Oestrich-Winkel () is a town with roughly 12,000 inhabitants in the

Rheingau-Taunus-Kreis Rheingau-Taunus is a Kreis (district) in the west of Hesse, Germany. Rheingau-Taunus-Kreis is part of the Darmstadt region; its main administrative seat is Bad Schwalbach. Outposted sections of the local administration are located in Idstein and R ...

in 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 ...

'' of Darmstadt in

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

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

Location

Oestrich-Winkel, which culturally belongs to the Rheingau region, lies on the

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

River, 19 km west-southwest of

Wiesbaden Wiesbaden () is a city in central western Germany and the capital of the state of Hesse. , it had 290,955 inhabitants, plus approximately 21,000 United States citizens (mostly associated with the United States Army). The Wiesbaden urban area ...

and 17 km west of

Mainz Mainz () is the capital and largest city of Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Mainz is on the left bank of the Rhine, opposite to the place that the Main (river), Main joins the Rhine. Downstream of the confluence, the Rhine flows to the north-we ...

. It is, as a part of the Rheingau wine region, the largest

winegrowing Viticulture (from the Latin word for ''vine'') or winegrowing (wine growing) is the cultivation and harvesting of grapes. It is a branch of the science of horticulture. While the native territory of ''Vitis vinifera'', the common grape vine, ran ...

town of Hesse. The coordinates 50°N, 8°E lie right in the

stadtteil A quarter is a section of an urban settlement. A quarter can be administratively defined and its borders officially designated, and it may have its own administrative structure (subordinate to that of the city, town or other urban area). Such a ...

of Winkel, whose name, coincidentally, is

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

for “angle”.

Neighbouring municipalities

Oestrich-Winkel borders in the north on the town of Lorch and the municipalities of Welterod (

Rhein-Lahn-Kreis Rhein-Lahn-Kreis is a district (''Kreis'') in the east of Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Neighboring districts are (from north clockwise) Westerwaldkreis, Limburg-Weilburg, Rheingau-Taunus, Mainz-Bingen, Rhein-Hunsrück, Mayen-Koblenz, and the di ...

Rhineland-Palatinate Rhineland-Palatinate ( , ; german: link=no, Rheinland-Pfalz ; lb, Rheinland-Pfalz ; pfl, Rhoilond-Palz) is a western state of Germany. It covers and has about 4.05 million residents. It is the ninth largest and sixth most populous of the ...

Heidenrod Heidenrod is a municipality in the Rheingau-Taunus-Kreis in the ''Regierungsbezirk'' of Darmstadt in Hesse, Germany. Seat of municipal administration is to be found in the most populated municipal district, in Laufenselden. Geography Location He ...

and

Schlangenbad Schlangenbad is a municipality in the Rheingau-Taunus-Kreis in the ''Regierungsbezirk'' of Darmstadt in Hesse, Germany. Geography Location The community, which is a health resort (''Kurort''), lies above sea level in a sheltered location on ...

; in the east on the town of

Eltville Eltville am Rhein (from ''Alta Villa'', Latin for "high estate, high town", corrupted to ''Eldeville'', ''Elfeld'' and later Eltville, ) is a town in the Rheingau-Taunus-Kreis in the ''Regierungsbezirk'' of Darmstadt in Hesse, Germany. It lies on ...

; in the south, across the

, on the town of

Ingelheim Ingelheim (), officially Ingelheim am Rhein ( en, Ingelheim upon Rhine), is a town in the Mainz-Bingen district in the Rhineland-Palatinate state of Germany. The town sprawls along the Rhine's west bank. It has been Mainz-Bingen's district seat ...

(

Mainz-Bingen Mainz-Bingen is a district (''Kreis'') in the east of Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Neighboring districts are (from north clockwise) Rheingau-Taunus, the district-free cities Wiesbaden and Mainz, the districts Groß-Gerau, Alzey-Worms, Bad ...

district in Rhineland-Palatinate) and in the west on the town of Geisenheim.

Territorial structure

Oestrich-Winkel as a municipality consists of four

Stadtteil A quarter is a section of an urban settlement. A quarter can be administratively defined and its borders officially designated, and it may have its own administrative structure (subordinate to that of the city, town or other urban area). Such a ...

e: * Hallgarten * Mittelheim * Oestrich (seat of municipal administration) * Winkel Hallgarten as the only one of these has the status as an

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 ...

History

Oestrich-Winkel was founded on the 1st of July, 1972 by the merger of the municipalities of Mittelheim, Oestrich and Winkel; it was further enlarged by incorporation of Hallgarten in 1977 by law. From the very beginning Oestrich-Winkel was entitled by state government to lead the designation ''Stadt'' (

town A town is a human settlement. Towns are generally larger than villages and smaller than cities, though the criteria to distinguish between them vary considerably in different parts of the world. Origin and use The word "town" shares an ori ...

). The double-barrelled name Oestrich-Winkel has already had a long tradition as the name of the only train station for the

East Rhine Railway The East Rhine Railway (German: ''Rechte Rheinstrecke'', literally 'right (of the) Rhine railway') is a major, double-track, electrified railway line, running along the right bank of the Rhine from Cologne to Wiesbaden. The -long line forms two D ...

between Geisenheim and

Hattenheim Hattenheim is a ''Stadtteil'' in Eltville am Rhein, Hesse, Germany. It lies within the Rheingau wine region. Points of interest * Burg Hattenheim * Eberbach Abbey (Kloster Eberbach) * Schloss Reichartshausen * Steinberg, Kloster Eberbach ...

Politics

Mayors

Kay Tenge (CDU) was elected in 2019 for mayor. Former mayors were: *2013–2019: Michael Heil (CDU) *1995–2013: Paul Weimann (CDU) *1989–1995: Heinz-Dieter Mielke (SPD) *1972–1989: Klaus Frietsch (SPD)

Town council

The last municipal elections, taking place every five years, yielded the following results:

Town partnerships

The town of Oestrich-Winkel maintains partnerships with the following two places and one military unit: *

Tokaj Tokaj () is a historical town in Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén county, Northern Hungary, 54 kilometers from county capital Miskolc. It is the centre of the Tokaj-Hegyalja wine district where Tokaji wine is produced. History The wine-growing area w ...

Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén County Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén ( hu, Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén megye, ; sk, Boršodsko-abovsko-zemplínska) is an administrative county ( comitatus or ''megye)'' in north-eastern Hungary (commonly called "Northern Hungary"), on the border with Slovakia ( K ...

Hungary Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia a ...

Denicé Denicé () is a commune in the Rhône department in eastern France. Twins cities * Hallgarten (1986) See also *Communes of the Rhône department The following is a list of the 208 communes of the Rhône department of France. This list does ...

Rhône The Rhône ( , ; wae, Rotten ; frp, Rôno ; oc, Ròse ) is a major river in France and Switzerland, rising in the Alps and flowing west and south through Lake Geneva and southeastern France before discharging into the Mediterranean Sea. At Ar ...

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 ...

* 2./ Fernmeldebataillon 283 (roughly, “signal corps”) in

Lahnstein Lahnstein () is a ''verband''-free town of Rhein-Lahn-Kreis in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is situated at the confluence of the Lahn with the Rhine, approximately south of Koblenz. Lahnstein was created in 1969 by the merger of the prev ...

Coat of arms

The town'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: Gules a Z reversed with cross stroke argent between two mullets of six Or. The Z is a variant of a common German

heraldic Heraldry is a discipline relating to the design, display and study of armorial bearings (known as armory), as well as related disciplines, such as vexillology, together with the study of ceremony, rank and pedigree. Armory, the best-known branc ...

charge Charge or charged may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Films * '' Charge, Zero Emissions/Maximum Speed'', a 2011 documentary Music * ''Charge'' (David Ford album) * ''Charge'' (Machel Montano album) * ''Charge!!'', an album by The Aqu ...

known in

as a ''

Wolfsangel (, translation "wolf's hook") or () is a heraldic charge from Germany and eastern France, which was inspired by medieval European wolf traps that consisted of a Z-shaped metal hook (called the ''Wolfsangel'', or the ''Crampon'' in French) th ...

'' or ''Doppelhaken'', and its appearance here apparently refers to its use for dealing with

wolves The wolf (''Canis lupus''; : wolves), also known as the gray wolf or grey wolf, is a large canine native to Eurasia and North America. More than thirty subspecies of ''Canis lupus'' have been recognized, and gray wolves, as popularly un ...

in earlier times (the ''Wolfsangel'' is believed to have been used as a wolf trap). The arms themselves go back to the 17th century.

Culture and sightseeing

Wine culture

Oestrich-Winkel is characterized by

. The following places are cultivated: * Oestrich: Lenchen, Doosberg, Klosterberg, Pfaffenberg * Mittelheim: Edelmann, St. Nikolaus, Goldberg * Winkel: Dachsberg, Hasensprung, Gutenberg, Jesuitengarten, Bienengarten, Schloß Vollrads * Hallgarten: Jungfer, Würzgarten, Schönhell, Hendelberg, Mehrhölzchen

Sightseeing

The ''Oestricher Kran'', Oestrich-Winkel's main landmark, is a former wine-loading crane from the 18th century for loading and unloading ships. Completed in 1745, it was working until 1926. Inside the crane are two treadmills in each of which two men used their body weight to work a

winch A winch is a mechanical device that is used to pull in (wind up) or let out (wind out) or otherwise adjust the tension of a rope or wire rope (also called "cable" or "wire cable"). In its simplest form, it consists of a spool (or drum) attache ...

, which could then lift loads onto or off ships. It is the last preserved wine-loading crane on the Rhine's right bank. There were once also such cranes in Lorch,

and Rüdesheim. These cranes can still be found in existence along the Rhine at

Andernach Andernach () is a town in the district of Mayen-Koblenz, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany, of about 30,000 inhabitants. It is situated towards the end of the '' Neuwied basin'' on the left bank of the Rhine between the former tiny fishing villa ...

(stone; loaded

tuff Tuff is a type of rock made of volcanic ash ejected from a vent during a volcanic eruption. Following ejection and deposition, the ash is lithified into a solid rock. Rock that contains greater than 75% ash is considered tuff, while rock cont ...

, millstones and wine barrels) and Bingen (wood, loaded mainly wine barrels). In Mittelheim is found one of Germany's oldest stone churches, ''St.-Aegidius-Basilika'' (“ Saint Giles’s Basilica”). In Winkel stands Germany's oldest stone house, the '' Graues Haus'' (“Grey House”). For a long time it was believed that Rabanus Maurus lived and in 856 died there. Schloss Vollrads, outside Winkel, with its ancient

watertower A water tower is an elevated structure supporting a water tank constructed at a height sufficient to pressurize a distribution system for potable water, and to provide emergency storage for fire protection. Water towers often operate in conjunc ...

likewise belongs among the noteworthy sights. On the town's northeast limit near

stands Schloss Reichartshausen (founded in the 12th century) with its outbuildings, which about 1900 were remodelled to look like

follies ''Follies'' is a musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and a book by James Goldman. The plot takes place in a crumbling Broadway theater, now scheduled for demolition, previously home to a musical revue (based on the ''Ziegfeld Fol ...

. It nowadays houses the European Business School. In the middle of the community stands the ''Brentanohaus''. Here,

Goethe Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (28 August 1749 – 22 March 1832) was a German poet, playwright, novelist, scientist, statesman, theatre director, and critic. His works include plays, poetry, literature, and aesthetic criticism, as well as tr ...

spent some time in 1814 as a guest of the Frankfurt

bank A bank is a financial institution that accepts deposits from the public and creates a demand deposit while simultaneously making loans. Lending activities can be directly performed by the bank or indirectly through capital markets. Because ...

ing family Brentano. The family's children were

Clemens Clemens is both a Late Latin masculine given name and a surname meaning "merciful". Notable people with the name include: Surname * Adelaide Clemens (born 1989), Australian actress. * Andrew Clemens (b. 1852 or 1857–1894), American folk artist * ...

, Gunda and

Bettina Brentano Bettina von Arnim (the Countess of Arnim) (4 April 178520 January 1859), born Elisabeth Catharina Ludovica Magdalena Brentano, was a German writer and novelist. Bettina (or Bettine) Brentano was a writer, publisher, composer, singer, visual art ...

. Karoline von Günderrode, a poet and one of Bettina's friends, stabbed herself here in Winkel in 1806 on the Rhine's bank out of

lovesickness Lovesickness refers to an affliction that can produce negative feelings when deeply in love, during the absence of a loved one or when love is unrequited. The term "lovesickness" is rarely used in modern medicine and psychology, though new rese ...

and life weariness. Since 2003, the barn across from the ''Brentanohaus'' has hosted the cultural and event venue ''Brentanoscheune'' (''Scheune'' means “barn”).
Oestrich-St Martin-02-2021-gje.jpg, Oestrich St. Martin Oestrich kran.JPG, Oestrich Crane Mittelheim-Basilika St Aegidius-10-2021-gje.jpg, Saint Giles’s Basilica Winkel-Graues Haus-02-2021-gje.jpg, Grey House Winkel-Hrabanus Maurus-04-2021-gje.jpg, Rabanus Maurus memorial Oestrich-Winkel-Schloss Vollrads-06-2021-gje.jpg, Schloss Vollrads Oestrich-Winkel-Schloss Vollrads-22-Turm-2021-gje.jpg, Schloss Vollrads tower Winkel-St Walburga-20-2021-gje.jpg, Church of St. Walburga

Regular events

These include the ''Lenchenfest'' (a wine festival), the ''Dippemarkt'' (a market with a

funfair A fair (archaic: faire or fayre) is a gathering of people for a variety of entertainment or commercial activities. Fairs are typically temporary with scheduled times lasting from an afternoon to several weeks. Types Variations of fairs incl ...

the Christmas market (''Weihnachtsmarkt'') and Jazz Week (''Jazzwoche'').

Rheingau Musik Festival

The

Rheingau Musik Festival The (RMF) is an international summer music festival in Germany, founded in 1987. It is mostly for classical music, but includes other genres. Concerts take place at culturally important locations, such as Eberbach Abbey and Schloss Johannisberg, ...

has its office in Oestrich in a former winery, the presshouse (Kelterhalle) converted to a hall for intimitate concerts and events. Festival concerts have taken place in the basilica St. Aegidius, such as a recital of

Elisabeth Scholl Elisabeth Scholl (born 1966 in Kiedrich) is a German soprano and academic teacher. Career Elisabeth Scholl was the first girl to sing with the boys choir Kiedricher Chorbuben. From 1982 to 1987 she sang the role of the First Boy in Mozart's ...

.St. Aegidius, Mittelheim
on the Rheingau Musik Festival website (German/English)

Economy and infrastructure

Education

Since 1980 Oestrich-Winkel has been the seat of the EBS Universität für Wirtschaft und Recht. Further educational institutions are, among others, the ''Clemens-Brentano-Schule'' (

primary school A primary school (in Ireland, the United Kingdom, Australia, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, and South Africa), junior school (in Australia), elementary school or grade school (in North America and the Philippines) is a school for primary e ...

and

Hauptschule A ''Hauptschule'' (, "general school") is a secondary school in Germany, starting after four years of elementary schooling (''Grundschule''), which offers Lower Secondary Education (Level 2) according to the International Standard Classification ...

), the ''Rabanus-Maurus-Schule'' (primary school and Hauptschule with orientation level) and Hallgarten primary school.

Transport

Oestrich-Winkel lies right on ''

Bundesstraße ''Bundesstraße'' (German for "federal highway"), abbreviated ''B'', is the denotation for German and Austrian national highways. Germany Germany's ''Bundesstraßen'' network has a total length of about 40,000 km. German ''Bundesstraßen'' ...

'' 42, which is particularly well developed towards the east, and which seamlessly feeds into the A 66 near Wiesbaden. The town lies on the

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 ...

–

–Oestrich-Winkel–

Koblenz Koblenz (; Moselle Franconian language, Moselle Franconian: ''Kowelenz''), spelled Coblenz before 1926, is a German city on the banks of the Rhine and the Moselle, a multi-nation tributary. Koblenz was established as a Roman Empire, Roman mili ...

railway Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a pre ...

line and belongs to the

Rhein-Main-Verkehrsverbund The Rhein-Main-Verkehrsverbund (RMV) is a transport association that covers the public transport network of the Frankfurt Rhine-Main area in Germany. Its head office is located in Hofheim im Taunus. Organisation and area covered The RMV ...

. Furthermore, between 6:00 and 21:00, a ferry shuttles across the Rhine between Mittelheim and Ingelheim, where there is a link with the A 60.

Famous people

Sons and daughters of the town

*Richard von Greiffenklau zu Vollrads (1467–1531), Archbishop and Elector of Trier, was born at Schloss Vollrads *Peter Spahn (1846–1925), German politician ( ZENTRUM), Member of the Reichstag, Member of the Landtag (

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 ...

), Prussian Justice Minister, was born in Winkel

Others with links to the town

* Rabanus Maurus (d. 856), important Carolingian academic, died in Winkel *

Karoline von Günderrode Karoline Friederike Louise Maximiliane von Günderrode (11 February 1780 – 26 July 1806) was a German Romantic poet. She used the pen name Tian. Life Günderrode was born as the eldest of six children to and Louise Sophie Victorine Auguste. ...

(1780–1806), Romantic poet, committed suicide in Winkel *

Andreas Joseph Hofmann Andreas Joseph Hofmann (14 July 1752 – 6 September 1849) was a German philosopher and revolutionary active in the Republic of Mainz. As Chairman of the Rhenish-German National Convention, the earliest parliament in Germany based on the princi ...

, (1752-1849), Metternich's teacher, revolutionary, France's agent in London, and in 1793 German history's first Parliamentary president in the Rhenish-German National Convention

References

External links

*
Historisches Ortslexikon
*

Documents

Bild von Oestrich aus J.F. Dielmann, A. Fay, J. Becker (Zeichner): F.C. Vogels Panorama des Rheins, Bilder des rechten und linken Rheinufers, Lithographische Anstalt F.C. Vogel, Frankfurt 1833Bild von Mittelheim aus J.F. Dielmann, A. Fay, J. Becker (Zeichner): F.C. Vogels Panorama des Rheins, Bilder des rechten und linken Rheinufers, Lithographische Anstalt F.C. Vogel, Frankfurt 1833
{{Authority control Populated places on the Rhine Rheingau-Taunus-Kreis Rheingau