Main-Tauber-Kreis

Traces of human population in the area were found to go back as early as 5500 B.C. Throughout the 18th and 19th century, during the so-called Kleinstaaterei, southern parts of today's district were part of the free imperial city of Rothenburg ob der Tauber, the Principality of Ansbach, while the city of Weikersheim played a major role in the history of the Hohenlohe dynasty and temporarily was one of its seats. District in modern Germany The district originated in 1973 with the merging of the districts of Bad Mergentheim, Tauberbischofsheim and parts of the district of Buchen. At first called the district of Tauber, it took its current name, the district of Main-Tauber, in 1974. The name comes from the two primary rivers in the district, the Main and the Tauber. == Geography ==

The Main forms the northern border of the district, while its affluent Tauber flows through the district from southeast to north. The north of the district covers part of the Odenwald mountains, while the southern area is called Bauland. Area The Main-Tauber Kreis has a total area of 1304.1 km2, that is distributed as follows: • Settlement and traffic area: 136,3 km2 (10,4%) • Recreational area: 5,9 km2 (0,5%) • Agricultural area: 765,4 km2 (58,7%) • Forest: 386,2 km2 (29,6%) • Water: 10,5 km2 (0,8%) == Cities and municipalities ==

As of 31 December 2022, 134,745 people live in the district, which corresponds to 1.19% of Baden-Württemberg's total population. Foreign born residents make up 12 percent of the population and people aged 65 or older make up 23 percent. == Infrastructure ==

Roads The total length of the road network in the district is about 909 kilometres, of which about half (463 km) are county roads (Kreisstraßen), just over a third (347 km) are state roads (Landesstraßen), and about 10 per cent (99 km) are federal highways (Bundestraßen). == International relations ==

Comparable with the concept of twin towns, the Kreis has partnerships with: • Tolna County, Hungary • Bautzen District, Saxony • Zabkowice Slaskie, Poland • , formal partnership with a part of the German Army Aviation Corps. == References ==