Schweinfurt ( , ; ) is a
city
A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...
in the district of
Lower Franconia
Lower Franconia (german: Unterfranken) is one of seven districts of Bavaria, Germany. The districts of Lower, Middle and Upper Franconia make up the region of Franconia.
History
After the founding of the Kingdom of Bavaria the state was totally ...
in Bavaria, Germany. It is the administrative centre of the surrounding
district (''Landkreis'') of Schweinfurt and a major industrial, cultural and educational hub. The
urban agglomeration has 100,200 (2018)
and the city's
catchment area
In human geography, a catchment area is the area from which a location, such as a city, service or institution, attracts a population that uses its services and economic opportunities. Catchment areas may be defined based on from where people are ...
, including the Main-Rhön region and parts of
South Thuringia, 759,000 inhabitants.
Schweinfurt was first documented in 791 and is one of the oldest cities in Bavaria. Around 1000 the Margraves of Schweinfurt controlled large parts of northern Bavaria. From the 12th century until 1802 Schweinfurt was a
Free imperial city
In the Holy Roman Empire, the collective term free and imperial cities (german: Freie und Reichsstädte), briefly worded free imperial city (', la, urbs imperialis libera), was used from the fifteenth century to denote a self-ruling city that ...
within the
Holy Roman Empire
The Holy Roman Empire was a political entity in Western, Central, and Southern Europe that developed during the Early Middle Ages and continued until its dissolution in 1806 during the Napoleonic Wars.
From the accession of Otto I in 962 unt ...
, around 1700 a
humanistic
Humanism is a philosophical stance that emphasizes the individual and social potential and agency of human beings. It considers human beings the starting point for serious moral and philosophical inquiry.
The meaning of the term "human ...
centre and in 1770 began the 250-year industrial history.
During
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...
, the Americans suffered their biggest air defeat over Schweinfurt in the
Second Raid on Schweinfurt ''(Black Thursday)''. On 11 April 1945, the US Army invaded the city. During the
Cold War, the 1945 founded
USAG Schweinfurt had the highest concentration of US combat units in the
Federal Republic of 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 between ...
. In the northwest of Schweinfurt, an American town emerged, with a complete civil infrastructure including all kinds of shops for 12,000 Americans, soldiers and civilians. Until the withdrawal of the US Army at Schweinfurt in 2014, a total of about 100,000 US soldiers were stationed in the town.
Following
German Reunification
German reunification (german: link=no, Deutsche Wiedervereinigung) was the process of re-establishing Germany as a united and fully sovereign state, which took place between 2 May 1989 and 15 March 1991. The day of 3 October 1990 when the Ge ...
in 1990, Schweinfurt has become an important traffic hub in the centre of Germany. It has the highest employment density (2015) and the third highest gross domestic product per inhabitant of Germany (2014). The world's largest bearing group
SKF, the second largest
Schaeffler, the second largest automotive supplier in the world
ZF Friedrichshafen and the
DAX group
Fresenius Medical Care
Fresenius Medical Care AG & Co. KGaA is an American- German healthcare company which provides kidney dialysis services through a network of 4,171 outpatient dialysis centers, serving 345,425 patients. The company primarily treats end-stage renal d ...
have their largest plants in Schweinfurt.
Some important inventions have their origin in Schweinfurt: the pedal bike by
Philipp Moritz Fischer
Philipp is both a surname and a given name. Notable people with the name include:
"Philipp" has also been a shortened version of Philippson, a German surname especially prevalent amongst German Jews and Dutch Jews.
Surname
* Adolf Philipp (1864 ...
(1853) as well as the
freewheel (1889) and the
coaster brake (1903) by
Ernst Sachs. In 1652, the oldest permanently existing natural-scientific academy in the world was founded in Schweinfurt, the
German National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina.
History
Pre-BCE History
Traces of settlement as early as 7500 years ago can be detected on today's urban area at various places. The first settlement of the historic Schweinfurt ''(Village Old Town)'' was also on the Main, between the two streams ''Höllenbach'' and ''Marienbach'',
[Historical Lexicon Bayern. article Schweinfurt] 1 km east of the later founded imperial city, which corresponds to the old town today. The ''Village Old Town'' is in its origins at least 2100 years old.
8th–13th centuries
The first documentary mention Schweinfurts (village old town) took place in the year 791.
Schweinfurt gained importance in 941 with the mention of Count Berthold as the first member of the House of the Counts of Schweinfurt.
[Information brochure Stadt Schweinfurt. Weka Info-Verlag, Mering 2002, pp. 5.] He occupied an important position in the central Reich territory, the
Duchy of Franconia. Berthold gave the king of
East Francia
East Francia (Medieval Latin: ) or the Kingdom of the East Franks () was a successor state of Charlemagne's empire ruled by the Carolingian dynasty until 911. It was created through the Treaty of Verdun (843) which divided the former empire int ...
Otto I. (936–973), who in 962 became
Roman-German Emperor
The Holy Roman Emperor, originally and officially the Emperor of the Romans ( la, Imperator Romanorum, german: Kaiser der Römer) during the Middle Ages, and also known as the Roman-German Emperor since the early modern period ( la, Imperator ...
, valuable weapons aid against rebellious tribal dukes. As thanks Berthold of Otto I received the counties for the Folkfeld- and the Radenzgau and the Margraviate for the Nordgau, about the present-day Upper Palatinate. Thus he was and from 980 his son Henry the most powerful secular nobility in the area of today's northern Bavaria.
Later supported Count
Henry of Schweinfurt
Henry of Schweinfurt (''de Suinvorde''; – 18 September 1017) was the Margrave of the Nordgau from 994 until 1004. He was called the "glory of eastern Franconia" by his own cousin, the chronicler Thietmar of Merseburg.
Henry was the son of ...
(called: ''Hezilo'') the East Frankish
Henry II (1002–1024, from 1014 Roman-German Emperor) in the royal election of 1002 and was awarded the Duke dignity of Bavarians. After the election, however, Henry II did not fulfill the promise. Thereupon it came to the ''Schweinfurt Feud'' in 1003.
Count Heinrich lost all his possessions. The confiscated royal goods formed the core of the new bishopric of
Bamberg
Bamberg (, , ; East Franconian: ''Bambärch'') is a town in Upper Franconia, Germany, on the river Regnitz close to its confluence with the river Main. The town dates back to the 9th century, when its name was derived from the nearby ' castl ...
. Hezilo, however, retained his possessions around the castle hill ''Peterstirn''. The family, in which
Judith of Schweinfurt became a central figure in the history of the old Schweinfurt city, died in the male line of 1057 and at the latest this year marks the undisputed end of the important role of the Margraves of Schweinfurt.
To the beginnings of today's old town from the 12th century, 1 km west of the previous settlement between the two streams ''Marienbach'' and ''Höllenbach'', there are different views. The from a gradual construction to a planned Civitas Imperii (
imperial city
In the Holy Roman Empire, the collective term free and imperial cities (german: Freie und Reichsstädte), briefly worded free imperial city (', la, urbs imperialis libera), was used from the fifteenth century to denote a self-ruling city that ...
), so a founding city, by Emperor
Frederick I Barbarossa, using existing royal estate, rich. In the struggle for supremacy in ''Main Franconia'' (region around the river
Main) between the Henneberger and the Bishop of
Würzburg
Würzburg (; Main-Franconian: ) is a city in the region of Franconia in the north of the German state of Bavaria. Würzburg is the administrative seat of the ''Regierungsbezirk'' Lower Franconia. It spans the banks of the Main River.
Würzburg ...
, the city was destroyed between 1240 and 1250 ''(First City Spoilage)''. However, it is controversial whether this destruction was still in the old settlement between Höllenbach and Marienbach and thus a reason for the rebuilding of the city on the farther west, today's site was or whether the destruction took place here already. In a letter from King
William of Holland dated January 9, 1254, it is said that Schweinfurt used to be imperial city ''(... Swinforde, que olim imperii civitas fuerat)''. It remains unclear whether rights have ever been withdrawn from the city or whether only reference is made to the city's destruction. However, this letter is the first documentary evidence of Schweinfurt as imperial city and thus as a place with
city rights
Town privileges or borough rights were important features of European towns during most of the second millennium. The city law customary in Central Europe probably dates back to Italian models, which in turn were oriented towards the traditio ...
.
[Schweinfurt , City , Culture , topics. Publication of the Schweinfurter Tagblatt and special issue for Handelsblatt and ZEIT: Micro-locale of German history, 20 May 2009, p. 4 f.]
13th–15th centuries
The (inner) city fortification of the new city was built and first documented in 1258, it is still largely preserved on Marienbach today. A document from 1282 signed by
Rudolf I of Habsburg states that Schweinfurt was a
free city Free city may refer to: Historical places
* Free city (antiquity) a self-governed city during the Hellenistic and Roman Imperial eras
* Free imperial city, self-governed city in the Holy Roman Empire subordinate only to the emperor
** Free City of ...
within the
Holy Roman Empire
The Holy Roman Empire was a political entity in Western, Central, and Southern Europe that developed during the Early Middle Ages and continued until its dissolution in 1806 during the Napoleonic Wars.
From the accession of Otto I in 962 unt ...
.
By pledge 1309 Schweinfurt came to the
House of Henneberg
The House of Henneberg was a medieval German comital family (''Grafen'') which from the 11th century onwards held large territories in the Duchy of Franconia. Their county was raised to a princely county (''Gefürstete Grafschaft'') in 1310.
Up ...
, who maintained from 1310 to 1427 a ''Reichsburg'' (castle of the empire) in the old Schweinfurt city district ''Zürch''.
In the 15th century began the construction of a territory around the core city, which lasted until 1620. In 1436, the fishermen's settlement of ''Fischerrain'', which borders on the city wall and lies just to the southwest, whose origins lie in the darkness of history, was incorporated into the city. Due to positive economic development, the city can acquire the suburb of Oberndorf in 1436. 1436/37 received the advice of the city from the
Teutonic Knight
The Order of Brothers of the German House of Saint Mary in Jerusalem, commonly known as the Teutonic Order, is a Catholic religious institution founded as a military society in Acre, Kingdom of Jerusalem. It was formed to aid Christians on ...
s for 18,000 guilders the castle on the ''Peterstirn'' and the associated land area with the villages Zell and Weipoltshausen, which belongs to
Üchtelhausen
Üchtelhausen is a municipality and community in the district of Schweinfurt in Bavaria
Bavaria ( ; ), officially the Free State of Bavaria (german: Freistaat Bayern, link=no ), is a state in the south-east of Germany. With an area of , Bavar ...
today.
16th–18th centuries
Schweinfurt joined the
Reformation
The Reformation (alternatively named the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation) was a major movement within Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the Catholic Church and in ...
relatively late, in 1542 since the city, together with neighboring imperial villages and imperial villages, was completely surrounded by the Catholic Hochstift Würzburg.
[City map Schweinfurt with history and sights. Printing and Publishing House Weppert. Schweinfurt 2003.] In a confession change had to be expected military assault. The patron of the city, Count Wilhelm von Henneberg, did not offer sufficient support.
In the course of the
Second Margrave War, the city was looted in 1554 and set on fire. This went as the ''Second City Spoilage'' in the city history (''First City Spoilage'' see:
8th–13th centuries). The reconstruction dragged on until 1615. In this form, the old town, with the exception of later modernized fortifications, remained almost unchanged until the early 19th century. In 1609 the city joined the
Protestant Union. The imperial city territory was supplemented 1620 also still around Madenhausen,
which also belongs to Üchtelhausen today. Due to the acquisitions, the territory of the imperial city now had an extension of 17 km from southwest to northeast. As a result of the city of Schweinfurt on the knight canton of Baunach a nearly continuous Protestant corridor was created by the Hochstifte
Würzburg
Würzburg (; Main-Franconian: ) is a city in the region of Franconia in the north of the German state of Bavaria. Würzburg is the administrative seat of the ''Regierungsbezirk'' Lower Franconia. It spans the banks of the Main River.
Würzburg ...
and
Bamberg
Bamberg (, , ; East Franconian: ''Bambärch'') is a town in Upper Franconia, Germany, on the river Regnitz close to its confluence with the river Main. The town dates back to the 9th century, when its name was derived from the nearby ' castl ...
in the Protestant Duchy of
Saxony
Saxony (german: Sachsen ; Upper Saxon German, Upper Saxon: ''Saggsn''; hsb, Sakska), officially the Free State of Saxony (german: Freistaat Sachsen, links=no ; Upper Saxon: ''Freischdaad Saggsn''; hsb, Swobodny stat Sakska, links=no), is a ...
.
Schweinfurt joined the Protestant Union in 1609. In the
Thirty Years' War
The Thirty Years' War was one of the longest and most destructive conflicts in European history, lasting from 1618 to 1648. Fought primarily in Central Europe, an estimated 4.5 to 8 million soldiers and civilians died as a result of batt ...
it was occupied by
Gustavus Adolphus
Gustavus Adolphus (9 December Old_Style_and_New_Style_dates">N.S_19_December.html" ;"title="Old_Style_and_New_Style_dates.html" ;"title="/nowiki>Old Style and New Style dates">N.S 19 December">Old_Style_and_New_Style_dates.html" ;"title="/now ...
, who erected fortifications, the remains of which are still extant. In 1652 the four doctors Johann Laurentius Bausch,
Johann Michael Fehr
Johann Michael Fehr (9 May 161015 November 1688) was a German doctor, botanist and scientist who is most notable for being one of the four founding members of the German National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina.
Biography
Fehr was born on 9 May ...
, Georg Balthasar Wolfahrt and Balthasar Metzger founded the ''Academia Curiosorum'' in Schweinfurt, which is known today as the German Academy of Life Scientists, "
Leopoldina".
Schweinfurt remained a free imperial city until 1802, when it passed to the
Electorate of Bavaria. Assigned to the
grand duke of Würzburg
Grand may refer to:
People with the name
* Grand (surname)
* Grand L. Bush (born 1955), American actor
* Grand Mixer DXT, American turntablist
* Grand Puba (born 1966), American rapper
Places
* Grand, Oklahoma
* Grand, Vosges, village and comm ...
in 1810, it was granted to the
Kingdom of Bavaria
The Kingdom of Bavaria (german: Königreich Bayern; ; spelled ''Baiern'' until 1825) was a German state that succeeded the former Electorate of Bavaria in 1805 and continued to exist until 1918. With the unification of Germany into the German ...
four years later. The first railway junction was opened in 1852. In the following years Schweinfurt became a world leading centre for the production of
ball bearing
A ball bearing is a type of rolling-element bearing that uses balls to maintain the separation between the bearing races.
The purpose of a ball bearing is to reduce rotational friction and support radial and axial loads. It achieves this ...
s. This was to lead to grievous consequences for the city during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...
.
Schweinfurt-1648-Merian.jpg, Imperial City of Schweinfurt 1648
Matthäus Merian, Frankfurt a. M.
De Merian Frankoniae 128.jpg, Imperial City of Schweinfurt
in ''Topographia Franconiae'' 1656
1 Mühltor vor 1876.jpg, Mühltor (Mill gate) at the end of Mühlgasse
(today Rückertstraße)
(Photo before 1876)
1 Ultsch1 äußeres Spitaltor Wachturm von 1555 vor 1896 S. 13.jpg, Outer Spitaltor (Spital gate, right)
and Inner Spitaltower (watchtower)
(Photo before 1896)
1 Ultsch1 Spitaltor Heilig Geist Zuckerfabrik Steinweg Spitalgasse vor 1896 S. 11.jpg, Spitalstrasse, on the horizon Spitaltor (Spital gate) and Spital Church
(Photo before 1896)
1 Ultsch1 Rothsches Haus Schopperhaus um 1891 S. 37.jpg, ''Roth'sches Haus''
in the Obere Straße
(Photo around 1891)
18th–20th centuries
The year 1770 marked the beginning of the industrialization of the city, with its 250-year-old industrial history. In the first century of industrialization, the chemical and paint industry started in Schweinfurt, with the construction of the Wolf's lead white mill at the Bleiweißmühlenwehr. According to Dr. Ferdinand Gademann (1880–1969), it was the oldest German lead white factory. In 1780 the factory was taken over by Johann Martin Schmidt. Further factory-similar plants of this kind originated at the Bellevue and in the neighboring suburb
Niederwerrn.
Following the
Reichsdeputationshauptschluss
The ' (formally the ', or "Principal Conclusion of the Extraordinary Imperial Delegation"), sometimes referred to in English as the Final Recess or the Imperial Recess of 1803, was a resolution passed by the ' (Imperial Diet) of the Holy Roman Em ...
, Schweinfurt came to Bavaria in 1803, two years before the
Kingdom of Bavaria
The Kingdom of Bavaria (german: Königreich Bayern; ; spelled ''Baiern'' until 1825) was a German state that succeeded the former Electorate of Bavaria in 1805 and continued to exist until 1918. With the unification of Germany into the German ...
was founded. 4000 people demonstrated against the Anschluss at the Rossmarkt. After the interim membership of the Grand Duchy of Würzburg (1810–1814), Schweinfurt fell in 1814 to the Kingdom of Bavaria. The villages belonging to the imperial city territory were spun off. As a result, Schweinfurt lost about two-thirds of its territory.
1852 took place with the opening of the ''Ludwigs-Westbahn'' from
Bamberg
Bamberg (, , ; East Franconian: ''Bambärch'') is a town in Upper Franconia, Germany, on the river Regnitz close to its confluence with the river Main. The town dates back to the 9th century, when its name was derived from the nearby ' castl ...
to the new
Schweinfurt Stadt station the connection to the railway network. With the construction of the line to
Bad Kissingen (1871) and the
Schweinfurt–Meiningen railway (1874) Schweinfurt became a railway junction. In 1874, a large marshalling and central station was built 3 km west of the city station, at that time on Oberndorf district, the so-called ''Central Station'' and today's
Schweinfurt Hauptbahnhof at the
Bamberg–Rottendorf railway. It was created in a far-sighted manner amidst fields as a passenger and goods main station, with the aim of leaving as much room for the expected industrialization of the station, which also took place here until the end of the 1930s was. The Schweinfurt tram was the first municipal tram in Bavaria from 1895 to 1921 to connect the Schweinfurt Hauptbahnhof with the city centre.
Kingdom of Bavaria
The Kingdom of Bavaria (german: Königreich Bayern; ; spelled ''Baiern'' until 1825) was a German state that succeeded the former Electorate of Bavaria in 1805 and continued to exist until 1918. With the unification of Germany into the German ...
AG 1913
1 Ultsch2 Spitalstraße mit Pferdebahn nach 1896 S. 44.jpg, Spitalstraße after 1894 with tram
Schweinfurt, Luitpoldstraße 21-crop.jpg, District of the Gründerzeit
1 Ultsch1 Leinritt am Fischerrain Pumpwerk Maxbrücke um 1902 S. 34.jpg, Main mills
Unlike many other cities, the 1930s were one of the most important epochs of urban development in Schweinfurt. The number of employees of major metalworking companies rose to 20,700 by 1939. This led to a construction boom and set the course for modern urban development.
and aircraft production. Schweinfurt was bombed 22 times during
caused an immediate 34% loss of production and all plants but the largest were devastated by fire. Efforts to disperse the surviving machinery began immediately and the
deployed large numbers of interceptors along the corridor to Schweinfurt.
on 14 October 1943 ("called Black Thursday because of the enormous loss of aircraft (60) and lives (600+)") and
in February 1944.
Although losses of production bearings and machinery were high and much of the industrial and residential areas of the city were destroyed, killing more than a thousand civilians, the factories were restored to production and the industry dispersed. Although German planners initially thought it essential to purchase the entire output of the Swedish ball-bearing industry, losses in the production of bearings were actually made up from surpluses found within Germany in the aftermath of the first raid. The decentralized industry was able to restore output to 85% of its pre-bombing level.
made restoration of ball bearing production a high priority and massive efforts were undertaken to repair and rebuild the factories, partly in bomb-proof underground facilities.
The
fighting.