Bad Berleburg (, earlier also Berleburg) is a town, in the district of Siegen-Wittgenstein, in
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
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 one of Germany's largest towns by land area. It is located approximately northeast of
Siegen
Siegen () is a city in Germany, in the south Westphalian part of North Rhine-Westphalia
North Rhine-Westphalia (german: Nordrhein-Westfalen, ; li, Noordrien-Wesfale ; nds, Noordrhien-Westfalen; ksh, Noodrhing-Wäßßfaale), commonly sho ...
and northwest of
Marburg an der Lahn
Marburg ( or ) is a university town in the German federal state (''Bundesland'') of Hesse, capital of the Marburg-Biedenkopf district (''Landkreis''). The town area spreads along the valley of the river Lahn and has a population of approximat ...
.
Geography
Location
Bad Berleburg lies in the northeast of Siegen-Wittgenstein in the middle of the
Rothaargebirge
The Rothaar Mountains (german: Rothaargebirge, , also ''Rotlagergebirge''), or Rothaar, is a low mountain range reaching heights of up to 843.1 m in North Rhine-Westphalia and Hesse, Germany.
It is believed that its name must once have been ...
, a low mountain range. The western town limit is also the boundary with the neighbouring district of Olpe. The town is also bordered on the north by the
Hochsauerland
Hochsauerlandkreis (meaning “High Sauerland District” in German) is a Kreis (district) in the east of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Neighboring districts are Soest, Paderborn, Höxter, Waldeck-Frankenberg, Siegen-Wittgenstein, Olpe, Mär ...
district. The town's eastern limit is likewise the boundary with the '' Bundesland'' 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 ...
. The town of
Bad Laasphe
Bad Laasphe () is a town in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, in the Siegen-Wittgenstein district.
Geography
Location
The town of Bad Laasphe lies in the upper Lahn Valley, near the stately home of :de:Schloss Wittgenstein, Wittgenstein Castle ( ...
borders on Bad Berleburg in the south, and the community of
Erndtebrück
Erndtebrück is a municipality in the Siegen-Wittgenstein district, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany.
Geography
Location
Erndtebrück situated on the river Eder in the Rothaargebirge, approx. 20 km northeast of Siegen.
Neighbouring com ...
in the southwest.
The small river Odeborn flows through Berleburg and empties into the Eder further south.
Constituent communities
Since 1975, the following villages have been part of Bad Berleburg:
Population
(in each case at 31 December)
*1998 - 21,177
*1999 - 21,190
*2000 - 21,219
*2001 - 21,135
*2002 - 21,022
*2003 - 20,884
*2004 - 20,794
*2010 - 19,929
*2017 - 21,281
History
Archaeological
Archaeology or archeology is the scientific study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of artifacts, architecture, biofacts or ecofacts, sites, and cultural landscap ...
finds confirm that the area covered by today's municipal area was settled as far back as the 7th century BC. On the castle hills at Aue, Dotzlar and Wemlighausen are traces of
circular fort
A circular rampart (German: ''Ringwall'') is an embankment built in the shape of a circle that was used as part of the defences for a military fortification, hill fort or refuge, or was built for religious purposes or as a place of gathering.
The ...
s from this time. There is, however, no evidence of settlement in the area for the time that follows, up to the 8th century.
The constituent communities of Arfeld and Raumland were mentioned in documents in 800 and 802 respectively. There are also documents from 1059 confirming the existence of Alertshausen, Beddelhausen, Elsoff and Schwarzenau. In 1174, the name "Widechinstein" was mentioned for the first time. The village of Berleburg is mentioned for the first time in 1258 in documents from the
Grafschaft Abbey
Grafschaft Abbey (german: Kloster Grafschaft) is a community of the Sisters of Mercy of Saint Charles Borromeo, formerly a Benedictine monastery, in Schmallenberg-Grafschaft in the Sauerland, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany.
First foundation
...
(in this instance ''Grafschaft'' is a location rather than the German word for "county"), under the name Berneborg. The castle passed on 30 March 1258 to Count Siegfried I and the "monastery reeve" (''"Klostervogt"'') Adolf von Grafschaft. In 1322, this double overlordship in Berleburg was ended by Widekind von Grafschaft when he forwent his rights to the town in Siegfried II's favour. Siegfried was the last of his noble line, and when he died, the inheritance went to his son-in-law, Salentin von Sayn. He founded the House of
Sayn-Wittgenstein
Sayn-Wittgenstein was a county of medieval Germany, located in the Sauerland of eastern North Rhine-Westphalia.
History
Sayn-Wittgenstein was created when Count Salentin of Sayn-Homburg, a member of the House of Sponheim, married the heiress Cou ...
.
In 1488, and again in 1522, great fires roared through the town.
Until Count Ludwig the Elder's death in 1605, Berleburg was developing itself into a capital and residence town of the County of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg, which in the 18th century was a centre in Germany for the Inspiration Movement, which had grown out of radical
pietism
Pietism (), also known as Pietistic Lutheranism, is a movement within Lutheranism that combines its emphasis on biblical doctrine with an emphasis on individual piety and living a holy Christian life, including a social concern for the needy and ...
. Between 1726 and 1742, the well known
Berleburg Bible
The Berleburg Bible (''Berleburger Bibel'') is a German translation of the Bible with copious commentary in eight volumes, compiled in Bad Berleburg during 1726–1742.
It is an original translation from the Hebrew and Greek, along with the Pisc ...
was printed here.
Christoph Sauer
Christoph Sauer (1695 – September 25, 1758) was the first German-language printer and publisher in North America.
Johann Christoph Sauer was born in 1695 in Ladenburg (near Heidelberg), the son of a Reformed pastor. He came to the county ( ...
(1695–1758) lived in nearby Laasphe for a few years before emigrating to Pennsylvania in 1724. There in 1743 he would print the first German-language Bible in North America with a press and
Fraktur
Fraktur () is a calligraphic hand of the Latin alphabet and any of several blackletter typefaces derived from this hand. The blackletter lines are broken up; that is, their forms contain many angles when compared to the curves of the Antiqu ...
type that may come from Berleburg, but this is uncertain. The American "
Church of the Brethren
The Church of the Brethren is an Anabaptist Christian denomination in the Schwarzenau Brethren (german: link=no, Schwarzenauer Neutäufer "Schwarzenau New Baptists") tradition that was organized in 1708 by Alexander Mack in Schwarzenau, Germa ...
" was founded by
Alexander Maack
Alexander is a male given name. The most prominent bearer of the name is Alexander the Great, the king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia who created one of the largest empires in ancient history.
Variants listed here are Aleksandar, Al ...
who also lived a few years in the village of Schwarzenau. Tolerance of religious dissenters ebbed after the death of Count Casimir in 1741.
Wittgenstein was placed under the
Grand Duchy of Hesse-Darmstadt
The Grand Duchy of Hesse and by Rhine (german: link=no, Großherzogtum Hessen und bei Rhein) was a grand duchy in western Germany that existed from 1806 to 1918. The Grand Duchy originally formed from the Landgraviate of Hesse-Darmstadt in 1806 ...
in 1806. Under the terms of the
Congress of Vienna
The Congress of Vienna (, ) of 1814–1815 was a series of international diplomatic meetings to discuss and agree upon a possible new layout of the European political and constitutional order after the downfall of the French Emperor Napoleon B ...
, it was then ceded to the
Prussia
Prussia, , Old Prussian: ''Prūsa'' or ''Prūsija'' was a German state on the southeast coast of the Baltic Sea. It formed the German Empire under Prussian rule when it united the German states in 1871. It was ''de facto'' dissolved by an em ...
n
province of Westphalia
The Province of Westphalia () was a province of the Kingdom of Prussia and the Free State of Prussia from 1815 to 1946. In turn, Prussia was the largest component state of the German Empire from 1871 to 1918, of the Weimar Republic and from 1918 ...
in 1816.
When the ''Rothaarbahn''
railway
Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a pre ...
was built to Berleburg in 1911, it brought with it the onset of
industrialization
Industrialisation ( alternatively spelled industrialization) is the period of social and economic change that transforms a human group from an agrarian society into an industrial society. This involves an extensive re-organisation of an econo ...
, although it was limited to
forest products
A forest product is any material derived from forestry for direct consumption or commercial use, such as lumber, paper, or fodder for livestock. Wood, by far the dominant product of forests, is used for many purposes, such as wood fuel (e.g. in for ...
at first. Other forms of industry did not come to town until after the
Second World War
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
.
The town was already acknowledged as a climatic spa in 1935 for its gentle and agreeably mild climate. After 1949, the ''Klinik Wittgenstein'' was built as a
psychosomatic
A somatic symptom disorder, formerly known as a somatoform disorder,(2013) Kneipp spa association was founded, which was the forerunner to the Wittgenstein spa institution (''Wittgensteiner Kuranstalt''; WKA). In the first year that the WKA Kneipp spa works were open, there were 11,000 overnight stays. Little by little, Berleburg became Germany's second largest Kneipp spa.
In 1971, once the town had been granted state recognition as a Kneipp spa, Berleburg was entitled to use the prefix ''Bad'' (lit. "bath") with its name, thereby becoming the town of Bad Berleburg, as it has been known ever since. In 1974 also came recognition as a curative spa.
In 1975, with the Sauerland-Paderborn Law, dealing with municipal reform, the surrounding ''
Amt
Amt is a type of administrative division governing a group of municipalities, today only in Germany, but formerly also common in other countries of Northern Europe. Its size and functions differ by country and the term is roughly equivalent to ...
'' of Berleburg was abolished, and a great deal of it then became part of the town of Bad Berleburg, making the town North Rhine-Westphalia's second largest by land area. The communities of Hoheleye, Langewiese, Mollseifen and Neuastenberg were assigned to the newly established
Hochsauerland
Hochsauerlandkreis (meaning “High Sauerland District” in German) is a Kreis (district) in the east of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Neighboring districts are Soest, Paderborn, Höxter, Waldeck-Frankenberg, Siegen-Wittgenstein, Olpe, Mär ...
district. They are today constituent communities of
Winterberg
Winterberg ( Westphalian: ''Winnenmerg'') is a town in the Hochsauerland district of North Rhine-Westphalia, central Germany and a major winter sport resort of the Wintersport Arena Sauerland.
Geography
Winterberg is located in the middle of ...
. The communities of Balde, Birkelbach, Birkefehl, Leimstruth and Womelsdorf were transferred to the community of
Erndtebrück
Erndtebrück is a municipality in the Siegen-Wittgenstein district, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany.
Geography
Location
Erndtebrück situated on the river Eder in the Rothaargebirge, approx. 20 km northeast of Siegen.
Neighbouring com ...
. At the same time, the old district of Wittgenstein was dissolved and added to Siegen district.
In 1984, this district's name was changed to Siegen-Wittgenstein, as it is still called now.
Politics
Town council
The town council's 32 seats as of May 2022 were distributed as follows:
Note: UWG is a citizens' coalition.
Coat of arms
The lion rampant is the mark of the House of Sayn, and the bear stands for the hunt. Some sources, on the other hand, say that it is a
canting
' (IPA: , VOS Spelling: ''tjanting'', jv, ꦕꦤ꧀ꦛꦶꦁ, Tjanting) is a pen-like tool used to apply liquid hot wax ( jv, ) in the batik-making process in Indonesia, more precisely '' batik tulis'' (lit. "written batik"). Traditional ''T ...
symbol ("Bear" is ''Bär'' in
German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany (of or related to)
**Germania (historical use)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law
**Ger ...
, pronounced the same way as the first syllable of Berleburg The House of Wittgenstein is also represented by the pallets (vertical stripes) from their old arms.
Culture and sightseeing
Buildings
*Courtyard of Schloss Wittgenstein – Tours are available to the public at differing times depending on the season for €5, in German only.
*Schloss Wittgenstein – a
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 ...
stately home from 1733 with a museum about the princely house of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg
* Schulkapelle Sassenhausen (school chapel) – this
half-timbered
Timber framing (german: Holzfachwerk) and "post-and-beam" construction are traditional methods of building with heavy timbers, creating structures using squared-off and carefully fitted and joined timbers with joints secured by large wooden ...
structure was built in 1703 as a church by
Mannus Riedesel Mannus Riedesel (1662–1726) was a master builder in the early 18th century in the Counties of Wittgenstein and surrounding areas, now part of the district of Siegen-Wittgenstein in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia in the Germany, Federal Republ ...
but was later adapted to house a school as well.
* Ludwigsburg – built for a side branch of the Sayn-Wittgensteins, it is richly embellished on the cornices and corner beams. Also the work of
Mannus Riedesel Mannus Riedesel (1662–1726) was a master builder in the early 18th century in the Counties of Wittgenstein and surrounding areas, now part of the district of Siegen-Wittgenstein in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia in the Germany, Federal Republ ...
.
Regular events
*''Wollmarkt'' (wool market) – first Sunday in May
*''Stünzelfest'', menagerie and fair – second Saturday in June
*''Berleburger Schützenfest'' (
marksmanship
A marksman is a person who is skilled in precision shooting using projectile weapons (in modern days most commonly an accurized scoped long gun such as designated marksman rifle or a sniper rifle) to shoot at high-value targets at longer-than- ...
festival) – first weekend in July
*''Schützenfest des Schieß- und Schützenverein Wingeshausen 1928 e.V.'' (marksmanship festival) – fourth weekend in July
*''Schützenfest in Müsse des Schieß- und Schützenverein Müsse 1925 e.V.'' (marksmanship festival) – second weekend in August
Economy and infrastructure
Transport
The municipal area is crossed from north to south by Federal Highway (''Bundesstraße'') 480, joining Bad Berleburg with Winterberg in the north and Erndtebrück in the south.
The ''Rothaarbahn'' railway reaches the town from the south, ending there. Until 31 May 1981 there was a connection from Bad Berleburg to Allendorf and Frankenberg by the Upper ''Edertalbahn'' and the ''Ruhr-Eder-Bahn''.
Notable people
*
Johannes Althusius
Johannes Althusius (1563 – August 12, 1638). was a German jurist and Calvinist political philosopher.
He is best known for his 1603 work, ''"Politica Methodice Digesta, Atque Exemplis Sacris et Profanis Illustrata"''. revised editions were publi ...
(1563–1638), legal scholar and politician from Bad Berleburg-Diedenshausen
* Paul Breuer (born 1950), Member of the
Bundestag
The Bundestag (, "Federal Diet") is the German federal parliament. It is the only federal representative body that is directly elected by the German people. It is comparable to the United States House of Representatives or the House of Commons ...
1980-2003, since 2003 ''Landrat'' of the Siegen-Wittgenstein district
* Gerhard Dickel (1938–2003), Church Music Director, cantor, organist and music professor in Hamburg
*
Norbert Dickel
Norbert Dickel (born 27 November 1961 in Bad Berleburg) is a retired German football player. He spent six seasons in the Bundesliga with 1. FC Köln and Borussia Dortmund. He scored two goals in the final of the 1988–89 DFB-Pokal in 1989 fo ...
(born 1961),
football
Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...
player, stadium announcer for
Borussia Dortmund
Ballspielverein Borussia 09 e. V. Dortmund, commonly known as Borussia Dortmund (), BVB (), or simply Dortmund (), is a German professional sports club based in Dortmund, North Rhine-Westphalia. It is best known for its men's professional footb ...
*
Maik Eckhardt
Maik Eckhardt (born 4 June 1970 in Bad Berleburg) is a German sport shooter who competed in the 1996 Summer Olympics, in the 2000 Summer Olympics
The 2000 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXVII Olympiad and also known as Sydney ...
(born 1970), marksman
*
Johann Friedrich Henschel
Johann, typically a male given name, is the German form of ''Iohannes'', which is the Latin form of the Greek name ''Iōánnēs'' (), itself derived from Hebrew name ''Yochanan'' () in turn from its extended form (), meaning "Yahweh is Gracious" ...
(born 1931), born in Bad Berleburg-Schwarzenau, until 1995 vice-president of the
Federal Constitutional Court of Germany
The Federal Constitutional Court (german: link=no, Bundesverfassungsgericht ; abbreviated: ) is the supreme constitutional court for the Federal Republic of Germany, established by the constitution or Basic Law () of Germany. Since its inc ...
* Lewis Keseberg (1814–1895), emigrated to USA in 1844, famed member of the
Donner Party
The Donner Party, sometimes called the Donner–Reed Party, was a group of American pioneers who migrated to California in a wagon train from the Midwest. Delayed by a multitude of mishaps, they spent the winter of 1846–1847 snowbound in th ...
and last member of the Party to be rescued
*
Alexander Mack
Alexander Mack ( 27 July 1679 – 19 January 1735) was a German clergyman and the leader and first minister of the Schwarzenau Brethren (or German Baptists) in the Schwarzenau, Wittgenstein community of modern-day Bad Berleburg, North Rh ...
,
Anabaptist
Anabaptism (from New Latin language, Neo-Latin , from the Greek language, Greek : 're-' and 'baptism', german: Täufer, earlier also )Since the middle of the 20th century, the German-speaking world no longer uses the term (translation: "Re- ...
theologian and founder of the
Schwarzenau Brethren
The Schwarzenau Brethren, the German Baptist Brethren, Dunkers, Dunkards, Tunkers, or sometimes simply called the German Baptists, are an Anabaptist group that dissented from Roman Catholic, Lutheran and Reformed European state churches during t ...
* Jacob Nolde (1859–1916), attained great wealth in the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
in the
hosiery
Hosiery, also referred to as legwear, describes garments worn directly on the feet and legs. The term originated as the collective term for products of which a maker or seller is termed a hosier; and those products are also known generically as h ...
industry and was an
environmentalist
An environmentalist is a person who is concerned with and/or advocates for the protection of the environment. An environmentalist can be considered a supporter of the goals of the environmental movement, "a political and ethical movement that se ...
largely responsible for the creation of
Nolde Forest Environmental Education Center
Nolde Forest Environmental Educational Center is a Pennsylvania state park in Cumru Township, Berks County, Pennsylvania, in the United States. Programs are offered for youth and adult groups, school groups, and individuals. The center grounds ...
in
Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...
Princess Nathalie of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg
Princess Nathalie of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg (Nathalie Xenia Margrethe Benedikte; born 2 May 1975) is a Danish equestrian, an Olympian and a daughter of Princess Benedikte of Denmark and Prince Richard of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg. She is ...
(born 1975), in Copenhagen, dressage rider
* Tim Treude (born 1990), football player
*
Pia Wunderlich
Pia Wunderlich (born 26 January 1975 in Schwarzenau) is a German former footballer
who played as a midfielder. She played solely for 1. FFC Frankfurt at professional club level and was selected for the German national team 102 times, winni ...
(born 1975), football player (since 1993
1. FFC Frankfurt
Eintracht Frankfurt is a German women's association football club based in Frankfurt. Its first team currently plays in the German top flight, Frauen-Bundesliga. From 1998 to 2020, the club was known as 1. FFC Frankfurt.
Eintracht have won sev ...
)
* Tina Wunderlich (born 1977), football player (since 1994 1. FFC Frankfurt)
*
Christina Zerbe
Christina Zerbe (born 12 September 1980) is a German footballer. She played for 1. FFC Frankfurt, until 2010, and was capped 12 times for the German national team between 2000 and 2003.
Career
Club
* TSV Aue-Wingeshausen (1995–1996)
* Sp ...
(born 1980), former football national player
Gallery
Image:Wunderthausen, kapel foto2 2010-08-11 12.09.JPG, Wunderthausen, chapel
Image:Tussen Elsoff en Schwarzenau, straatpanorama foto2 2010-08-11 13.21.JPG, between Elsoff and Schwarzenau, street-panorama
Image:Dotzlar, straatzicht 2010-08-11 14.23.JPG, Dotzlar, view to a street
Image:Bad Berleburg, straatzicht2 2010-08-11 15.06.JPG, Bad Berleburg, view to a street
Image:Wemlighausen, kapel foto3 2010-08-11 16.02.JPG, Wemlighausen, chapel
Image:Bij Landebach, panorama2 foto2 2010-08-11 16.47.JPG, near Landebach, panorama