The Stadtarchiv Speyer is part of the city's cultural heritage and is the oldest municipal archive in the Palatinate. The municipal tradition, which is kept on 2,500 shelf metres, dates back to the 12th century. The oldest of over 2000 documents in the municipal archive is a document of Emperor Frederick I from 1182, in which the famous privileges granted to the city of Speyer by Emperor Heinrich V in 1111 were confirmed and extended.

The development of the municipal archive can be seen as a reflection of the history of Speyer, one of the most important urban centres of the medieval empire. The concern to preserve and secure the politically and economically important privileges and rights can be assumed at a very early stage. In contrast to other municipalities, where an archive only becomes tangible relatively late, we in Speyer have been continuously informed about the development of the municipal archive, which was closely linked to the town hall, since the late Middle Ages. The documents and other archival records report that they were housed in chests in the vaults of the town hall. The most valuable privileges were kept in the "Red Chest". The oldest preserved archive directory dates from 1579.

In addition to the municipal authorities' records, the storerooms also contain a large number of unofficial holdings consisting of estates, association archives, newspapers, plans, posters, films and a collection of photographs comprising around 35,000 pictures. Within the framework of a DFG project, 33,000 photographs have been digitised in the last two years and are now largely searchable via the Archivportal-D.

Holdings of the Stadtarchivs Speyer in the Archivportal-D

 

Contact:

Stadtarchiv Speyer

Johannesstr. 22a

67346 Speyer

E-Mail: stadtarchiv [at] stadt-speyer.de

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