Fulda () (historically in English called Fuld) is a town in Hesse, Germany; it is located on the

river Fulda The Fulda () is a river of Hesse and Lower Saxony, Germany. It is one of two headstreams of the Weser (the other one being the Werra). The Fulda is long. The river arises at Wasserkuppe in the Rhön mountains in Hesse. From there it runs ...

and is the administrative seat of the

Fulda district The Fulda District (; ) is a ''Kreis'' (district) in the north-east of Hesse, Germany. Neighboring districts are Hersfeld-Rotenburg, Wartburgkreis, Schmalkalden-Meiningen, Rhön-Grabfeld, Bad Kissingen, Main-Kinzig, Vogelsbergkreis. Histor ...

(''Kreis''). In 1990, the town hosted the 30th Hessentag state festival.

History

Middle Ages

In 744 Saint Sturm, a disciple of

Saint Boniface Boniface, OSB ( la, Bonifatius; 675 – 5 June 754) was an English Benedictines, Benedictine monk and leading figure in the Anglo-Saxon mission to the Germanic parts of the Frankish Empire during the eighth century. He organised significant ...

, founded the Benedictine monastery of Fulda as one of Boniface's outposts in the reorganization of the church in Germany. It later served as a base from which missionaries could accompany Charlemagne's armies in their political and military

campaigns Campaign or The Campaign may refer to: Types of campaigns * Campaign, in agriculture, the period during which sugar beets are harvested and processed *Advertising campaign, a series of advertisement messages that share a single idea and theme *Bl ...

to fully conquer and convert pagan Saxony. The initial grant for the abbey was signed by Carloman, Mayor of the Palace in

Austrasia Austrasia was a territory which formed the north-eastern section of the Merovingian Kingdom of the Franks during the 6th to 8th centuries. It was centred on the Meuse, Middle Rhine and the Moselle rivers, and was the original territory of the F ...

(in office 741–47), the son of Charles Martel. The support of the Mayors of the Palace, and later of the early Pippinid and

Carolingian The Carolingian dynasty (; known variously as the Carlovingians, Carolingus, Carolings, Karolinger or Karlings) was a Frankish noble family named after Charlemagne, grandson of mayor Charles Martel and a descendant of the Arnulfing and Pippin ...

rulers, was important to Boniface's success. Fulda also received support from many of the leading families of the Carolingian world. Sturm, whose tenure as abbot lasted from 747 until 779, was most likely related to the Agilolfing dukes of Bavaria. Fulda also received large and constant donations from the Etichonids, a leading family in Alsace, and from the Conradines, predecessors of the

Salian The Salian dynasty or Salic dynasty (german: Salier) was a dynasty in the High Middle Ages. The dynasty provided four kings of Germany (1024–1125), all of whom went on to be crowned Holy Roman emperors (1027–1125). After the death of the la ...

Holy Roman Emperor The Holy Roman Emperor, originally and officially the Emperor of the Romans ( la, Imperator Romanorum, german: Kaiser der Römer) during the Middle Ages, and also known as the Roman-German Emperor since the early modern period ( la, Imperat ...

s. Under Sturm, the donations Fulda received from these and other important families helped in the establishment of daughter-houses near Fulda. St Boniface - Baptising-Martyrdom - Sacramentary of Fulda - 11Century

St Boniface - Baptising-Martyrdom - Sacramentary of Fulda - 11Century

After his martyrdom by the Frisians, the relics of Saint Boniface were brought back to Fulda. Because of the stature this afforded the monastery, the donations increased, and Fulda could establish daughter-houses further away, for example in

Hamelin Hamelin ( ; german: Hameln ) is a town on the river Weser in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is the capital of the district of Hamelin-Pyrmont and has a population of roughly 57,000. Hamelin is best known for the tale of the Pied Piper of Hamelin. H ...

. Meanwhile, Saint Lullus, successor of Boniface as

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 ...

, tried to absorb the abbey into his archbishopric, but failed. This was one reason he founded Hersfeld Abbeyto limit the attempts of the enlargement of Fulda. Braun Fulda UBHD

Between 790 and 819 the community rebuilt the main monastery church to more fittingly house the

relic In religion, a relic is an object or article of religious significance from the past. It usually consists of the physical remains of a saint or the personal effects of the saint or venerated person preserved for purposes of veneration as a tangi ...

s. They based their new basilica on the original 4th-century (since demolished) Old St. Peter's Basilica in Rome, using the transept and

crypt A crypt (from Latin ''crypta'' "vault") is a stone chamber beneath the floor of a church or other building. It typically contains coffins, sarcophagi, or religious relics. Originally, crypts were typically found below the main apse of a chur ...

plan of that great pilgrimage church to frame their own saint as the "Apostle to the Germans". The crypt of the original abbey church still holds those relics, but the church itself has been subsumed into 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 ...

renovation. A small, 9th-century chapel remains standing within walking distance of the church, as do the foundations of a later women's abbey.

Rabanus Maurus Rabanus Maurus Magnentius ( 780 – 4 February 856), also known as Hrabanus or Rhabanus, was a Frankish Benedictine monk, theologian, poet, encyclopedist and military writer who became archbishop of Mainz in East Francia. He was the author of the ...

served as abbot at Fulda from 822 to 842. Fulda Abbey owned such works as the ''Res Gestae'' by the fourth-century Roman historian Ammianus Marcellinus and the Codex Fuldensis, as well as works by Cicero, Servius,

Bede Bede ( ; ang, Bǣda , ; 672/326 May 735), also known as Saint Bede, The Venerable Bede, and Bede the Venerable ( la, Beda Venerabilis), was an English monk at the monastery of St Peter and its companion monastery of St Paul in the Kingdom o ...

and Sulpicius Severus.

Counter-Reformation

Prince-abbot

Balthasar von Dernbach Balthasar von Dernbach (1548 – 15 March 1606), was a Benedictine monk of Fulda monastery and its Prince-Abbot from 1570 to 1606. Family Balthasar was born into a branch (''called Graul'') of the ''von Dernbach'' family, a family of knights ...

adopted a policy of

counter-reformation The Counter-Reformation (), also called the Catholic Reformation () or the Catholic Revival, was the period of Catholic resurgence that was initiated in response to the Protestant Reformation. It began with the Council of Trent (1545–1563) a ...

. In 1571 he called in the Jesuits to found a school and college. He insisted the members of the chapter should return to a monastic form of life. Whereas his predecessors had tolerated Protestantism, resulting in most of the citizenry of Fulda and a large portion of the principality's countryside professing Lutheranism, Balthasar ordered his subjects either to return to the Catholic faith or leave his territories.Otto Schaffrath. ''Fürstabt Balthasar von Dermbach und seine Zeit. Studien zur Geschichte der Gegenreformation in Fulda'' (= ''Veröffentlichung des Fuldaer Geschichtsvereins''. Bd. 44, ). Parzeller, Fulda 1967, mit umfangreicher Literaturübersicht. He also ordered the Fulda witch trials, in which hundreds of people, mostly women, were burnt alive on charges of witchcraft.

18th and 19th centuries

The foundation of the abbey of Fulda and its territory originated with an Imperial grant, and the sovereign

principality A principality (or sometimes princedom) can either be a monarchical feudatory or a sovereign state, ruled or reigned over by a regnant-monarch with the title of prince and/or princess, or by a monarch with another title considered to fall under ...

therefore was subject only to the German emperor. Fulda became a bishopric in 1752 and the prince-abbots were given the additional title of prince-bishop. The prince-abbots (and later prince-bishops) ruled Fulda and the surrounding region until the bishopric was forcibly dissolved by

Napoleon I Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...

in 1802. The city went through a baroque building campaign in the 18th century, resulting in the current "Baroque City" status. This included a remodeling of Fulda Cathedral (1704–12) and of the ''Stadtschloss'' (Fulda Castle-Palace, 1707–12) by Johann Dientzenhofer. The city parish church, St. Blasius, was built between 1771 and 1785. In 1764 a porcelain factory was started in Fulda under Prince-Bishop, Prince-Abbot Heinrich von Bibra, but shortly after his death it was closed down in 1789 by his successor, Prince-Bishop, Prince-Abbot Adalbert von Harstall. The city was given to Prince William Frederick of Orange-Nassau (the later King William I of the Netherlands) in 1803 (as part of the short-lived

Principality of Nassau-Orange-Fulda Nassau-Orange-Fulda (sometimes also named ''Fulda and Corvey'') was a short-lived principality of the Holy Roman Empire from 1803 to 1806. It was created for William Frederick, the son and heir of William V, Prince of Orange, the ousted stadthol ...

), was annexed to the Grand Duchy of Berg in 1806, and in 1809 to the Principality of Frankfurt. After the Congress of Vienna of 1814–15, most of the territory went to the Electorate of Hesse, which Prussia annexed in 1866.

20th century

From 1938 to 1943, Fulda was the location of a Nazi

forced labour Forced labour, or unfree labour, is any work relation, especially in modern or early modern history, in which people are employed against their will with the threat of destitution, detention, violence including death, or other forms of ex ...

camp for Romani people. Fulda lends its name to the Fulda Gap, a traditional east–west invasion route used by Napoleon I and others. During the

Cold War The Cold War is a term commonly used to refer to a period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc. The term '' cold war'' is used because the ...

, it was presumed to be an invasion route for any conventional war between NATO and

Soviet forces The Soviet Armed Forces, the Armed Forces of the Soviet Union and as the Red Army (, Вооружённые Силы Советского Союза), were the armed forces of the Russian SFSR (1917–1922), the Soviet Union (1922–1991), and th ...

. Downs Barracks in Fulda was the headquarters of the American

14th Armored Cavalry Regiment The 14th Cavalry Regiment is a cavalry regiment of the United States Army. It has two squadrons that provide reconnaissance, surveillance, and target acquisition for Stryker brigade combat teams. Constituted in 1901, it has served in conflicts ...

, later replaced by the

11th Armored Cavalry Regiment The 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment ("Blackhorse Regiment") is a unit of the United States Army garrisoned at the Fort Irwin National Training Center in California. Although termed an armored cavalry regiment, it is being re-organized as a multi ...

. The cavalry had as many as 3,000 soldiers from the end of World War II until 1993. Not all those soldiers were in Fulda proper, but scattered over observation posts and in the cities of Bad Kissingen and Bad Hersfeld. The strategic importance of this region, along the border between East and West Germany, led to a large United States and Soviet military presence.

Politics

Fulda has traditionally been a conservative Catholic city, with the Roman Catholic Diocese of Fulda being based in the city cathedral. During the time of

German Empire The German Empire (),Herbert Tuttle wrote in September 1881 that the term "Reich" does not literally connote an empire as has been commonly assumed by English-speaking people. The term literally denotes an empire – particularly a hereditary ...

and Weimar Republic, the city was a stronghold for Centre Party. After the end of World War II, in addition to all mayors, Fulda's constituency seats have been safe seats for CDU in both the Landtag of Hesse (District X 1946-1950, District 14 1950-1983, Fulda I since 1983) and Bundestag ( Fulda electoral district). CDU has never received less than 42.4 percent of the vote in communal elections since 1946. Oberbürgermeister (Lord mayor) Department I (head and personnel administration, finance, committee work, culture, business development, city marketing, investments) *Cuno Raabe (CDU): 1946–1956 *

Alfred Dregger Alfred Dregger (10 December 1920 – 29 June 2002) was a German politician and a leader of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU). Dregger was born in Münster. After graduating from a school in Werl, he entered the German Wehrmacht in 193 ...

(CDU): 1956–1970 *Dr. Wolfgang Hamberger (CDU): 1970–1998 *Dr. Alois Rhiel (CDU): 1998–2003 *Gerhard Möller (CDU): 2003–2015 *Heiko Wingenfeld (CDU): 2015– Department II (public security and order, family, youth, schools, sports, social affairs, seniors) *Karl Ehser: 1934–1945 *Karl Schmitt: 1946–1948 *Heinrich Gellings: 1948–1969 *Dr. Wolfgang Hamberger: 1969–1970 *Dr. Tilman Pünder: 1971–1980 *Lutz von Pufendorf: 1981–1984 *Dr. Alois Rhiel: 1984–1989 *Josef H. Mayer: 1990–1995 *Oda Scheibelhuber: 1995–1999 *Bernd Woide: 1999–2003 *Dr. Wolfgang Dippel: 2004–2014 *Dag Wehner (CDU): 2014– Landtag (state parliament) * Cuno Raabe (CDU): 1946-1962, elected in 1946, 1950, 1954 and 1958 * Alfred Dregger (CDU): 1962-1972, elected in 1962, 1966 and 1970, resigned to accept Bundestag mandate * Winfried Rippert (CDU): 1972-1999, appointed in 1972, elected in 1974, 1978, 1982, 1983, 1987, 1991 and 1995 * Walter Arnold (CDU): 1999-2004 and again 2009-2018, elected in 1999, 2003; resigned in 2004; elected in 2009 and 2013 * Margarete Ziegler-Raschdorf (CDU): 2004-2009, appointed in 2004, elected in 2008 * Thomas Hering (CDU): 2018-, elected in 2018 Bundestag (federal parliament) *

Anton Sabel Anton Sabel (15 October 1902 – 5 January 1983) was a German politician of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) and former member of the German Bundestag The Bundestag (, "Federal Diet") is the German federal parliament. It is the only ...

(CDU): 1949-1957, elected in 1949 and 1953 * Hermann Götz (CDU): 1957-1976, elected in 1957, 1961, 1965, 1969 and 1972 * Alfred Dregger (CDU): 1976-1998, elected in 1976, 1980, 1983, 1987, 1990 and 1994 * Martin Hohmann (CDU): 1998-2005, elected in 1998 and 2002; expelled from CDU in 2003 for anti-Semitic remarks * Michael Brand (CDU): 2005-, elected in 2005, 2009, 2013, 2017 and 2021 Source:

Transport

Fulda station is a transport hub and interchange point between local and long-distance traffic of the German railway network, and is classified by

Deutsche Bahn The (; abbreviated as DB or DB AG) is the national railway company of Germany. Headquartered in the Bahntower in Berlin, it is a joint-stock company ( AG). The Federal Republic of Germany is its single shareholder. describes itself as the se ...

as a category2 station. It is on the Hanover–Würzburg high-speed railway; the North–South line (''Nord-Süd-Strecke''), comprising the Bebra–Fulda line north of Fulda, and the Kinzig Valley Railway and Fulda–Main Railway to the south; the Vogelsberg Railway, which connects to the hills of the Vogelsberg in the west; and the

Fulda–Gersfeld Railway The Fulda–Gersfeld Railway (german: Bahnstrecke Fulda–Gersfeld), also called the Rhön Railway (german: Rhönbahn), is a railway line in the state of Hesse, Germany. It connects Fulda in the west with Gersfeld, in the Rhön Mountains, in the e ...

(Rhön Railway) to Gersfeld in the

Rhön Mountains The Rhön Mountains () are a group of low mountains (or ''Mittelgebirge'') in central Germany, located around the border area where the states of Hesse, Bavaria and Thuringia come together. These mountains, which are at the extreme southeast end o ...

to the east. Fulda is on the

Bundesautobahn 7 is the longest German Autobahn and the longest national motorway in Europe at 963 km (598 mi). It bisects the country almost evenly between east and west. In the north, it starts at the border with Denmark as an extension of the Danish part o ...

(BAB 7). Bundesautobahn 66 starts at the interchange with the BAB 7, heading south towards Frankfurt. Fulda is also on the Bundesstraße 27.

Twin towns – sister cities

Fulda is

twinned Twinning (making a twin of) may refer to: * In biology and agriculture, producing two offspring (i.e., twins) at a time, or having a tendency to do so; * Twin towns and sister cities, towns and cities involved in town twinning * Twinning inst ...

with: * Como, Italy (1960) * Arles, France (1964) * Sergiyev Posad, Russia (1991) * Wilmington, United States (1997) *

Litoměřice Litoměřice (; german: Leitmeritz) is a town in the Ústí nad Labem Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 23,000 inhabitants. The town centre is well preserved and is protected by law as an urban monument reservation. The town is the seat ...

, Czech Republic (2001) * Dokkum, Netherlands (2013)

Notable people

Pre-1800

Bundesarchiv B 145 Bild-P003647, Anton Storch

Adam of Fulda Adam of Fulda (c. 1445 – 1505) was a German composer and music theorist of the second half of the 15th century. He was born in Fulda and died in Wittenberg. In Heinrich Glarean's ''Dodecachordon'' he is described as ''Francum Germanum'', i.e., of ...

(), composer and music theorist *Adam Krafft (1493–1558), Protestant church reformer * Justus Menius (1499–1558), theologian *

Franz Kaspar Lieblein Franz Kaspar (or Caspar) Lieblein (15 September 1744 – 28 April 1810) was a German botanist, born at Karlstadt am Main on 15 September 1744. He is noted for his studies of the flora of Fulda in Hesse, and wrote ''Flora fuldensis'' in 1784, in whi ...

(1744–1810), botanist * Heinrich von Bibra Prince-Bishop, Prince-Abbot and of Fulda from 1759 to 1788

1801–1850

Georg von Adelmann Georg Franz Blasius von Adelmann (28 June 1811, in Fulda – 16 June 1888, in Berlin) was a German physician and surgeon. He studied medicine at the Universities of Marburg and Würzburg, receiving his doctorate in 1832 with the dissertation ''De ...

(1811–1888), physician and surgeon *

Otto Bähr Otto Bähr (2 June 1817 – 17 February 1895) was a German legal scholar and liberal parliamentarian. He supported the view, not always well accepted by governments, that since the State was part of society, it must be judged in the same courts ...

(1817–1895), lawyer and politician *

Hugo Staehle Hugo Staehle (21 June 1826, Fulda – 29 March 1848, Kassel) was a German composer. Staehle was the son of a Hessian army officer. He studied violin and piano with Wilhelm Beichert and composition with Moritz Hauptmann. When Hauptmann went to ...

(1826–1848), composer * Ferdinand Braun (1850–1918), physicist, electrical engineer and Nobel laureate in physics

1851–1900

Adalbert Ricken Adalbert Ricken (18 March 1851 – 1 March 1921) was a German Roman Catholic priest and mycologist born in Fulda. He attended the seminary for Roman Catholic priests in Fulda, and afterwards was a priest and chaplain at several locations in the F ...

(1851–1921), mycologist and priest *

Ludwig Hupfeld Ludwig Hupfeld (26 November 1864 – 8 October 1949) was a German musical instrument maker and industrialist. Life and work Hupfeld was born in Maberzell (now Fulda in Hesse), Germany. Hupfeld attended the Royal Grammar School in Fulda and ...

(1864–1949), instrument maker and industrialist * Wilhelm Heye (1869–1947), officer *Clara Harnack (1877–1962), painter, teacher and mother of the resistance fighters Arvid and Falk Harnack *

Anton Storch Anton Storch (1 April 1892 – 26 November 1975) was a German trade unionist, politician, a member of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) and the minister of labor from 1949 to 1957. Early life Storch was born in Fulda, Hesse, in 1892. He wa ...

(1892–1975), politician * Wilm Hosenfeld (1895–1952), officer and Righteous Among the Nations * Paul Deichmann (1898–1981), officer of the Luftwaffe * Max Stern (1898–1982), businessman, investor and philanthropist

1901–1950

Karl Storch Karl Storch (21 August 1913 – 16 August 1992) was a German athlete, who mainly competed in the hammer throw. He was born in Fulda. The member of SC Borussia Fulda competed for Germany at the 1952 Summer Olympics, Germany in the 1952 Sum ...

(1913–1992), athlete (hammer thrower) * Wilhelm Balthasar (1914–1941), Luftwaffe military aviator and wing commander during Spanish Civil War and WWII *Fr.

Gereon Goldmann Gereon Karl Goldmann, OFM (25 October 1916 – 26 July 2003) was a German Franciscan priest, a World War II veteran of the Wehrmacht and Waffen SS, and a member of the German Resistance against Adolf Hitler. Early life Gereon Karl Goldmann was b ...

(1916–2003), WWII veteran of the Wehrmacht and Waffen SS; later a Franciscan priest * Martin Hohmann (born 1948), politician (CDU, now AfD) *

Winfried Michel Winfried Michel (born 1948 in Fulda) is a German recorder player, composer, and editor of music. Michel studied with Ingetraud Drescher, Nikolaus Delius, and Frans Brüggen. He is lecturer for the recorder at the Staatliche Hochschule Münste ...

(born 1948), composer, recorder player and music publisher

1951–present

Markus Oestreich Markus Oestreich (born 3 July 1963) is a German racing driver currently competing in the TCR International Series. He previously competed in the British Touring Car Championship, World Touring Car Championship and Deutsche Tourenwagen Meisters ...

(born 1963), racing driver * Immanuel Bloch (born 1972), physicist * Tobias Sammet (born 1977), musician * Sebastian Kehl (born 1980), football player *

Patrik Sinkewitz Patrik Sinkewitz (born 20 October 1980) is a German professional road racing cyclist, who is currently suspended from the sport until 2024 for doping and ineligibility offences. He was a climbing specialist who can ride well over a stage race, as ...

(born 1980), professional cyclist *

Tobias Wolf Tobias Wolf (born 6 August 1988) is a German footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for SG Barockstadt Fulda-Lehnerz The SG Barockstadt Fulda-Lehnerz is a German association football club from the Lehnerz suburb of Fulda, Hesse. The club's gre ...

(born 1988), football player * Damien Haas (born 1990), actor

Gallery

File:Fulda, Schlossgarten, 2019-10 CN-08.jpg, City palace garden File:Catedral de Fulda.jpg, Fulda Cathedral File:Fulda-Bonifatiusstatue.png, Statue of Saint Boniface (1830) in Fulda File:Ansicht des Bonifatiusplatzes mit Bonifatiusdenkmal und Hauptwache in Fulda 1850.jpg, Fulda in 1850 File:Fulda-Stadtschloss.png, Entrance of the Stadtschloss (City Palace) File:Altes Rathaus Fulda 2.jpg, Old City Hall File:Orangerie Fulda 029a.jpg, Orangerie File:Frauenberg Fulda Gästehaus.JPG, Kloster Frauenberg (Fulda), a Franciscan monastery File:St.-Michaelskirche-2284.jpg, St. Michael's Church File:Fulda - Adelspalais im Barockviertel.jpg, Baroque Adelspalais File:FULDA Alte Universitaet.JPG, Old

University of Fulda The University of Fulda (also: ''Alma mater Adolphiana''), was founded in 1734 by Adolphus von Dalberg and existed until 1805. Most of the students and professors were Catholic. Under Prince-Bishop Heinrich von Bibra Protestants were also admitt ...

: ''Adolphs-Universität Fulda'' File:Fulda countryside.jpg, Looking east toward Fulda over the rich farmlands File:Weser watershed 3.png, Weser river watershed, showing Fulda river and the city of Fulda File:Fulda, Paulustor, 2019-10 CN-02.jpg, St. Paul's Gate, viewed from the south

References

External links

Official website360degree virtual tour through downtown Fulda

Vonderau Museum FuldaHochschule Fulda (University of Applied Science)Holocaust survivor testimony of the Kristallnacht pogrom in Fulda
on the Yad Vashem website {{Authority control . Populated places established in the 8th century 8th-century establishments in Germany 744 establishments Christian monasteries established in the 12th century 12th-century establishments in the Holy Roman Empire Carolingian architecture Counter-Reformation Historic Jewish communities