Kertzfeld is a working village in the Grand Ried, where the central Alsatian plain opens into damp meadows, woods and broad fields. The small Scheer stream runs through its settlement. On the commune's eastern side, loess soils support large-scale cultivation; westward, the landscape shifts toward the Bruch de l'Andlau, with pasture, copses and forest. The municipality describes a 943-hectare territory, about one third wooded, at roughly 160 metres above sea level. That meeting of farm country and wetland edge gives the place a greener, more open feel than a compact historic town.
INSEE counted 1,255 municipal residents in 2023 for the administrative commune of Kertzfeld (code 67233), using the geography in force on 1 January 2026. This is the commune's official population figure, not a total for the wider Canton d'Erstein or Grand Ried. For visitors, the useful frame is a village close to Benfeld and within reach of Sélestat and Strasbourg, with most everyday needs met locally or in neighbouring centres.
What the records say about Kertzfeld
The municipality's French-language history page reports Bronze Age, Gallo-Roman and Merovingian finds, including a Neolithic pit uncovered during water works in 1952 and interpreted at the time as a grain silo later used for refuse. It gives around the year 1000 as the first written mention of Kertzfeld and records the area's long relationship with the Bishopric of Strasbourg and religious houses. Those are documentary and archaeological points; the town page's proposed Celtic road and some accounts of how the early settlement formed remain historical interpretations rather than settled proof.
The name Klosterwald invites a monastic story, but the municipal archive account is clear: no document records a monastery or cloister at that forest site. Several religious houses did own forest land there, which offers a more grounded explanation for the name. Another trace of local religious life, the Saint-Wendelin chapel near the road to Westhouse, has disappeared. Surviving records place it between about 1450 and 1490; a connection to rebuilding after the 1444 Armagnac conflict is presented only as a probability. The chapel later drew pilgrims, and its absence is itself part of the landscape's history.
A church, a forest name and village services
Saint-Arbogast's parish church anchors the built heritage. A nineteenth-century oil painting behind its main altar is recorded by the French Ministry of Culture; the inventory says it may show Saint Arbogast bringing Sigebert, son of Dagobert, back to life. The cautious wording matters: it is an interpretive reading of the image, not a confirmed narrative. The former presbytery now houses the municipal library, a practical example of an older religious building continuing in community use.
INSEE's employer-establishment register counted 20 establishments active at the end of 2024, with activity spread across construction, commerce and services, public services, agriculture and industry. This small-area count is not a complete tally of every worker. The municipality's business directory gives that economy a human scale: it lists a bakery, bar-restaurant, beekeeper, building and repair trades, landscaping and other local services. Kertzfeld also has a playground behind the town hall and a village library. Check opening hours and business availability directly before travelling.
Walks, cycling and useful nearby stops
The Grand Ried tourism office maps the Chemin des pèlerins between Benfeld and Neunkirch, with Kertzfeld shown among the surrounding villages. The published circuit is a 15-kilometre return walk, estimated at four hours and described as easy, without significant elevation gain. Its mapped start is Benfeld rather than Kertzfeld, so use the leaflet to choose the correct start and route. Cyclists have a 4.7-kilometre separated path built in 2018 between Kertzfeld and Stotzheim. A municipal planning report describes the cycling strip toward Benfeld station as shared with vehicle traffic and unlit at the time of that assessment; confirm current conditions before choosing it.
The municipal site lists the nearest rail station at Benfeld roughly 2.5 kilometres away and describes Strasbourg as less than twenty minutes by train, but Kertzfeld itself has no station in the cited listings. Check the exact departure point and live service. For public assistance, Service-Public lists France Services in Erstein, Obernai and Sélestat. In the village, the town hall and library provide practical information, while Benfeld is the closest larger service centre. Ask locally about access to the church, forest paths and former chapel site; neither historic interiors nor rural tracks should be assumed open. Confirm route markings, transport and opening hours before setting out.
