ABSTRACT
Most European towns in the Middle Ages, and not just those in Germany, were not 'founded' on 'greenfield' sites. The formation and further development of towns usually took place at locations with some pre-existing central functions for the surrounding area – these might be economic, religious, administrative or legal ones. Both the internal growth of the Colmar and the development of several suburbs made necessary two extensions of the city wall, the first around 1250 and then again around 1287. In the course of the following two centuries the city, that is, its magistrates and its institutions of different kinds, was able to acquire an urban territory of moderate size but compact structure, eventually comprising c. 6,600 hectares. The major imperial city of Ulm, however, acquired several formerly noble lordships in its immediate vicinity, either by pawn or purchase, in most cases involving the acquisition of full seigneurial rights.
