Hilden is a town 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 situated in the
District of Mettmann, west of
Solingen
Solingen (; li, Solich) is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located some 25 km east of Düsseldorf along the northern edge of the region called Bergisches Land, south of the Ruhr area, and, with a 2009 population of 161,366, ...
and east of
Düsseldorf
Düsseldorf ( , , ; often in English sources; Low Franconian and Ripuarian: ''Düsseldörp'' ; archaic nl, Dusseldorp ) is the capital city of North Rhine-Westphalia, the most populous state of Germany. It is the second-largest city in th ...
on the right side of the
Rhine
), Surselva, Graubünden, Switzerland
, source1_coordinates=
, source1_elevation =
, source2 = Rein Posteriur/Hinterrhein
, source2_location = Paradies Glacier, Graubünden, Switzerland
, source2_coordinates=
, so ...
. It is a middle sized industrial town with a forest and numerous attractions.
The Mayor is Claus Pommer, who took office in 2020.
Geography
With approx. 57,000 inhabitants, Hilden is the fourth largest city in the District of Mettmann. In contrast to the surrounding cities, it has no suburban districts or incorporated villages. Hilden has a compact urbanized city centre and borders some smaller woods.
History
Hilden was named in written sources already in the 11th century. In the 13th century in the centre of the early settlement a
Romanesque church was erected, which during the
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 in ...
became Protestant. Later a second church for Catholics had been built. In the time of industrialization many factories especially in textiles, engineering and painting had been founded. In both World Wars the people of Hilden had many losses, a list of the soldiers' names is written on a memorial. During the Nazi rule Jews and opponents of the regime have been persecuted. In the factories forced labourers, allegedly 3000, have been employed.
In 1945 American troops, then units of the
British Army of the Rhine
There have been two formations named British Army of the Rhine (BAOR). Both were originally occupation forces in Germany, one after the First World War and the other after the Second World War. Both formations had areas of responsibility located a ...
had occupied the town, stationed in the local barracks erected in 1937. The relationship between the population and the British soldiers were good especially after Germany's accession to
NATO
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...
in May 1955, when former adversaries became allies. The initiative of the regiment to get in touch with local citizens led to the twin partnership Hilden - Warrington (1968), to school exchanges and various contacts between people. In March 1968 the British troops left Hilden, having been replaced by German military units which took over the barracks.
In the aftermath of the War refugees from East Germany found a new home in Hilden nearly doubling its population. In 1956 the Council of Hilden granted patronage to the association of refugees from the town and district of
Wohlau,
Lower Silesia
Lower Silesia ( pl, Dolny Śląsk; cz, Dolní Slezsko; german: Niederschlesien; szl, Dolny Ślōnsk; hsb, Delnja Šleska; dsb, Dolna Šlazyńska; Silesian German: ''Niederschläsing''; la, Silesia Inferior) is the northwestern part of the ...
. They held several meetings in Hilden with more than 1000 former Wohlau citizens having received refuge in various parts of Germany.
Since the 1960s thousands of foreign migrant workers were employed in various industrial sections. An economical boom in the following decades contributed to further expansion of the town.
Politics
Since
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 opposin ...
, Hilden had six mayors:
* Robert Gies – a Social Democrat and Mayor (1952–1969)
* Ellen Wiederhold – a Christian Democrat, the first female and longest ruling Mayor (1969–1994)
* Günter Scheib – a Social Democrat and Mayor (1994–2009)
* Horst Thiele – a Social Democrat and Mayor (2009–2014)
* Birgit Alkenings – a Social Democrat and Mayor (2014–2020)
* Claus Pommer – non-party and Mayor (2020 – now)
The current City Council, elected in 2009, consists of 40 members: 13 Christian Democrats, 13 Social Democrats, 6 Liberals, 4 Greens, 4 Civic Action and 4 Independents. In summer 2010 one member left the Christian Democrat faction and two members left the Liberals founding their own faction. Missing a formal coalition the Council rules with changing majorities.
Economy
Hilden was once home to textile factories, a big paint enterprise, pharmaceutical and metallurgic companies. After the economic crisis in the 1980s many of these companies have been closed. Flourishing companies now include the German headquarters of
3M and
Qiagen
QIAGEN N.V., the global corporate headquarter of the QIAGEN group, is located in Venlo, The Netherlands. Furthermore, European, American, and Asia regional headquarters are located in respectively Hilden, Germany, Maryland United States, and Sh ...
, as well as many other businesses and enterprises from the technology and logistics sector.
Transportation
Until the 1960s Hilden had an old fashioned tram, that connected the city in three directions with
Düsseldorf-Benrath
Benrath () is a quarter of Düsseldorf in the south of the city, part of Borough 9. It has been a part of Düsseldorf since 1929. Benrath has an area of , and 17,178 inhabitants (2020).
History
The name Benrath came from the "Knights of Benrode ...
,
Solingen-Ohligs and
Wuppertal-Vohwinkel. It was nearly a tourist attraction, as it was one of the few trams that operated on
metre gauge
Metre-gauge railways are narrow-gauge railways with track gauge of or 1 metre.
The metre gauge is used in around of tracks around the world. It was used by European colonial powers, such as the French, British and German Empires. In Europe, la ...
track. Meanwhile, the trams have been replaced by buses.
Hilden station
Hilden station is located in the city of Hilden in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia. It is on the Düsseldorf–Solingen line and is classified by Deutsche Bahn as a category 4 station. It is served by Rhine-Ruhr S-Bahn line S 1 every ...
has local trains operating to
Düsseldorf
Düsseldorf ( , , ; often in English sources; Low Franconian and Ripuarian: ''Düsseldörp'' ; archaic nl, Dusseldorp ) is the capital city of North Rhine-Westphalia, the most populous state of Germany. It is the second-largest city in th ...
,
Solingen
Solingen (; li, Solich) is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located some 25 km east of Düsseldorf along the northern edge of the region called Bergisches Land, south of the Ruhr area, and, with a 2009 population of 161,366, ...
and
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 ...
. This service is now operated as
line S 1 of the
Rhine-Ruhr S-Bahn
The Rhine-Ruhr S-Bahn (german: S-Bahn Rhein-Ruhr) is a polycentric and electrically driven S-train network covering the Rhine-Ruhr Metropolitan Region in the German federated state of North Rhine-Westphalia. This includes most of the Ruhr (and ci ...
, stopping at several newly built stations, including
Hilden Süd station
Hilden Süd station is in the city of Hilden in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia. It is on the Düsseldorf–Solingen railway, which was opened on 3 January 1894 by the Prussian state railways. The station was also opened in 1976 or 1977 ...
. Line S 1 continues past Düsseldorf to
Düsseldorf Airport station
Düsseldorf Airport (''Bahnhof Düsseldorf Flughafen'') is a railway station in Düsseldorf, Germany on the Cologne–Duisburg line that connects Düsseldorf Airport to Düsseldorf-Stadtmitte and long-distance trains, most of them ICE train ...
and 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 ...
area.
Hilden is also accessible by the nearby intersecting freeways
A3,
A59 and
A46.
Within Hilden, residential
speed limit
Speed limits on road traffic, as used in most countries, set the legal maximum speed at which vehicles may travel on a given stretch of road. Speed limits are generally indicated on a traffic sign reflecting the maximum permitted speed - expres ...
s were reduced to in 1992 to encourage cycling. The main street in the center became a pedestrian zone.
Festivities
*
carnival
Carnival is a Catholic Christian festive season that occurs before the liturgical season of Lent. The main events typically occur during February or early March, during the period historically known as Shrovetide (or Pre-Lent). Carnival typi ...
parade (in February)
* annual "
Hildener Jazztage
Hildener Jazztage is a jazz festival in Hilden
Hilden is a town in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia. It is situated in the District of Mettmann, west of Solingen and east of Düsseldorf on the right side of the Rhine. It is a mi ...
" - Hilden jazz days (in May/June)
* Schützenfest - festivity of St. Sebastian's brotherhood (in June)
* exhibition of fire fighters' brigade (August/September)
* Day of German Reunification (on October 3)
* Christmas market (in December)
Notable people
*
Wilhelm Fabry
Wilhelm Fabry (also William Fabry, Guilelmus Fabricius Hildanus, or Fabricius von Hilden) (25 June 1560 − 15 February 1634), often called the "Father of German surgery", was the first educated and scientific German surgeon. He is one of the mos ...
(1560–1634), founder of the scientific surgery
*
Max Volmer
Max Volmer (; 3 May 1885 – 3 June 1965) was a German physical chemist, who made important contributions in electrochemistry, in particular on electrode kinetics. He co-developed the Butler–Volmer equation. Volmer held the chair and director ...
(1885–1965), physical chemist
*
Christian Petzold (born 1960), movie director
*
Michael Tarnat
Michael Tarnat (born 27 October 1969) is a German former professional footballer, currently employed by Bayern Munich as the leader of the U12–U16 youth teams. A left-footed full-back, he was also employed as a left wingback and occasionall ...
(born 1969), footballer
*
Blumio
is a German rapper of Japanese descent known as Blumio. His 2005 single "Meine Lieblingsrapper" debuted at number 2 on the German '' Urban TRL'' charts.
Early life and career
Kuniyoshi was born 1985 in Hilden, a town located near Düsseldorf ...
(born 1985), rapper
*
Julian Hanses
Julian Hanses (born 31 August 1997 in Hilden) is a racing driver from Germany. He currently competes in the Porsche Carrera Cup Germany
The Porsche Carrera Cup Germany, also known as Porsche Carrera Cup Deutschland, between 1986-1989 as Porsc ...
(born 1997), racing driver
Twin towns – sister cities
Hilden is
twinned with:
*
Warrington
Warrington () is a town and unparished area in the borough of the same name in the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England, on the banks of the River Mersey. It is east of Liverpool, and west of Manchester. The population in 2019 was estimat ...
, England, United Kingdom (1968)
*
Nové Město nad Metují
Nové Město nad Metují (; german: Neustadt an der Mettau) is a town in Náchod District in the Hradec Králové Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 9,100 inhabitants. The historic town centre is well preserved and is protected by law as an ...
, Czech Republic (1989)
Gallery
Hilden, die Sankt Jacobuskirche Dm33 foto2 2014-03-30 15.29.jpg, Church of Saint Jacobus
Hilden, die Reformationskirche Dm29 foto6 2014-03-30 16.00.jpg, Reformations Church
Hilden, café in Mittelstrasse foto3 2014-03-30 15.38.jpg, Bar in Mittelstrasse
Reformationskirche.jpg, The pedestrian zone
Hilden, buste van Wilhelm Fabry in de Mittelstrasse foto1 2014-03-30 15.51.jpg, Bust of 17th century surgeon Wilhelm Fabry
Wilhelm Fabry (also William Fabry, Guilelmus Fabricius Hildanus, or Fabricius von Hilden) (25 June 1560 − 15 February 1634), often called the "Father of German surgery", was the first educated and scientific German surgeon. He is one of the mos ...
at market place
References
External links
*
*http://www.wilhelm-fabry-museum.de/ - presentation of the 1000-year history of Hilden as well as the founder of the scientific surgery in 1560
Wilhelm Fabry
Wilhelm Fabry (also William Fabry, Guilelmus Fabricius Hildanus, or Fabricius von Hilden) (25 June 1560 − 15 February 1634), often called the "Father of German surgery", was the first educated and scientific German surgeon. He is one of the mos ...
*http://www.baor-locations.org/StDavidsBks.aspx.html - homepage of
BAOR
There have been two formations named British Army of the Rhine (BAOR). Both were originally occupation forces in Germany, one after the First World War and the other after the Second World War. Both formations had areas of responsibility located a ...
with images of the former British military base in Hilden
*http://www.muthilden.de - initiative for civic responsibility
{{Authority control
Towns in North Rhine-Westphalia
Mettmann (district)