Nieder-Erlenbach is since 1 August 1972 the northernmost borough (''

Ortsbezirk A ''Stadtbezirk'' (also called ''Ortsbezirk'' in Hesse and Rhineland-Palatinate) is an administrative division in Germany, which is part of a larger city. It is translated as "borough". In Germany, ''Stadtbezirke'' usually only exist in a metropo ...

'') of

Frankfurt am Main Frankfurt, officially Frankfurt am Main (; Hessian: , "Frank ford on the Main"), is the most populous city in the German state of Hesse. Its 791,000 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located on its na ...

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 ...

. The

Anna-Schmidt-Schule The (abbreviation: ''ASS''; en, Anna Schmidt School) is a private school in the districts of Westend and Nieder-Erlenbach of Frankfurt am Main, Germany. History The school is named after Anna Schmidt (1852–1929). Since 1979, it has be ...

, a

private school Private or privates may refer to: Music * " In Private", by Dusty Springfield from the 1990 album ''Reputation'' * Private (band), a Denmark-based band * "Private" (Ryōko Hirosue song), from the 1999 album ''Private'', written and also recorde ...

, is located in Nieder-Erlenbach.

Geographic location

Nieder-Erlenbach, founded as Haufendorf, lies in the southern foothills of the Wetterau on the same Erlenbach, right tributary of the Nidda. The Frankfurt

Hauptwache (Frankfurt am Main) The Hauptwache (Main Guardroom) is a central point of Frankfurt am Main and is one of the most famous plazas (german: link=no, An der Hauptwache) in the city. The original name ''Schillerplatz'' was superseded in the early 1900s. It lies to the we ...

is about 9 kilometers away,

Bad Vilbel Bad Vilbel () is a spa town in Hesse (Hessen), Germany, famous for its many mineral water Spring (hydrology), springs. Bad Vilbel is the largest town in the Wetteraukreis district and part of the Frankfurt Rhein-Main Regional Authority, Frankfurt R ...

(town hall) about 2.5 kilometers. Petterweil is 3 miles north. To

Dortelweil Bad Vilbel () is a spa town in Hesse (Hessen), Germany, famous for its many mineral water springs. Bad Vilbel is the largest town in the Wetteraukreis district and part of the Frankfurt Rhein-Main urban area with its city center being located 8&n ...

in the east, as well as to Nieder-Erlenbach in the west about 2 km. In the southwest lies

Harheim Harheim () is a borough (''Ortsbezirk'') of Frankfurt am Main, Germany. It is a possible birthplace of the Minnesinger Bernger von Horheim Bernger von Horheim was a Rhenish Minnesänger of the late twelfth century. He wrote in the tradition of ...

and in the southeast Massenheim - each 2 km (1,24 miles) away.

History

In the year 779 Nieder-Erlenbach was first mentioned in the Lorsch Codex as '' Arilbach '' (Erlenbach): a woman named Meginburc bequeathed to the Lorsch Abbey all her property there. In addition to agricultural land, commercial buildings and residential buildings, this property also included four serfs. Nieder-Erlenbach was after this entry in Gau '' Wettereiba '' (Wetterau). From 1376 the imperial city of

exercised the rule in Nieder-Erlenbach; the city could also appoint the

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well a ...

and administrative offices according to the right of village rule conferred by

Karl IV Charles IV may refer to: * Charles IV of France (1294–1328), "the Fair" * Charles IV, Holy Roman Emperor (1316–1378) * Charles IV of Navarre (1421–1461) * Charles IV, Duke of Anjou (1446–1481) * Charles IV, Duke of Alençon (1489–1525) * ...

. In 1401, the king once more expressly commanded the Nieder-Erlenbachern to obey Frankfurt. The reason of this arrangement is not known, but does not indicate great love of the villagers towards their urban rulers. As a consequence, the officials appointed by Frankfurt called themselves (at the latest from 1403) ''Burggrafen''. In the 17th century Nieder-Erlenbach was twice destroyed by devastating fires (1602 and 1677). After the founding of the

Free City of Frankfurt For almost five centuries, the German city of Frankfurt was a city-state within two major Germanic entities: *The Holy Roman Empire as the Free Imperial City of Frankfurt () (until 1806) *The German Confederation as the Free City of Frankfurt ...

, the Nieder-Erlenbacher were represented by a deputy in the

Legislative Body A legislature is an assembly with the authority to make laws for a political entity such as a country or city. They are often contrasted with the executive and judicial powers of government. Laws enacted by legislatures are usually known as p ...

from 1823, but only in 1853 did the villagers receive universal suffrage. In 1866

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 ...

occupied the Free City of Frankfurt after the

German War The Austro-Prussian War, also by many variant names such as Seven Weeks' War, German Civil War, Brothers War or Fraternal War, known in Germany as ("German War"), (; "German war of brothers") and by a variety of other names, was fought in 186 ...

and in the

Peace Treaty of 3 September 1866 Peace is a concept of societal friendship and harmony in the absence of hostility and violence. In a social sense, peace is commonly used to mean a lack of conflict (such as war) and freedom from fear of violence between individuals or groups. ...

gave Nieder-Erlenbach to the

Grand Duchy of Hesse The Grand Duchy of Hesse and by Rhine (german: link=no, Großherzogtum Hessen und bei Rhein) was a grand duchy in western Germany that existed from 1806 to 1918. The Grand Duchy originally formed from the Landgraviate of Hesse-Darmstadt in 1806 ...

.Art. 15, Nr. 6 des Friedensvertrages, abgedruckt bei: Ernst Rudolf Huber: ''Dokumente zur deutschen Verfassungsgeschichte'' 2 = Deutsche Verfassungsdokumente 1851–1900. 3. Aufl., Stuttgart 1986. , Nr. 192, S. 260ff.

References

Districts of Frankfurt {{Hesse-geo-stub