Bacharach also known as Bacharach am Rhein is a small town in the UNESCO World Heritage Upper Middle Rhine Valley in the Mainz-Bingen district in Rhineland-Palatinate,Germany.
The city would have been founded in pre-Roman times, possibly by the Celts. The original name would be Baccaracum. However, the first document evidencing its existence dates from 923.
The small town lies in the middle of the romantic Upper Middle Rhine Valley and is located on the left bank of the Rhine between Bingen and Boppard at the foot of the Hunsrück.With its medieval townscape and old town fortifications, Stahleck Castle, the Gothic Werner Chapel and the Stahlberg ruins, Bacharach has a strong attraction for travellers.
Access : Coordinates: 50.066667, 7.766667 / Bacharach is located on the left bank of the Rhine River, and can be reached via Federal Highway (Bundesstraße) 9, or via the river.
Highlights :
- Bacharach is cited for the first time in a text dated 923. Old towers bear witness to the fortifications of the Middle Ages.
- The local wines from the Steeg, Manubach and Diebach valleys are excellent.
- Top sights in Bacharach : Remarkable are the Gothic ruins of the Wernerkapelle (Saint-Vernier chapel), the church of the Protestants, and in the middle of the Rhine an ancient monument (ara Bacchi or altar of Bacchus). The ruins of Burg Stahleck./ Numerous picturesque half-timbered houses in Bacharach / Marktturm − Gate tower from the Rheinanlagen to Marktstraße.
Market square with St. Peter’s parish church, Altkölnischer Hof and Altes Haus / Kranenturm − Gate tower from the Rheinanlagen to Kranenstraße / Alter Posthof − 1724 / Altkölnischer Hof / Peterskirche – Evangelical parish church and former collegiate church of St. Peter / “Alter Zollhof” – The elongated building with a half-timbered upper floor was built in the 14th century / Werner chapel , Church ruins on a small plateau on the mountain slope. It was built between 1289.
/ Catholic Church of St. Nicholas / Kurpfälzer Amtskeller (now town hall) / Palatinate Mint (former mint) / St. Anna in Steeg , a remarkable two-aisled Gothic hall church with a beautiful Stumm organ / Roman road in the district “Kuhlberg” / Valley viewpoint near Bacharach.
Go next : Bingen am Rhein , a town on the inflow of the Nahe into the Rhine, where the Middle Rhine begins with the world-famous Upper Middle Rhine Valley.
