Eichstetten am Kaiserstuhl 

 Geography 

 Eichstetten is a town in South Baden that produces wine. It is located in the Upper Rhine Plain on the eastern edge of the Kaiserstuhl. It can be found in the warmest area of Germany embedded in a valley, which stretches from the wooded Eichelspitze (the second highest hill in the Kaiserstuhl) along sunny vineyards and vegetable fields right down to the lowland. The Alte Dreisam River flows through the town on the edge of the Kaiserstuhl. 
 As the crow flies Eichstetten is located about 3.5 kilometres from the Bundesautobahn 5 (motorway connecting Karlsruhe and Basel). There is also a regular train connection to the Kaiserstuhl Railway which calls at the village every half an hour on workdays. With this train it is a 15 minute journey into Freiburg city center. 
 The two farms Au(stucken)mühle and Herrenmühle also belong to the Eichstetten area. [2] 

 History 

 There is evidence of people living in the Eichstetten area as early as the Stone Age. Remains of a Villa rustica from the roman era (3rd century) as well as finds from Allemannic burial sites (around 600 AD) prove that people settled here a very long time ago. 
 Eichstetten is mentioned for the first time in the year 737 in a document relating to the Murbach Abbey. The settlement was established by the Alemanni, which is alluded to by the suffix “stetten” (place), and the existence of the Lords of Eichstetten was first documented in the 12th century. 
 In the year 1446 Eichstetten became part of Margraviate of Baden, and as a result of the Reformation in 1556 became protestant. The Thirty Years´ War caused an enormous decline in population: by about 1659 there were only 110 people living here. Around 1850 the population had reached 2,860, but decreased considerably over the following years due to emigration to America. 
 As are result of immigration in the 18th century a significant Jewish community emerged. In 1828 a synagogue was built, which was later burnt down and then demolished during the Kristalnacht by non-residential members of the SA and SS. The remaining Jews were deported in 1940 to the Gurs internment camp. 
 The addition of am Kaiserstuhl in the town’s name was adopted on 1st October 1997.