St George's Fountain (Georgsbrunnen) stands on the Market Square of Rothenburg ob der Tauber, in front of the half-timbered Jagstheimerhaus and across from the Town Hall. Under the Renaissance basin and the column with St George on top lies the old Herterich well, once the town's main source of water; the decoration you see dates from 1608.
St George's Fountain at a glance
- Where: on the Marktplatz (Market Square) in the old town, at the corner where Obere Schmiedgasse leaves the square, in front of the Jagstheimerhaus.
- Created: a medieval well, given its present Renaissance decoration in 1608.
- What it is today: a public fountain and one of the classic photo spots of Rothenburg; during Advent it sits in the middle of the Christmas market.
- Time needed: 10 minutes for the fountain, longer if you take in the whole square.
From draw well to Renaissance fountain
The water came first. Rothenburg's old town stands on a ridge high above the Tauber valley, so the townspeople could not simply fetch water from the river. Wells inside the walls supplied drinking water for people and animals, and in a town of timber-framed houses they were also the first reserve against fire. The well under this fountain is known as the Herterichsbrunnen; an early 20th-century description calls it the largest of the town's wells and about 8 metres deep.
In 1608 the well received the decoration that gives it its name today: a stone basin and a column crowned by St George, the knight who in Christian legend killed a dragon. It was a confident time for the Free Imperial City, which had added a Renaissance wing to its Town Hall a few decades earlier. That confidence did not last. In 1631, during the Thirty Years' War, the imperial general Tilly captured Rothenburg, and the town never regained its old wealth. One side effect is the reason people come today: with little money to rebuild, much of the old townscape around the square survived.
What to look for
- St George at the top of the column, fighting the dragon: look up from the basin to see the figure against the gables behind.
- The large stone basin, a reminder that this was a working water supply rather than an ornament.
- The Jagstheimerhaus right behind the fountain, a 15th-century patrician house that now holds the Marien-Apotheke pharmacy. Together they make the classic photo of this corner of the square.
- The Town Hall across the square: the older Gothic part with its tall, slender tower, and the Renaissance wing facing the Marktplatz.
- The Ratstrinkstube (Councillors' Tavern), the building with the large clocks on the square, where the Meistertrunk figures appear in the windows beside the clock.
The Meistertrunk: a legend on the square
Rothenburg's favourite story is set on this square. In 1631, the legend says, Tilly threatened to punish the captured town, until he was offered wine in a huge civic tankard and promised mercy if anyone could empty it in one go. The former mayor Georg Nusch drank more than three litres at once and saved the town. Historians treat the tale as a legend, but the town has made it its own: since 1910 figures of Tilly and Nusch appear in the windows next to the clock of the Ratstrinkstube several times a day, and Nusch lifts his tankard. Every year at Whitsun the festival play Der Meistertrunk brings the story back to life.
Tips for your visit
- Come early in the morning or in the evening. Around midday the square fills with tour groups, and the fountain steps are a popular place to sit.
- For a picture of the fountain with the Jagstheimerhaus, stand a few metres into the square, facing the corner where Obere Schmiedgasse begins.
- Climb the Town Hall tower for a view straight down onto the square and the fountain. The last stretch is steep and narrow.
- In Advent the Reiterlesmarkt, Rothenburg's Christmas market, fills the Marktplatz around the fountain; go after dark for the lights.
Nearby
- Town Hall (Rathaus): Gothic and Renaissance buildings side by side on the square, with a tower you can climb.
- St Jacob's Church (St. Jakob): the main Gothic church, a couple of minutes' walk away, with the Holy Blood Altar carved by Tilman Riemenschneider in the early 1500s.
- Plönlein: the small half-timbered house at a fork in the road between two gate towers, the most photographed view in town, down Schmiedgasse from the fountain.
- Burggarten: the castle garden on the spur above the Tauber valley, with wide views over the river and the town walls.
See Rothenburg ob der Tauber with World City Trail
Our Rothenburg scavenger hunt turns the old town into a game you play on your phone. The route links 10 stops and takes around 2 hours, with about 21 minutes of walking. It includes places such as the Town Hall, St Jacob's Church and St Wolfgang's Church.
If you prefer a different format, there is also a self-guided walking tour and an outdoor escape game in Rothenburg.
Play the Rothenburg ob der Tauber scavenger hunt →
Take the self-guided walking tour of Rothenburg ob der Tauber →
Play the outdoor escape game in Rothenburg ob der Tauber →
Facts checked in October 2026.