Odratzheim

Odratzheim is a small Alsatian village nestled on the edge of the plain, at the foot of the Vosges foothills. With its 499 inhabitants, it borders Kirchheim and Scharrachbergheim-Irmstett. A walk on the limestone hill called am Berg, reaching 246 meters, offers a preserved natural setting. Excavations have uncovered remains of a Merovingian palace near Marlenheim-Kirchheim, as well as traces from the Iron Age and Gallo-Roman period, attesting to ancient occupation of the area.

In the Middle Ages, Odratzheim successively belonged to several abbeys before changing hands through inheritances, dowries, or donations among lords. A Jewish community settled there in the 16th century after being expelled from Strasbourg. A synagogue was built between the 18th and 19th centuries, but the community later declined. The building, sold to the municipality in 1952, was transformed into a Sports and Sociocultural Center in 1985. Its modest architecture contrasts with the more imposing synagogues of Westhoffen or Balbronn, reflecting the relatively modest size of the local Jewish population.

The Sainte-Marguerite Church, built under the Second Empire, and the Geraudon Castle, a Regency-style residence commissioned by the royal war commissioner Augustin-Pierre Geraudon, complete the village's architectural heritage.