Lake Tower, Seestr. 2 @museum.de

M: The Lake Tower!

F: That sounds like waves, sunshine, leisurely days in the water – and a romantic Lake Tower on a wooded shore.

M: Of course, the dream can’t withstand a reality check. The Lake Tower is actually one of the six defensive towers from the 15th century. It protected the south-east corner of the town’s fortifications. And it didn’t actually stand on the shore of an idyllic lake. Instead, it overlooked the fish ponds that were fed by the Vorbach back then.

F: Like the other towers, the Lake Tower used to be much taller. The only exception is the White Horse Tower by the town hall, which has retained its full height.

M: The Lake Tower is what’s known as a half tower, meaning it’s open at the back. You can still see the remains of the old town wall on both sides. On the one hand, this construction method was less expensive. But it was also a trap, because the tower provided no shelter to an attacker. If an enemy had scaled the town wall and taken the tower, the defenders were able to creep up from behind and shoot straight into the tower.

F: Can you imagine this old watchtower being home to large families with a lot of children? No? It was, though, for hundreds of years. The residents seem to have felt very much at home here, because the last of them only moved out in 1988.

M: The Lake Tower was refurbished in 1999, at the same time as the Old Gym. Today, the tower’s ground floor houses a bar with a great atmosphere, though it only opens for special events that are strictly invitation only.

F: Please move on to the Roman Catholic Church at Hauptstrasse number 50.