture in the city, the
Bollwerk Tower (meaning stronghold) a vestige of the 14th c. fortifications.
One cannot visit Mulhouse without discovering its unusual and
fascinating museums, a perfect blend of technical and artistic skills :
- the elegant Museum of Fine Arts, set in a noble residence
dating back, to the 18th c., in which works of art from different periods and
schools are splendidly exhibited. Among the most captivating are «Venus et
l'Amour» a beautiful 16th c. painting attributed to the Cranach school,
Boucher's Augement de Paris», a skating scene by Pieter Bruegel the Younger,
several works by Courbet, Boudin and Troyon.
- the comprehensive History museum houses among others the
famous archeological collections from the Rixheim burial mound discovered in
1858.
- the museum of Textile printing a distant heir of the
documentary centre founded in 1833: the archives contain some 8 million samples
and drawings.
- the prestigious National Motor Car museum is a «must». It
enables the visitor to admire the private collection of the Schlumpf family. It
houses some 500 veteran cars of 90 different makes for which it has gained the
title of the most imposing museum of its kind in the world.
- not forgetting the Wallpaper museum, the National Railway
and Fire Brigade museums which are unique in their kind. From the early 19th
century the inclusion of parks, squares and gardens constituted an essential
feature of town-planning. The Zoological and Botanical gardens, which cover a
total surface area of 62 acres are the home of over a thousand animals. All in
all, a peaceful place for a relaxing day for the inhabitants of Mulhouse.
Here we visited the old square with the Protestant Church
which is famous in the center. We had the taste of French pizza and wine
before going to see some churches in the area. The contrast between St.
Etienne Catholic Church and St. Marie's Catholic Church was interesting.
We see evidence in the next couple of photo's
Mulhouse, France - ordinary church outside - very ornate
inside
Mulhouse, France - ordinary church outside - very ornate
inside
Mulhouse, France - ordinary church outside - very ornate
inside
Mulhouse, France - ordinary church outside - very ornate
inside
Mulhouse, France - ordinary church outside - very ornate
inside
Mulhouse, France - Claude Jolly our host at an ordinary church
outside - very ornate inside
Mulhouse, France - ordinary church outside - very ornate
inside
Mulhouse, France - Protestant church
Mulhouse, France - ornate church outside - gothic inside
French National Railway
Museum, Mulhouse Cité du Train
Situated in Mulhouse in Alsace, the Cité du Train [French
Railway Museum] is the biggest railway museum in Europe. Here we walked through
the history of the railway. We saw everything from the train set to a cut away
of an locomotive.
Mulhouse, France - Claude at the largest train museum in
Europe
Mulhouse, France - cut away of train at the train museum
Mulhouse, France - an old train at the train museum
Chateau du Haut Koenigsbourg Castle
The Chateau Haut-Koenigsbourg Castle is located just west of
Sélestat in Alsace. The castle is located high up on a rocky outcrop that
provided us with a phenominal view of the Alsace Valley below. During it's life
it provided a fortress that the people in the valley below used when the area
was invaded by foreigners. The Alsace-Loraine region of France has gone from
French to Germain back to French occupation numerous times over the centuries.
The castle that had been built there in the 12th century had
been destroyed in 1462 and was rebuilt at the end of the 15th century. Once
again the castle was destroyed around 1633 after the 30 years war. It was these
ruins that were presented to Kaiser Wilhem II in 1871 after Alsace was
reincorporated into Germany following the Franco-Prussian War of 1870.
Much of the castle that we saw is an early 20th century renovation of the
castle. At that time Kaiser Wilhelm oversaw the rennovation that was based on
what he believed it looked like prior to it's destruction in 1633.
Alsace Region, France - model of Chateau du Haut Koenigsbourg
castle
Alsace Region, France - Our hosts Catherine and Claude at the
Chateau du Haut Koenigsbourg castle
Bob in front of a ceramic heater at the Chateau du Haut
Koenigsbourg castle
At one of the doorways of the Chateau du Haut Koenigsbourg
castle
Chateau du Haut Koenigsbourg castle tapestry
Chateau du Haut Koenigsbourg castle door lock
a view from the top floor south wing of the Chateau du Haut
Koenigsbourg castle
a canon at the of the Chateau du Haut Koenigsbourg castle
Ribeauville, France
Ribeauville, France - Stork's nest brings good fortune to home
owner with the nest
Ribeauville, France - view of the village and hills from the
highway
Hunawihr, France
Hunawihr, France - entrance to a fortified church where all
denominations worshiped at one time. The cemetery surrounding the church
was for Catholics on one side and for Protestants on the other. Relatives
of the families in the cemetery are charged with the maintenance of the grave of
their relative. One grave had a notice that the body would be dug up and
moved (to where we were not sure) if the grave was not cleaned by a certain
date.
Hunawihr, France - fortified church
Hunawihr, France - The cemetery surrounding the church was for
Catholics on one side and for Protestants on the other. Relatives of the
families in the cemetery are charged with the maintenance of the grave of their
relative. One grave had a notice that the body would be dug up and moved
(to where we were not sure) if the grave was not cleaned by a certain date.
Hunawihr, France - inside the church was simple but beautiful
The Cathedral of Mont St Odile
Saint Odile - Is a French girl born blind to an aristocratic
father that wanted only sons was hid away by her mother for years in a convent
for fear of her life. The site of the the cathedral is at the top of a
mountain where the girl hid in a crevice in the hill and regained her sight
after using the water coming from the spring in the side of the hill.
Sainte Odile's casket lies in the church visited by the
pope in the 80's
Cathedral of Mont St Odile - ancient cemetery
Cathedral of Mont St Odile's statue at the top of the church
The sight where St Odile prayed and cried so much for her
father's soul that a hole was worn into the stone. God appeared in a
vision to her and said that her father would be in heaven with him by the end of
the day.
Inside the shrine to St Odile on the site of the last photo.
We see the ornate gold and blue mosaic tiles that cover the entire inside.
Site of the spring where St. Odile regained her sight when the
soldiers were looking for her in an effort to murder her.
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