Bierstadt is a

borough A borough is an administrative division in various English-speaking countries. In principle, the term ''borough'' designates a self-governing walled town, although in practice, official use of the term varies widely. History In the Middle A ...

of the city of

Wiesbaden Wiesbaden () is a city in central western Germany and the capital of the state of Hesse. , it had 290,955 inhabitants, plus approximately 21,000 United States citizens (mostly associated with the United States Army). The Wiesbaden urban area ...

, capital of the state of

Hesse Hesse (, , ) or Hessia (, ; german: Hessen ), officially the State of Hessen (german: links=no, Land Hessen), is a state in Germany. Its capital city is Wiesbaden, and the largest urban area is Frankfurt. Two other major historic cities are Dar ...

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 located in the eastern part of the city, directly east of downtown Wiesbaden, and has about 12,300 inhabitants. Formerly an independent

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality'' may also mean the go ...

, the settlement was incorporated into Wiesbaden on April 1, 1928. While ''Bierstadt'' can be translated "Beer Town," the name is actually derived from

Brigid of Kildare Saint Brigid of Kildare or Brigid of Ireland ( ga, Naomh Bríd; la, Brigida; 525) is the patroness saint (or 'mother saint') of Ireland, and one of its three national saints along with Patrick and Columba. According to medieval Irish hagiogr ...

(german: Brigida von Kildare),

patron saint A patron saint, patroness saint, patron hallow or heavenly protector is a saint who in Catholicism, Anglicanism, or Eastern Orthodoxy is regarded as the heavenly advocate of a nation, place, craft, activity, class, clan, family, or perso ...

of Bierstadt (''Birgidstadt'').

History

The earliest traces of settlement in the Bierstadt area date to the Stone Age. However, Bierstadt was first mentioned in historical records, as "Birgidestad", in a deed of gift on March 12, 927. The town was founded by Irish monks, who named it after the Irish national saint, Brigid of Kildare. In the 11th–12th centuries, the (now

Protestant Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century against what its followers perceived to b ...

) Church of St. Nicholas was built. The church is not only the oldest existing church in Wiesbaden, but, after the Roman-era Heathens' Wall in downtown Wiesbaden, is the second oldest building of any kind in the city. In the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...

, Bierstadt came under the dominion of

Nassau Nassau may refer to: Places Bahamas *Nassau, Bahamas, capital city of the Bahamas, on the island of New Providence Canada *Nassau District, renamed Home District, regional division in Upper Canada from 1788 to 1792 *Nassau Street (Winnipeg), ...

, but was subject to strong influences from the Archbishop of Mainz. In the wake of the

Protestant Reformation The Reformation (alternatively named the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation) was a major movement within Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the Catholic Church and ...

, Bierstadt came fully under the control of Nassau. After the

Thirty Years' War The Thirty Years' War was one of the longest and most destructive conflicts in European history, lasting from 1618 to 1648. Fought primarily in Central Europe, an estimated 4.5 to 8 million soldiers and civilians died as a result of battle ...

, the town had only 17 inhabitants. Efforts at reconstruction were set back through a fire in 1691. By the middle of the 18th century, Bierstadt had about 500 residents. The remains of a medieval watchtower, the ''Bierstadter Warte'', are located on a height between Wiesbaden and the borough. The watchtower is now part of the borough's coat of arms. In 1898, a large observation tower, the

Wiesbaden Bismarck Tower The Wiesbaden Bismarck Tower was one of approximately 240 monuments built in honour of Otto von Bismarck between 1869 and 1934. Wiesbaden's Bismarck Tower was the tallest Bismarck memorial with a height of . The wooden tower was built in 1910 close ...

, was planned to be built at this site. A temporary wooden tower was constructed in 1910, but funding for the permanent structure could not be obtained. The temporary tower was demolished in 1918. During the

Third Reich Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...

(1933–1945), Nazism dominated Bierstadt. On November 9, 1938, the synagogue, dating to 1827, was completely destroyed. After the Allied victory in

World War II 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 opposing ...

, about 1,800 apartments were built for

U.S. Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Sign ...

personnel. The remaining Aukamm and Crestview U.S. military housing areas, transferred to the

Army An army (from Old French ''armee'', itself derived from the Latin verb ''armāre'', meaning "to arm", and related to the Latin noun ''arma'', meaning "arms" or "weapons"), ground force or land force is a fighting force that fights primarily on ...

during the Cold War, are located on the northwest and the west side of Bierstadt, respectively.

Infrastructure

Bierstadt has a library and two schools, including one primary school - Grundschule Bierstadt, and a gymnasium named Theodor-Fliedner-Schule which was formerly a middle school. Bierstadt is next to the ''Aukammtal'' and has access to the German Federal Route 455. Bierstadt has two churches. In addition to the Protestant church (formerly the church of St. Nicholas), there is the

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy * Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD * Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a let ...

church of St. Birgid.

Twin towns – sister cities

Biebrich is twinned with: *

Terrasson-Lavilledieu Terrasson-Lavilledieu (; oc, Terrasson e La Vila Dieu) is a commune in the Dordogne department in Nouvelle-Aquitaine in southwestern France. The commune was created in 1963 by the merger of the former communes Terrasson and Lavilledieu. Terrass ...

, France *

Theux Theux (; wa, Teu) is a municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Liège, Belgium. On 1 January 2006 the municipality had 11,571 inhabitants. The total area is 83.36 km², giving a population density of 139 inhabitants per km². ...

, Belgium

References

Sources

* adapted from German Wikipedia

External links

* {{Authority control American diaspora in Europe Boroughs of Wiesbaden Establishments in East Francia Populated places established in the 10th century