Ellenz-Poltersdorf is an ''

Ortsgemeinde A Verbandsgemeinde (; plural Verbandsgemeinden) is a low-level administrative division, administrative unit in the Germany, German States of Germany, federal states of Rhineland-Palatinate and Saxony-Anhalt. A Verbandsgemeinde is typically compose ...

'' – a

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 ...

belonging to a ''

Verbandsgemeinde A Verbandsgemeinde (; plural Verbandsgemeinden) is a low-level administrative unit in the German federal states of Rhineland-Palatinate and Saxony-Anhalt. A Verbandsgemeinde is typically composed of a small group of villages or towns. Rhineland- ...

'', a kind of collective municipality – in the

Cochem-Zell Cochem-Zell (German: ''Landkreis Cochem-Zell'') is a district (''Kreis'') in the north-west of Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Neighboring districts are Mayen-Koblenz, Rhein-Hunsrück, Bernkastel-Wittlich, and Vulkaneifel. History In 1816 the di ...

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 ...

Rhineland-Palatinate Rhineland-Palatinate ( , ; german: link=no, Rheinland-Pfalz ; lb, Rheinland-Pfalz ; pfl, Rhoilond-Palz) is a western state of Germany. It covers and has about 4.05 million residents. It is the ninth largest and sixth most populous of the ...

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 ...

. The

winegrowing Viticulture (from the Latin word for ''vine'') or winegrowing (wine growing) is the cultivation and harvesting of grapes. It is a branch of the science of horticulture. While the native territory of ''Vitis vinifera'', the common grape vine, ran ...

centre belongs to the ''Verbandsgemeinde'' of Cochem, whose seat is in the like-named town.

Geography

Location

The municipality lies on a bow in the river

Moselle The Moselle ( , ; german: Mosel ; lb, Musel ) is a river that rises in the Vosges mountains and flows through north-eastern France and Luxembourg to western Germany. It is a bank (geography), left bank tributary of the Rhine, which it jo ...

in the middle of the ''Cochemer Krampen'', a 24-kilometre-long stretch of the Moselle made up of many winding bows. Ellenz-Poltersdorf lies on a

point bar A point bar is a depositional feature made of alluvium that accumulates on the inside bend of streams and rivers below the slip-off slope. Point bars are found in abundance in mature or meandering streams. They are crescent-shaped and located on ...

, which towards the southeast flattens out as it reaches the Moselle.

Nearby municipalities

The district seat of Cochem, which is also the seat of the ''Verbandsgemeinde'' administration, lies some 7 km downstream.

Mayen Mayen is a town in the Mayen-Koblenz District of the Rhineland-Palatinate Federal State of Germany, in the eastern part of the Volcanic Eifel Region. As well as the main town, additional settlements include Alzheim, Kürrenberg, Hausen-Betzing, ...

is about 30 km away, and

Koblenz Koblenz (; Moselle Franconian language, Moselle Franconian: ''Kowelenz''), spelled Coblenz before 1926, is a German city on the banks of the Rhine and the Moselle, a multi-nation tributary. Koblenz was established as a Roman Empire, Roman mili ...

is 50 km away. Directly across the Moselle is the small community of Beilstein, which is linked to Ellenz-Poltersdorf by

ferry A ferry is a ship, watercraft or amphibious vehicle used to carry passengers, and sometimes vehicles and cargo, across a body of water. A passenger ferry with many stops, such as in Venice, Italy, is sometimes called a water bus or water taxi ...

Extent of the municipal area

While Ellenz-Poltersdorf's municipal area stretches along both sides of the Moselle, mainly in the form of wooded land, the two constituent communities of Ellenz and Poltersdorf both lie on the river's left bank, where most of the

vineyard A vineyard (; also ) is a plantation of grape-bearing vines, grown mainly for winemaking, but also raisins, table grapes and non-alcoholic grape juice. The science, practice and study of vineyard production is known as viticulture. Vineyards ...

s are also found, and therefore most of the winegrowing estates within the municipal area. The best known of these is ''Ellenzer Goldbäumchen''

Land use

Expressed as percentages of the total area, land use in the municipality breaks down thus (as at 31 December 2007, source: ''Statistisches Landesamt''): * Agricultural land – 28.1 * Wooded land – 56.4 * Open water – 4.9 * Residential and transport – 9.6 * Other – 1.0

History

About 1100, Ellenz had its first documentary mention in a directory of holdings from the Karden Monastery. Poltersdorf's first documentary mention comes from 1178. Until the early 14th century, there was an

Imperial Imperial is that which relates to an empire, emperor, or imperialism. Imperial or The Imperial may also refer to: Places United States * Imperial, California * Imperial, Missouri * Imperial, Nebraska * Imperial, Pennsylvania * Imperial, Texa ...

Vogt During the Middle Ages, an (sometimes given as modern English: advocate; German: ; French: ) was an office-holder who was legally delegated to perform some of the secular responsibilities of a major feudal lord, or for an institution such as ...

ei'' (''

Reichsvogtei ''Reichsvogt'' (; ''Imperial Advocate'') was the term for the office of a ''Vogt'' that was nominated by the king of the Holy Roman Empire as his representative. Especially in what is now Switzerland, the ''Reichsvogt'' was a very influential pos ...

'') of Ellenz-Poltersdorf. The overlordship held by the

Electorate of Trier The Electorate of Trier (german: Kurfürstentum Trier or ' or Trèves) was an ecclesiastical principality of the Holy Roman Empire that existed from the end of the 9th to the early 19th century. It was the temporal possession of the prince- ...

was swept away in 1794 with the

French Revolutionary The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in November 1799. Many of its ideas are consider ...

occupation. In 1815 Ellenz-Poltersdorf was assigned to the Kingdom of

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 ...

at 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 ...

, belonging until 1945 to the

Rhine Province The Rhine Province (german: Rheinprovinz), also known as Rhenish Prussia () or synonymous with the Rhineland (), was the westernmost province of the Kingdom of Prussia and the Free State of Prussia, within the German Reich, from 1822 to 1946. It ...

. Since 1946, it has been part of the then newly founded

state State may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State * ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States * ''Our S ...

Politics

Municipal council

The council is made up of 12 council members, who were elected by

majority vote A majority, also called a simple majority or absolute majority to distinguish it from related terms, is more than half of the total.Dictionary definitions of ''majority'' aMerriam-Webster Kommunalwahl Rheinland-Pfalz 2009, Gemeinderat
/ref>

Mayor

Ellenz-Poltersdorf's mayor is Heinz Dehren.

Culture and sightseeing

Buildings

The following are listed buildings or sites in

’s Directory of Cultural Monuments:

Ellenz

* Saint Martin’s

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

Church (''Kirche St. Martin''), Hauptstraße 1 – two-naved

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 ...

aisleless church An aisleless church (german: Saalkirche) is a single-nave church building that consists of a single hall-like room. While similar to the hall church, the aisleless church lacks aisles or passageways on either side of the nave and separated fro ...

, quarrystone, façade with Gothic Revival stone figures, outdoor staircase, 1905 Ellenz Mosel km61 30950

* Brunnenstraße – fountain * Hauptstraße – ''Heiligenhäuschen'' (a small, shrinelike structure consecrated to a saint or saints) * Hauptstraße 6 – one-floor quarrystone building,

Renaissance Revival Renaissance Revival architecture (sometimes referred to as "Neo-Renaissance") is a group of 19th century architectural revival styles which were neither Greek Revival nor Gothic Revival but which instead drew inspiration from a wide range o ...

, 1907 * Hauptstraße 14 – former

school A school is an educational institution designed to provide learning spaces and learning environments for the teaching of students under the direction of teachers. Most countries have systems of formal education, which is sometimes compuls ...

; quarrystone building, mid 19th century * Hauptstraße 16 – quarrystone building, about 1900 * Hauptstraße 24 –

timber-frame 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 ...

house, partly solid, 16th century and later * Hauptstraße 34 – timber-frame house, partly solid, half-hipped roof, from 1622 * Hauptstraße 37 – big L-shaped building, essentially possibly from the 16th century, front building, from 1911, essentially older * Hauptstraße 41 – town hall; timber-frame house, partly solid, from 1541 * Hauptstraße 42 – quarrystone building, about 1845; Late Gothic inscription tablet with Archbishop Johann II of Baden’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 ...

, stonemason Peter von Wederath * Hauptstraße 45 – timber-frame house, partly solid, balloon frame, possibly from as far back as the 15th century (?), three-floor timber-frame addition, partly solid, 18th century * Warriors’ memorial; pylon with relief * On Moselweinstraße –

Saint Sebastian Saint Sebastian (in Latin: ''Sebastianus''; Narbo, Gallia Narbonensis, Roman Empire c. AD 255 – Rome, Italia, Roman Empire c. AD 288) was an early Christian saint and martyr. According to traditional belief, he was killed during the Dioclet ...

’s Catholic

Chapel A chapel is a Christian place of prayer and worship that is usually relatively small. The term has several meanings. Firstly, smaller spaces inside a church that have their own altar are often called chapels; the Lady chapel is a common ty ...

(''Sebastianuskapelle''); post-Gothic aisleless church, from 1624;

basalt Basalt (; ) is an aphanite, aphanitic (fine-grained) extrusive igneous rock formed from the rapid cooling of low-viscosity lava rich in magnesium and iron (mafic lava) exposed at or very near the planetary surface, surface of a terrestrial ...

wayside cross, from 1816 * Moselweinstraße 1 – basalt fountain, 19th century * Moselweinstraße 6 – Late Historicist plastered building, partly timber-frame, about 1900 * Moselweinstraße 15 – quarrystone building, about 1845, expansion about 1900 * Moselweinstraße 16 – former Isenburg estate; sculpted overhanging ledge, Late Gothic (?) * Moselweinstraße 22 – plastered building, partly timber-frame, possibly from the 17th century * Neustraße 4 – plastered building, partly timber-frame,

Swiss chalet style Swiss chalet style (german: Schweizerstil, no, Sveitserstil) is an architectural style of Late Historicism, originally inspired by rural chalets in Switzerland and the Alpine (mountainous) regions of Central Europe. The style refers to traditi ...

, 1914 * Neustraße 7 –

late mediaeval The Late Middle Ages or Late Medieval Period was the period of European history lasting from AD 1300 to 1500. The Late Middle Ages followed the High Middle Ages and preceded the onset of the early modern period (and in much of Europe, the Renai ...

vaulted cellar, hearth heating plate * Rathausstraße 3 – timber-frame house, partly solid, plastered, hipped

mansard roof A mansard or mansard roof (also called a French roof or curb roof) is a four-sided gambrel-style hip roof characterised by two slopes on each of its sides, with the lower slope, punctured by dormer windows, at a steeper angle than the upper. The ...

, 18th century * Schulstraße 1/3 – former ''Burghaus Warsberg''; two-floor, originally three-floor quarrystone building, two round towers, possibly from later than 1473 * St.-Sebastianus-Straße – Saint Martin's Old Church (''Alte Kirche St. Martin''); Late Romanesque west tower, twin-naved, from 1494 and 1499, quire and sacristy from 1762; 15 grave crosses, 18th and 19th century; three

sandstone Sandstone is a clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate grains. Sandstones comprise about 20–25% of all sedimentary rocks. Most sandstone is composed of quartz or feldspar (both silicates) ...

reliefs, by Hans Ruprecht Hoffmann's circle or successors; whole complex of buildings with graveyard:

Crucifixion Crucifixion is a method of capital punishment in which the victim is tied or nailed to a large wooden cross or beam and left to hang until eventual death from exhaustion and asphyxiation. It was used as a punishment by the Persians, Carthagin ...

group, from 1670; sculpted tomb, from 1892; graveyard cross, 19th century * St.-Sebastianus-Straße 11 – solid building, essentially from the 16th century (?)

Poltersdorf

Saint Andrew Andrew the Apostle ( grc-koi, Ἀνδρέᾱς, Andréās ; la, Andrēās ; , syc, ܐܰܢܕ݁ܪܶܐܘܳܣ, ʾAnd’reʾwās), also called Saint Andrew, was an apostle of Jesus according to the New Testament. He is the brother of Simon Peter ...

’s Catholic Church (branch church; ''Filialkirche St. Andreas''), Kirchstraße – Late Gothic west tower with passageway through, 1509 (?), aisleless church, 1950-1952 * Goldbäumchenstraße 14 – former

; plastered building, mid 19th century * Kirchstraße 8 – ''Gymnicher Hof'',

Knights of Malta The Sovereign Military Order of Malta (SMOM), officially the Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of Saint John of Jerusalem, of Rhodes and of Malta ( it, Sovrano Militare Ordine Ospedaliero di San Giovanni di Gerusalemme, di Rodi e di Malta; ...

commandry In the Middle Ages, a commandery (rarely commandry) was the smallest administrative division of the European landed properties of a military order. It was also the name of the house where the knights of the commandery lived.Anthony Luttrell and G ...

; timber-frame building, partly solid, balloon frame, essentially from the 16th century; timber-frame barn; beam pump; whole complex * Kurfürstenstraße 30 – timber-frame house, partly solid, hipped mansard roof, about 1800 * Kurfürstenstraße 32 – timber-frame house, partly solid, plastered, hipped mansard roof, about 1790 * Kurfürstenstraße 34 – timber-frame house, partly solid, plastered, hipped mansard roof, about 1810 * Beside Raiffeisenstraße 9 – timber-frame house, partly solid, half-hipped roof, 18th or 19th century * Raiffeisenstraße 15 – estate complex; building with hipped mansard roof, from 1792, commercial wing, estate portal from 1802 * on the Moselle – ferry tower; quarrystone building, conical roof, 19th century (?) * Mountain chapel (''Bergkapelle''); plastered building, about 1625 * ''Bracher Kapelle'' (chapel); octagonal building with central plan, 1866 * Basalt wayside cross from 1743

Economy and infrastructure

Within the limits of the constituent community of Ellenz, not far from the Fankel Weir, is found the

RWE Power AG RWE AG is a German multinational energy company headquartered in Essen. It generates and trades electricity in Asia-Pacific, Europe and the United States. The company is Europe's most climate threatening Company, the world's number two in offsh ...

main control centre, from which all

hydroelectric Hydroelectricity, or hydroelectric power, is electricity generated from hydropower (water power). Hydropower supplies one sixth of the world's electricity, almost 4500 TWh in 2020, which is more than all other renewable sources combined and ...

stations at weirs on the German sections of the

and the

Saar Saar or SAAR has several meanings: People Given name *Saar Boubacar (born 1951), Senegalese professional football player * Saar Ganor, Israeli archaeologist *Saar Klein (born 1967), American film editor Surname * Ain Saar (born 1968), Est ...

are controlled.

References

External links

Municipality’s official webpage
{{Authority control Cochem-Zell