This town developed out of a monastery founded in 826
AD as a "cell" under Bishop Radolf of
Verona. The town belonged to the
Abbey of Reichenau, then for a long time to the
House of Habsburg, and for 40 years it was a
Free Imperial City. In the centre is the
Gothic Cathedral (), dating from the 15th century and decorated in the
Baroque style in the 18th. One particularly beautiful feature is the Rosary altar by the Zürn brothers and the Master of the House's Altar (1750) which contains the relics of the local Radolfzell saints Theopont, Senesius and Zeno. The is celebrated in their honour every year on the third Sunday in July, and the next day a famous Water Procession is held, as it has been every year since 1797. The citizens of the nearby village of
Moos make a pilgrimage to Radolfzell in picturesquely decorated boats to fulfil an ancient oath. A notable structure in the town is the Austrian mansion in the market square, built in stages from the 17th to the 19th century, the knightly hall dating from 1626. Also of note are a number of historical
Patrician houses. Radolfzell was the birthplace of
cartographer Martin Waldseemüller's mother. peninsula ==Mayors==