The history of Heilbronn dates back more than 1,300 years. The first settlement in this area was founded where two trade routes met - a road from the west to the east crossing the Neckar River and the river itself. Presumably it all started with a settlement of traders soon to be followed by a Royal Frankish Court. King Louis the German set up court here in 841.
The city was first mentioned officially in 741 when the Carolingians gave the church of Heilbronn to the Würzburg bishopric.