Encyclopædia Britannica, Ninth Edition/Canstatt

From Wikisource
Jump to navigation Jump to search
CANSTATT, Cannstadt, or Kanstatt, a town of

Wiirtemberg, in the circle of the Neckar, about 2| miles N.E. of Stuttgart, in 48 48 22" N. lat. and 9 12 49" E. long. It is situated in the most fertile and populous part of the country, at a point where the high roads of the circle converge, and now forms one of the most flourish ing towns in Germany. Its public buildings comprise a cathedral of the 15th century, dedicated to Uffo, a beautiful town-hall, the royal theatre, the market-house, and various educational institutions. The Wilhelma palace, built in 1842-51 as a summer residence for the late king William, is an elaborate example of the Saracenic style, and is surrounded by extensive and beauti ful gardens. A very considerable industry is carried on in the town, the most important branches being wool- spinning, dyeing, cotton-weaving, and the manufacture of steel and machines. The transit trade is still more im portant and various. A large temporary population is attracted to the town by the fame of its mineral springs. These are about forty in number, for the most part of tepid water, which is used both for drinking and bathing, and is said to be highly beneficial in dyspepsia and weakness of the nervous system. Besides the usual bathing establish ments, there are several medical institutions for the treatment of special diseases. Siclberg, a hill in the neighbourhood, upwards of 600 feet in height, is interest ing for its caverns and the numerous fossils which it has preserved. Not far distant is the princely seat of Rosenstein (previously known as Kahlenstein), which was built in 1824-30 ; and on the neighbouring height of the Rothenberg was formerly the ancestral castle of the house of Wiirtemberg. Canstatt is mentioned as early as ths 8th century, under the name of Condistat, as the seat of a great court held by Charlemagne for the trial of the rebellious dukes of Alemaimia and Bavaria. From Louis the Bavarian it received the same imperial rights and privileges as were enjoyed by the town of Esslingen. Down to the middle of the 15th century it remained the capital of Wiirtemberg ; and as an important place of transport it has been frequently the object of military operations. In 1 755, at the time of the great earthquake at Lisbon, part of the town-house subsided 3 feet. Population in 1871,

11,804.