Geislingen an der Steige

Sister cities

• Montceau-les-Mines
• Bischofswerda

History

Although the area had settlements since the Bronze Age, Geislingen was founded by the counts of Helfenstein as a transit collection station on the important commercial route between the Rhine valley and the Mediterranean. The fortified Helfenstein castle existed since 1100. Giselingen was first mentioned as civitas in a document dated 1237. From 1396 through 1802, Geislingen was owned by the free and imperial city of Ulm on the Danube. In 1803 Ulm and Geislingen became part of Bavaria, but in a land exchange were incorporated into the Kingdom of Württemberg in 1810. Much older than the "artificial" foundation of Geislingen are two present-day districts, Altenstadt and Rorgensteig. Altenstadt, in the oldest times still called "ze der alten Stadt" or "Altengiselingen", is of Alamannic origin. First traces of settlement go back to the 5th century. On the site of today's "Lindenhof" stood since the 11th century a St. Michael's church, the original church of Altenstadt and the whole surrounding area. So the name of the later helfenstein Geislingen comes from the older neighboring village. Rorgensteig, situated on the upper Rohrach River, was an old parish village into which the citizens of the town of Geislingen were parishioners until 1393. The importance of the Rorgensteig church for the religious life of the Geislingen community decreased since the elevation of the Geislingen Lady Chapel to a parish church (around 1393) and the construction of the present town church in the years 1424 to 1428. Rorgensteig with its mills had special significance as the first medieval "industrial center" of the town.

Most-observed species

• Great Tit

  Parus major Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  1,445
• Eurasian Blue Tit

  Cyanistes caeruleus (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  1,204
• Eurasian Tree Sparrow

  Passer montanus (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  1,176
• Eurasian Blackbird

  Turdus merula Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  1,043
• European Robin

  Erithacus rubecula (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  927
• Common Chaffinch

  Fringilla coelebs Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  697
• Eurasian Nuthatch

  Sitta europaea Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  689
• House Sparrow

  Passer domesticus (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  683

Most recent

• M 3.4 — 2022-10-16
  Baden-Wurttemberg, Germany
• M 4 — 2022-07-09
  2 km NNE of Grosselfingen, Germany
• M 3.1 — 2008-12-25
  3 km NNW of Saulgau, Germany
• M 2.5 — 2008-12-12
  2 km ESE of Nehren, Germany
• M 2.7 — 2008-07-09
  1 km WSW of Dußlingen, Germany
• M 2.5 — 2008-07-03
  2 km W of Dußlingen, Germany