Altenglan is an ''
Ortsgemeinde'' – a
municipality belonging to a ''
Verbandsgemeinde'', a kind of collective municipality – in the
Kusel district in
Rhineland-Palatinate,
Germany.
It belongs to the
''Verbandsgemeinde'' of Kusel-Altenglan. Altenglan is a recognized tourism community. Also, named after the municipality is the Altenglan Formation, a
lithostratigraphic entity, and by extension, so is ''
Altenglanerpeton'', a
microsaur whose
fossil remains were found therein.
Geography
Location
The municipality lies in the uplands in the Western
Palatinate on the river
Glan, which is the village's namesake, at an elevation in the valley of some 200 m above
sea level, although the elevations within municipal limits reach almost 400 m (Bistersberg 387 m on the Glan's left bank; Kalmet 390 m on the Glan's right bank), and on the slopes of the
Potzberg within the formerly self-administering municipality of Mühlbach almost 500 m. Altenglan lies roughly 5 km northeast of the district seat and nearest town,
Kusel, and 25 km northwest of
Kaiserslautern
Kaiserslautern (; Palatinate German: ''Lautre'') is a city in southwest Germany, located in the state of Rhineland-Palatinate at the edge of the Palatinate Forest. The historic centre dates to the 9th century. It is from Paris, from Frankfur ...
. In Altenglan, the Kuselbach and the Reichenbach empty into the Glan. The dale here forms a broad bowl, although the pattern is broken somewhat by the two streams that meet the Glan here, one from each side. Part of the Potzberg massif lies within Altenglan as does part of the long
Remigiusberg ridge, although these hills' summits all lie outside the municipality's boundaries. The municipality has an area of 1 362 ha, of which 237 ha is wooded.
Neighbouring municipalities
Altenglan borders in the north on the municipality of
Bedesbach, in the northeast on the municipality of
Welchweiler
Welchweiler is an ''Ortsgemeinde'' – a municipality belonging to a ''Verbandsgemeinde'', a kind of collective municipality – in the Kusel district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It belongs to the ''Verbandsgemeinde'' of Kusel-Altenglan, who ...
, in the east on the municipality of
Bosenbach, in the southeast on the municipality of
Föckelberg, in the south on the municipalities of
Rutsweiler am Glan and
Theisbergstegen, in the southwest on the municipality of
Rammelsbach, in the west on the town of
Kusel and the municipality of
Blaubach and in the northwest on the municipality of
Erdesbach. Altenglan also meets the municipalities of
Elzweiler and
Haschbach am Remigiusberg at single points in the east and south respectively.
Constituent communities
Altenglan's ''
Ortsteile'' are Altenglan, Mühlbach am Glan and Patersbach.
Municipality’s layout
The original settlement of Altenglan stretched along the higher parts of the left banks of both the Glan and the Kuselbach, along today's Glanstraße from the graveyard with the old church to the
T-junction formed by today's Bahnhofstraße. This can clearly be seen in a stock book compiled in the mid-18th century. Other settlements on Bahnhofstraße had also already arisen by the 18th century. The last house before the bridge was the one that is now the rectory, and across the bridge (known as the ''Pfarrbrücke'' – “Parochial Bridge” – or the ''Schmiedebrücke'' – “Smithy Bridge”) stood a smith's workshop. Likewise already standing by the 18th century were houses in the area of today's Ringstraße, which the stock book describes as a ''gemeiner Weg'' – “common way”. Thus, a big triangle stretching back from the forks of the Glan and Kuselbach was settled at the time when the original cadastral survey was done in 1848. The settlement began to spread out in the 19th century towards Eckstraße and Tränkstraße, towards Neuwiesenstraße and today's Schulstraße. In the early 20th century, houses were built on Kuseler Straße.
Altenglan station
Altenglan station is the station of the village of Altenglan in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate. It is classified by Deutsche Bahn as a category 6 station. and has two platforms and sidings. The station is located in the network area of ...
was built in 1868 along with the
railway line between Kusel and Landstuhl. New, bigger residential areas arose after the
Second World War west of Bahnhofstraße (Bildstock, Am Köpfchen, Gartenstraße) and to the side of Kuseler Straße (Alte Straße, Am Heiligen Spiegel, An den Rödwiesen). A new rectory was built in 1934 on Kuseler Straße, after the old one had been sold. The town hall, in its original form, the then municipality had built after the Second World War. Expansions took place after the founding of the ''Verbandsgemeinde''. Most of the shops, supermarkets, banks and
inns stand on the main street along with Austraße, and on Glanstraße, while the school with its
gymnasium and event hall and the ''Verbandsgemeinde'' administration building (town hall) stand on Schulstraße. Adjoining the school (''Gustav-Schäffner-Schule'', a ''
Regionale Schule'') is a sporting ground. The sport and leisure
swimming pool
A swimming pool, swimming bath, wading pool, paddling pool, or simply pool, is a structure designed to hold water to enable Human swimming, swimming or other leisure activities. Pools can be built into the ground (in-ground pools) or built ...
lies east of the village off the main road going towards
Bosenbach. The
mediaeval
In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...
church stands in the middle of the graveyard in the village's northeast at the end of Glanstraße and across Kuseler Straße.
As a very old village, Altenglan has a relatively large municipal area, great swathes of which were opened up to development after the Second World War. The biggest tract of woodland is the Bruderwald, a typical
mixed forest once owned by the Remigiusberg Monastery. Besides cropraising and livestock breeding, the municipality also worked at
winegrowing to a limited extent in the time before the Second World War.
History
Antiquity
The Altenglan area was settled as early as the last period in the
New Stone Age and on into
Gallo-Roman times, bearing witness to which are
archaeological
Archaeology or archeology is the scientific study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of artifacts, architecture, biofacts or ecofacts, sites, and cultural landscap ...
finds. Since the name Glan is of
Celtic
Celtic, Celtics or Keltic may refer to:
Language and ethnicity
*pertaining to Celts, a collection of Indo-European peoples in Europe and Anatolia
**Celts (modern)
*Celtic languages
**Proto-Celtic language
* Celtic music
*Celtic nations
Sports Fo ...
origin, it could be that the centre was settled continuously up to the
Frankish takeover of the land. From
Roman times, too, traces have been preserved, such as a sculpture of a woman, the so-called “Venus of Glan”, which has since disappeared.
Middle Ages
The name ''Gleni'' appears along with the name ''Cosla'' (Kusel) in the historical work from the
Archbishopric of Reims compiled by the
early mediaeval historical writer Flodoard. According to the greater ''Remigiustestament'', which is included in this work, the so-called ''Remigiusland'' with Kusel and Altenglan had supposedly already been bequeathed by
King Clovis to
Saint Remigius as a donation. This
forgery
Forgery is a white-collar crime that generally refers to the false making or material alteration of a legal instrument with the specific intent to defraud anyone (other than themself). Tampering with a certain legal instrument may be forbidd ...
was made possibly with the object of reinforcing the claim to Reims holdings in what is today the Western Palatinate through a reference to the famous bishop Remigius. It is highly likely that King
Childebert II transferred the ''Remigiusland'' with the villages of ''Cosla'' and ''Gleni'' to Bishop Giles about 590. On these grounds, the municipality celebrated its 1,400-year jubilee in 1989. Altenglan surely exercised an important midpoint function in the ''Remigiusland''.
In the time that followed, Altenglan's history corresponded with the ''Remigiusland’s''. In 1112, the ''Remigiusland'' was taken over as a ''
Vogtei'' by the
Counts of Veldenz. In 1444, it passed as a ''Vogtei'' to the Dukes
Palatine Zweibrücken
Palatine Zweibrücken (), or the County Palatine of Zweibrücken, is a former state of the Holy Roman Empire. Its capital was Zweibrücken (french: Deux-Ponts). Its reigning house, a branch of the Wittelsbach dynasty, was also the Royal House of ...
, which bought the region – a ''Vogtei'' was only a protective function – in 1552. In connection with the ''Remigiusland'', Altenglan was also mentioned in one of
Louis the German’s documents, which was issued in 865, although it is only known today from a 13th-century copy. The name’s first mention in an original document, one bearing witness to an exchange of holdings by the
Bishop of Worms, dates from 992.
According to
Prüm Abbey’s directory of holdings, the ''Prümer Urbar'', this abbey in the
Eifel
The Eifel (; lb, Äifel, ) is a low mountain range in western Germany and eastern Belgium. It occupies parts of southwestern North Rhine-Westphalia, northwestern Rhineland-Palatinate and the southern area of the German-speaking Community of ...
owned near a place called ''Glan'' a major holding. It is disputed today whether this meant the village of Altenglan. It is likewise disputed whether a knight named Straßenraub lived in Altenglan or indeed in ''Neuenglan'', believed to have been the same place as today’s
Hundheim. Straßenraub’s actual family name, however, was Hettenberg. Since it is known that the noble family Hettenberg had holdings at Altenglan, it is at least possible that Straßenraub lived here.
The first ''
Schultheiß
In medieval Germany, the ''Schultheiß'' () was the head of a municipality (akin to today's office of mayor), a ''Vogt'' or an executive official of the ruler. As official (''villicus'') it was his duty to order his assigned village or county (' ...
'', Dylen (Till), was named in 1388. As well, a 1364 document, in which Count Heinrich I of
Veldenz set forth the conditions for the support of his son, also named Heinrich, and his wife Lauretta, Altenglan was mentioned as an ''
Amt
Amt is a type of administrative division governing a group of municipalities, today only in Germany, but formerly also common in other countries of Northern Europe. Its size and functions differ by country and the term is roughly equivalent to ...
'' seat along with Brücken near
Ulmet. It can be assumed that Altenglan had had this administrative function since the founding of the County of Veldenz in the earlier half of the 12th century. In 1410, the two ''Ämter'' were merged, and the new seat was Pilsbach, a place on the Glan’s right bank that was later swallowed up by Ulmet. Altenglan thereby lost its central function, which it had likely had since the
Early Middle Ages.
Modern times
Johannes Hoffmann’s 1588 description of Altenglan may be exaggerated, but it nevertheless gives today’s reader a little glance at the village’s original importance. Hoffmann described the village of ''Alten-Glan'' as “quite an old place” that had been built, like
Trier and some other towns, more by “heathens” than anyone else, and these heathens had apparently built Altenglan into a “very great town”, girding it each side of the river Glan with ringwalls, so that the river flowed through the middle of the town.
Altenglan's first known municipal charter dates from 1567, and was renewed in 1581. At the time of the 1609 ecclesiastical Visitation, there were 37 families in the village. As a result of the
Plague, the population shrank greatly even before the
Thirty Years' War broke out. According to the ''Huberweistum'', a 1630 ''Weistum'' (a ''Weistum'' –
cognate
In historical linguistics, cognates or lexical cognates are sets of words in different languages that have been inherited in direct descent from an etymology, etymological ancestor in a proto-language, common parent language. Because language c ...
with
English ''wisdom'' – was a legal pronouncement issued by men learned in law in the
Middle Ages and early modern times), there were then only 30 families still living in the village. That same year, Imperial troops plundered Altenglan. As in the whole swathe of countryside around Kusel, especially because of the wartime events of 1635, very few people in Altenglan survived this frightful war, and almost all the houses had been destroyed. For a long time, it was not even worth the trouble of holding church services in the church. Even after the population had built itself back up somewhat through newcomers to the village, there was more war, this time
King Louis XIV's wars of conquest. About 1680, Altenglan was said to be “burnt”. Nevertheless, during the 18th century, the population once again rose quickly by both migration to the village and natural growth, and according to the 1742 stock book, there were once more 47 houses in the village.
In the time of the
French Revolution,
French Revolutionary troops plundered Altenglan (1794), but otherwise left it unscathed. The village now belonged to the
Department
Department may refer to:
* Departmentalization, division of a larger organization into parts with specific responsibility
Government and military
*Department (administrative division), a geographical and administrative division within a country, ...
of
Sarre, the
Arrondissement of Birkenfeld, the
Canton
Canton may refer to:
Administrative division terminology
* Canton (administrative division), territorial/administrative division in some countries, notably Switzerland
* Township (Canada), known as ''canton'' in Canadian French
Arts and ent ...
of Kusel and the ''Mairie'' (“Mayoralty”) of Ulmet.
Recent times
After the formation of the
Bavarian ''Rheinkreis'', as the Palatinate was known after the
Congress of Vienna awarded it to Bavaria, Altenglan remained in the Canton of Kusel, but now formed the seat of its own ''Bürgermeisterei'' (“mayoralty”) to which Patersbach also belonged (which is now a constituent community of Altenglan). The original 1845 cadastral survey shows 85 houses. In the time of
industrialization
Industrialisation ( alternatively spelled industrialization) is the period of social and economic change that transforms a human group from an agrarian society into an industrial society. This involves an extensive re-organisation of an econo ...
, cloth weavers from Kusel began
walking their cloth in Altenglan. The Schleip machine factory set up a
wire drawing works. Beginning in 1870, the hard-stone quarrying industry expanded. Along with those who earned their livelihood at
agriculture, the number of workers at quarries and factories rose steadily. In 1890, a workers’ association was founded. The workforce held fast to its political outlook even after
Adolf Hitler’s
1933 seizure of power, with 15% of the voters locally voting against Hitler at the
November 1933 Reichstag elections at a time when voters throughout the
Third Reich were voting 99% yes (the ballots offered no alternative to Hitler, the
Nazis
Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Na ...
and their sympathizers).
Towards the end of the
Second World War, Altenglan had to suffer steady
Allied
An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are called ...
bombings, and villagers were killed. On 9 March 1945,
American
American(s) may refer to:
* American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America"
** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America
** American ancestry, pe ...
troops marched in. Post-war times brought a new territorial arrangement and Altenglan was grouped into newly founded
state of
Rhineland-Palatinate. The ''Bürgermeisterei'' of Altenglan was kept for the time being, within the district of Kusel. In the course of administrative restructuring in
Rhineland-Palatinate in 1968, The village of Altenglan became an ''
Ortsteil'' of a new municipality that likewise bore the name Altenglan, but also included Patersbach and Mühlbach besides. The original plan had called for
Bedesbach to be part of this municipality, too, but the residents there successfully fought a campaign to keep themselves out of it. At the same time, Altenglan became the seat of a ''Verbandsgemeinde'' in 1972 to which all together 16 ''Ortsgemeinden'' belong.
Population development
In 1609, there were 37 families living in Altenglan and thus, the village had roughly 100 inhabitants. There was a drop in population, however, even before the
Thirty Years' War, likely due to the
Plague and other
epidemics, and there were only 30 families living in Altenglan by 1630. Fewer than ten villagers survived the Thirty Years’ War, but repopulation came with newcomers, although this was interrupted, and perhaps even reversed, by
King Louis XIV's wars of conquest. There was an upswing in numbers early in the 18th century. At the time when the 1749 stock book was compiled, some 50 families lived in Altenglan and thereby some 200 inhabitants. In the next one hundred years, the population doubled. By 1835, according to the original cadastral survey (dates for this vary because the survey took a long time to complete), there were some 400 people in Altenglan.
The following table shows population development over the centuries for Altenglan, with some figures broken down by religious denomination:
Municipality’s name
The oldest form of the municipality's name, ''Gleni'', appears in the history of the Archbishopric of Reims by the mediaeval historical writer Flodoard, in a forgery of Archbishop Remigius's
will
Will may refer to:
Common meanings
* Will and testament, instructions for the disposition of one's property after death
* Will (philosophy), or willpower
* Will (sociology)
* Will, volition (psychology)
* Will, a modal verb - see Shall and will
...
no less, likely put together by Archbishop of Reims Hinkmar. This form of the name also crops up in one of Louis the German's documents from 865 or 866. ''Gleni'' is a Celtic word for flowing body of water. The name, therefore, refers to the river that flows by the village. The modern form Altenglan leads to the supposition that there must once have been another village elsewhere on the Glan, founded later, with the name ''Neuenglan'' (''alt'' and ''neu'' are
German for “old” and “new” respectively), which writer M. Dolch identifies as the village now called Hundheim. Other older forms of the name Altenglan are as follows: ''Aldenglane'' (992), ''Glene'' (1124), ''Glana'' (1138), ''Glannam'' (1154), ''Glayna'' (1342), ''Alden Glane'' (1364), ''Alttenglahn'' (1629).
Religion
As early as the
Early Middle Ages, it is likely that Altenglan was an ecclesiastical hub for the area between
Rammelsbach and
Erdesbach. It is, however, unknown when the parish acquired its first church. The Altenglan church had its first documentary mention in 1252, and in 1290 a village priest named Nikolaus was mentioned. Altenglan was also long regarded as the residence of the
mediaeval
In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...
Glan
chapter. Only one
archpriest
The ecclesiastical title of archpriest or archpresbyter belongs to certain priests with supervisory duties over a number of parishes. The term is most often used in Eastern Orthodoxy and the Eastern Catholic Churches and may be somewhat analogous ...
of the Glan chapter, though, is known to have had his seat in Altenglan. His name was Jakob von Glayn, who was mentioned in 1365. It is assumed that the designation ''Glankapitel'' (“Glan chapter”) referred to the whole Glan region and not to the archpriest's seat in particular.
At the time of the introduction of the
Reformation in 1537, the militant clergyman Nikolaus Dieburg was in office. He set about defending himself against the change, not only carrying out his ecclesiastical duties but also farming his
glebe and taking the
vineyards into the church's care. In 1558, the first ecclesiastical Visitation since the Reformation's introduction was undertaken, while others were now undertaken at seven-year intervals thereafter. Because so few people survived the
Thirty Years' War, there was no resident clergyman in Altenglan for 111 years, until 1746, and consequently no church services, either. Towards the end of this era, though, the parish had the church renovated, preserving for the time being an old
Romanesque steeple. In 1747, at what was then the edge of the village, a rectory was built on the Kuselbach; this is nowadays the ''Autohaus Lotter'' – a
car dealership. In 1805, the Romanesque steeple had to be torn down because it had fallen into such disrepair. It was replaced with the roofed tower that still stands today. In 1860 or 1861, the church got new bells and in 1873, it had an
organ
Organ may refer to:
Biology
* Organ (biology), a part of an organism
Musical instruments
* Organ (music), a family of keyboard musical instruments characterized by sustained tone
** Electronic organ, an electronic keyboard instrument
** Hammond ...
for the first time. In 1934, the old rectory was sold and a new one was built on Kuseler Straße. In 1952, the church once again got new bells and in 1962 once again a new organ.
Catholic Christians once again settled in Altenglan beginning in the late 17th century, albeit in small numbers. Their religious needs were fulfilled by the Catholic church of the town of Kusel at first, but since about 1954, the church of
Rammelsbach has been responsible for that.
A small
Jewish community was established in the late 18th century. By the time that
Hitler's Nazis
Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Na ...
began persecuting
Jews in 1933, however, there were no longer any Jews in Altenglan. There never was a
synagogue
A synagogue, ', 'house of assembly', or ', "house of prayer"; Yiddish: ''shul'', Ladino: or ' (from synagogue); or ', "community". sometimes referred to as shul, and interchangeably used with the word temple, is a Jewish house of worshi ...
.
The
Protestant parish of Altenglan is a merger of two parishes, one Altenglan and the affiliated centres of Bedesbach, Patersbach and Friedelhausen, together with the other, Mühlbach am Glan. The greater parish tends a flock of roughly 3,200, with 2,400 in Altenglan and 800 in Mühlbach.
Politics
Municipal council
The council is made up of 20 council members, who were elected by
proportional representation at the municipal election held on 7 June 2009, and the honorary mayor as chairman.
The municipal election held on 7 June 2009 yielded the following results:
“BL” is a voters’ group.
Mayor
Altenglan's mayor is Yvonne Draudt-Awe.
[ The two outlying centres each have representation on council through an ''Ortsvorsteher''. For Patersbach, this is Harry Schwarz, and for Mühlbach, Diana Schmitt.][
]
Coat of arms
The municipality's arms
Arms or ARMS may refer to:
*Arm or arms, the upper limbs of the body
Arm, Arms, or ARMS may also refer to:
People
* Ida A. T. Arms (1856–1931), American missionary-educator, temperance leader
Coat of arms or weapons
*Armaments or weapons
**Fi ...
might be described thus: Tierced in mantle dexter azure Saint Remigius proper vested and mitred argent garnished Or bearing in his dexter hand a book gules garnished of the second and in his sinister hand a bishop's staff of the third, over his dexter shoulder a dove displayed reversed wings inverted proper, sinister argent a lion rampant of the first armed, langued and crowned of the third, in base gules the letter V surmounted by the letter V reversed, both of the third.
Alternatively, “the letter V reversed” might be called “the letter lambda”.
Saint Remigius on the dexter (armsbearer's right, viewer's left) side is a reference to the village's former allegiance to the Bishopric of Reims. A disputed version of the local history from the 9th and 10th century, however, holds that King Clovis I
Clovis ( la, Chlodovechus; reconstructed Frankish: ; – 27 November 511) was the first king of the Franks to unite all of the Frankish tribes under one ruler, changing the form of leadership from a group of petty kings to rule by a single kin ...
, the Frankish Kingdom's founder, after his 496 victory over the Alamanni
The Alemanni or Alamanni, were a confederation of Germanic tribes
*
*
*
on the Upper Rhine River. First mentioned by Cassius Dio in the context of the campaign of Caracalla of 213, the Alemanni captured the in 260, and later expanded into pres ...
, donated the so-called ''Remigiusland'', including Kusel and Altenglan, to Saint Remigius himself, the Bishop of Reims, rather than simply to the abbey that Remigius oversaw. The dove symbolizes Clovis's baptism. The Veldenz lion on the sinister (armsbearer's left, viewer's right) side is a reference to the village's former allegiance to the County of Veldenz and later to the Duchy of Zweibrücken. The charge in base stems from the old Ulmet court seal, which was also once used to seal documents from Altenglan. However, another source identifies the charge as the letters A and V (although the crossbar seems to be missing from the A), supposedly standing for “Altenglan” and the seat of the ''Verbandsgemeinde''.
Culture and sightseeing
Buildings
The following are listed buildings or sites in Rhineland-Palatinate’s Directory of Cultural Monuments:
Altenglan (main centre)
* Kuseler Straße 2 – Protestant parish church; Baroque aisleless church with hipped roof, marked 1720, essentially older, ridge turret 1806; Romanesque sculpture fragment; thorough renovation 1956, architect Hans-Georg Fiebiger, Kaiserslautern
Kaiserslautern (; Palatinate German: ''Lautre'') is a city in southwest Germany, located in the state of Rhineland-Palatinate at the edge of the Palatinate Forest. The historic centre dates to the 9th century. It is from Paris, from Frankfur ...
; at the graveyard: warriors’ memorial 1914-1918, dying warriors, 1927 by A. Bernd, Kaiserslautern
* Bahnhofstraße 2 – Late Baroque house, marked 1785; lengthy building with half-hipped roof; characterizes village's appearance
* Eisenbahnstraße 3 – railway station; spacious reception building, one-floor goods shed with loading ramp, 1862/1868
* Eisenbahnstraße 8/10 – administrative and residential buildings of the post; two-floor winged buildings, one-floor garage wing, 1925, architects Heinrich Müller and colleagues
* Friedelhauser Straße 11 – former administrative building of the Basalt Aktiengesellschaft
(; abbreviated AG, ) is a German word for a corporation limited by Share (finance), share ownership (i.e. one which is owned by its shareholders) whose shares may be traded on a stock market. The term is used in Germany, Austria, Switzerland (wh ...
, Linz am Rhein; Baroque Revival building with hipped roof, 1921/1922, architects Heinrich Mattar and Eduard Scheler, Cologne; in the back shed and stable buildings
* Glanstraße 30 – former town hall; sandstone-framed building with half-hipped roof, 1856/57, conversion 1896; characterizes square's appearance
Mühlbach
* Moorstraße 13 – Protestant church; quarrystone aisleless church with belltower, 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 ...
, 1933/1934, architect Government Master Builder Stahl, Landau
* Near Genickelstraße 4 – former smithy; one-floor timber-frame building, partly solid, pitched-roof addition, whetstone, earlier half of the 18th century
* Mühlweg 3, Mühlbacher Mühle (monumental zone) – group of buildings from the former gristmill; seven-axis sandstone-framed plastered building, expansion 1892 and oilmill (1858), barn complex (after 1845) and the millstream diverted from the Glan
* Streitmühle 1 – former Seylsche Mühle (mill); Late Baroque sandstone-framed plastered building, latter half of the 18th century; weir complex; commercial buildings: shed and servants’ house, towards 1859, livestock barn and storehouse not as old; one-arched stone bridge, 1854, architect Johann Schmeisser, Kusel
* Water fountain, south of the village near Moorstraße – fountain facility, sandstone and cast iron, 1846, architect Karl Klee
Patersbach
* Hauptstraße 24 – sandstone-framed ''Quereinhaus'' (a combination residential and commercial house divided for these two purposes down the middle, perpendicularly to the street), 1864
* Near Zum Horst 6 – former smithy, plastered building with gabled, partial skillion roof, possibly about 1865; technical equipment
* Fockenmühle 2 – Fockenmühle (mill); former oilmill and gristmill; three-floor single-peak complex, essentially from the 18th century, marked 1864 and 1871 (conversions), floors added in 1922 and 1938, livestock barn 1871; technical equipment from the 1930s, millrace built leading underground and course of the Glan beginning at the mill's weir complex
Altenglan is the starting and ending point of the ''Draisinenstrecke'' ( railway upon which visitors can ride draisines). The outlying centre of Mühlbach lies at the foot of the Potzberg, on whose summit stands the Potzbergturm (tower); a game park can also be found here. From Altenglan's main centre, a pleasant hike can be taken up the Remigiusberg (mountain) to the old provost's residence.
Regular events
* ''Glaner Kerb'', or dialectally the (''Alten-'')''Glaner Kerwe'', the yearly church consecration festival held on the third weekend in August since 1876
* ''Feuerwehrfest'' (“Fire Brigade Festival”), held every other year on the third weekend in September
* ''Herzdriggermarkt'' (market), held on the first weekend in June
* ''Weihnachtsmarkt'' (“Christmas Market”), held during the second week in Advent
Advent is a Christian season of preparation for the Nativity of Christ at Christmas. It is the beginning of the liturgical year in Western Christianity.
The name was adopted from Latin "coming; arrival", translating Greek ''parousia''.
In ...
Clubs
The ''Altenglaner Carneval-Verein'' (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 ...
club) distinguishes itself each year with ambitious “Carnival sessions”. The ''Katastrophenorchester'' (“Catastrophe Orchestra”), a joke musical ensemble, is known far and wide. Other clubs include the following:
* ''Gewerbeverein Altenglan'' (commercial association)
* German Red Cross local chapter
* ''Sportverein Altenglan'' (sport club)
* ''Sportfischerverein Mittleres Glantal'' ( angling)
* DLRG local chapter
* ''Imkerverein Altenglan'' (beekeeping
Beekeeping (or apiculture) is the maintenance of bee colonies, commonly in man-made beehives. Honey bees in the genus '' Apis'' are the most-commonly-kept species but other honey-producing bees such as ''Melipona'' stingless bees are also kept. ...
)
* ''Gesangverein Liederkranz Altenglan'' (singing club)
Economy and infrastructure
Economic structure
For many years, Altenglan was a village characterized by agriculture, but with certain administrative functions. Today, agriculture plays only a subordinate role. Industrial operations arose as early as the time after the Thirty Years' War, when chalk deposits within the municipal area were worked. This was, however, given up after the Second World War. In 1835, the Altenglan mill was taken over by clothmakers from Kusel, who built it into a walking mill. The wire-drawing mill, too, was established by entrepreneurs from Kusel. The wireworks is now out of business, and the building itself has since been torn down. In 1872, the municipality reached an agreement with the railway for the use of the quarry to mine ballast and crushed stone in Altenglan for railway and road building. Beginning in 1952, industries located in Altenglan, among them Mainmetall and a concrete works.
Established businesses
The biggest industrial concern in Altenglan is the firm Main Metall, which has a foundry in Altenglan that manufactures alloys of outstanding quality that are further processed for building machines, special vehicle axles, for instance.
Two big food markets, several other shops and inns, an optician
An optician, or ''dispensing optician'', is a technical practitioner who designs, fits and dispenses lenses for the correction of a person's vision. Opticians determine the specifications of various ophthalmic appliances that will give the nec ...
’s shop, a pharmacy
Pharmacy is the science and practice of discovering, producing, preparing, dispensing, reviewing and monitoring medications, aiming to ensure the safe, effective, and affordable use of medicines. It is a miscellaneous science as it links heal ...
, five physicians’ practices, several workshops, carpentry
Carpentry is a skilled trade and a craft in which the primary work performed is the cutting, shaping and installation of building materials during the construction of buildings, ships, timber bridges, concrete formwork, etc. Carpenters tr ...
shops, a varnish
Varnish is a clear transparent hard protective coating or film. It is not a stain. It usually has a yellowish shade from the manufacturing process and materials used, but it may also be pigmented as desired, and is sold commercially in various ...
er and a scrapyard are all located in Altenglan.
Currently, the commercial-industrial park named “Im Brühl” is being opened up, and the fire brigade has already located there. The location's favourability towards transport is one reason why the park has been steadily developing. Among others, a carpentry business and a metal construction business have opened for business there.
Transport
Because two major brooks empty into the Glan here, Altenglan has always been a transport hub, lying as it does in or near several valleys. In Altenglan, '' Bundesstraße'' 423 ends at ''Bundesstraße'' 420, along which the '' Kusel'' interchange on Autobahn A 62 (Kaiserslautern
Kaiserslautern (; Palatinate German: ''Lautre'') is a city in southwest Germany, located in the state of Rhineland-Palatinate at the edge of the Palatinate Forest. The historic centre dates to the 9th century. It is from Paris, from Frankfur ...
– Trier) can be reached ten kilometres to the southwest. ''Bundesstraße'' 420 itself leaves the Glan valley here and leads to Kusel and Neunkirchen in the Saarland. ''Bundesstraße'' 423 leads through the middle Glan valley by way of Homburg and Zweibrücken to 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 near Sarreguemines
Sarreguemines (; German: ''Saargemünd'' , Lorraine Franconian: ''Saargemìnn'') is a commune in the Moselle department of the Grand Est administrative region in north-eastern France.
It is the seat of an arrondissement and a canton. As of t ...
. Another road leads through the Reichenbach valley to Kaiserslautern
Kaiserslautern (; Palatinate German: ''Lautre'') is a city in southwest Germany, located in the state of Rhineland-Palatinate at the edge of the Palatinate Forest. The historic centre dates to the 9th century. It is from Paris, from Frankfur ...
.
Serving nearby Altenglan is Altenglan station
Altenglan station is the station of the village of Altenglan in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate. It is classified by Deutsche Bahn as a category 6 station. and has two platforms and sidings. The station is located in the network area of ...
on the Landstuhl–Kusel railway
The Landstuhl–Kusel railway is a branch line in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate, connecting the town of Kusel to the railway network. It was the first line built by the Palatine Northern Railway Company (''Gesellschaft der Pfälzischen ...
. There are hourly trains at this station
Station may refer to:
Agriculture
* Station (Australian agriculture), a large Australian landholding used for livestock production
* Station (New Zealand agriculture), a large New Zealand farm used for grazing by sheep and cattle
** Cattle statio ...
throughout the day, namely Regionalbahn service RB 67 between Kaiserslautern
Kaiserslautern (; Palatinate German: ''Lautre'') is a city in southwest Germany, located in the state of Rhineland-Palatinate at the edge of the Palatinate Forest. The historic centre dates to the 9th century. It is from Paris, from Frankfur ...
and Kusel, named ''Glantalbahn
The Glan Valley Railway (german: Glantalbahn) is a non-electrified line along the Glan river, in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate. It consists of the Glan-Münchweiler–Altenglan section, which was built as part of the Landstuhl–Kusel ...
'' after a former railway line that shared a stretch of its tracks with the Landstuhl–Kusel railway.
''Verbandsgemeinde'' institutions
Available among ''Verbandsgemeinde'' institutions are a '' Regionale Schule'', a heated swimming pool
A swimming pool, swimming bath, wading pool, paddling pool, or simply pool, is a structure designed to hold water to enable Human swimming, swimming or other leisure activities. Pools can be built into the ground (in-ground pools) or built ...
for sport and leisure, the ''Verbandsgemeinde'' administration and public works and the fire brigade.
Education
The first efforts on the municipality's part to set up a school were undertaken even before the Thirty Years' War. These efforts, though, were forever foundering for lack of any rooms designed for school classes and, perhaps worse, for lack of anybody who could work as a teacher. Only in 1694 – several decades after the Thirty Years' War – did schooling at last begin in Altenglan, although an actual schoolhouse was not dedicated until 1740. It stood at the end of the village, just outside the graveyard. While surrounding villages had only winter schools (schools geared towards agricultural communities’ practical needs, held in the winter, when farm families had a bit more time to spare), Altenglan's school had year-round classes, and so children from those outlying villages came to school in Altenglan in the warmer months. In the course of the 19th century, the school acquired a third class. On the site of the old schoolhouse, a new, bigger building arose in 1828. Only after the Second World War, however, could a fourth class be added. Beginning in 1962, children from several neighbouring villages once again attended classes in Altenglan when attempts to set up a central school had been carried to fruition. The 1969 school reform split ''Grundschule'' ( primary school) and Hauptschule. All children from Hauptschulen in the ''Verbandsgemeinde'' were gathered together in the 18 classes at the new school building. A central primary school came into being at Rammelsbach. The Altenglan Hauptschule introduced the 10th school year early and today has the status of a Regionale Schule. As for adult education
Adult education, distinct from child education, is a practice in which adults engage in systematic and sustained self-educating activities in order to gain new forms of knowledge, skills, attitudes, or values. Merriam, Sharan B. & Brockett, Ralp ...
, Altenglan has a location of the ''Kreis volkshochschule Kusel''.Education
/ref>
There are also two kindergartens in Altenglan, the ''Protestantische Kindergarten'' in Altenglan and the municipal kindergarten in Mühlbach.
Firefighting
Located in Altenglan is the ''Verbandsgemeinde'' firefighting base. Altenglan's volunteer fire brigade has existed since 1880 and thus celebrated its 125th anniversary in September 2005. The youth fire brigade has existed since 1980 and hence celebrated its 25th anniversary in the same year. From here, all deployments, even ones handled by other local brigades, are backed up by the deployment centre at the Altenglan fire station. Each year, the Altenglan fire brigade handles more than 100 deployments. The number of firefighters, however, is shrinking steadily, as it is in other ''Verbandsgemeinden'', leading thus far to the closure of three local fire stations in the ''Verbandsgemeinde'' of Altenglan.
Famous people
Sons and daughters of the town
* Heinrich Müller (1892–1968), architect of the ''Postbauschule''
* Rainer Hamm (1943– ), criminal defence lawyer
A criminal defense lawyer is a lawyer (mostly barristers) specializing in the defense of individuals and companies charged with criminal activity. Some criminal defense lawyers are privately retained, while others are employed by the various ...
and professor of criminal law.
* Jörg Matheis (1970– ), author
Further reading
* E. Schworm, K.-E. Seitz, L. Seitz: ''Altenglan - Geschichte eines alten Dorfes''; Hg. OG Altenglan, 1990
* Denkmaltopographie Bundesrepublik Deutschland, ''Kulturdenkmäler in Rheinland-Pfalz, Band 16: KREIS KUSEL'', bearbeitet von Christian Schüler-Beigang, herausgegeben im Auftrag des Ministeriums für Kultur, Jugend, Familie und Frauen vom Landesamt für Denkmalpflege; Worms, Wernersche Verlagsgesellschaft, 1999, S. 36f;
References
External links
''Verbandsgemeinde'' of Altenglan homepage with information about the ''Ortsgemeinde'' of Altenglan
Mühlbach am Glan (outlying centre of Altenglan) homepage
Brief portrait of Altenglan with film
at SWR Fernsehen
SWR Fernsehen is a German regional television channel targeting the states of Baden-Württemberg and Rhineland-Palatinate. It is produced by Südwestrundfunk (SWR) and is one of eight regional "third channels" broadcast by the ARD members.
Hist ...
{{Authority control
Kusel (district)