Kirchheim Unter Teck - History

History

Traces of settlements from the Neolithic, the Celtic and Romans era have been found. Alamannic graves prove the existence of three settlements in the area of the city during the migration period.

Although the first written mention of Kirchheim dates only to the year 960, the town certainly existed during the Alemannic era of the 6th and 7th century. Perhaps the current settlement was founded during the Christianization when several older villages were merged and a church was built and dedicated to St. Martin. In 960 Kirchheim came in the possession of Emperor Otto I in an exchange for the diocese Chur. The Market and the royal mint date back to the mid-11th Century.

The place was owned by the Dukes of Zähringen and was inherited in 1186 by a lateral line, the Duke of Teck. The Dukes of Teck are known since 1252, but the title of Duke more a family name as a proper title. Sometime between 1220 and 1230, they are elevated Kirchheim to a market town under Freiburg law. Duke Louis I of Teck the founded Kirchheim nunnery in 1240. In 1270, Duke Conrad II of Teck initiated the construction of a city wall.

In a process which lasted from 1303 till 1386, Kirchheim 1303-1386 became a part of Austria and later of Württemberg, due to economic difficulties of the Dukes of Teck. The city was the seat of a Württemberg Amt. During the 14th Century, when the Dukes of Teck played a leading role in the city government, the rise of the middle classes brought an economic boom, especially in the textile industry and the textile trade.

After Duke Ulrich returned from exile in 1539, Kirchheim was expanded to a fortress of Württemberg and at the same time, the ducal palace was constructed. The current appearance of the city is from the reconstruction after a devastating fire in 1690.

In 1864, it became the terminal of the first private railway in Württemberg, the line Unterboihingen-Kirchheim. In the 19th century, it became the seat of an Oberamt. In 1938, the Oberamt Kirchheim was included in the Landkreis Nürtingen.

After the Second World War, the population of the city grew significantly due to the influx of refugees and displaced persons. In 1948, the population exceeded the limit of 20,000, and under the Baden-Württemberg Municipal Code, the city received on 1 April 1956 the legal status of Große Kreisstadt.

Since the district reform 1973 Kirchheim unter Teck is one of the municipalities of the district of Esslingen. In 1974, two neighboring municipalities were annexed. Thus, the city reached its current dimensions.