ESSLINGEN

in full Esslingen Am Neckar, city, Baden-Wrttemberg Land (state), southwestern Germany. It lies along the Neckar River, just southeast of Stuttgart. Mentioned in 777 as Cella and in 866 as Hetsilinga, it was chartered about 1219. It was a free imperial city from 1360 to 1802, when it passed to Wrttemberg, the rulers of which had often threatened it. On a commanding height above the city stands the old citadel, and in the inner town are three town halls: the old Rathaus (c. 1430); the new Rathaus, formerly a palace; and the Baroque Rathaus (1746) of the imperial city, now used as a district court. The building of the Church of Our Lady (Frauenkirche; 13211516) marked the beginning of the special Swabian Gothic style. St. Paul's (123368) is the oldest existing Dominican church in Germany. The centre of a fertile wine-producing and fruit-growing district, the town has machine, electrical, textile, and leather works. Pop. (1991 est.) 91,685.