EICHSTTT

city, Bavaria Land (state), southern Germany. It lies along the Altmhl River, south of Nrnberg. Originally a Roman station, it developed after St. Boniface founded a bishopric there in 741. Chartered in 908, the town was ruled by its prince-bishops until the see was secularized in 1802. In 1817 the king of Bavaria gave it, with the landgraviate of Leuchtenberg, to his son-in-law Eugne de Beauharnais. An episcopal see was reestablished in Eichsttt in 1821, and the town reverted to Bavaria in 1855. Among Eichsttt's notable churches are included the Cathedral of St. Willibald (consecrated 1060; incorporating numerous styles); the church of the former Benedictine abbey (founded 870), with the tomb of St. Walburga; and the Capuchin Church (1189), with a copy of the Holy Sepulchre. Other landmarks include the 15th-century town hall; the partially restored 14th- and 17th-century Willibaldsburg, the residence of the bishops until 1730, now housing a museum; and the Baroque palace of the bishops and later of the dukes of Leuchtenburg. A railroad junction, Eichsttt is a lively trading centre with little industry. Pop. (1989 est.) 12,118.