I was browsing my picture folders and found first the images from Landstuhl. Landstuhl is a municipality in the district of Kaiserslautern, in the Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is famous for the Americans because the U.S. Army hospital is found here. The U.S. Army Medical Command (MEDCOM) post known as Landstuhl Army Regional Medical Center (LARMC) is located here. Landstuhl is also a neighboring place of Ramstein where the U.S. Air Base is located.

Below are some pictures I took during our visit in Landstuhl last 2008. Feel free to click the pictures to enlarge.

HISTORY

The earliest traces of human settlement in Landstuhl are from 500 B.C. From the Celtic period is the “Heidenfels” (i.e. heathen rock), which was a holy site even into Roman times. From the Roman period is a settlement from the 1st Century A.D.

In the 15th Century, the von Sickingen noble family assumed responsibility for Landstuhl and the surrounding area. The most famous member of this family was Franz von Sickingen. Franz von Sickingen built his castle in Landstuhl – Burg Nanstein (the most visible landmark in Landstuhl and the surrounding area) - into a dominating fortress. From this base he moved to expand his domains by conquering other parts of southwestern Germany.

After several defeats, von Sickingen withdrew to his castle and was besieged by Richard Greiffenklau, Archbishop of Trier, and the Counts of the Rhine and Hesse. During the bombardment of Nanstein, Franz von Sickingen was killed. The castle was later expanded by von Sickingen’s descendants, but it was destroyed by the French in 1689.

Landstuhl is the seat of the Verbandsgemeinde ("collective municipality") Landstuhl.

Landstuhl is also known for being the birthplace of Rob Thomas, the lead singer of Matchbox Twenty, Reggie Williams, former Wide Receiver for the Jacksonville Jaguars, German basketball player Shawn Bradley and LeVar Burton, an actor best known as Geordi La Forge on Star Trek: The Next Generation, Young Kunta Kinte/Toby in Roots, and the host of the PBS series Reading Rainbow. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Landstuhl