Meersburg () is a town in Baden-Württemberg in the southwest of Germany. It is on Lake Constance. It is known for its medieval city. The lower town ("Unterstadt") and upper town ("Oberstadt") are reserved for pedestrians only, and connected by two stairways and a steep street ("Steigstrasse"). History The name of the town means "Castle on the Sea", referring to a castle which, according to a tradition from 1548, was built here in 630 by the Merovingian king Dagobert I. The commune obtained the status of free city in 1299, though nominally still under the Bishop of Constance. In 1803 it was annexed to the Electorate of Baden. After World War II, Meersburg was in the French military occupation area in Germany. Main sights The town is home to two castles, the Old Castle and the New Castle. The Old Castle, built by Merovingian King Dagobert I in the seventh century, is one of the oldest surviving castles in Germany. It is in private ownership. A self-guided tour is available. German poet Annette von Droste-Hülshoff lived there for eight years and purchased the Prince's House. The New Castle was built in the eighteenth century. Originally the residence of the bishop of Constance, it was used for various purposes after the Secularization of 1803. It is now a museum. There is also an expanse of half-timbered houses, and two medieval town gates, which are the remains of the fortification. Transport Meersburg is the northern terminus of a car ferry service to Constance. On the opposite side Meersburg is connected to the region by the B 31, a major road that leads from Breisach (on the French border) to Lindau (on the Austrian border), largely bypassing all parts of Meersburg. To exit to Meersburg and to get to the car ferry, one takes B 33 to Meersburg and Constance. Meersburg is also reachable by pleasure boat services from Lake Constance to Überlingen (to the west), to Lindau, Bregenz (to the east) and to Constance opposite. Famous people One of Germany's most celebrated poets, Annette von Droste-Hülshoff, lived her final years at Meersburg Castle, from 1841–1848. She also owned the small vine-covered villa known as Fürstenhäusle. The famous eighteenth-century doctor Franz Anton Mesmer (from whose name the verb "to mesmerize" derives) died in 1815 in Meersburg and is buried near the old wall of the graveyard about northeast of the upper town-gate "Obertor"