a pilgrimage to the Holy Land. His brother, Eitel Friedrich IV of Hohenzollern, also pledged his allegiance to Württemberg, turning over his inheritance if he did not have an heir. However, in 1433 at age 50, he had a son, Jos Niklaus, and by his death in 1439 he had regained half of their land. His son, Count Jos Niklaus of Hohenzollern was able to gain Imperial permission to rebuild the castle, as well as to nullify the agreement with Württemberg. Thus, the city of Hechingen remained in the hands of the Hohenzollerns. As a result, the city remained more provincial, and largely agricultural. Renaissance and Reformation In 1567, the county was divided in three and became the counties of Hohenzollern-Hechingen, Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen, and Hohenzollern-Haigerloch. (The latter was rejoined to Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen in 1634.) Hechingen became the residence of the counts of Hohenzollern-Hechingen. Their territory, which consisted of Hechingen and 26 villages, did not change substantially until the 19th century. Eitel Friedrich IV (1576–1605) made Hechingen a center of art, music, and Renaissance architecture. Many buildings built during his reign are still to be seen today: the convent church St. Luzen, the hospital, and the lower tower — the latter being the last remnant of the city defences. The Renaissance palace that he built, the Friedrichsburg, was removed at the beginning of the 19th century and replaced by the New Castle. During the Reformation, Hechingen remained Catholic, but was still affected by the 30 Years' War. In 1625, Imperial troops reached Hechingen, and the prince (elevated from a count in 1623) bore the cost of supporting them. This burden, along with plundering by the soldiers and several poor harvests, caused great suffering and many deaths in the city. In 1632, the Swedish army attacked, and the following year the entire force entered the city. The castle remained in the hands of the Hohenzollerns, and the troops marched on to Sigmaringen, which fell into the hands of Eberhard III, Duke of Württemberg (1614–1674) in 1633. Finally, on 5 July 1633, the city yielded to the Württembergs, and the castle was besieged. The siege lasted nine months, the castle receiving food from the local farmers through underground passages and bartering for it with precious objects from the castle. On 3 April 1634, the castle surrendered to the Württembergs, whose soldiers plundered everything they could get their hands on, even draft animals farmers needed to