Ahlen (; Westphalian: ''Aulen'') is a

town A town is a human settlement. Towns are generally larger than villages and smaller than cities, though the criteria to distinguish between them vary considerably in different parts of the world. Origin and use The word "town" shares an ori ...

North Rhine-Westphalia North Rhine-Westphalia (german: Nordrhein-Westfalen, ; li, Noordrien-Wesfale ; nds, Noordrhien-Westfalen; ksh, Noodrhing-Wäßßfaale), commonly shortened to NRW (), is a States of Germany, state (''Land'') in Western Germany. With more tha ...

, Germany, 30 km southeast of

Münster Münster (; nds, Mönster) is an independent city (''Kreisfreie Stadt'') in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is in the northern part of the state and is considered to be the cultural centre of the Westphalia region. It is also a state distr ...

. Ahlen is part of the District of Warendorf and is economically the most important town in that

district A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions o ...

. Ahlen is part of the larger

region In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as zones, lands or territories, are areas that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and the interaction of humanity and t ...

, and of the historic Münsterland area. The nearby villages of Dolberg, Vorhelm and Tönnishäuschen are part of Ahlen, as well. The largest neighboring town is the city of

Hamm Hamm (, Latin: ''Hammona'') is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located in the northeastern part of the Ruhr area. As of 2016 its population was 179,397. The city is situated between the A1 motorway and A2 motorway. Hamm railwa ...

to the southwest.

Geography

Neighbouring towns

Surrounding Ahlen are the towns of

Sendenhorst Sendenhorst is a town in the district of Warendorf, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is situated approximately north of Hamm and south-east of Münster. Geography Sendenhorst consists of Sendenhorst and Albersloh. Before the municipal ...

Ennigerloh Ennigerloh () is a town in the Warendorf (district), district of Warendorf, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is situated approximately 25 km northeast of Hamm and 30 km southeast of Münster. The town, located in an agricultural a ...

, Beckum,

Lippetal Lippetal is a municipality in the district of Soest, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Geography Lippetal is located north and south of the river Lippe between the cities of Lippstadt () and Hamm (). Lippetal is situated at the northern bou ...

Heessen Hamm (, Latin: ''Hammona'') is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located in the northeastern part of the Ruhr area. As of 2016 its population was 179,397. The city is situated between the A1 motorway and A2 motorway. Hamm railwa ...

(District of the city of

) and

Drensteinfurt Drensteinfurt (in low German ''Stewwert'') is a town in the district of Warendorf, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is situated approximately 15 km north of Hamm and 20 km south of Münster. The villages Rinkerode in the north an ...

Town districts

* Ahlen (downtown) with the farming communities of Borbein, Brockhausen,

Ester In chemistry, an ester is a compound derived from an oxoacid (organic or inorganic) in which at least one hydroxyl group () is replaced by an alkoxy group (), as in the substitution reaction of a carboxylic acid and an alcohol. Glycerides ar ...

, Halene, Oestrich and

Rosendahl Rosendahl is a municipality in the Coesfeld (district), district of Coesfeld in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located approximately north-west of Coesfeld. In this municipality is located the Castle of Darfeld, internation ...

(area of the former town sections of Alt- and Neuahlen) all make up the core of the town.

Outlying villages

* Dolberg * Vorhelm * Tönnishäuschen

History

Early times

The first recorded mention of Ahlen is in the ''Vita Liudgeri'', dating to about the year 850. The reason for the name, which means "

eel Eels are ray-finned fish belonging to the order Anguilliformes (), which consists of eight suborders, 19 families, 111 genera, and about 800 species. Eels undergo considerable development from the early larval stage to the eventual adult stage ...

s", are unknown. An eel bedecked with a crown and feathers is on the town's

coat of arms A coat of arms is a heraldry, heraldic communication design, visual design on an escutcheon (heraldry), escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the latter two being outer garments). The coat of arms on an escutcheon forms the central ele ...

. The start of

settlement Settlement may refer to: *Human settlement, a community where people live *Settlement (structural), the distortion or disruption of parts of a building * Closing (real estate), the final step in executing a real estate transaction *Settlement (fin ...

was likely due to there being a crossing over the river

Werse The Werse [] (river no. 32) is a , left-hand tributary of the Ems (river), River Ems in Münsterland, North Rhine-Westphalia in Germany. The Drainage basin, catchment area of the Werse is 762.47 km². Its name may be derived from a pre-Indo- ...

, which was also the crossing of two key roads (

–Ahlen–

Warendorf Warendorf (, Westphalian: ''Warnduorp'') is a town in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, and capital of Warendorf District. The town is best known today for its well-preserved medieval town centre, for horse-riding, and the opportunities it prov ...

and Beckum–Ahlen– Herbern), and the beginning of a third road (Ahlen–

). In its early

centuries A century is a period of 100 years. Centuries are numbered ordinally in English and many other languages. The word ''century'' comes from the Latin ''centum'', meaning ''one hundred''. ''Century'' is sometimes abbreviated as c. A centennial or ...

, the fledgling settlement was built around an episcopal

court A court is any person or institution, often as a government institution, with the authority to adjudicate legal disputes between parties and carry out the administration of justice in civil, criminal, and administrative matters in accordance ...

. Within the safe haven of this

church Church may refer to: Religion * Church (building), a building for Christian religious activities * Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination * Church service, a formalized period of Christian communal worship * Chris ...

fortification A fortification is a military construction or building designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is also used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Latin ''fortis'' ("strong") and ''facere'' ...

, the first

settler A settler is a person who has human migration, migrated to an area and established a permanent residence there, often to colonize the area. A settler who migrates to an area previously uninhabited or sparsely inhabited may be described as a ...

s were

craftsmen Craftsman may refer to: A profession *Artisan, a skilled manual worker who makes items that may be functional or strictly decorative * Master craftsman, an artisan who has achieved such a standard that he may establish his own workshop and take ...

and

merchants A merchant is a person who trades in commodities produced by other people, especially one who trades with foreign countries. Historically, a merchant is anyone who is involved in business or trade. Merchants have operated for as long as industry ...

who

trade Trade involves the transfer of goods and services from one person or entity to another, often in exchange for money. Economists refer to a system or network that allows trade as a market. An early form of trade, barter, saw the direct excha ...

d with the local

farmers A farmer is a person engaged in agriculture, raising living organisms for food or raw materials. The term usually applies to people who do some combination of raising field crops, orchards, vineyards, poultry, or other livestock. A farmer mi ...

and

peasants A peasant is a pre-industrial agricultural laborer or a farmer with limited land-ownership, especially one living in the Middle Ages under feudalism and paying rent, tax, fees, or services to a landlord. In Europe, three classes of peasants ...

of the court. Long-distance trading started in the second half of the 12th century — proof being the names of Ahlen merchants found on invoices from merchants in

Lübeck Lübeck (; Low German also ), officially the Hanseatic City of Lübeck (german: Hansestadt Lübeck), is a city in Northern Germany. With around 217,000 inhabitants, Lübeck is the second-largest city on the German Baltic coast and in the stat ...

. Ahlen was also part of the north German

Hanse The Hanseatic League (; gml, Hanse, , ; german: label= Modern German, Deutsche Hanse) was a medieval commercial and defensive confederation of merchant guilds and market towns in Central and Northern Europe. Growing from a few North German ...

. During this time a

town wall A defensive wall is a fortification usually used to protect a city, town or other settlement from potential aggressors. The walls can range from simple palisades or earthworks to extensive military fortifications with towers, bastions and gates ...

with five towers was built (about 1271). The stripping away of the town wall had begun in the year 1765 and the last hint of it was gone by 1929. Ahlen grew quickly during the 13th century and in or about the year 1285, the population was so high that a new church (St. Marien) was founded next to the old one (St. Bartholomäus). This leads to the likelihood that Ahlen was one of the 18 biggest towns in

Westphalia Westphalia (; german: Westfalen ; nds, Westfalen ) is a region of northwestern Germany and one of the three historic parts of the state of North Rhine-Westphalia. It has an area of and 7.9 million inhabitants. The territory of the regio ...

, at that time. However, the town's growth was hindered in the 14th century by the

Black Death The Black Death (also known as the Pestilence, the Great Mortality or the Plague) was a bubonic plague pandemic occurring in Western Eurasia and North Africa from 1346 to 1353. It is the most fatal pandemic recorded in human history, causi ...

. According to the town's census book of 1389, only 63 families were left in Ahlen. But the town rebounded. In 1454, a citizen list showed 212 families living in Ahlen; seven

noble families Nobility is a social class found in many societies that have an aristocracy. It is normally ranked immediately below royalty. Nobility has often been an estate of the realm with many exclusive functions and characteristics. The characterist ...

and their attendants lived in the episcopal court as well. Based on this number of families, a calculated population estimate of 1,300 citizens would be realistic. By this time the town had four quarters — all of which being about the same size and each quarter being named after its own

town gate A town is a human settlement. Towns are generally larger than villages and smaller than cities, though the criteria to distinguish between them vary considerably in different parts of the world. Origin and use The word "town" shares an ori ...

. Each quarter was responsible for defending its part of the town wall and gate. During the 16th century, there were three plague

epidemics An epidemic (from Greek ἐπί ''epi'' "upon or above" and δῆμος ''demos'' "people") is the rapid spread of disease to a large number of patients among a given population within an area in a short period of time. Epidemics of infectious d ...

in 1505, 1551 and 1592;

leprosy Leprosy, also known as Hansen's disease (HD), is a long-term infection by the bacteria ''Mycobacterium leprae'' or ''Mycobacterium lepromatosis''. Infection can lead to damage of the nerves, respiratory tract, skin, and eyes. This nerve damag ...

also killed many people. In the year 1571, the

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well a ...

and the

council A council is a group of people who come together to consult, deliberate, or make decisions. A council may function as a legislature, especially at a town, city or county/shire level, but most legislative bodies at the state/provincial or natio ...

decided to build a special hospital for leprosy. Disastrous fires in 1483, 1668 and 1744 were responsible for further halting Ahlen's growth. About 20 documents of

witch trials A witch-hunt, or a witch purge, is a search for people who have been labeled witches or a search for evidence of witchcraft. The classical period of witch-hunts in Early Modern Europe and Colonial America took place in the Early Modern per ...

during the time from 1574 until 1652 survive. The hunt for

witches Witchcraft traditionally means the use of magic or supernatural powers to harm others. A practitioner is a witch. In medieval and early modern Europe, where the term originated, accused witches were usually women who were believed to have use ...

started in 1574 with the death of four women. Thereafter, Peter Kleikamp was charged with being a

werewolf In folklore, a werewolf (), or occasionally lycanthrope (; ; uk, Вовкулака, Vovkulaka), is an individual that can shapeshift into a wolf (or, especially in modern film, a therianthropic hybrid wolf-like creature), either purposely or ...

; he was tortured and burned alive on the

pyre A pyre ( grc, πυρά; ''pyrá'', from , ''pyr'', "fire"), also known as a funeral pyre, is a structure, usually made of wood, for burning a body as part of a funeral rite or execution. As a form of cremation, a body is placed upon or under the ...

. In 1616, Christian zum Loe was charged with

wizardry ''Wizardry'' is a series of role-playing video games, developed by Sir-Tech, that were highly influential in the evolution of modern role-playing video games. The original ''Wizardry'' was a significant influence on early console role-playing g ...

; he went insane and died while in jail. The last known case was in 1652 against Anna Sadelers; she was tortured, burned alive on the pyre and beheaded.

National Socialism and World War II

In 1938 the people of Ahlen destroyed the Ahlen synagogue. By November 1938, there were no more Jews in Ahlen.

Politics

Town Council

Coat of arms

Blazon: “In red, a gold crowned, inwardly curved, seven-fold winged silver eel. Above the coat of arms a three-tower wall crown with gate. ”The oldest seal shows the pious eel in the city gate, above it Saint Bartholomew. This saint is the patron saint of Ahlen. The seal has appeared since the 13th century: Certificate v. May 21, 1255 - "The city of Ahlen enters into a state of peace with the city of Cologne". Since the 17th century, only the eel has been represented, both in the city coat of arms and in the seal. In its current form, the coat of arms was awarded by the Prussian state on December 5, 1910.

Mayors

1809–1945

* 1809–1813 Bernard Heinrich Hahues * 1813–1817 Bernard Anton von Hatzfeld * 1817–1822 Heinrich Anton Nacke * 1823–1856 Franz Wächter * 1857–1863 Theodor von Cloedt * 1863–1869 Wilhelm Diederich * 1869–1870 Ludwig Fry * 1870–1898 Johann Heinrich Hagemann * 1898–1923 Eduard Corneli * 1923–1934 Georg Rasche * 1934–1937 Franz Hackethal * 1938–1945 Otto Jansen

Honorary Mayors 1946–1996

* 1946–1946 Friedrich Niemeyer * 1946–1948 Hermann Dreisilker (Waldmann) * 1948–1950 Hugo Stoffers * 1951–1957 Heinrich Lenfert * 1957–1969 Heinrich Linnemann * 1969–1984 Herbert Faust * 1984–1996 Horst Jaunich

Full-time Mayors since 1996

* 1996–1999 Günter Harms * 1999–2015 Benedikt Ruhmöller * since 2015 Andreas Berger

Town Directors/Main Civil Servants

* 1945–1945 Wilhelm Buschhoff (set as mayor from English occupying troops in the function as town director) * 1945–1951 Wilhelm Kiwit * 1951–1963 Hugo Stoffers * 1963–1975 Johannes Baldauf * 1975–1985 Walter Priesnitz * 1985–1995 Gerd Willamowski * 2008 Benedikt Ruhmöller

Economy and Administration

One of the best known companies in Ahlen is Franz Kaldewei GmbH & Co. KG, one of the biggest bathtub manufacturers worldwide. Also well known is LR Health & Beauty Systems, which was bought by

Apax Partners Apax Partners LLP is a British private equity firm, headquartered in London, England. The company also operates out of six other offices in New York, Hong Kong, Mumbai, Tel Aviv, Munich and Shanghai. As of December 2017, the firm, including its ...

in 2004.

Transport

Ahlen station is on the

Hamm–Minden railway The Hamm–Minden Railway is an important and historically significant railway in Germany. It is completely quadruple track. It is a major axis for long distance passenger and freight trains between the Ruhr and the north and east of Germany. I ...

and is served every hour by the ''

Rhein-Weser-Express The Rhein-Weser-Express (RE 6) is a Regional-Express service route in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia, connecting some of the most important cities in Westphalia (among others Minden, Bielefeld and Hamm) with the Ruhr (especially Dortm ...

'' and the '' Ems-Börde-Bahn''.

Education

Elementary schools

* Albert-Schweitzer-Schule * Augustin-Wibbelt-Schule in the quarter Vorhelm * Barbaraschule * Diesterwegschule * Don-Bosco-Schule * Freiligrath Grundschule * Lambertischule in the quarter Dolberg * Ludgerischule * Marienschule * Martinschule * Paul-Gerhardt-Schule

Secondary Modern Schools

* GHS Bodelschwinghschule * Overbergschule * Geschwister-Scholl-Schule

Junior High School (ages 10 to 16)

* Städtische Realschule Ahlen (closed) * Städtische Sekundarschule (closed) * Therese-Münsterteicher Gesamtschule (former Städtische Gesamtschule) The Sekundarschule and TMG used the building of the former Realschule

High schools

* Gymnasium St. Michael * Städtisches Gymnasium Ahlen

Comprehensive School

* Fritz-Winter-Gesamtschule

Special Needs School

* Johanna-Rose-Schule

Vocational Schools

* Berufskolleg Ahlen * Berufskolleg St. Michael * Fachschulen für Heilerziehungspflege der Caritas-Trägergesellschaft Nord * Fachseminar für Altenpflege Gemeinnütziges Bildungszentrum GmbH * Krankenpflegeschule im St.-Franziskus-Hospital Berufskolleg Ahlen

Places of interest

Buildings

* St. Bartholomäus Catholic Church *St. Marien Catholic Church *Residential Buildings *Burgmannshöfe * Ahlen Water Tower

Museums

*Heimatmuseum *Kunstmuseum * Fritz Winter-Haus

Clubs

*KunstVerein Ahlen *Initiative Bürgerzentrum Schuhfabrik e.V. *Ditib Ahlen Sporkulübü (ASK Ahlen) *ASG Aramäer Ahlen 1983 e.V. *Ahlener Sport Gemeinschaft e.V. (ASG) *Vorwärts Ahlen *FSG Ahlen *Rot Weiss Ahlen *Westfalia Vorhelm *Eintracht Dolberg

Economy

Ahlen's economy was dominated by the

coal Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock, formed as rock strata called coal seams. Coal is mostly carbon with variable amounts of other elements, chiefly hydrogen, sulfur, oxygen, and nitrogen. Coal is formed when dea ...

industry for nearly one century.

Twin towns – sister cities

Ahlen is twinned with: *

Differdange Differdange ( lb, Déifferdeng or (locally) ; german: Differdingen) is a commune with town status in south-western Luxembourg, west from the country's capital. It lies near the borders with Belgium and France and it is located in the canton ...

, Luxembourg *

Penzberg Penzberg (; Central Bavarian: ''Benschberg'') is a city (although some see it as a town) in the Weilheim-Schongau district, in Bavaria, Germany. It is located about 50 km south of Munich, and had a population of around 17,000 in 2020. A histo ...

, Germany *

Teltow Teltow [] is a town in the Potsdam-Mittelmark district, in Brandenburg, Germany. Geography Teltow is part of the agglomeration of Berlin. The distance to the Berlin city centre is , while the distance to Potsdam is . The Teltow Canal links the ...

, Germany * Tempelhof-Schöneberg (Berlin), Germany Ahlen is a member of the

Notable people

* Andreas Dombret, Board member of German central bank Deutsche Bundesbank, grew up in Ahlen *

Alexander Klaws Alexander Klaws (born 3 September 1983) is a German singer, songwriter, actor, and host. He rose to fame in 2003 after winning the debut season of the television series '' Deutschland sucht den Superstar'', the German ''Idol'' series adaptation ...

(born 1983), singer *

LaVive LaVive were a German girl group consisting of Meike Ehnert, Sarah Rensing, Julia Köster and Katrin Mehlberg that was formed on the television show '' Popstars: Girls forever''. Their debut album '' No Sleep'' was released in December 2010. The ...

's band member Sarah Rensing is from Ahlen *

Erkan Teper Erkan Teper (born 18 June 1982) is a German professional boxer. He held the European heavyweight title in 2015, but was stripped by the EBU for failing a drug test. Amateur career As a super heavyweight amateur, Teper won silver medals at the ...

, professional boxer *

Curro Torres Cristóbal Emilio "Curro" Torres Ruiz (born 27 December 1976) is a Spanish retired footballer who played as a right-back, currently manager of Estonian club FCI Levadia Tallinn. In his professional career, whose later years were blighted by sev ...

, birthplace

References

External links

* {{Authority control Towns in North Rhine-Westphalia Members of the Hanseatic League