Lichtenau is a small town in Rastatt district in southwestern

Baden-Württemberg Baden-Württemberg (; ), commonly shortened to BW or BaWü, is a German state () in Southwest Germany, east of the Rhine, which forms the southern part of Germany's western border with France. With more than 11.07 million inhabitants across a ...

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 ...

Geography

Lichtenau is located in the

Upper Rhine River Plains ), Surselva, Graubünden, Switzerland , source1_coordinates= , source1_elevation = , source2 = Rein Posteriur/Hinterrhein , source2_location = Paradies Glacier, Graubünden, Switzerland , source2_coordinates= , source ...

on the right bank of the

Rhine ), Surselva, Graubünden, Switzerland , source1_coordinates= , source1_elevation = , source2 = Rein Posteriur/Hinterrhein , source2_location = Paradies Glacier, Graubünden, Switzerland , source2_coordinates= , so ...

between

Rastatt Rastatt () is a town with a Baroque core, District of Rastatt, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is located in the Upper Rhine Plain on the Murg river, above its junction with the Rhine and has a population of around 50,000 (2011). Rastatt was an ...

and

Kehl Kehl (; gsw, label= Low Alemannic German, Low Alemannic, Kaal) is a town in southwestern Germany in the Ortenaukreis, Baden-Württemberg. It is on the river Rhine, directly opposite the French city of Strasbourg, with which it shares some munic ...

Neighboring communities

The city shares borders with the following communities, listed clockwise from the north:

Rheinmünster Rheinmünster is a municipality in the district of Rastatt in Baden-Württemberg in Germany. Formed in 1974, the town is an amalgamation of the former independent councils of Greffern, Schwarzach and Stollhofen. The name comes from the Rhine ...

Ottersweier Ottersweier is a municipality in western Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is part of the district of Rastatt, and lies between the larger towns Bühl and Achern. Twin cities * - Westerlo, Flanders, Belgium, since 1962 * - Krauschwitz (Saxony), ...

Achern Achern (; gsw, label= Low Alemannic, Achre) is a town in Western Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is located approximately 18 km southwest of Baden-Baden and 19 km northeast of Offenburg. Achern is the fourth largest town in the distric ...

and

Rheinau Rheinau may refer to: *Rheinau, Switzerland, a town in the canton of Zürich *Rheinau Abbey, in Rheinau, Switzerland *Rheinau (Baden), a town in Baden-Württemberg, Germany *a part of Mannheim, Germany {{geodis ...

. West of the city is the Rhine and with it the

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

border.

Boroughs

The city of Lichtenau consists of Lichtenau (proper), Scherzheim, Ulm, Muckenschopf and Grauelsbaum.

History

Lichtenau developed from a water castle that the

Bishop of Strasbourg {{Unreferenced, date=December 2009 These persons were bishop, archbishop or prince-bishop of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Strasbourg (including historically Prince-Bishopric of Strasbourg): Bishops and prince-bishops *Amandus *Justinus vo ...

had built in the years 1293 to 1296, complete with

defensive wall A defensive wall is a fortification usually used to protect a city, town or other settlement from potential aggressors. The walls can range from simple palisades or earthworks to extensive military fortifications with towers, bastions and gates ...

ditch A ditch is a small to moderate divot created to channel water. A ditch can be used for drainage, to drain water from low-lying areas, alongside roadways or fields, or to channel water from a more distant source for plant irrigation. Ditches ar ...

and

parapet A parapet is a barrier that is an extension of the wall at the edge of a roof, terrace, balcony, walkway or other structure. The word comes ultimately from the Italian ''parapetto'' (''parare'' 'to cover/defend' and ''petto'' 'chest/breast'). Whe ...

. In 1300 Lichtenau received its city charter and until its

Slighting Slighting is the deliberate damage of high-status buildings to reduce their value as military, administrative or social structures. This destruction of property sometimes extended to the contents of buildings and the surrounding landscape. It is ...

in 1686 it remained a

fortress A fortification is a military construction or building designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is also used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Latin ''fortis'' ("strong") and ''facere'' ...

. After the line of the Counts of Hanau-Lichtenau ended the city became part of

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

in 1736 and then was made part of

Baden Baden (; ) is a historical territory in South Germany, in earlier times on both sides of the Upper Rhine but since the Napoleonic Wars only East of the Rhine. History The margraves of Baden originated from the House of Zähringen. Baden is ...

together with the '' Hanauerland'' in 1803.

District reform

In Lichtenau the

district reform of the 1970s took place in stages.

Government

The city is part of the administrative district of "Rheinmünster-Lichtenau" with seat in Rheinmünster.

City council

In addition to the mayor and city council president the council is made up of 20 members. The councilmen and councilwomen belong to political parties as follows:

People

* Gabriele Frechen (born October 12, 1956), politician.

Twin cities

Lichtenberg, Bas-Rhin Lichtenberg () is a commune in the Bas-Rhin department in Grand Est in north-eastern France. The village forms a part of the ''Parc naturel régional des Vosges du Nord''. Geography Surrounding communes are Baerenthal in the neighbouring Mos ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

References

''This article is based on a translation of an article from the

German Wikipedia The German Wikipedia (german: Deutschsprachige Wikipedia) is the German-language edition of Wikipedia, a free and publicly editable online encyclopedia. Founded on March 16, 2001, it is the second-oldest Wikipedia (after the English Wikipedia), ...

''. Rastatt (district) {{Rastatt-geo-stub