History of the Rorschwihr vineyard

In 700: the Abbey of Mamoutier had vines in Rorschwihr (archive uncertain)

Before 742: Rorschwihr is cited as “Domaine Royal Méovigien” / Sale of “Cum viniis” vines between the Merovingian dynasty and that of the Carolingians (historical misunderstanding)

May 1, 742: The Royal Merovingian Estate passes into the hands of the Noble “Frank” Rantwig, of royal descent, known as: Kaiser (Rorschwihr is the only municipality having the certainty of the authenticity of these terms thanks to a deed).

In 742 : The Convent of Wissembourg confirms the acquisition of vines in Rorschwihr by PEPIN LE BREF “le petit” (before the start of his kingship).

From 771 to 974: The Abbey of Ebersmunster levies wine taxes in Rorschwihr.

In 817 : On May 1, Emperor Louis the Pious confirms the possession of vines in Rorschwihr (authenticity is confirmed only for this town).

In 908 : The Rorschwihr vineyard belongs, in part, to Königsheim.

In 911 : The Rorschwihr vineyard partially belongs to the Abbey of Cluny.

In 987 : Some vines, in Rorschwihr, belong to a descendant of EUDES-or Hugues Capet– (Document destroyed by fire).

From the 8th to the 9th century: The Wissembourg Abbey still has vines in Rorschwihr.

In 1092 : The Pope, CLEMENT III, owns vines in Rorschwihr.

In 1094: The Convent Le Silo de Sélestat, gets its supplies in Rorschwihr, for its mass wine. It is quite remarkable that a significant part of this wine was sold, via the port of Sélestat on the Ill.

In 1114 : The Germanic Emperor, HENRI V, ordered a charter for his vineyard located in Rorschwihr.

In 1119 : The Pope, CALIXTE II, surcharges the vines in Rorschwihr

In 1140 : The Pope, INNOCENT II, ​​confirms, without any ambiguity, at the Moyenmoutier Convent, the ancient possession of vines in Rorschwihr.

Le 19 juillet 1183 : The Pope, LUCIEN III, confirms to the Abbey of Ebersmunster, the possession of a vineyard of 3 arpents in Rorschwihr which it exploits without compensation at a place called Pflaenzerreben

From 1198 to 1216 : The Pope, INNOCENT III, owns vineyards in Rorschwihr.

From the 12th century to the French Revolution : TheVosges Abbey of Moyenmoutierhas a colongère courtyard with asylum rights, still called “MEYERHOF”, Maison des Maîtres, where redemption work was carried out in the localities de Rorschwihr, Weingarten, Oberer-Weingarten, Pflaenzerreben, Kappelweg, Moenchreben, Rotleibel, Stegreben and Grasberg.

In 1245 : theBenedictines of Cluny pstill own vines in Rorschwihr.

From 1245 to 1539 : The Silo de Sélestat works from the vines to Rorschwihr.

1282 : The RIBEAUPIERRE receive a stronghold from the Dukes of Lorraine, owners of vines in Rorschwihr having previously belonged to the COUNTS OF HATTSTATT. The Ribeaupierre there confirm a local right of Bourgeoisie.

In 1289 : The great Alsatian family, the RIBEAUPIERRE, settled in the Rorschwihr vineyard.

In 1294 : The Noble, STOFFEL, claims and complains about the heavy wine taxes in Rorschwihr.

From 1268 to 1313 : A special tax is levied at the localities Pflaenzerreben de Rorschwihr and Oberer-Weingarten inRorschwihr. A survey, drawing of this small “canton” (an old expression in use for the great wine-growing regions) of the Pflaenzerde Rorschwihr exists for the year 1300.

In 1300 : The Bishop of Basel collects the tithe on the Rorschwihr wine harvested at a place called Pflaenzerreben.

In 1312 : The commune of Rorschwihr is the object of wine speculation described as “sordid” by the greatest owners of Alsace, particularly those of Ammerschwihr and Bergheim, or by the greatfamilies RIBEAUPIERRE, HATTSTATT and RATHSAMHAUSEN.

In 1313 : The town is sold, in part or in whole, to theMAISON D’AUTRICHE or, more exactly, to the HABSBOURG.

In 1348 : The Silo de Sélestat collects other wine royalties and still owns vines in Rorschwihr (according to records). He still operates these vines and even acquires new ones between the properties of the RATZENHUSEN (Bergheim) and those of the Moines de Moyenmoutier which overlap (part of Rorschwihr and Rodern, on the Rorschwihr side). These large and famous (at the time) vineyard terroirs constitute, in fact, by their current use, the 12 localities retained by the Wine Syndicate and are called: ROTLEIBEL, MOENCHREBEN, KAPPELWEG, WEINGARTEN, PFLAENZERREBEN, OBERER-WEINGARTEN , STEGREBEN, GRASBERG, KUGELBERG, LACHREBEN, SILBERBERG and OBERER-SILBERBERG, formerly Honigacker (in 1750). The term “canton“, used in the registers, attests to a certain level of quality of these wine-growing areas since, for the other vines, only the boundaries of the paths are available.

In 1372 : Part of the vines belonged to the Lord of HATTSTATT.

In 1476 : CHARLES-LE -TEMERAIRE imposes a new tax.

In 1478 : The Noble of RATHSAMHAUSEN acquires new vines.

In 1521 : Rorschwihr loads the wine; several boats transport the wine from the port of Sélestat to Strasbourg, then on the Rhine to other countries.

September 12, 1530: The SAINTE CATHERINE CONVENT, order of Monks Preachers in Colmar, exchanges its vines located on the ban of Rorschwihr with the Convent Silo of Sélestat. Mention is made in particular of the “cantons” of Rotleibel, Stegreben, Oberer-Weingarten, Weingarten, Kappelweg and Moenchreben. Other vines are also concerned, but of lesser qualitative importance, which means that only the limiting paths are mentioned.

In 1690: PHILIPPE JACQUES, colonel in the service of France under Louis XIII, had for son PHILIPPE ALBERT who was elected Praetor of Strasbourg. From this last, was born SIGFRIED, Marshal of Camp of the Armies of the King. This one marries the daughter of GODEFROI, the last of the RATHSAMHAUSEN-ZUM-STEIN, and obtains, in this year 1690, the restitution of his fiefs, in particular the Cour Colongère and the vines which formerly belonged to the HABSBOURG(Austria) and that LOUIS XIV had granted, in 1689, to Mr. DE CHAMLAY, Marshal of the Logis of the Royal Army.

From the 10th to the 17th century: According to historians, the abbeys of Ebersmunster and Moyenmoutier had vines in Rorschwihr.

After the Revolution: Rorschwihr becomes a municipality in its own right when it cuts off its links with its “big sister”, Bergheim. Rorschwihr continues to stand out for its wine-growing peculiarities. Wine, unlike in other municipalities, is not chosen by the gourmet or gourmets. Indeed, the sale to buyers is done by auction (administered by a third party). It should be noted, moreover, that this is also practiced for the Alsatian First Cherries Market in Rorschwihr. This precocity (which is also often manifested in the vineyard) is undoubtedly due to a very specific microclimate in Rorschwihr. A much more surprising specificity for this period is still to be noted: Each large family has its own wine press while, in general, elsewhere, only the communal, abbey or seigneurial press is known, even in major wine-growing towns. .

In 1996: Rorschwihr is a municipality which unfortunately suffers from the absence of archives over a period of more than 800 years. Indeed, in this time interval, political, religious or even dynastic rivalries are made that each party has transcribed the events on its side, often in concert with its “competitors”, by preserving them. It is therefore necessary to do in-depth research to find documents relating to the history of the town at that time. But this can only add to the character of rarity and seriousness regarding the history of the wines of Rorschwihr and the illustrious men who have been, at the same time, the authors and the actors.