Freiburg was founded in the
12th century by Duke Konrad of
Zähringen as a free market town, hence its name, which translates to "Free (or Independent) Castle". It was strategically located on a junction of trade routes between the
Mediterranean and the
North Sea, and the
Rhine and the
Danube rivers. In the year
1368 Freiburg bought its liberty from a local count, and turned itself over to the protection of the
Habsburgs, who allowed it to retain a large amount of freedom.
Around 1200 the city began construction of its
Minster (Münster or Muenster in German) on the site of an older parish church. The end of the
Middle Ages and the beginning of the
Renaissance was a time of both advances and tragedy for Freiburg.
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