Viernheim is a midsize industrial town on Mannheim's outskirts and is found in the Rhine Neckar agglomeration and economic area. It is the second biggest town in Bergstraße district in Hesse, Germany. Since 1994 it has also borne the title '' Brundtlandstadt'', as it has been taking part in an

energy conservation Energy conservation is the effort to reduce wasteful energy consumption by using fewer energy services. This can be done by using energy more effectively (using less energy for continuous service) or changing one's behavior to use less service (f ...

pilot project. In 1968, the town hosted the eighth '' Hessentag'' state festival.

Geography

Location

Viernheim lies in the Rhine rift, and although it also lies in Hesse, it is bounded on the west, south and east by Baden-Württemberg. North of the Viernheim woods, in Lampertheim, begins the ''Hessisches Ried''. East of Viernheim lies the town of Weinheim, which is where the district’s namesake Bergstraße begins, and which also marks the beginning of the

Odenwald The Odenwald () is a low mountain range in the German states of Hesse, Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg. Location The Odenwald is located between the Upper Rhine Plain with the Bergstraße and the ''Hessisches Ried'' (the northeastern section ...

. The town lies roughly northeast of Mannheim, east of the Rhine and west of the Bergstrasse.

Neighbouring communities

Viernheim borders in the north on the town of Lampertheim (in Hessen), in the northeast on the towns of Hemsbach and

Weinheim Weinheim (; pfl, Woinem) is a town with about 43,000 inhabitants in northwest Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is in the Rhine-Neckar Metropolitan Region, approximately north of Heidelberg and northeast of Mannheim. Weinheim is known as the "Zwei ...

, in the south on the community of

Heddesheim Heddesheim is a municipality in the district of Rhein-Neckar-Kreis, in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is situated 9 km east of Mannheim Mannheim (; Palatine German: or ), officially the University City of Mannheim (german: Universit ...

(all three in the Rhein-Neckar-Kreis), and in the west on the district-free city of Mannheim (all in Baden-Württemberg).

Constituent communities

Viernheim is divided into several sections. It has been the local, everyday speech and town expansions, though, that have yielded most of the divisions. They therefore have no precisely defined bounds. The ''Stadtkern'', or town core, is made up of the ''Innenstadt'' ("Inner Town") and the ''Altstadt'' ("Old Town") lying around it. Among the other neighbourhoods are the ''Nordstadt'' ("North Town", north of Nibelungenstraße and Wormser Straße), the ''Nordweststadt'' ("Northwest Town", west of Kreuzstraße and Am Königsacker), the ''Tivoli'' (in the south at the ''Rhein-Neckar-Zentrum''), ''Hinter den Zäunen'' (“Behind the Fences”, south of the OEG tracks), ''Gewerbegebiet Eins'' ("Commercial Area One", in the northeast, north of Friedrich-Ebert-Straße and east of Lorscher Straße) and the new development that has sprung up over the last few years, Bannholzgraben, east of Janusz-Korczak-Allee (L 3111). Moreover, there are also the ''Sportgebiet West'' (“Sport Area West”, west of the A 6), the two outlying centres which are each made up of only one road, Neuzenlache and Ziegelhütte (south of the A 659 and the outlying farms northeast of town.

History

Viernheim grew out of a

Carolingian The Carolingian dynasty (; known variously as the Carlovingians, Carolingus, Carolings, Karolinger or Karlings) was a Frankish noble family named after Charlemagne, grandson of mayor Charles Martel and a descendant of the Arnulfing and Pippin ...

king's court. Viernheim had its first documentary mention in 777 in the Lorsch codex, the Lorsch Abbey's book of documents. Through donations, it ended up in the Abbey’s ownership. In 1232, the Abbey’s holdings were given to the

Archbishops of Mainz The Elector of Mainz was one of the seven Prince-electors of the Holy Roman Empire. As both the Archbishop of Mainz and the ruling prince of the Electorate of Mainz, the Elector of Mainz held a powerful position during the Middle Ages. The Archb ...

, but only in 1308 did Viernheim pass to Mainz. In 1439, however, the town was pledged to the Schönau Abbey, who in turn sold it to the Electorate of the Palatinate. After the Thirty Years' War, it passed back to Mainz, and thence under 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 ...

'' in 1803 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 ...

, out of which came the People's State of Hesse in 1918. Once in the People's State, the town was assigned first to the ''Amtsvogtei'' of Lorsch. When ''Landratsbezirke'' – another kind of administrative division – were created in 1821, Viernheim was assigned to Heppenheim. From 1832 to 1839 came a spell under Bensheim's jurisdiction. From 1848, the town then belonged to Heppenheim district, which in 1938 was merged with Bensheim district to form today’s Bergstraße district. In 1948, Viernheim was granted town rights by the newly founded ''Land'' of Hesse. During the 19th century the tobacco industry gained some importance, since several small tobacco manufacturers were founded. Rolling

cigar A cigar is a rolled bundle of dried and fermented tobacco leaves made to be smoked. Cigars are produced in a variety of sizes and shapes. Since the 20th century, almost all cigars are made of three distinct components: the filler, the binder l ...

s provided additional income for farmers or peasants and their families during the winter. Until the end of the 19th century, Viernheim was a farming village. Bad harvests and widespread hunger in 1852 led to 458 inhabitants emigrating in this year to

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...

. With

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 ...

and the opening of the '' Oberrheinische Eisenbahn'' (a regional narrow-gauge railway still serving a roughly triangular route among

, Mannheim and Heidelberg) in 1887, the town began to become more of a workers’ residential community as many inhabitants found work in the factories in nearby Mannheim and Weinheim. Many workers, however, kept farming as a sideline. The location of industry in Viernheim itself began with the opening of the Weinheim-Worms railway (now mostly derelict) in 1905, and further strengthened after the Second World War, bringing along with it a sharp rise in population. Given the town's favourable road links to three '' Autobahnen'', it grew into a midsize industrial town. In 1994 came its designation as a “Brundtland Town”, and its attendant participation in an energy conservation pilot project. During the World War II, Viernheim did not suffer severe damage, since the town had no strategic or industrial importance. So the Viernheim railway station served for a while as Mannheim station, after the Mannheim Central Station was destroyed in an air-raid in 1942. On 23 June 2016, a hostage incident occurred within a cinema in the town. No hostages were injured and the gunman was shot and killed by the

Spezialeinsatzkommando ''Spezialeinsatzkommando'' (SEK, "Special Task Force") are police tactical units of each of the 16 German State Police forces. Along with the ''Mobile Einsatzkommando'' (MEK), ''Personenschutzkommando'' (bodyguards), and the ''Verhandlungsgruppe'' ...

Population development

Religion

Kirche Sankt Aposteln Viernheim 100 2821

For a long time, Viernheim belonged to the

Archbishopric of Mainz The Electorate of Mainz (german: Kurfürstentum Mainz or ', la, Electoratus Moguntinus), previously known in English as Mentz and by its French name Mayence, was one of the most prestigious and influential states of the Holy Roman Empire. In the ...

. Owing to changing lords in the 15th and 16th centuries, the townsfolk had to

convert Conversion or convert may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * "Conversion" (''Doctor Who'' audio), an episode of the audio drama ''Cyberman'' * "Conversion" (''Stargate Atlantis''), an episode of the television series * "The Conversion" ...

seven times because of the Peace of Augsburg. When the town passed back to the Electorate of Mainz, however,

Roman Catholicism The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwide . It is am ...

kept its place as the local denomination. In the early 20th century, the Lutheran townsfolk who had by now been drawn to the town got their own church in Viernheim.

Churches

Today in Viernheim, there are three Catholic parishes, ''St. Michael'', ''St. Hildegard'' merged in 2015, ''St. Marien'' and ''St. Aposteln'', which belong to the deanery of ''Bergstraße-West'' of the Bishopric of Mainz, and two Lutheran parishes, ''Auferstehungskirche'' ("Church of the Resurrection") and ''Christuskirche'', which both belong to the deanery of ''Bergstraße-Süd'' of the Lutheran Church in Hesse and Nassau. Besides the two big churches, the ''Bund Freier evangelischer Gemeinden in Deutschland'' ("League of Free Evangelical Parishes in Germany") has a parish, as do the ''Evangeliumschristen-Baptisten'' ("Gospel Christian Baptists"), the

New Apostolic Church The New Apostolic Church (NAC) is a Christian denomination, Christian church that split from the Catholic Apostolic Church during an 1863 schism in Hamburg, Germany. The church has existed since 1863 in Germany and since 1897 in the Ne ...

and the

Jehovah's Witnesses Jehovah's Witnesses is a millenarian restorationist Christian denomination with nontrinitarian beliefs distinct from mainstream Christianity. The group reports a worldwide membership of approximately 8.7 million adherents involved in ...

. There has been no Jewish community in town since National Socialist times. The

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 ...

on Hügelstraße, consecrated on 31 August 1827, was destroyed by the SA along with some locals on 10 November 1938 during the Kristallnacht pogrom.

Politics

Town council

The municipal election held on 27 March 2011 yielded the following results:

Mayors

Heading the town is the Mayor (''Bürgermeister'') who is directly elected by the people for a term of six years. Mayor Matthias Baaß (SPD) has been in office since 1997 and was re-elected on 7 June 2009 to his third term with 72.1% of the vote. The next mayoral election is planned for 2015. At his side is the First Town Councillor (''Erster Stadtrat''), along with 11 part-time councillors. They are all chosen by the town assembly (''Stadtverordnetenversammlung'') for terms of six and five years respectively and reflect the assembly's political makeup at the time of their appointments. The Mayor, the First Town Councillor and the 11 part-time councillors together form the town's executive (''Magistrat''). Following is a list of the town's mayors since 1822 (from 1649 to 1822, eight ''Schultheißen'' – roughly "sheriffs" – are known to history): * 1822–1824: Joh. Jakob Georgi * 1825–1842: Johann Beikert * 1842–1847: Georg Kühner * 1848–1853: Peter Minnig * 1853–1862: Johann Kempf * 1862–1873: Michael Keller * 1873–1875: Johann Winkler 5. * 1875–1895: Johann Bläß 1. * 1895–1904: Georg Pfützer 2. * 1904–1913: Gg. Friedrich Kühlwein * 1913–1933: Jean Lamberth ( Centre Party) * 1933–1945: Hanns Bechtel ( NSDAP) * 1945: Martin Alter * 1945–1946: Nikolaus Schlosser * 1946–1960: Lorenz Neff (SPD) * 1960–1975: Hans Mandel (SPD) * 1975–1981: Erwin Bugert (SPD) * 1981–1987: Josef Baumgärtner (CDU) * 1987–1997: Norbert Hofmann (SPD) * since 1997: Matthias Baaß (SPD)

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: Party per fess, above azure the Lion of Hesse armed and crowned Or and langued gules, below party per pale gules a six-spoked wheel argent and Or a Gothic four sable. The arms were introduced in 1926. The charge in the upper part of the

escutcheon Escutcheon may refer to: * Escutcheon (heraldry), a shield or shield-shaped emblem, displaying a coat of arms * Escutcheon (furniture), a metal plate that surrounds a keyhole or lock cylinder on a door * (in medicine) the distribution of pubic ha ...

is the Lion of Hesse, which expresses the town's longstanding status as part of Hesse. Below the fess line on the dexter (armsbearer's right, viewer's left) side is the Wheel of Mainz, which stands for the town's former allegiance to the Electorate of Mainz. On the sinister (armsbearer's left, viewer's right) side is a Gothic figure of four, which used to be the local logo, making the arms canting, that is to say, suggestive of the town's name, since the

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 **Ger ...

word for “four” is ''vier''. Although it sounds rather like the first syllable in the town's name, it seems likelier that this comes from the Old High German ''firni'' (“old”, “from long ago”) or the Celtic ''vernos'' (“ alder”). The Viernheim town flag is blue-white-red.

Twin towns – sister cities

Viernheim is twinned with: * Franconville, France (1966) * Potters Bar, United Kingdom (1972) * Rovigo, Italy (1991) *

Silly Silly may refer to: Places * Silly, Belgium, a town * Silly Department, a department or commune of Sissili Province in southern Burkina Faso Music * Silly (band), an East German rock group from the 1970s * The Sillies, an American punk rock ...

, Burkina Faso (1994) * Mława, Poland (2019)

Economy and infrastructure

Transport

Road transport

Viernheim lies on the A 659, which leads directly to Mannheim and

, and also affords a direct link to three further Autobahnen, the A 5, the A 6 and the A 67. Because of the two Autobahn junctions, the ''Viernheimer Kreuz'' and the ''Viernheimer Dreieck'', Viernheim is also well known to many drivers.

Local public transport

Viernheim is linked to the surrounding cities by a narrow-gauge railway and a busline. The electric narrow-gauge railway ('' Oberrheinische Eisenbahn'', OEG), nowadays designated line 5R, is usually regarded as an interurban. Since 1887 it has run to Mannheim,

and Heidelberg, and is run by the Rhein-Neckar-Verkehr GmbH (RNV). A regional busline of Busverkehr Rhein-Neckar runs to Weinheim as well as Lampertheim and Worms. There are also two town buslines run by the RNV daughter company V-Bus. All public transport is integrated into the Rhine-Neckar Transport Association.

Rail transport

Viernheim is the endpoint of the Weinheim–Viernheim railway line built in 1905, which originally ran on by way of Lampertheim to Worms to afford a link with the ''Weschnitztalbahn'' there. Owing to low demand, however, passenger service was discontinued in 1960 on the whole line and replaced with a bus service, while the tracks between Viernheim and Lampertheim were torn up (the right-of-way can still be discerned in the woods today as a broad lane). Only goods service was continued between Weinheim and Viernheim by

Deutsche Bahn The (; abbreviated as DB or DB AG) is the national railway company of Germany. Headquartered in the Bahntower in Berlin, it is a joint-stock company ( AG). The Federal Republic of Germany is its single shareholder. describes itself as the se ...

, until it, too, ceased. It was, however, revived in July 2004 by the MVV GmbH daughter company ConTrain. The old railway station today houses a municipal leisure and meeting place bearing the name ''Treff im Bahnhof'' (“Meeting in the Railway Station”).

Established businesses

Viernheim has four industrial area with many middle-class businesses. Many well known firms, such as Pfenning Logistics, have their warehouses in Viernheim and Buderus has its distribution centre there. Plisch GmbH and Hommel Hercules Werkzeuge also have their head offices in the town. The Rhein-Neckar-Zentrum shopping centre, opened in 1972, is nationally famous and probably the most well known.

Media

In Viernheim there are two regional daily newspapers: * Viernheimer Tageblatt, founded in 1883, * Mannheimer Morgen as ''Südhessen Morgen'' with a ''Viernheim'' regional edition The following free advertising fliers are distributed weekly: * Viernheimer Volksblatt * Wochenblatt Mannheim * Bergsträßer Anzeigen-Zeitung (BAZ) The following regional media see Viernheim as part of their feeder and distribution area: * Hessischer Rundfunk, Südwestrundfunk (''Kurpfalz-Radio'' within the framework of SWR4 Baden-Württemberg) * Rhein-Neckar Fernsehen (television) * Radio Regenbogen, Hit Radio FFH, Radio RPR, sunshine live, bigFM, bermuda.funk * Bild Rhein-Neckar * Meier (magazine)

Education

* Primary schools: ** Schillerschule ** Goetheschule ** Nibelungenschule ** Friedrich-Fröbel-Schule * Primary school/

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 ...

/ Realschule: ** Friedrich-Fröbel-Schule *

comprehensive school A comprehensive school typically describes a secondary school for pupils aged approximately 11–18, that does not select its intake on the basis of academic achievement or aptitude, in contrast to a selective school system where admission is res ...

/ Realschule/ Gymnasium: ** Alexander-von-Humboldt-Schule * Gymnasium: ** Albertus-Magnus-Schule – Gymnasium sponsored by the Bishopric of Mainz * Special school: ** Albert-Schweizer-Schule Further schools with specific profiles are to be found in the neighbouring cities. The nearest colleges and universities are found in nearby Mannheim and Heidelberg.

Culture and sightseeing

Museums and galleries

* ''Europäisches Fotozentrum für junge Fotografie'' * Heimatmuseum (local history) * Humboldt-Galerie * Kunsthaus Viernheim (art) * Kunstverein Viernheim (art club)

Churches

* Evangelische Auferstehungskirche, Berliner Ring (Church of the Resurrection) * Evangelische Christuskirche, Saarlandstaße * Kapelle St. Josef, Bürgermeister Neff-Straße 15 ( Tridentine Mass) * Neuapostolische Kirche, Maria-Mandel-Straße* St. Apostel Kirche * St. Hildegard * St. Marien Kirche * St. Michael

Parks

* Tivoli Park * Viernheimer Vogelpark

Bodies of water

* Bannholzgraben * Schwarzer brook * Waldsee (popularly "Anglersee"), a large artificial pond and recreation area.

Buildings

* Marienkirche * Various other churches of Germany's two predominant denominations: ** Evangelical *** Auferstehungskirche *** Christuskirche *** Freie Evangelische Gemeinde ** Catholic *** Kapelle St. Josef *** Kirche St. Aposteln *** Kirche St. Hildegard *** Kirche St. Marien *** Kirche St. Michael * Warriors' Memorial on Weinheimer Straße

Sport

* Badminton Club Viernheim * Balettschule Heide Heidt (ballet school) * ERC Viernheim ( artistic roller skating) * Golf Club Mannheim-Viernheim * Ski Club Viernheim *

TSV Amicitia Viernheim The TSV Amicitia Viernheim is a Football in Germany, German association football club from the city of Viernheim, Hesse. Due to the close proximity of Viernheim to Baden-Württemberg, the club plays in the league system of this state. The club ...

* Turnverein von 1893 Viernheim (TV 1893, gymnastic club) * 1.Viernheimer Karate Dojo * Viernheimer Billiard Club 1967 * Viernheimer SV (swimming club)

Regular events

* February:

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 ...

parade or Street Carnival (alternating each year) * May: 1 May Labour Day:

German Confederation of Trade Unions The German Trade Union Confederation (german: Deutscher Gewerkschaftsbund; DGB) is an umbrella organisation (sometimes known as a national trade union center) for eight German trade unions, in total representing more than 6 million people ...

celebration * May: Tanz in den Mai; Traditionelles May Day at the fire station, Brundtlandfest * July: first weekend, traditional community festival of community association, Viernheim * July: CdG-Sommerfest in Bavarian style* August: MGV- Gartenfest (first weekend in August) * August: MGV- Gartenfest (first weekend in August) * August: Viernheimer Triathlon (1,5 / 46 / 10) * September: Innenstadtfest (downtown festival) * September: Südhessische Akkordeontage * November: Kerwe (church consecration festival) * December: Christmas Market * 24-hour walk, St. Michael's parish * Parish festivals * Seifenkistenrennen (soapbox race) of the Viernheim scouts

Notable people

* Jakob Keller (1873–1961), judge, politician, Member of Landtag ( centre) * Joachim Jung (born 1954), actor and screenwriter * Ulrich Tukur (born 1957), actor and musician *

Claudia Tonn Claudia Tonn (born 18 April 1981 in Viernheim) is a German heptathlete. Her personal best result is 6373 points, achieved in June 2006 in Ratingen Ratingen ( li, Rotinge) is a town in the district of Mettmann in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. I ...

(born 1981), heptathlete

Honorary citizens

* 1948: Prof. Dr. Ludwig Bergsträsser, chairman of the first postwar Hessian government (1883–1960) * 1948: Hans Mayr, rector (1864–1958), editor of the "Chronik der Stadt Viernheim" * 1949: Dr. Karl Alter, Archbishop of Cincinnati (1885–1977) * 1965: Dr. Nikolaus Hattemer, deacon (1900–1970) * 1973: Anton Darmstadt, clergyman (1900–1981) * 1975: Hans Mandel, mayor (1917–2010) * 1975: Michael Bugert, honorary town councillor (1905–1989)

Clubs

* Spvgg. Amicitia 09 – football * Club der Gemütlichen – Carnival club * Große Drei – Carnival club * Turnverein von 1893 e. V. Viernheim – gymnastics * KJG – St. Michael, St. Aposteln, St. Marien, St. Hildegard * TSV Viernheim – sport club * Herolde – music * TC Viernheim – tennis * Kunstverein Viernheim – art * Kerweverein Viernheim – church consecration festival club * Evangelischer Posaunenchor Viernheim – choir * ASV Viernheim 1968 e. V. – Angelsport-Verein – angling * SRC -Stemm- und Ringclub Viernheim e. V. * Stadtnetz und Internet Freunde Viernheim e. V. * Frauenchor 1947 Viernheim e. V. – women's choir * Männergesangverein 1846 Viernheim e. V. – men's choir * Sportschützenverein Viernheim 1953 e. V. – shooting * Siedlergemeinschaft Viernheim e. V. – community association

References

External links

Official webpage
*
More interesting views in the "Viernheim Foto-Galerie"
{{Authority control Towns in Hesse Bergstraße (district)

Geography

Location

Neighbouring communities

Constituent communities

History

Population development

Religion

Churches

Politics

Town council

Mayors

Coat of arms

Twin towns – sister cities

Economy and infrastructure

Transport

Road transport

Local public transport

Rail transport

Established businesses

Media

Education

Culture and sightseeing

Museums and galleries

Churches

Parks

Bodies of water

Buildings

Sport

Regular events

Notable people

Honorary citizens

Clubs

Further reading

References

External links