Heidelberg and it’s Castle


Today we spent the day in the city of Heidelberg located in the south-west of Germany. It sits on the Neckar River not far from where the Neckar joins the Rhine River. Heidelberg has a population of about 160,000 people with a quarter of them being students. This is because Heidelberg University is located here. The university, founded in 1386, is Germany's oldest and one of Europe's most reputable universities. The city has also been a hub for the arts, especially literature, throughout the centuries, and it was designated a "City of Literature" by the UNESCO Creative Cities Network.

Heidelberg has lots to see and do including Heidelberg Castle, the Philosophers' Walk, and the Baroque old town.
On March 29, 1945, German troops left the city after destroying three arches of the old bridge, Heidelberg's treasured river crossing. They also destroyed the more modern bridge downstream. The U.S. Army entered the town on March 30, 1945. The civilian population surrendered without resistance.
