Heidelberg
large city in Baden-Württemberg, Germany
Heidelberg (; German: [ˈhaɪdl̩bɛʁk] ; Palatine German: Heidlberg) is the fifth-largest city in the German state of Baden-Württemberg, and with a population of about 163,000, of which roughly a quarter consists of students, it is Germany's 51st-largest city. Located about 78 km (48 mi) south of Frankfurt, Heidelberg is part of the densely populated Rhine-Neckar Metropolitan Region which has its centre in Mannheim.
Heidelberg is located on the Neckar River, at the point where it leaves its narrow valley between the Oden Forest and the Little Oden Forest, and enters the wide Upper Rhine Plain. The old town lies in the valley, the end of which is flanked by the Königstuhl in the south and the Heiligenberg in the north. The majority of the population lives in the districts west of the mountains in the Upper Rhine Plain, into which the city has expanded over time.
Heidelberg University, founded in 1386, is Germany's oldest and one of Europe's most reputable universities. Heidelberg is a scientific hub in Germany and home to several internationally renowned research facilities adjacent to its university, including the European Molecular Biology Laboratory and four Max Planck Institutes. 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 was a seat of government of the former Electorate of the Palatinate and is a popular tourist destination due to its romantic cityscape, including Heidelberg Castle, the Philosophers' Walk, and the Baroque old town.
Geography
Heidelberg is located on the eastern edge of the Upper Rhine Plain (German: Oberrheinebene), at the place where the river Neckar leaves its narrow valley through the Odenwald mountains and begins the last leg of its journey across the plain towards Mannheim, where it merges into the Rhine about 20 kilometers downstream.
This brief starts where responsible research should: with the source description of “Heidelberg” as large city in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. Everything that follows is an evidence route, not borrowed authority.
Why this record matters
The subject matters to the places & architecture register because the source frames it as large city in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. Its deeper value depends on whether names, dates, institutions and citations support that framing.
Place names and jurisdictional language are key evidence: both can reveal earlier catalogue descriptions and overlooked record series. The source revision retrieved here is dated Aug 8, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q2966. VIAF identifies the subject as 144258029. The Library of Congress control number is n81096075. Authority coordinates are 49.409, 8.695. 4 of 7 selected statements include explicit references; 2 carry qualifiers and 1 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1386.
A single description cannot reconcile every naming convention, rebuilding phase or administrative transfer associated with a place. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Treat names, boundaries and functions as historically changeable. Maps, plans, inventories and administrative records can clarify what the place meant at different dates.
- Historic place names
- Jurisdictional context
- Routes into maps and plans
Contemporary maps, plans, listed-building records, estate papers and the responsible local or national archive.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Heidelberg”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Heidelberg primary sources, Heidelberg archive and Heidelberg research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Heidelberg”?
- Which authority defined the place, boundary or structure at the relevant date?
- What physical evidence or contemporary plan supports the description?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Heidelberg” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.