Plein is an ''Ortsgemeinde'' – a municipality belonging to a '' Verbandsgemeinde'', a kind of collective municipality – in the
Bernkastel-Wittlich
Bernkastel-Wittlich (German: ''Landkreis Bernkastel-Wittlich'') is a district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is bounded by (from the north and clockwise) the districts of Vulkaneifel, Cochem-Zell, Rhein-Hunsrück, Birkenfeld, Trier-Saarbur ...
In 1317, Plein had its first documentary mention as ''plin''. Beginning in 1794, Plein lay under
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 ...
The council is made up of 12 council members, who were elected by
majority vote
A majority, also called a simple majority or absolute majority to distinguish it from related terms, is more than half of the total.Dictionary definitions of ''majority'' aMerriam-WebsterKommunalwahl Rheinland-Pfalz 2009, Gemeinderat /ref>
Coat of arms
The German blazon reads: ''Unter silbernem Schildhaupt mit drei schwarzen Muscheln (2/1) steht in rotem Feld das silberne Pleiner Viadukt mit 4 Pfeilern über einer von links nach rechts sich windenden goldenen Schlange.''
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 in English heraldic language be described thus: Gules an arched viaduct with four piers, the inner two longer than the outer, argent, in base a serpent Or, in a chief of the second three escallops sable, two and one.
The shells are Saint James'sscallops. Pilgrims on Saint James's Way carried them as a way of recognizing each other. One of the many “ways” that made up Saint James's Way led by Plein.
Culture and sightseeing
''Plein'' lies on the Maare-Mosel-Radweg (cycling path) on the former Wittlich-
Daun
Daun is a town in the Vulkaneifel district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is the district seat and also the seat of the ' of Daun.
Geography
Location
The town lies in the , a part of the Eifel known for its volcanic history, geogra ...
railway right-of-way; here it leads across two viaducts and through two tunnels. Since the ''TV-Wandertag'' there have been four marked hiking trails of the ''Trierischer Volksfreund'' (daily newspaper, abbreviated “TV”).