Located on the Wine Route, between vineyards and mountains, Ribeauvillé is a charming town which has managed to promote its historical heritage.
In the Middle Ages, the city was the seat of the Lordship of the Ribeaupierre family (hence the name of the town of Ribeauvillé).
The Ribeaupierre family had three fortified castles built, the ruins of which still majestically dominate the city and the surrounding hills today.
All three are accessible by a hiking trail along the mountainside:
- St Ulrich Castle, (the oldest and most important of the 3 castles)
- Girsberg Castle,
- the Château du Haut-Ribeaupierre, (as its name indicates, the highest of the 3 castles).
Of its medieval fortifications, the town still retains today part of its rampart wall and some of its defensive towers, including the "Butchers' Tower" (from the 13th century, rebuilt in the 18th century), which owes its name to the corporation of Butchers (responsible, in the event of an attack, of defending the city from this tower).
The Grand'rue and its picturesque neighborhoods, lined with abundantly flowered buildings (from the 15th to the 18th century), are dotted with squares decorated with Renaissance-style fountains.
There are many buildings worth a detour:
- Town hall (18th century) and its prestigious collection of silver Hanaps (drinking cups) which were given to the town by the counts of Ribeaupierre,
- The Butchers' Tower (13th century)
- The old wheat market, former storage place,
- The house of the minstrels (house which has a unique decoration on the facade dating from 1683) etc. …
Many festivals punctuate the calendar of events in this town, in particular
the "Pfifferdaj" (fiddlers' festival) which perpetuates the memory of the meetings of the brotherhood of Alsatian fiddlers who met since 1481 in Ribeauvillé to elect their king. This festival, the oldest in Alsace, which alternates between the presentation of floats and fanfares (according to a different theme each year, linked to the medieval period), is still celebrated today in Ribeauvillé every first Sunday in September.
