The charming village of Westhoffen and its 1,675 inhabitants boasts the largest vineyard in the ?Couronne d?Or? region, covering 235 hectares A.O.C. Bordered by a forest of almost 1,000 hectares, Westhoffen is the cherry capital of Alsace, with no fewer than 5,000 cherry trees.
The name Westhoffen was first mentioned in 732, meaning "western farm". A farm was located to the west of an ancient Roman villa in Kirchheim, and belonged to the abbey of Marmoutier. A fortified keep was erected in the 11th century, known as the Rosenbourg. From the 13th century onwards, Westhoffen belonged to the Hanau-Lichtenberg family until the French Revolution.
Around this time, in 1250, construction began on the church of Saint Martin, one of the few hall churches of the Gothic period, which was extensively remodeled and enlarged in the 19th century, giving it a neo-Gothic exterior that was very much in vogue at the time. When, in 1332, Westhoffen was elevated to the rank of imperial town, the fortified wall was built, which still encloses the entire old town center, or Staedtel, and whose gates have unfortunately disappeared. The spirit of tolerance of the Lords of Hanau-Lichtenberg enabled Westhoffen to boast one of the largest and oldest Jewish communities in Alsace, which dispersed in the 19th century and now numbers just a handful. A 19th-century neo-orientalist synagogue and an ancient cemetery remain from this community.
Anciennes fortifications de Westhoffen
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Anciennes fortifications de Westhoffen
Low-R (https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?title=User:Low-R&action=edit&redlink=1)
CC BY-SA 3.0
