The New International Encyclopædia/Bacharach

BACHARACH, biir/a-rar,. A town of the Rhine Province, Prussia. Germany, picturesquely situated on the left bank of the Rhine, at the entrance of the Steeger Valley, 8 miles north- west of Bingen. From the Tenth to the Sixteenth Century, it was one of the most important wine markets in the Rhine Valley. Its commerce and population have greatly diminished, but it is still noteworthy on account of its interesting historical associations and mediæval remains, which include the commanding Castle of Stahleck crowning the hill, the old town walls and towers, the fine ruins of the Thirteenth-Century Gothic Church of Saint Werner, and a timbered hostelry of the Fifteenth Century. Bacharach wine had such high repute that by command, a cask was annually sent to Rome for Æneas Sylvius (Pope Pius II.), and four tuns were accepted yearly by Emperor Wenzel as tribute for the freedom of the town. Through the Steeger Valley, also called the Blucher Valley, Blucher pursued the French troops after crossing the Rhine, on January 1, 1814. Population, in 1900, 1904.