Arnsberg (; wep, Arensperg) is a town in the Hochsauerland county, in the German state of

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 ...

. It is the location of the

Regierungsbezirk A ' () means "governmental district" and is a type of administrative division in Germany. Four of sixteen ' ( states of Germany) are split into '. Beneath these are rural and urban districts. Saxony has ' (directorate districts) with more res ...

Arnsberg Arnsberg (; wep, Arensperg) is a town in the Hochsauerland county, in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia. It is the location of the Regierungsbezirk Arnsberg administration and one of the three local administration offices of the Hochs ...

administration and one of the three local administration offices of the Hochsauerlandkreis district.

Geography

Location

Arnsberg is located in the north-east of the

Sauerland The Sauerland () is a rural, hilly area spreading across most of the south-eastern part of North Rhine-Westphalia, in parts heavily forested and, apart from the major valleys, sparsely inhabited. The Sauerland is the largest tourist region in ...

in the

Ruhr The Ruhr ( ; german: Ruhrgebiet , also ''Ruhrpott'' ), also referred to as the Ruhr area, sometimes Ruhr district, Ruhr region, or Ruhr valley, is a polycentric urban area in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. With a population density of 2,800/km ...

river valley. The river Ruhr

meanders A meander is one of a series of regular sinuous curves in the channel of a river or other watercourse. It is produced as a watercourse erodes the sediments of an outer, concave bank (cut bank) and deposits sediments on an inner, convex bank w ...

around the south of the old town of Arnsberg. The town is nearly completely encircled by forest, and the nature park ''

Arnsberger Wald The Arnsberg Forest Nature Park (german: Naturpark Arnsberger Wald) is a nature park in the districts of Hochsauerlandkreis and Soest within the administrictive region of Arnsberg in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia. The park was est ...

'' lies to the north". Arnsberg is connected by Federal Motorway 46 (Autobahn 46) Brilon in the east and (using the Federal Motorway 445)

Werl Werl (; Westphalian: ''Wiärl'') is a town located in the district of Soest in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Geography Werl is easily accessible because it is located between the Sauerland, Münsterland, and the Ruhr Area. The Hellweg road ...

in the west. It is also connected by several railroad stations, which provide a connection to the major city

Dortmund Dortmund (; Westphalian nds, Düörpm ; la, Tremonia) is the third-largest city in North Rhine-Westphalia after Cologne and Düsseldorf, and the eighth-largest city of Germany, with a population of 588,250 inhabitants as of 2021. It is the la ...

and the

gebiet. There is also a regional airport, located in the city district of Vosswinkel, which is exclusively used for small private aircraft. The municipal territory spans a distance of up to from the southern to the northern limits.

Neighbouring municipalities

Ense Ense () is a municipality in the district of Soest, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Geography Ense is situated on the river Möhne, approx. 12 km north-west of Arnsberg and 12 km south-west of Soest. Ense lies at the northside of ...

Möhnesee Möhnesee is a municipality in the district of Soest, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Geography The Möhnesee municipality is situated around the Möhne Reservoir (hence the name), approx. 10 km south of Soest. History On the night of ...

* Warstein * Meschede *

Sundern Sundern is a town in the Hochsauerland district, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. The name Sundern is common in Westphalia, as it means "ground given away for private usage" in the Westphalian dialect. Geography Sundern is situated approximate ...

Balve Balve is a town in the Märkischer Kreis district, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located in ''Hönnetal'', a narrow valley created by the river Hönne, which is near the Sorpe Dam, formerly part of Balve, and at the north end of the Sauer ...

Menden Menden (, official name: ''Menden (Sauerland)''; Westphalian: ''Mennen'') is a city in the district Märkischer Kreis, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located at the north end of the Sauerland near the Ruhr river. History Menden's f ...

Subdivisions

After the local government reforms of 1975 Arnsberg consists of 15 boroughs (''Ortsteile''): * Neheim (23,448 inhabitants) * Arnsberg (19,355 inhabitants) * Hüsten (11,304 inhabitants) * Oeventrop (6,713 inhabitants) * Herdringen (4,118 inhabitants) * Bruchhausen (3,337 inhabitants) *

Müschede Müschede is a village in the city of Arnsberg in North Rhine-Westphalia, 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 ...

(2,870 inhabitants) * Voßwinkel (2,523 inhabitants) * Niedereimer (2,082 inhabitants) * Holzen (2,022 inhabitants) * Rumbeck (1,305 inhabitants) * Wennigloh (1,004 inhabitants) * Bachum (959 inhabitants) * Breitenbruch (219 inhabitants) * Uentrop (346 inhabitants) Jüdischer Friedhof Arnsberg

History

Beginnings

Arnsberg was first mentioned in 789 in the

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 ...

records ( Urbar) as belonging to the abbey of

Werden Werden is a southern borough of the city of Essen in Germany. It belongs to the city district ''IX Werden/Kettwig/Bredeney'' and has 9,998 inhabitants as of June 30, 2006. The borough occupies a space of and is situated at a median height of . __ ...

. Arnsberg was the seat of the Counts of Arnsberg from around 1070 and received city rights in 1238. In 1368 the last of the Counts of Arnsberg, Count Gottfried IV, handed over the city and county to Kurköln as he had no heir. They built a castle there whose remains can still be visited and are occasionally used for public celebrations. In the 12th century, old Arnsberg became the seat of

Westphalia Westphalia (; german: Westfalen ; nds, Westfalen ) is a region of northwestern Germany and one of the three historic parts of the state of North Rhine-Westphalia. It has an area of and 7.9 million inhabitants. The territory of the regio ...

n jurisdiction (whose coat of arms is still used today by the Hochsauerlandkreis). Later, the city lost its independence and was subject to the

Archbishop In Christian denominations, an archbishop is a bishop of higher rank or office. In most cases, such as the Catholic Church, there are many archbishops who either have jurisdiction over an ecclesiastical province in addition to their own archdi ...

s of

Cologne Cologne ( ; german: Köln ; ksh, Kölle ) is the largest city of the German western States of Germany, state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) and the List of cities in Germany by population, fourth-most populous city of Germany with 1.1 m ...

18th/19th Century

The castle of Arnsberg was destroyed in the

Seven Years' War The Seven Years' War (1756–1763) was a global conflict that involved most of the European Great Powers, and was fought primarily in Europe, the Americas, and Asia-Pacific. Other concurrent conflicts include the French and Indian War (1754� ...

in 1769. In 1794 the French attacked Cologne, so parts of the treasure of the

Cologne Cathedral Cologne Cathedral (german: Kölner Dom, officially ', English: Cathedral Church of Saint Peter) is a Catholic cathedral in Cologne, North Rhine-Westphalia. It is the seat of the Archbishop of Cologne and of the administration of the Archdiocese of ...

were brought to safety in Arnsberg, along with the relics of the

Biblical Magi The biblical Magi from Middle Persian ''moɣ''(''mard'') from Old Persian ''magu-'' 'Zoroastrian clergyman' ( or ; singular: ), also referred to as the (Three) Wise Men or (Three) Kings, also the Three Magi were distinguished foreigners in the G ...

. In 1804, the treasure was returned to Cologne, as commemorated by a plaque in the Propsteikirche. In 1816, Arnsberg came under

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 rule and was made a local administrative centre.

World War Two

Neheim and Hüsten were merged in 1941. During 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 ...

, Arnsberg first suffered widespread destruction and catastrophic loss of lives when RAF Lancasters breached the dam of the Möhne Reservoir in the night of the 16 to 17 May 1943 ( Operation Chastise). The nearby Abbey Himmelpforten was completely washed away. Later, dozens of Arnsberg's citizens were killed in several British air raids aimed at destroying the railway

viaduct A viaduct is a specific type of bridge that consists of a series of arches, piers or columns supporting a long elevated railway or road. Typically a viaduct connects two points of roughly equal elevation, allowing direct overpass across a wide v ...

. The targets were finally destroyed on 19 March 1945 using a 'Grand Slam' bomb.

Contemporary history

The current city of Arnsberg was created in 1975 by merging 12 surrounding municipalities (Bachum, Breitenbruch, Herdringen, Holzen, Müschede, Niedereimer, Oeventrop, Rumbeck, Uentrop, Voßwinkel and Wennigloh) into one city. Old Arnsberg itself and Neheim-Hüsten are the two main urban areas, while the other parts are mainly rural areas.

Demographics

Religion

Arnsberg's population is mostly

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 lette ...

. Arnsberg belongs to the

Archdiocese of Paderborn The Archdiocese of Paderborn is an archdiocese of the Latin Rite of the Roman Catholic Church in Germany; its seat is Paderborn.Catholic churches 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 p ...

include the "Propsteikirche" or the "Heilig-Kreuz Kirche" and the "Auferstehungskirche", which is a

Protestant church 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 ...

. There is also a

New Apostolic The New Apostolic Church (NAC) is a Christian church that split from the Catholic Apostolic Church during an 1863 schism in Hamburg, Germany. The church has existed since 1863 in Germany and since 1897 in the Netherlands. It came abo ...

congregation. In recent years Arnsberg's Muslim minority grew considerably. The town has a mosque. The cemeteries are mostly Catholic but there is also a

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

cemetery.

Arts and culture

The Kunstverein Arnsberg operates in Arnsberg. Founded in 1987 and devoted to

contemporary art Contemporary art is the art of today, produced in the second half of the 20th century or in the 21st century. Contemporary artists work in a globally influenced, culturally diverse, and technologically advancing world. Their art is a dynamic com ...

, Kunstverein Arnsberg has presented solo exhibitions by artists including

Georg Baselitz Georg Baselitz (born 23 January 1938) is a German painter, sculptor and graphic artist. In the 1960s he became well known for his figurative, expressive paintings. In 1969 he began painting his subjects upside down in an effort to overcome the ...

Thomas Ruff Thomas Ruff (born 10 February 1958) is a German photographer who lives and works in Düsseldorf, Germany. He has been described as "a master of edited and reimagined images". Ruff shares a studio on Düsseldorf's Hansaallee, with fellow German ...

Karin Sander Karin Sander (born 1957 in Bensberg, North Rhine-Westphalia) is a German conceptual artist. She lives and works in Berlin and Zurich. Life Karin Sander studied at the Freie Kunstschule Stuttgart and at the Staatliche Akademie der Bildenden K ...

, Dan Perjovschi,

Boris Mikhailov Boris Mikhailov may refer to: * Boris Mikhailov (Comintern), representative of the Communist International to the US in 1929-30 * Boris Mikhailov (photographer) (born 1938), fine art photographer * Boris Mikhailov (ice hockey) (born 1944), former ...

Gregor Schneider Gregor Schneider (born 1969 in Rheydt) is a German artist. His projects have proven controversial and provoked intense discussions. In 2001, he was awarded the Golden Lion at the Venice Biennale for his infamous work ''Totes Haus u r'' exhibited ...

, Erwin Wurm, the

Turner Prize The Turner Prize, named after the English painter J. M. W. Turner, is an annual prize presented to a British visual artist. Between 1991 and 2016, only artists under the age of 50 were eligible (this restriction was removed for the 2017 award) ...

winner Susan Philipsz and the

Marcel Duchamp Prize The Marcel Duchamp Prize (in French : ''Prix Marcel Duchamp'') is an annual award given to a young artist by the Association pour la Diffusion Internationale de l'Art Français (ADIAF). The winner receives €35,000 personally and up to €30,000 ...

winner

Laurent Grasso Laurent Grasso (born 1972) is a French conceptual artist living and working in Paris. Biography Laurent Grasso is the recipient of the esteemed Order of Arts and Letters by the French Ministry of Culture and the prestigious Marcel Duchamp P ...

Government

City arms

The arms of the city depict a white eagle on a blue field. Earlier it was a white eagle on a red field, introduced in 1278 and as used by the counts of

. In the 17th century the red was changed to blue, reflecting the

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 ...

n blue of the

House of Wittelsbach The House of Wittelsbach () is a German dynasty, with branches that have ruled over territories including Bavaria, the Palatinate, Holland and Zeeland, Sweden (with Finland), Denmark, Norway, Hungary (with Romania), Bohemia, the Electorate ...

Mayors

Mayors of the new town Arnsberg

Twin towns – sister cities

Arnsberg is twinned with: * Alba Iulia, Romania *

Deventer Deventer (; Sallands: ) is a city and municipality in the Salland historical region of the province of Overijssel, Netherlands. In 2020, Deventer had a population of 100,913. The city is largely situated on the east bank of the river IJssel, bu ...

, Netherlands * Bexley, England, United Kingdom *

Olesno Olesno is a town in Opole Voivodship, Poland about north-east of the city of Opole. It is the capital of Olesno County and seat of the Gmina Olesno. History The area near the ancient Amber Road had been settled since the Neolithic era. Olesno ...

, Poland *

Caltagirone Caltagirone (; scn, Caltaggiruni ; Latin: ''Calata Hieronis'') is an inland city and ''comune The (; plural: ) is a local administrative division of Italy, roughly equivalent to a township or municipality. It is the third-level administ ...

, Italy

Notable people

Franz von Fürstenberg Franz may refer to: People * Franz (given name) * Franz (surname) Places * Franz (crater), a lunar crater * Franz, Ontario, a railway junction and unorganized town in Canada * Franz Lake, in the state of Washington, United States – see ...

(1729–1810), statesman and reformer school in Archbishopric Münster, founder of the

Münster University Münster (; nds, Mönster) is an independent city (''Kreisfreie Stadt'') in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is in the northern part of the state and is considered to be the cultural centre of the Westphalia region. It is also a state dist ...

Wilhelm Hasenclever Wilhelm Hasenclever (19 April 1837 – 3 July 1889) was a German politician. He was originally a tanner by trade but later became a journalist and author. However, he is most known for his political work in the predecessors of the Social Democ ...

, (1837–1889), politician * Karl Brüggemann (1896–1977), honorary district in Kreis Arnsberg from 1961 to 1969 *

Franz Stock The Servant of God Franz Stock (21 September 1904, Neheim – 24 February 1948, Paris) was a German Roman Catholic priest. He is known for ministering to prisoners in France during World War II, and to German prisoners of war in the years f ...

(1904–1948), since 1934 pastor of the German Catholic community in Paris, during the German occupation chaplain for French prisoners (companion sentenced to death), 1945 head of a prisoner of war seminar in Chartres *

Hans Bernd Gisevius Hans Bernd Gisevius (14 July 1904 – 23 February 1974) was a German diplomat and intelligence officer during the Second World War. A covert opponent of the Nazi regime, he served as a liaison in Zürich between Allen Dulles, station chief for ...

, (1904–1974), diplomat *

Fritz Cremer Fritz Cremer was a German sculptor. Cremer was considered a key figure in the DDR art and cultural politics. His most notable for being the creator of the "Revolt of the Prisoners" (Revolte der Gefangenen) memorial sculptor at the former concentra ...

, (1906–1993), artist * Betsy von Furstenberg, (1931–2015), actress * Franz Müntefering, (born 1940), politician (SPD) *

Mike de Vries Mike de Vries (, born on 8 December 1958 in Arnsberg, Germany), is a German manager specializing in brands and business development; his positions have included CEO of the :de:Deutschland – Land der Ideen, "Germany – Land of Ideas" national ma ...

, (born 1958), brand and business manager *

Andrea Fischer Andrea Fischer (born January 14, 1960) is a former member of the German Bundestag for the German Green Party and from 1998 until 2001 was Federal Minister for Health. She dropped out of the Bundestag in 2002. Life Education and profession After ...

(born 1960), politician (

Alliance '90 / The Greens Alliance 90/The Greens (german: Bündnis 90/Die Grünen, ), often simply referred to as the Greens ( ), is a green political party in Germany. It was formed in 1993 as the merger of The Greens (formed in West Germany in 1980) and Alliance 90 (fo ...

) and journalist, former Federal Minister of Health *

Meinolf Finke Meinolf Finke (born 14 August 1963 in Arnsberg) is a German writer and poet. Life and career Meinolf Finke was born 1963 in Arnsberg (Westphalia). After obtaining the Abitur at ''Gymnasium Laurentianum Arnsberg'', military service and a trainin ...

, (born 1963), poet *

Helena Fromm Helena Fromm (born 5 August 1987 in Oeventrop, West Germany) is a German taekwondo athlete. Representing Germany at the 2007 World Taekwondo Championships in Beijing, China, she won the bronze medal in the welterweight (–67 ...

(born 1987), taekwondo athlete, Olympic medalist *

Georg Poplutz Georg Poplutz is a German tenor, a soloist in Baroque music, opera and oratorio, and a Lied singer. He has been a member of vocal ensembles such as Johann Rosenmüller Ensemble and Cantus Cölln, and has participated in a project to record th ...

, tenor

People related to Arnsberg

Fotothek df ld 0003122 001 Denkmäler - Denkmale - Ehrenmäler - Ehrenmale ^ Mahnm

* Paul Moder (1896–1942), politician (NSDAP), Freikorps member and SS officer *

Walther Neye Walther Neye (24 July 1901 – 12 August 1989) was a German lawyer. Between 1952 and 1957 he was the rector of Berlin's Humboldt University. Life Early years Walther Eduard Hermann Neye was born, the youngest of three children, at the start of ...

(1901–1989), jurist and rector of the Humboldt University in Berlin *

(1906–1993), sculptor ( Buchenwald Memorial) * Lothar Collatz (1910–1990), mathematician *

Günter Keute Günter Keute (born 21 December 1955) is a retired German footballer. He spent three seasons with Eintracht Braunschweig in the Bundesliga The Bundesliga (; ), sometimes referred to as the Fußball-Bundesliga () or 1. Bundesliga (), is a prof ...

(born 1955), footballer * Friedrich Merz (born 1955), attorney and politician, member of the CDU *

(born 1963), poet * Stephan Kampwirth (born 1967), theatre actor, film actor and voice actor *

Rouven Schröder Rouven Schröder (born October 18, 1975) is a former German football player. Most recently, he worked as Sporting Director of Schalke 04. Career He made his debut on the professional league level in the Bundesliga for VfL Bochum on April 1, 2001, ...

(born 1975), footballer *

Philipp Hofmann Philipp Hofmann (born 30 March 1993) is a German professional footballer who plays for VfL Bochum as a forward. Hofmann is a product of the Schalke 04 academy and made his professional breakthrough away from the club on loan, before transferri ...

(born 1993), footballer

Gallery

Arnsberg Stadtansicht 01 2011.jpg, Arnsberg Glockenturm2-2.JPG, Glockenturm (Bell tower) Marienhospital-arnsberg.jpg, Marienhospital (hospital)

References

External links

Official website

Kunstverein Arnsberg
(emergency currency) {{Authority control Towns in North Rhine-Westphalia Hochsauerlandkreis Members of the Hanseatic League