Bad Soden-Salmünster () is a town in the
Main-Kinzig district, in
Hesse
Hesse (, , ) or Hessia (, ; german: Hessen ), officially the State of Hessen (german: links=no, Land Hessen), is a States of Germany, state in Germany. Its capital city is Wiesbaden, and the largest urban area is Frankfurt. Two other major histor ...
,
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
. It is situated on the river
Kinzig, between
Fulda
Fulda () (historically in English called Fuld) is a town in Hesse, Germany; it is located on the river Fulda and is the administrative seat of the Fulda district (''Kreis''). In 1990, the town hosted the 30th Hessentag state festival.
History ...
and
Hanau
Hanau () is a town in the Main-Kinzig-Kreis, in Hesse, Germany. It is located 25 km east of Frankfurt, Frankfurt am Main and is part of the Frankfurt Rhine-Main, Frankfurt Rhine-Main Metropolitan Region. Its Hanau Hauptbahnhof, station is a ...
. It has a population of around 13,000.
Geography
Location
The municipality is located on both sides of the
Kinzig river in the
Main-Kinzig district of
Hesse
Hesse (, , ) or Hessia (, ; german: Hessen ), officially the State of Hessen (german: links=no, Land Hessen), is a States of Germany, state in Germany. Its capital city is Wiesbaden, and the largest urban area is Frankfurt. Two other major histor ...
. Its territory extends into the hills of the
Vogelsberg
The is a large volcanic mountain range in the German Central Uplands in the state of Hesse, separated from the Rhön Mountains by the Fulda river valley.
Emerging approximately 19 million years ago, the Vogelsberg is Central Europe's largest ...
to the north and into the
Spessart
Spessart is a ''Mittelgebirge'', a range of low wooded mountains, in the States of Bavaria and Hesse in Germany. It is bordered by the Vogelsberg, Rhön and Odenwald. The highest elevation is the Geiersberg at 586 metres above sea level.
Etymo ...
to the south.
The two main population centres, Bad Soden and Salmünster, are both situated in the Kinzig valley.
Subdivisions
The ''Stadt'' (town) Bad Soden-Salmünster today consists of the following 11 ''Stadtteile'' (boroughs): , , , , , , , , , and .
Bad Soden and Salmünster are the two ''Kernstadtteile'' (core boroughs). The current municipality was created in the ' of 1970, 1972 and 1974.
Neighbouring communities
From the north, clockwise, the neighbouring municipalities are:
Birstein,
Steinau an der Straße
Steinau an der Straße is a town of around 10,000 inhabitants in the Main-Kinzig district, in Hesse, Germany. It is situated on the river Kinzig, southwest of Fulda. The name ''Steinau'' refers to stones in the river; ''an der Straße,'' meaning ...
, ''
Gutsbezirk Spessart
Gutsbezirk Spessart is a rugged unincorporated area in the Main-Kinzig-Kreis in southeast Hesse, Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country i ...
'' (an
unincorporated area
An unincorporated area is a region that is not governed by a local municipal corporation. Widespread unincorporated communities and areas are a distinguishing feature of the United States and Canada. Most other countries of the world either have ...
surrounding the ''Stadtteil'' of Alfeld),
Bad Orb
Bad Orb (; "Thermae on the Orb River") is a spa town in the Main-Kinzig-Kreis district of Hesse, Germany. It is situated east of Hanau between the forested hills of the Spessart. Bad Orb has a population of over 10,000. Its economy is dominate ...
,
Wächtersbach
The town of Wächtersbach is part of the Main-Kinzig-Kreis in Hesse, Germany. In 1982, the town hosted the 22nd ''Hessentag'' state festival.
Location
Wächtersbach lies between the Spessart and the Vogelsberg Mountains in the middle Kinzig val ...
and
Brachttal
Brachttal is a municipality in the Main-Kinzig district, in Frankfurt Rhine-Main in Hesse, Germany.
Districts
The Bracht, a tributary of the Kinzig, flows through the ''Tal'' (valley) so the municipality got the name ''Brachttal.''
Brachttal ...
. The ''Stadtteil'' Mernes is separated from the rest of the municipal territory by the ''Gutsbezirk Spessart''. It also borders on ' (another unincorporated wooded area and part of the
Main-Spessart
Main-Spessart is a ''Landkreis'' (district) in the northwest of Bavaria, Germany. It is located in Lower Franconia and derives its name from the river Main and the wooded hills of the Spessart.
Geography
The district is bounded by (from the north ...
district of
Bavaria
Bavaria ( ; ), officially the Free State of Bavaria (german: Freistaat Bayern, link=no ), is a state in the south-east of Germany. With an area of , Bavaria is the largest German state by land area, comprising roughly a fifth of the total lan ...
) and
Jossgrund
Jossgrund is a municipality in the Main-Kinzig district, in Hesse, Germany. It has around 3,500 inhabitants distributed among several formerly independent villages, now ''Ortsteile''. The administration seat is at Oberndorf.
Geography Location
Th ...
.
History
![Bad Soden view](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f9/Bad_Soden_view.JPG)
Salmünster as a settlement likely dates to the 9th century, but is first mentioned in a document from around 1000, as ''Salchenmunster''. Soden, probably created by
Fulda Abbey
The Abbey of Fulda (German ''Kloster Fulda'', Latin ''Abbatia Fuldensis''), from 1221 the Princely Abbey of Fulda (''Fürstabtei Fulda'') and from 1752 the Prince-Bishopric of Fulda (''Fürstbistum Fulda''), was a Benedictine abbey and ecclesiastic ...
ca. 909, appears in a document from ca. 1190, referred to as ''Sodin''. Around 152, the abbot of Fulda Abbey had ''Burg Stolzenberg'' (see below) erected. Town rights were bestowed in 1296 (Soden, but called ''Stolzenthal'') and 1320 (Salmünster), by
King Adolf and
Emperor Ludwig, respectively. In 1536, the ''Huttenschloss'' (see below) was built.
In medieval times, salt works were an important source of local income at Soden. Since the 12th century the water of the local wells, with a high salt and iron content, was used for salt production. The springs and the village were mortgaged by the abbot of Fulda to the lords of Hutten in 1330, who initially lived at Stolzenfels before moving to a new palace in the mid-16th century. When the Hutten family came into financial difficulties, they in turn mortgaged the area to the
Archbishop of Mainz
The Elector of Mainz was one of the seven Prince-electors of the Holy Roman Empire. As both the Archbishop of Mainz and the ruling prince of the Electorate of Mainz, the Elector of Mainz held a powerful position during the Middle Ages. The Archb ...
. However, the temporal organization of the Archbishopric, the ''Erzstift'', was already running salt works at nearby (Bad) Orb. To avoid internal competition, salt production at Soden was ended in the later 16th century.
The salt well (''Barbarossaquelle'') was rediscovered in 1837, and in 1838
Robert Bunsen
Robert Wilhelm Eberhard Bunsen (;
30 March 1811
– 16 August 1899) was a German chemist. He investigated emission spectra of heated elements, and discovered caesium (in 1860) and rubidium (in 1861) with the physicist Gustav Kirchhoff. The Bu ...
conducted an analysis of the well's water. In 1872, Soden was granted permission to use the wells for a spa. The first ''Kurhaus'' (spa building) was erected in 1889, by which time the region had become a part of the
Kingdom of Prussia
The Kingdom of Prussia (german: Königreich Preußen, ) was a German kingdom that constituted the state of Prussia between 1701 and 1918.Marriott, J. A. R., and Charles Grant Robertson. ''The Evolution of Prussia, the Making of an Empire''. Re ...
. Soden has been a ''Heilbad'' (spa) and therefore called "Bad Soden" since 1928.
Creation of the current town
The current town was created only on 1 July 1974 when the towns of Salmünster and Bad Soden bei Salmünster merged. During earlier ''Gebietsreformen'', as of 1 December 1970 Wahlert had become a part of Bad Soden. Ahl and Eckardroth followed on 1 April 1972. Alsberg and Hausen were merged with Salmünster on 1 January 1970 followed by Kerbersdorf and Romsthal on 1 December 1970 and Katholisch-Willenroth on 1 July 1972.
Since 1974, the town has been part of the Main-Kinzig district, it was previously part of the Schlüchtern district.
Government
The mayor is Dominik Brasch.
Notable buildings
* - ruin of a medieval
hill castle
A hill castle or mountain castle is a castle built on a natural feature that stands above the surrounding terrain. It is a term derived from the German ''Höhenburg'' used in categorising castle sites by their topographical location. Hill castles ...
to the northeast of Bad Soden. It was destroyed in the
Thirty Years' War
The Thirty Years' War was one of the longest and most destructive conflicts in European history
The history of Europe is traditionally divided into four time periods: prehistoric Europe (prior to about 800 BC), classical antiquity (80 ...
by
Croatian troops serving the Emperor, commanded by .
* - a town castle built around 1536 by Lukas von Hutten
* - the current
Baroque
The Baroque (, ; ) is a style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished in Europe from the early 17th century until the 1750s. In the territories of the Spanish and Portuguese empires including t ...
parish church was built in 1737-45. It is part of the ensemble of the
Franciscan
The Franciscans are a group of related Mendicant orders, mendicant Christianity, Christian Catholic religious order, religious orders within the Catholic Church. Founded in 1209 by Italian Catholic friar Francis of Assisi, these orders include t ...
monastery at Salmünster.
* - the original castle was first mentioned in 1540. Under
Daniel Brendel von Homburg
Daniel Brendel of Homburg (german: Daniel Brendel von Homburg) (22 March 1522 – 22 March 1582) was the Archbishop-Elector of Mainz from 1555 to 1582.
Biography
Daniel Brendel of Homburg was born in Aschaffenburg on March 22, 1522.
The cathed ...
it was rebuilt into a small ''
Schloss
''Schloss'' (; pl. ''Schlösser''), formerly written ''Schloß'', is the German term for a building similar to a château, palace, or manor house.
Related terms appear in several Germanic languages. In the Scandinavian languages, the cognate ...
''. Today, it serves as a youth hostel and is not open to the public.
* St. Laurentius -
Gothic revival
Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic, neo-Gothic, or Gothick) is an architectural movement that began in the late 1740s in England. The movement gained momentum and expanded in the first half of the 19th century, as increasingly ...
church at Bad Soden
* Wallfahrtskirche Heiliges Kreuz - small church at Alsberg
* Mernes water works - water works built in 1914 by the Prussians to supply water to the military training area between Bad Orb and
Jossgrund
Jossgrund is a municipality in the Main-Kinzig district, in Hesse, Germany. It has around 3,500 inhabitants distributed among several formerly independent villages, now ''Ortsteile''. The administration seat is at Oberndorf.
Geography Location
Th ...
. It was bought in 1952 by the city of
Frankfurt
Frankfurt, officially Frankfurt am Main (; Hessian: , "Frank ford on the Main"), is the most populous city in the German state of Hesse. Its 791,000 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located on its na ...
, when it once again took over the summer camp at Wegscheide (see
Stalag IX-B). The Mernes works long supplied water to the camp until it was replaced with a new water line from Bad Orb. Mernes still uses water pumped from the works.
* Parish church St. Peter at Mernes, with late Gothic crucifixion group from the workshop of
Tilman Riemenschneider
Tilman Riemenschneider (c. 1460 – 7 July 1531) was a German sculptor and woodcarver active in Würzburg from 1483. He was one of the most prolific and versatile sculptors of the transition period between late Gothic and Renaissance, a master ...
Infrastructure
Transport
The town has direct access to the
Autobahn 66 from
Frankfurt
Frankfurt, officially Frankfurt am Main (; Hessian: , "Frank ford on the Main"), is the most populous city in the German state of Hesse. Its 791,000 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located on its na ...
to
Fulda
Fulda () (historically in English called Fuld) is a town in Hesse, Germany; it is located on the river Fulda and is the administrative seat of the Fulda district (''Kreis''). In 1990, the town hosted the 30th Hessentag state festival.
History ...
. It is linked to the rail network by the
Bad Soden-Salmünster station (located in the ''Stadtteil'' of Salmünster).
Utilities
At Ahl, the Kinzig is dammed by the ', which serves both to control floods and to generate hydroelectric power.
Like in other communities in the area, such as
Biebergemünd
Biebergemünd is a municipality in the Main-Kinzig district, in Hesse, Germany. It has a population of over 8,000 and lies in the wooded hills of the Spessart.
Etymology
The name derives from the River Bieber, which flows (''mündet'') into the K ...
,
Flörsbachtal
Flörsbachtal is a municipality in the Main-Kinzig district, in Hesse, Germany. It has a population close to 2,400. Flösbachtal contains both the oldest parish and the youngest settlement established in the Spessart hills. Located within the muni ...
,
Bad Orb
Bad Orb (; "Thermae on the Orb River") is a spa town in the Main-Kinzig-Kreis district of Hesse, Germany. It is situated east of Hanau between the forested hills of the Spessart. Bad Orb has a population of over 10,000. Its economy is dominate ...
and
Jossgrund
Jossgrund is a municipality in the Main-Kinzig district, in Hesse, Germany. It has around 3,500 inhabitants distributed among several formerly independent villages, now ''Ortsteile''. The administration seat is at Oberndorf.
Geography Location
Th ...
, there is currently controversy over plans to build additional towering
wind farms
Wind is the natural movement of air or other gases relative to a planet's surface. Winds occur on a range of scales, from thunderstorm flows lasting tens of minutes, to local breezes generated by heating of land surfaces and lasting a few h ...
on the wooded peaks. A number of these have already been built in the neighbouring town of Wächtersbach very close to the municipal boundary. Environmentalists and many locals reject these plans due to the destruction of forests and animal habitats, possible health risks to residents, as well as threats to local property values and, in particular, to the tourism business as a result of a declining attractiveness of the region to visitors. It is also questioned whether local winds are strong and constant enough to allow economical operation of the wind farms.
Notable residents
*
Fritz Dupre (1862-1936), iron and manganese ore merchant, known as the "Manganese Ore King"
*
Kurt Lamm (1919–87), footballer, coach, manager, and administrator
*
Joseph Müller (1894-1944), priest
*
Manuel Marburger
Manuel Marburger (born May 7, 1973 in Bad Soden-Salmünster) is a German industrial climber.
Career
Marburger worked as an engine driver for Deutsche Bahn AG and as a paramedic. He began his training as an industrial climber at the Fach- u ...
(born 1973), industrial climber
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bad Soden-Salmunster
Main-Kinzig-Kreis
Spa towns in Germany