boden see - Friedrichshafen

Historic facts
Friedrichshafen town The town roots reach back to the foundation of the
Alemannic village Alt-Buchhorn in the 5th century.
In 1811 King Friedrich of Württemberg united Buchhorn together with the
village and the monastery Hofen under Friedrichshafen town and residence
with altogether 750 inhabitants. In 1824 the first steamboat appeared on
Lake Constance and on 2 July 1900 the take-off of the first Zeppelin airship
introduced a new era that has stayed eminent in our town to this very day.
In 1915 the airship airport Löwental was opened and turned into a civilian
airport in 1928. Since 1929 the former railway ferry has taken also cars and
lorries to Romanshorn. In 1933 the Hafenbahnhof (harbour station) was
finished. After the Hindenburg disaster at Lakehurst on 6 May 1937, where
36 people died in the explosion of the LZ 129, the construction of further
airships as well as the flight operation of the zeppelins was stopped.
During 1943/45 Friedrichshafen was almost completely destroyed by air
raids. After the war the reconstruction phase was influenced by companies
such as ZF Friedrichshafen, MTU Friedrichshafen, Zeppelin GmbH and
Dornier group. In 1950 Friedrichshafen staged the first IBO (international Lake
Constance fair) followed by the opening of the first “Interboot” (international
boat fair) in 1962 and many further exhibitions that found a new home in the
spacious exhibition centre near the airport in July 2002.
In 1985 the growing town of Friedrichshafen created a place for culture
and exchange – “Graf-Zeppelin-Haus”, the new culture and congress centre.
Another top sight was opened in 1996, the “Zeppelin Museum” in the former
Hafenbahnhof (harbour station), presenting the world´s largest collection on
the history of airship navigation. 100 years after the first ascent of the “flying
giants” the Zeppelin era could be continued. Since 2001 the Zeppelin NT
has glided silently with its passengers over the Lake Constance region. In
2003 the now called ZF Arena, a multifunctional hall for up to 4,000 people
opened, followed by the new media centre K42 on the lakeside promenade
in 2006. In 2007 Friedrichshafen became Germany´s first T-City as a result of
a competition of the “Deutsche Telekom AG”. Since the summer of 2009 the
new Dornier Museum has become a further highlight in the Friedrichshafen
cultural scene. In 2011 Friedrichshafen celebrated its 200th anniversary. Also
the Zeppelin Luftschifftechnik GmbH & Co. KG won the biggest order in its
company history: 3 new Zeppelin NT for the Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company.
In 2012 various events were held to celebrate 100 years of seaplane
construction in Friedrichshafen. At present Friedrichshafen has approx.
59,000 inhabitants.
Friedrichshafen highlights
The Schlosskirche (palace church) with its two 55 m high domed towers
made from Rorschach sandstone is the landmark of Friedrichshafen. It was
built by Christian Thumb from 1695 to 1701 and belongs to the famous Upper
Swabian baroque buildings. Since 1812 it has been a protestant church. In
1944 it was partly destroyed by air raids, reconstructed from 1947 to 1951 and
then given back to the protestant community.
Visiting times: From Easter to mid-October: 9am-6pm
Closed for visits: Wed from 2:30pm, Fri morning until 11am, mostly
Sat, Sun morning and during wedding ceremonies.
Info and guided tours: Evangelisches Pfarramt, Schlosskirche 1,
Tel. +49 (0) 7541 21308, Fax 23195,
schloss-fn@evkirche-rv.de, www.schlosskirche-fn.de,
www.evkirchenmusik-fn.de (concert dates)
Schloss (palace) The palace was originally built as a convent priory by Michael
Beer from Vorarlberg (Austria) in 1654. The monastery was closed down
in 1802. Under the reign of Wilhelm I. of Württemberg it was reconstructed
from 1824 to 1828 and then used as a summer residence for the Württemberg
kings. Now residence of Friedrich Duke of Württemberg – no inside
viewing possible.
Zeppelin flights With the take-off of the first Zeppelin airship on 2 July
1900 a new era started in Friedrichshafen leaving a lasting impact on the
town. About a 100 years after the first “flying giants“ the Zeppelin era was
continued with the Zeppelin NT cruising over the Lake Constance region
since 2001. 12 different routes are on offer with a flight duration between
30 minutes and 2 hours.
Info and reservation: Tourist-Information Friedrichshafen,
Tel. +49 (0) 7541 3001-0 or
Deutsche Zeppelin-Reederei, Tel. +49 (0) 7541 5900-0, www.zeppelinflug.de
(see p. 42 and p. 46)
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