Friedberg (Hesse)

The town was founded under Staufer king Friedrich I (aka "Barbarossa" - red beard) as a planned city and had its heyday in the medieval era. For a long time the castle was in different hands (and subject to different laws) than the city, a situation not uncommon in medieval central Europe - Nuremberg had a similar arrangement until the local patricians bought out the owners of the castle.

While he lived in nearby Bad Nauheim during that time, Friedberg was the site of Elvis Presley's garrison during his military service. The town is doing all it can to benefit from "Elvis pilgrimages" and has renamed a central square after him and even installed a pedestrian traffic light with a dancing Elvis (green light) and a standing Elvis (red light).

• 🌍 Friedberg castle. A castle dating back to the 12th century, the high time of the Staufen dynasty. 
• 🌍 Stadtkirche. Gothic church built between 1260 and 1410 

• 🌍 Mikveh. This Jewish ritual bath was built in the 13th century and in use until the Nazi era by the local Jewish community. It owes its preservation (the nearby synagogue was destroyed by the Nazis) to the fact that local people - eventually including Nazi party members - argued that it had been built by Christians and was an important historical relic. It's now open to visitors. 
• 🌍 Wetterau-Museum. A museum on local history, including an exhibit of the time Elvis Presley spent in Germany. 

• 🌍 Dorheimer Hof, Wetteraustraße 70, ☏ +49 6031 7370-0, fax: +49 6031 7370-40. Double €70 – 80 including breakfast buffet. 

• 🌍 Garni-Hotel Stadt Friedberg, Am Seebach 2a, ☏ +49 6031 60 70, fax: +49 6031 60 71 00.