Viersen (; li, Veeëse) is the capital of the district of Viersen, in

North Rhine-Westphalia North Rhine-Westphalia (german: Nordrhein-Westfalen, ; li, Noordrien-Wesfale ; nds, Noordrhien-Westfalen; ksh, Noodrhing-Wäßßfaale), commonly shortened to NRW (), is a state (''Land'') in Western Germany. With more than 18 million inha ...

, Germany.

Geography

Viersen is situated approximately 8 km north-west of

Mönchengladbach Mönchengladbach (, li, Jlabbach ) is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located west of the Rhine, halfway between Düsseldorf and the Dutch border. Geography Municipal subdivisions Since 2009, the territory of Möncheng ...

, 15 km south-west of

Krefeld Krefeld ( , ; li, Krieëvel ), also spelled Crefeld until 1925 (though the spelling was still being used in British papers throughout the Second World War), is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located northwest of Düsseldorf, ...

and 20 km east of

Venlo Venlo () is a city and municipality in the southeastern Netherlands, close to the border with Germany. It is situated in the province of Limburg, about 50 km east of the city of Eindhoven, 65 km north east of the provincial capital Maastricht, a ...

(

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

Division of the town

The city of Viersen is made up of three (formerly independent) cities:

Süchteln Süchteln is a borough (''Stadtbezirk'') of Viersen, a town which is the centre of the ''Districts of Germany, Kreis'' of Viersen in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Süchteln was formerly an independent town; the Catholic parish church of Pope Cl ...

Dülken Dülken is a town located in the North Rhine-Westphalia state of Germany. It has a population of about 20,000. It is a borough of the municipality of Viersen. It received its town charter in 1364 thus being the oldest part of the municipality of V ...

and Viersen, which combined in 1970, and one former village, Boisheim, which combined with Viersen in 1968.

Politics

The current mayor of Viersen is Sabine Anemüller of the Socila Democratic Party (SPD) since 2015. The most recent mayoral election was held on 13 September 2020, with a runoff held on 27 September, and the results were as follows: ! rowspan=2 colspan=2, Candidate ! rowspan=2, Party ! colspan=2, First round ! colspan=2, Second round , - ! Votes ! % ! Votes ! % , - , bgcolor=, , align=left, Christoph Hopp , align=left, Christian Democratic Union , 11,438 , 40.5 , 11,572 , 49.2 , - , bgcolor=, , align=left, Sabine Anemüller , align=left,

Social Democratic Party The name Social Democratic Party or Social Democrats has been used by many political parties in various countries around the world. Such parties are most commonly aligned to social democracy as their political ideology. Active parties For ...

, 10,965 , 38.8 , 11,955 , 50.8 , - , bgcolor=, , align=left, Martina Maaßen , align=left,

Alliance 90/The Greens Alliance 90/The Greens (german: Bündnis 90/Die Grünen, ), often simply referred to as the Greens ( ), is a green political party in Germany. It was formed in 1993 as the merger of The Greens (formed in West Germany in 1980) and Alliance 90 (for ...

, 3,418 , 12.1 , - , bgcolor=, , align=left, Simon Männersdörfer , align=left, The Left , 1,098 , 3.9 , - , bgcolor=, , align=left, Frank a Campo , align=left, Free Democratic Party , 935 , 3.3 , - , bgcolor=, , align=left, Siegfried Martin , align=left, National Democratic Party , 404 , 1.4 , - ! colspan=3, Valid votes ! 28,258 ! 98.2 ! 23,527 ! 99.5 , - ! colspan=3, Invalid votes ! 521 ! 1.8 ! 118 ! 0.5 , - ! colspan=3, Total ! 28,779 ! 100.0 ! 23,645 ! 100.0 , - ! colspan=3, Electorate/voter turnout ! 63,176 ! 45.6 ! 63,169 ! 37.4 , - , colspan=7, Source: City of Viersen
1st round

City council

The Viersen city council governs the city alongside the Mayor. The most recent city council election was held on 13 September 2020, and the results were as follows: ! colspan=2, Party ! Votes ! % ! +/- ! Seats ! +/- , - , bgcolor=, , align=left, Christian Democratic Union (CDU) , 11,806 , 41.9 , 1.9 , 22 , 2 , - , bgcolor=, , align=left,

(SPD) , 6,669 , 23.7 , 2.3 , 13 , 2 , - , bgcolor=, , align=left,

(Grüne) , 5,491 , 19.5 , 7.9 , 11 , 5 , - , bgcolor=, , align=left, The Left (Die Linke) , 1,417 , 5.0 , 0.5 , 3 , ±0 , - , bgcolor=, , align=left, Free Democratic Party (FDP) , 1,343 , 4.8 , 0.1 , 3 , ±0 , - , bgcolor=, , align=left,

Alternative for Germany Alternative for Germany (german: link=no, Alternative für Deutschland, AfD; ) is a right-wing populist * * * * * * * political party in Germany. AfD is known for its opposition to the European Union, as well as immigration to Germany. ...

(AfD) , 1,142 , 4.1 , New , 2 , New , - , colspan=7 bgcolor=lightgrey, , - , bgcolor=, , align=left,

Die PARTEI (''Party for Labour, Rule of Law, Animal Protection, Promotion of Elites and Grassroots Democratic Initiative''), or Die PARTEI (''The PARTY''), is a German political party. It was founded in 2004 by the editors of the German satirical magazi ...

, 195 , 0.7 , New , 0 , New , - , bgcolor=, , align=left, National Democratic Party (NPD) , 107 , 0.4 , 1.0 , 0 , 1 , - ! colspan=2, Valid votes ! 28,170 ! 98.0 ! ! ! , - ! colspan=2, Invalid votes ! 584 ! 2.0 ! ! ! , - ! colspan=2, Total ! 28,754 ! 100.0 ! ! 54 ! 2 , - ! colspan=2, Electorate/voter turnout ! 63,176 ! 45.5 ! 2.1 ! ! , - , colspan=7, Source
City of Viersen

Economy

The companies

Mars Incorporated Mars, Incorporated is an American multinational manufacturer of confectionery, pet food, and other food products and a provider of animal care services, with US$40 billion in annual sales in 2021. Mars was ranked as the fourth-largest privat ...

(chocolate bars) and the "Kaiser's Tengelmann AG" (supermarkets) are situated in one of Viersen's industrial districts named Dülken-Mackenstein. Viersen bismarckturm

Culture

Recurring events

* International Jazz Festival in Viersen's Festival Hall (Festhalle). ''September'' * The

World Championships A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game, ...

Carom billiards Carom billiards, sometimes called carambole billiards, is the overarching title of a family of cue sports generally played on cloth-covered, billiard tables. In its simplest form, the object of the game is to score or "counts" by ' one's o ...

take place in Viersen's Festival Hall (Festhalle). ''March'' * Big

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 t ...

Parades in all 3 city parts. The one in

is one of the biggest and most traditional Parades in

. ''February'' * The

Dülkener Schöppenmarkt The Dülkener Schöppenmarkt (i. e. „Shovel Fair“) in Dülken is one of the largest and oldest country-fairs or Krammärkte in Western Germany. Date, Place, numbers of visitors The ''Schöppenmarkt'' takes place on Ash Wednesday following car ...

, a type of flea/junk market, which takes place on the day after the last

parade, is one of Germany's biggest. ''February'' * Big free flea market in Viersen's pedestrian zone, where only children are allowed to sell. Biggest market of this type in Germany. ''Summer'' * "Viersen blüht" (''Viersen is blooming'') is a voluntary initiative which places arrangements and sculptures of flowers all over the city's pedestrian zone. ''Summer'' * International Biker Meeting, organized by the local biker-club
MC Viersen 1980 e.V.
. ''2nd weekend each September'' *

Viersen Jazz Festival The Viersen Jazz Festival is a music festival held every autumn in Viersen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It was established in 1969 as ''1. Internationales Niederrheinisches Jazz Festival''. History After the first year it took almost 18 ye ...

. ''4th weekend each September'' * Big kite-flying-festival. ''Autumn'' Skulptur monument

Main sights

Viersen sculpture collection The Viersen Sculpture Collection belongs to the major sculpture parks in Germany and is located in the center of Viersen (North Rhine-Westphalia). History The Viersen Sculpture Collection was built up during the last 25 years by the donation o ...

Städtische Galerie im Park Viersen Städtische Galerie im Park Viersen is the municipal art gallery of Viersen in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It has a collection of graphic reproductions. The gallery is located in an old town house, surrounded by a park with huge old trees hou ...

Viersen Bismarck Tower The Bismarck Tower located in Viersen (North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany) was erected in honour of the chancellor Otto von Bismarck and has since become an icon of the city of Viersen. Geographical situation The Bismarck-Tower is situated in hilly ...

Festhalle Viersen The Festhalle Viersen (Festival Hall Viersen) is a performance space in Viersen, a town located in the Lower Rhine region of Germany. It is well known for its theater and concert programme and is also the annual venue of the UMB World Three-cush ...

Transport

Viersen is connected to the region by a dense bus network and

Viersen station Viersen station is a station in the city of Viersen in the west of the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia. History The first Viersen station was opened on 5 October 1849 by the Aachen-Düsseldorf-Ruhrort Railway Company (german: Königliche ...

. The station is served by various local and regional rail lines.

Notable people

Gustav von Mevissen Gustav Mevissen, after 1884 known as Gustav von Mevissen, (20 May 1815 – 13 August 1899), was a German businessman and politician. Mevissen was born in Dülken, Rhine Province. He started by investing in textile industry and later in railway ...

(1815–1899), businessman and politician * Max Nonnenbruch (1857–1922), painter * Illa Martin (1900–1988), dendrologist, botanist, conservationist and dentist *

Albert Vigoleis Thelen Albert Vigoleis Thelen (28 September 1903 in Süchteln, Lower Rhine region, Germany - 9 April 1989 in Dülken, Germany) was a German author and translator (from Portuguese). Life Thelen was the son of booksellers Louis Thelen and Johanna Scheife ...

(1903–1989), author and translator *

Hilde Bruch Hilde Bruch (March 11, 1904 December 15, 1984) was a German-born American psychiatrist and psychoanalyst, known foremost for her work on eating disorders and obesity. Bruch emigrated to the United States in 1934. She worked and studied at vari ...

(1904–1984), psychoanalyst *

Erik Martin Erik Martin (12 January 1936 in Neuss – 25 April 2017) was a German writer, songwriter and composer of songs. He was the founder and editor of the literature and art magazine ''Muschelhaufen''. Life and work Erik Martin was the first-born son ...

(1936–2017), writer, songwriter and composer of songs * Helmut Reisen (born 1950), economist * Holger Henke (born 1960), political scientist * Elmar Theveßen (born 1967), TV-journalist and author * Till Brönner (born 1971), musician, arranger and producer * Mirja Boes (born 1971), comedian, actress and singer *

Udo Voigt Udo Voigt (; born 14 April 1952) is a German politician and former Member of the European Parliament (MEP) for the far-right and Neo-Nazi party National Democratic Party of Germany (NPD) between 2014 and 2019. He was a member of the European Parl ...

, politician *

Roosevelt Roosevelt may refer to: *Theodore Roosevelt (1858–1919), 26th U.S. president * Franklin D. Roosevelt (1882–1945), 32nd U.S. president Businesses and organisations * Roosevelt Hotel (disambiguation) * Roosevelt & Son, a merchant bank * Rooseve ...

(born 1990) music producer and singer *

Tim Stützle Tim Stützle (surname alternately spelled Stuetzle; born 15 January 2002) is a German professional ice hockey centre for the Ottawa Senators of the National Hockey League (NHL). Rated one of the top prospects available for the 2020 NHL Entry Dra ...

(born 2002), professional

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice ...

player for the

Ottawa Senators The Ottawa Senators (french: Sénateurs d'Ottawa), officially the Ottawa Senators Hockey Club and colloquially known as the Sens, are a professional ice hockey team based in Ottawa. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member ...

of the NHL

Twin towns – sister cities

Viersen is twinned with: *

Calau Calau (, dsb, Kalawa) is a small town in the Oberspreewald-Lausitz district, in southern Brandenburg, Germany. It is situated 14 km south of Lübbenau, and 27 km west of Cottbus. Calau is also called the home of the Kalauer. Geo ...

, Germany *

Kaniv Kaniv ( uk, Канів, ) city located in Cherkasy Raion, Cherkasy Oblast ( province) in central Ukraine. The city rests on the Dnieper River, and is also one of the main inland river ports on the Dnieper. It hosts the administration of Kaniv ...

, Ukraine *

Lambersart Lambersart () is a commune in the Nord department in northern France. This commune is located in the Métropole Européenne de Lille, and is a suburb of the city of Lille, bordering it on its northwest side. Inhabitants of the town are called ...

, France *

Mittweida Mittweida () is a town in Saxony, Germany, in the Mittelsachsen district. Geography Mittweida is situated on the river Zschopau, 18 km north of Chemnitz, and 54 km west of Dresden. Embedded within the steep hills and valleys of the riv ...

, Germany * Pardesiya, Israel *

Peterborough Peterborough () is a cathedral city in Cambridgeshire, east of England. It is the largest part of the City of Peterborough unitary authority district (which covers a larger area than Peterborough itself). It was part of Northamptonshire unti ...

, England, United Kingdom

References

External links

* *

Kempen, Germany Kempen () is a town in the district of Viersen, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is situated approximately northwest of Düsseldorf, and east of Venlo. History * 1186: First mention in official documentation of Kempen as a place – th ...

{{Authority control Viersen (district)