The Hunsrück () is a long, triangular, pronounced
upland
Upland or Uplands may refer to:
Geography
*Hill, an area of higher land, generally
*Highland, an area of higher land divided into low and high points
*Upland and lowland, conditional descriptions of a plain based on elevation above sea level
*I ...
in
Rhineland-Palatinate
Rhineland-Palatinate ( , ; ; ; ) 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 sixteen states. Mainz is the capital and largest city. Other cities are ...
,
Germany
Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...
. It is bounded by the valleys of the
Moselle-Saar (north-to-west), the Nahe (south), and the
Rhine
The Rhine ( ) is one of the List of rivers of Europe, major rivers in Europe. The river begins in the Swiss canton of Graubünden in the southeastern Swiss Alps. It forms part of the Swiss-Liechtenstein border, then part of the Austria–Swit ...
(east). It is continued by the
Taunus
The Taunus () is a mountain range in Hesse and Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany, located north west of Frankfurt and north of Wiesbaden. The tallest peak in the range is '' Großer Feldberg'' at 878 m; other notable peaks are '' Kleiner Feldberg' ...
mountains, past the Rhine and by the
Eifel
The Eifel (; , ) is a low mountain range in western Germany, eastern Belgium and northern Luxembourg. It occupies parts of southwestern North Rhine-Westphalia, northwestern Rhineland-Palatinate and the southern area of the German-speaking Com ...
past the Moselle. To the south of the Nahe is a lower, hilly country forming the near bulk of the
Palatinate region
The Palatinate (; ; Palatine German: ''Palz''), or the Rhenish Palatinate (''Rheinpfalz''), is a historical region of Germany. The Palatinate occupies most of the southern quarter of the German federal state of Rhineland-Palatinate (''Rheinla ...
and all of the, smaller,
Saarland
Saarland (, ; ) is a state of Germany in the southwest of the country. With an area of and population of 990,509 in 2018, it is the smallest German state in area apart from the city-states of Berlin, Bremen, and Hamburg, and the smallest in ...
. Below its north-east corner is
Koblenz
Koblenz ( , , ; Moselle Franconian language, Moselle Franconian: ''Kowelenz'') is a German city on the banks of the Rhine (Middle Rhine) and the Moselle, a multinational tributary.
Koblenz was established as a Roman Empire, Roman military p ...
.
As the Hunsrück proceeds east it acquires north-south width and three notable gaps in its southern
ridge
A ridge is a long, narrow, elevated geomorphologic landform, structural feature, or a combination of both separated from the surrounding terrain by steep sides. The sides of a ridge slope away from a narrow top, the crest or ridgecrest, wi ...
s. In this zone are
multi-branch headwaters including the Simmerbach ending at
Simmertal
Simmertal is a municipality in the district of Bad Kreuznach in Rhineland-Palatinate, in western Germany
Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea ...
on the southern edge. This interior is therefore rarely higher than above sea level. Peaks and escarpments are principally: the
(Black Forest) Hochwald, the
Idar Forest
The Idar Forest (German: ''Idarwald'', Celtic language, Celtic: ''"id ar"'' - hill forest above the land) is part of the Hunsrück low mountain range in the German federal state of Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany.
Geography
The Idar Forest lies ...
, the
Soonwald
The Soonwald () is a forested, low mountain region, up to , which forms part of the Hunsrück mountains in the German Central Uplands. It lies within the counties of Rhein-Hunsrück-Kreis and Landkreis Bad Kreuznach, Bad Kreuznach in the state of ...
, and the
Bingen Forest
The Bingen Forest () is part of the Hunsrück, a low mountain range in the Central Uplands of Germany. It is up to and is located in the state of Rhineland-Palatinate.
Location
The landscape of the Bingen Forest lies on the boundary of the ...
. The highest mountain is the
Erbeskopf
The Erbeskopf () is a mountain in the Hunsrück range in central Germany. At a height of , it is the highest point in the state of Rhineland-Palatinate, as well as the highest point of German territory on the western bank of the Rhine. It lies ...
(816 m; 2,677 ft), towards the region's south-west.
Notable towns are
Simmern,
Kirchberg, and
Idar-Oberstein
Idar-Oberstein () is a town in the Birkenfeld (district), Birkenfeld Districts of Germany, district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. As a ''Große kreisangehörige Stadt'' (large city belonging to a district), it assumes some of the respons ...
,
Kastellaun
Kastellaun () is a town in the Rhein-Hunsrück-Kreis (district) in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is the seat of the like-named ''Verbandsgemeinde'', a kind of collective municipality.
Geography
Location
The town lies in the eastern Hunsrüc ...
, and
Morbach
Morbach is a Municipalities of Germany, municipality that belongs to no ''Verbandsgemeinde'' – a kind of collective municipality – in the Bernkastel-Wittlich Districts of Germany, district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is also a state ...
.
is at the centre of the upland, equidistant between
Mainz
Mainz (; #Names and etymology, see below) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate, and with around 223,000 inhabitants, it is List of cities in Germany by population, Germany's 35th-largest city. It lies in ...
,
Trier
Trier ( , ; ), formerly and traditionally known in English as Trèves ( , ) and Triers (see also Names of Trier in different languages, names in other languages), is a city on the banks of the Moselle (river), Moselle in Germany. It lies in a v ...
and Koblenz, co-named after the village of
Hahn.
Slate
Slate is a fine-grained, foliated, homogeneous, metamorphic rock derived from an original shale-type sedimentary rock composed of clay or volcanic ash through low-grade, regional metamorphism. It is the finest-grained foliated metamorphic ro ...
is still mined in the mountains. Since 2010, the region has become one of Germany's major onshore
wind power
Wind power is the use of wind energy to generate useful work. Historically, wind power was used by sails, windmills and windpumps, but today it is mostly used to generate electricity. This article deals only with wind power for electricity ge ...
regions. Large
wind farm
A wind farm, also called a wind park or wind power plant, is a group of wind turbines in the same location used to produce electricity. Wind farms vary in size from a small number of turbines to several hundred wind turbines covering an exten ...
s are near
Ellern and Kirchberg. Nature-based tourism is widespread. In 2015, a new
national park
A national park is a nature park designated for conservation (ethic), conservation purposes because of unparalleled national natural, historic, or cultural significance. It is an area of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that is protecte ...
was inaugurated. The pedestrian
Geierlay suspension bridge opened in the same year. The climate sees mists that rise most mornings. More rain than the German average is caused by a combination of an
oceanic influence and
relief precipitation
Orography is the study of the topographic relief of mountains, and can more broadly include hills, and any part of a region's elevated terrain. Orography (also known as ''oreography'', ''orology,'' or ''oreology'') falls within the broader dis ...
.
Culturally, the region is best known for its
Hunsrückisch dialect
Hunsrückisch is a German dialect spoken in the Hunsrück region of Germany (Rhineland-Palatinate). This mountainous region of Germany has long been an exporter of emigrants to Brazil, United States, Canada, Australia and other parts of the wor ...
and through depictions in the ''
Heimat
''Heimat'' () is a German word
translating to 'home' or 'homeland'.
The word has connotations specific to German culture, German society and specifically German Romanticism, German nationalism, German statehood and regionalism so that it h ...
'' film series. The region saw great
emigration
Emigration is the act of leaving a resident country or place of residence with the intent to settle elsewhere (to permanently leave a country). Conversely, immigration describes the movement of people into one country from another (to permanentl ...
in the mid-19th century, particularly to
Brazil
Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...
.
Geography
Location
The heart of the Hunsrück is formed by the Hunsrück Plateau and the
Simmern Bowl. In the northwest the Hunsrück is bounded by the
Moselle
The Moselle ( , ; ; ) is a river that rises in the Vosges mountains and flows through north-eastern France and Luxembourg to western Germany. It is a bank (geography), left bank tributary of the Rhine, which it joins at Koblenz. A sm ...
river and in the east by the
Rhine
The Rhine ( ) is one of the List of rivers of Europe, major rivers in Europe. The river begins in the Swiss canton of Graubünden in the southeastern Swiss Alps. It forms part of the Swiss-Liechtenstein border, then part of the Austria–Swit ...
. Its northeasternmost tip is thus formed by the
Deutsches Eck
The Deutsches Eck (, "German Corner") is the name of a promontory in Koblenz, Germany, where the Moselle, Mosel river joins the Rhine. Named after a local commandry of the Teutonic Order, it became known for a monumental equestrian statue of Wil ...
. The
Nahe – on the edge of the
Bingen Forest
The Bingen Forest () is part of the Hunsrück, a low mountain range in the Central Uplands of Germany. It is up to and is located in the state of Rhineland-Palatinate.
Location
The landscape of the Bingen Forest lies on the boundary of the ...
, the
Soonwald
The Soonwald () is a forested, low mountain region, up to , which forms part of the Hunsrück mountains in the German Central Uplands. It lies within the counties of Rhein-Hunsrück-Kreis and Landkreis Bad Kreuznach, Bad Kreuznach in the state of ...
and the
Lützelsoon
The Lützelsoon (also called the Kleiner Soon) is a part of the Hunsrück hills, , in the county of Bad Kreuznach, in the state of Rhineland-Palatinate.
Location
The Lützelsoon is a hill ridge southwest of the Soonwald range and north of ...
– borders the mountains to the south. The Lower
Naheland is not part of the Hunsrück, but belongs to the
Upper Rhine Plain
The Upper Rhine Plain, Rhine Rift Valley or Upper Rhine Graben ( German: ''Oberrheinische Tiefebene'', ''Oberrheinisches Tiefland'' or ''Oberrheingraben'', French: ''Vallée du Rhin'') is a major rift, about and on average , between Basel in the ...
. The
Idar Forest
The Idar Forest (German: ''Idarwald'', Celtic language, Celtic: ''"id ar"'' - hill forest above the land) is part of the Hunsrück low mountain range in the German federal state of Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany.
Geography
The Idar Forest lies ...
, the
Hochwald and the
Wildenburger Kopf adjoin the Hunsrück to the southwest. Here the
Upper Nahe Hills rise in the shadow of the Hunsrück. The
Osburger Hochwald
The Osburger Hochwald ("Osburg Upland Forest") lies southeast of the Osburger Hunsrück and has an area of 75 square kilometres. Together with the Schwarzwälder Hochwald, it forms the ''Hochwald'' or "upland forest" of the Hunsrück, the southw ...
,
Schwarzwälder Hochwald and the rivers
Saar
Saar or SAAR has several meanings:
People Given name
* Sarr Boubacar (born 1951), Senegalese professional football player
* Saar Ganor, Israeli archaeologist
* Saar Klein (born 1967), American film editor
Surname
* Ain Saar (born 1968), E ...
and
Ruwer
The Ruwer is a river in Germany with a length of . It is a right tributary of the Moselle. The valley of the Ruwer is a part of the Moselle wine-growing region near Trier in the state of Rhineland-Palatinate. It is famous for its Riesling wines, ...
form the western perimeter. Its southern continuation is formed by the
Westrich and the
North Palatine Uplands
The North Palatine Uplands (, ), sometimes shortened to Palatine Uplands (''Pfälzer Bergland''), is a low mountain range and landscape unit in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate and belongs mainly to the Palatinate region. It is part of ...
.
The low mountain range is around 100 km long (SW to NE) and an average of 25 to 30 km wide (NW to SE). Its perimeter is a heavily incised
peneplain
In geomorphology and geology, a peneplain is a low-relief plain formed by protracted erosion. This is the definition in the broadest of terms, albeit with frequency the usage of peneplain is meant to imply the representation of a near-final (or ...
with elongated ridges in the south (the ''Hochwald'', ''Idar Forest'', ''Soonwald'' and ''Bingen Forest''). The range, which begins at the Saar in the southwest and, with breaks, reaches as far as the Rhine, climbs to its highest point in the
Hochwald at the
Erbeskopf
The Erbeskopf () is a mountain in the Hunsrück range in central Germany. At a height of , it is the highest point in the state of Rhineland-Palatinate, as well as the highest point of German territory on the western bank of the Rhine. It lies ...
(816.32 m), the highest peak in the Hunsrück and in the
Rhenish Massif
The Rhenish Massif, Rhine Massif or Rhenish Uplands (, : 'Rhenish Slate Uplands') is a geologic massif in western Germany, eastern Belgium, Luxembourg and northeastern France. It is drained centrally, south to north by the river Rhine and a few ...
west of the Rhine. It continues to the NE as the Idar Forest with its highest peaks,
An den zwei Steinen (766.2 m) and the
Idarkopf (745.7 m). Its northeasternmost part is formed by the Soonwald (highest mountain: the
Ellerspring
The Ellerspring, at , is the highest point of the Soonwald, a part of the Hunsrück mountains in the German Central Uplands. It is situated near Winterbach (Soonwald), Winterbach in the county of Landkreis Bad Kreuznach, Bad Kreuznach in the state ...
, 656.8 m), the Lützelsoon (
Womrather Höhe
The Womrather Höhe, at , is the highest peak in the Lützelsoon hills, which are part of the Hunsrück mountains in Germany's Central Uplands. It is located in the counties of Rhein-Hunsrück-Kreis and Bad Kreuznach in the state of Rhineland-Palat ...
, 599.1 m) and the Bingen Forest (
Kandrich
The Kandrich, at , is the highest mountain in the Bingen Forest. It is near Daxweiler in the county of Bad Kreuznach in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate.
Geography
The Kandrich lies in the northern tip of the county of Bad Kreuznach an ...
, 638.6 m). All these ranges form an almost unbroken belt of forest. – To the east of the Rhine the crest of the Hunsrück is continued by the
Taunus
The Taunus () is a mountain range in Hesse and Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany, located north west of Frankfurt and north of Wiesbaden. The tallest peak in the range is '' Großer Feldberg'' at 878 m; other notable peaks are '' Kleiner Feldberg' ...
.
Geomorphologically
Geomorphology () is the scientific study of the origin and evolution of topographic and bathymetric features generated by physical, chemical or biological processes operating at or near Earth's surface. Geomorphologists seek to understand why ...
the Hunsrück bears great similarities to the
Eifel
The Eifel (; , ) is a low mountain range in western Germany, eastern Belgium and northern Luxembourg. It occupies parts of southwestern North Rhine-Westphalia, northwestern Rhineland-Palatinate and the southern area of the German-speaking Com ...
, the
Taunus
The Taunus () is a mountain range in Hesse and Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany, located north west of Frankfurt and north of Wiesbaden. The tallest peak in the range is '' Großer Feldberg'' at 878 m; other notable peaks are '' Kleiner Feldberg' ...
and the
Westerwald
The Westerwald (; literally 'Western forest') is a low mountain range on the right bank of the river Rhine in the States of Germany, German federal states of Rhineland-Palatinate, Hesse and North Rhine-Westphalia. It is a part of the Rhenish Ma ...
, which are also part of the
Rhenish Massif
The Rhenish Massif, Rhine Massif or Rhenish Uplands (, : 'Rhenish Slate Uplands') is a geologic massif in western Germany, eastern Belgium, Luxembourg and northeastern France. It is drained centrally, south to north by the river Rhine and a few ...
.
The Hunsrück hill road runs from west to east from
Saarburg
Saarburg (, ) is a city of the Trier-Saarburg district, in the state of Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany, on the banks of the river Saar in the hilly country a few kilometers upstream from the Saar's junction with the Moselle. Now known as a touris ...
to
Koblenz
Koblenz ( , , ; Moselle Franconian language, Moselle Franconian: ''Kowelenz'') is a German city on the banks of the Rhine (Middle Rhine) and the Moselle, a multinational tributary.
Koblenz was established as a Roman Empire, Roman military p ...
. A
Roman military road, the so-called
Via Ausonia also once ran through the mountains in an east-west direction and linked
Trier
Trier ( , ; ), formerly and traditionally known in English as Trèves ( , ) and Triers (see also Names of Trier in different languages, names in other languages), is a city on the banks of the Moselle (river), Moselle in Germany. It lies in a v ...
with
Bingen.
In many primary schools in the Hunsrück children are taught the boundaries of the Hunsrück using the following rhyme: ''"Mosel, Nahe, Saar und Rhein schließen unsern Hunsrück ein."'' ("Moselle, Nahe, Saar and Rhine enclose our Hunsrück")
Mountains and hills

The following table lists the highest mountains and hills of the Hunsrück by sub-range (Osburger and Schwarzwälder Hochwald, Idar Forest, Haardt Forest, Soonwald, Bingen Forest and Lützelsoon) and height in metres above
sea level (NN):
Flora and fauna
Despite, in places, intensive agricultural or timber use, the Hunsrück remains a landscape with a
biodiversity
Biodiversity is the variability of life, life on Earth. It can be measured on various levels. There is for example genetic variability, species diversity, ecosystem diversity and Phylogenetics, phylogenetic diversity. Diversity is not distribut ...
, because many elements of the landscape can only be extensively utilised or even not used at all.
Flora
The plant world of the Hunsrück is rich and varied. In the Soonwald there are over 850 species of
fern
The ferns (Polypodiopsida or Polypodiophyta) are a group of vascular plants (plants with xylem and phloem) that reproduce via spores and have neither seeds nor flowers. They differ from mosses by being vascular, i.e., having specialized tissue ...
s and flowers. The traditional forest monocultures are increasingly giving way, especially as a result of
windthrow
In forestry, windthrow refers to trees uprooted by wind. Breakage of the tree bole (botany), bole (trunk) instead of uprooting is called windsnap. Blowdown refers to both windthrow and windsnap.
Causes
Windthrow is common in all forested ...
damage, to
mixed woods, supporting a greater variety of plant species.
Fauna
Although the Hunsrück is not classified as a bird reserve, it is home to a wide variety of bird species:
woodpecker
Woodpeckers are part of the bird family (biology), family Picidae, which also includes the piculets, wrynecks and sapsuckers. Members of this family are found worldwide, except for Australia, New Guinea, New Zealand, Madagascar and the extreme ...
s,
birds of prey
Birds of prey or predatory birds, also known as (although not the same as) raptors, are hypercarnivorous bird species that actively predation, hunt and feed on other vertebrates (mainly mammals, reptiles and smaller birds). In addition to speed ...
and
song bird
A songbird is a bird belonging to the suborder Passeri of the perching birds (Passeriformes). Another name that is sometimes seen as the scientific or vernacular name is Oscines, from Latin ''oscen'', "songbird". The Passeriformes contains 5,00 ...
s may be seen at all times of the year. Even the rare and shy
black stork
The black stork (''Ciconia nigra'') is a large bird in the stork family Ciconiidae. It was first described by Carl Linnaeus in the 10th edition of his ''Systema Naturae''. Measuring on average from beak tip to end of tail with a wingspan, t ...
nests in the forests. The Hunsrück is rich in mammals;
red deer
The red deer (''Cervus elaphus'') is one of the largest deer species. A male red deer is called a stag or Hart (deer), hart, and a female is called a doe or hind. The red deer inhabits most of Europe, the Caucasus Mountains region, Anatolia, Ir ...
,
roe deer and
wild boar
The wild boar (''Sus scrofa''), also known as the wild swine, common wild pig, Eurasian wild pig, or simply wild pig, is a Suidae, suid native to much of Eurasia and North Africa, and has been introduced to the Americas and Oceania. The speci ...
are intensively hunted. Larger predators include a few examples of
European wildcat
The European wildcat (''Felis silvestris'') is a small wildcat species native to continental Europe, Great Britain, Turkey and the Caucasus. Its fur is brownish to grey with stripes on the forehead and on the sides and has a bushy tail with a bl ...
or even the
Eurasian lynx
The Eurasian lynx (''Lynx lynx'') is one of the four wikt:extant, extant species within the medium-sized wild Felidae, cat genus ''Lynx''. It is widely distributed from Northern Europe, Northern, Central Europe, Central and Eastern Europe to Cent ...
.
Red fox
The red fox (''Vulpes vulpes'') is the largest of the true foxes and one of the most widely distributed members of the order Carnivora, being present across the entire Northern Hemisphere including most of North America, Europe and Asia, plus ...
,
European badger
The European badger (''Meles meles''), also known as the Eurasian badger, is a badger species in the family Mustelidae native to Europe and West Asia and parts of Central Asia. It is classified as least concern on the IUCN Red List, as it has a w ...
s and
pine marten
The European pine marten (''Martes martes''), also known as the pine marten, is a mustelid native to and widespread in most of Europe, Asia Minor, the Caucasus, and parts of Iran, Iraq, and Syria. It is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red Lis ...
s are more commonly encountered.
The best known mammal in the Hunsrück has become the
barbastelle. It achieved notoriety when the presence of this rare species of bat delayed construction on the runway extension at Hahn Airport.
In the numerous wet areas,
amphibian
Amphibians are ectothermic, anamniote, anamniotic, tetrapod, four-limbed vertebrate animals that constitute the class (biology), class Amphibia. In its broadest sense, it is a paraphyletic group encompassing all Tetrapod, tetrapods, but excl ...
s, like the
fire salamander
The fire salamander (''Salamandra salamandra'') is a common species of salamander found in Europe.
It is black with yellow spots or stripes to a varying degree; some specimens can be nearly completely black while on others the yellow is dominant ...
, and
insect
Insects (from Latin ') are Hexapoda, hexapod invertebrates of the class (biology), class Insecta. They are the largest group within the arthropod phylum. Insects have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body (Insect morphology#Head, head, ...
s have found ideal habitats. Meanwhile, in areas covered by
dry grassland
The key characteristic of dry grasslands is that they have low-growing plants, causing the area to be quite open. They also have a mottled structure, which leads to a biome with sunny or semi-shaded areas. On top of that, their soil is relatively ...
or scree, numerous
reptile
Reptiles, as commonly defined, are a group of tetrapods with an ectothermic metabolism and Amniotic egg, amniotic development. Living traditional reptiles comprise four Order (biology), orders: Testudines, Crocodilia, Squamata, and Rhynchocepha ...
s like the
slowworm
The common slow worm (''Anguis fragilis'') is a species of legless lizard native to western Eurasia. It is also called a deaf adder, blindworm, or regionally, a long-cripple, steelworm, and hazelworm. The "blind" in blindworm refers to the lizar ...
and
smooth snake
The smooth snake (''Coronella austriaca'')Street D (1979). ''The Reptiles of Northern and Central Europe''. London: B.T. Batsford Ltd. 268 pp. . is a species of non-venomous snake in the family Colubridae. The species is found in northern and cen ...
have found a home. The
viper
Vipers are snakes in the family Viperidae, found in most parts of the world, except for Antarctica, Australia, Hawaii, Madagascar, New Zealand, Ireland, and various other isolated islands. They are venomous and have long (relative to non-vipe ...
does not occur in the Hunsrück.
History
Prehistory
Finds such as
stone axe
Stone tools have been used throughout human history but are most closely associated with prehistoric cultures and in particular those of the Stone Age. Stone tools may be made of either ground stone or knapped stone, the latter fashioned by a c ...
s indicate that the Hunsrück has been settled since the
New Stone Age
The Neolithic or New Stone Age (from Greek 'new' and 'stone') is an archaeological period, the final division of the Stone Age in Mesopotamia, Asia, Europe and Africa (c. 10,000 BCE to c. 2,000 BCE). It saw the Neolithic Revolution, a wide- ...
. Older discoveries, which prove that the area was either settled or crossed during the
Old Stone Age
The Paleolithic or Palaeolithic ( years ago) ( ), also called the Old Stone Age (), is a period in human prehistory that is distinguished by the original development of stone tools, and which represents almost the entire period of human prehist ...
, are rare.
Middle Palaeolithic
The Middle Paleolithic (or Middle Palaeolithic) is the second subdivision of the Paleolithic or Old Stone Age as it is understood in Europe, Africa and Asia. The term Middle Stone Age is used as an equivalent or a synonym for the Middle P ...
(ca. 200,000–400,000 B.C.) surface finds from
Weiler bei Bingen
Weiler bei Bingen is an ''Ortsgemeinde'' – a municipality belonging to a ''Verbandsgemeinde'', a kind of collective municipality – in the Mainz-Bingen district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. The winegrowing centre belongs to the ''Verbands ...
are an exception. By contrast the
Gravettian
The Gravettian is an archaeological industry of the European Upper Paleolithic that succeeded the Aurignacian circa 33,000 years BP. It is archaeologically the last European culture many consider unified, and had mostly disappeared by ...
(ca. 30,000–20,000 B.C.) sites in Heddesheim (in the municipality of
Guldental) and
Brey (in the municipality of
Rhens
Rhens () is a municipality in the district Mayen-Koblenz, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is situated on the left bank of the Rhine, approx. 10 km south of Koblenz.
Rhens was the seat of the former ''Verbandsgemeinde'' ("collective muni ...
) are the first settlements in the area around the Hunsrück. Other significant sites include the rather more recent Old Stone Age site of
Nußbaum
Nußbaum (or ''Nussbaum'') is an ''Ortsgemeinde (Germany), Ortsgemeinde'' – a Municipalities of Germany, municipality belonging to a ''Verbandsgemeinde'', a kind of collective municipality – in the Bad Kreuznach (district), Bad Kreuznach Dist ...
near Bad Sobernheim and the encampment of Late Palaeolithic deer hunters in Boppard, which was first discovered in 2001 by the ARRATA Archaeology Society. In 2014, Late Palaeolithic
rock carving
A petroglyph is an image created by removing part of a rock surface by incising, picking, carving, or abrading, as a form of rock art. Outside North America, scholars often use terms such as "carving", "engraving", or other descriptions o ...
s similar to those from southern France and Spain were found in the Hunsrück. They were portraits of animals, especially horses, about 25,000 years old carved into a 1.2 m² slab of slate.
The oldest witnesses from the New Stone Age are dated to no later than the
Middle Neolithic
The Neolithic or New Stone Age (from Greek 'new' and 'stone') is an archaeological period, the final division of the Stone Age in Mesopotamia, Asia, Europe and Africa (c. 10,000 BCE to c. 2,000 BCE). It saw the Neolithic Revolution, a wi ...
, relics of the so-called
Rössen culture
The Rössen culture or Roessen culture () is a Central European Archaeological culture, culture of the Neolithic Europe, middle Neolithic (4,600–4,300 BC).
It is named after the necropolis of Rössen (part of Leuna, in the Saalekreis district, ...
(whose sites include
Biebernheim and
Reckershausen). The majority of finds, especially of stone axes date, however, to the
Late Neolithic
In the Near Eastern archaeology, archaeology of Southwest Asia, the Late Neolithic, also known as the Ceramic Neolithic or Pottery Neolithic, is the final part of the Neolithic period, following on from the Pre-Pottery Neolithic and preceding th ...
and belong to the
Michelsberg culture
The Michelsberg culture () is an important Neolithic Europe, Neolithic Archaeological culture, culture in Central Europe. Its dates are c. 4400–3500 BC. Its conventional name is derived from that of an important Excavation (archaeology), excavat ...
. Up to 2007, numerous oval stone axes were discovered, especially in the Fore-Hunsrück (
Morshausen,
Beulich
Beulich is an – a municipality belonging to a , a kind of collective municipality – in the Rhein-Hunsrück-Kreis (district) in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It belongs to the ''Verbandsgemeinde'' Hunsrück-Mittelrhein, whose seat is in Emme ...
and
Macken). Likewise, finds of flint arrowheads point to a Late Neolithic (''inter alia'' at
Bell
A bell /ˈbɛl/ () is a directly struck idiophone percussion instrument. Most bells have the shape of a hollow cup that when struck vibrates in a single strong strike tone, with its sides forming an efficient resonator. The strike may be m ...
) and very Late Neolithic (
Hirzenach) settlement. Other finds from the
Bronze Age
The Bronze Age () was a historical period characterised principally by the use of bronze tools and the development of complex urban societies, as well as the adoption of writing in some areas. The Bronze Age is the middle principal period of ...
prove that there was continual settlement (especially documented by graves and grave goods). A greater process of settlement took place in the Early
Iron Age
The Iron Age () is the final epoch of the three historical Metal Ages, after the Chalcolithic and Bronze Age. It has also been considered as the final age of the three-age division starting with prehistory (before recorded history) and progre ...
(
Hallstatt period
The Hallstatt culture was the predominant Western and Central European archaeological culture of the Late Bronze Age (Hallstatt A, Hallstatt B) from the 12th to 8th centuries BC and Early Iron Age Europe (Hallstatt C, Hallstatt D) from the 8th to ...
) with the
Laufeld culture and in the
La Tène period
LA most frequently refers to Los Angeles, the second most populous city in the United States of America.
La, LA, or L.A. may also refer to:
Arts and entertainment Music
* La (musical note), or A, the sixth note
*"L.A.", a song by Elliott Smi ...
(5th– 1st century B.C.) with the
Hunsrück-Eifel culture, which has been linked with the
Celts
The Celts ( , see Names of the Celts#Pronunciation, pronunciation for different usages) or Celtic peoples ( ) were a collection of Indo-European languages, Indo-European peoples. "The Celts, an ancient Indo-European people, reached the apoge ...
. Examples of this culture include the coach grave of Bell, the
Waldalgesheim prince's grave
The Waldalgesheim chariot burial () was a 4th-century BC Celts, Celtic princely chariot burial site in Waldalgesheim, Germany, discovered in 1869.
It has given its name to the "Waldalgesheim Style" of artifacts of the La Tène culture, a more flui ...
, the
circular rampart of Otzenhausen, the
Pfalzfeld obelisk, the upland settlement of
Altburg in the Hahnenbach valley and the numerous fields of
tumuli
A tumulus (: tumuli) is a mound of Soil, earth and Rock (geology), stones raised over a grave or graves. Tumuli are also known as barrows, burial mounds, mounds, howes, or in Siberia and Central Asia as ''kurgans'', and may be found through ...
. At that time, the Hunsrück was the tribal area of the
Treveri
The Treveri (Gaulish language, Gaulish: *''Treweroi'') were a Germanic peoples, Germanic or Celts, Celtic tribe of the Belgae group who inhabited the lower valley of the Moselle (river), Moselle in modern day Germany from around 150 BCE, if not ea ...
.
Roman period
Between about 50 BC and AD 400 the
Romans
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
*Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of Roman civilization
*Epistle to the Romans, shortened to Romans, a letter w ...
opened up the Hunsrück by building a dense network of roads. The best known relic of this is the
Via Ausonia. Numerous finds of Roman farms (
Villa Rustica
Villa rustica () was the term used by the ancient Romans to denote a farmhouse or villa set in the countryside and with an agricultural section, which applies to the vast majority of Roman villas. In some cases they were at the centre of a large ...
), settlements, like the ''
vicus
In Ancient Rome, the Latin term (plural ) designated a village within a rural area () or the neighbourhood of a larger settlement. During the Republican era, the four of the city of Rome were subdivided into . In the 1st century BC, Augustus ...
''
Belginum, and military structures point to an almost total settlement of the region by the Romans.
Frankish period
The final years of the 4th century saw the decline and fall of the
Western Roman Empire
In modern historiography, the Western Roman Empire was the western provinces of the Roman Empire, collectively, during any period in which they were administered separately from the eastern provinces by a separate, independent imperial court. ...
. The
Franks
file:Frankish arms.JPG, Aristocratic Frankish burial items from the Merovingian dynasty
The Franks ( or ; ; ) were originally a group of Germanic peoples who lived near the Rhine river, Rhine-river military border of Germania Inferior, which wa ...
conquered the Roman territories and began to divide them up. This was the start of the great western and central European
empire of Francia. In the mid-8th century this was divided into ''
gaus'' under
Carolingian
The Carolingian dynasty ( ; known variously as the Carlovingians, Carolingus, Carolings, Karolinger or Karlings) was a Frankish noble family named after Charles Martel and his grandson Charlemagne, descendants of the Arnulfing and Pippinid c ...
rule. The northern part of the present Hunsrück foreland belonged to the
Trechirgau, the southern part to the
Nahegau
The Nahegau was a county in the Middle Ages, which covered the environs of the Nahe and large parts of present-day Rhenish Hesse, after a successful expansion of the narrow territory, which did not reach the Rhine, to the disadvantage of the Wo ...
. The Trechirgau was managed by the so-called
Bertholds, the Nahegau by the
Emichones
The Emichones () were an early medieval family in the southwestern German region. Its members were counts (''Gaugrafen'') in the Nahegau, perhaps as undercounts of the Salian dynasty. The conventional name Emichones is due to the prevailing first ...
. The capital of the Trechirgau, ''Trigorium'', was in
Treis.
Middle Ages to French period
The ''Hundesrucha'' is mentioned for the first time in a 1074 deed from
Ravengiersburg Abbey.
In the Middle Ages, the Hunsrück was territorially fragmented between the
counts Palatine of the Rhine, the archbishops of
Trier
Trier ( , ; ), formerly and traditionally known in English as Trèves ( , ) and Triers (see also Names of Trier in different languages, names in other languages), is a city on the banks of the Moselle (river), Moselle in Germany. It lies in a v ...
, the counts of
Sponheim
Sponheim is a municipality in the district of Bad Kreuznach in Rhineland-Palatinate in western Germany.
History
Sponheim was the capital of the County of Sponheim.
Sponheim Abbey
There was a Benedictine abbey which was founded in 1101 by Steph ...
and the successors of the
Emichones
The Emichones () were an early medieval family in the southwestern German region. Its members were counts (''Gaugrafen'') in the Nahegau, perhaps as undercounts of the Salian dynasty. The conventional name Emichones is due to the prevailing first ...
(the
Wildgraves
The first Waldgraves or Wildgraves (Latin: ''comites silvestres'') descended from a division of the House of the Counts of Nahegau in the year 1113.
When the (a countship named after the river Nahe) split into two parts in 1113, the count ...
, the
Raugraves
The Raugraves were a German noble family, which had its center of influence in the former Nahegau. They descended from the Emichones (Counts of Nahegau).
History
First family in the 12th until 15th centuries
The family of the Raugraves (th ...
and the counts of
Veldenz
Veldenz is an ''Ortsgemeinde'' – a municipality belonging to a ''Verbandsgemeinde'', a kind of collective municipality – in the Bernkastel-Wittlich district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is the former main seat of the County of Veldenz, ...
). There were also a number of smaller dominions. Due to the multitude of dominions, many castles and customs stations were built, mainly between 11th to mid 14th century, which still shape the landscape today.
In 1410 the
Principality of Simmern emerged as a territory ruled by a side line of the counts Palatine. In the following years, Simmern became the most important residence of a noble family in the Hunsrück. Under
Duke John II the town achieved supra-regional importance for a short time.
After the
Thirty Years' War
The Thirty Years' War, fought primarily in Central Europe between 1618 and 1648, was one of the most destructive conflicts in History of Europe, European history. An estimated 4.5 to 8 million soldiers and civilians died from battle, famine ...
,
Louis XIV
LouisXIV (Louis-Dieudonné; 5 September 16381 September 1715), also known as Louis the Great () or the Sun King (), was King of France from 1643 until his death in 1715. His verified reign of 72 years and 110 days is the List of longest-reign ...
of France made reunification demands on several principalities in the Palatinate, the Hunsrück and the Eifel. He had his troops invade and thus precipitated the
Nine Years' War
The Nine Years' War was a European great power conflict from 1688 to 1697 between Kingdom of France, France and the Grand Alliance (League of Augsburg), Grand Alliance. Although largely concentrated in Europe, fighting spread to colonial poss ...
. In 1689 Kirchberg, Kastellaun, Simmern and the town and castle of Stromberg were set on fire. Then came the chaos of war, which led to the
War of the Spanish Succession
The War of the Spanish Succession was a European great power conflict fought between 1701 and 1714. The immediate cause was the death of the childless Charles II of Spain in November 1700, which led to a struggle for control of the Spanish E ...
and which ended in 1713.
In the following years, trade and commerce grew. In the Hunsrück the first industry was set up by the families of Hauzeur, Pastert and Stumm. They ran mining, processing and ore smelting businesses. These, in turn, spurred the manufacture of implements for the house, farming and handicrafts: ovens, pans, boilers, weights, spades, nails, hammers, anvils, looms, spinning wheels and ammunition (cannonballs and shells weighing from 2 to 30 pounds). Leaders in the iron processing industry were the family of Stumm. Their progenitor, Christian Stumm, was a
blacksmith
A blacksmith is a metalsmith who creates objects primarily from wrought iron or steel, but sometimes from #Other metals, other metals, by forging the metal, using tools to hammer, bend, and cut (cf. tinsmith). Blacksmiths produce objects such ...
in
Rhaunensulzbach. Two of his sons were important entrepreneurs. Johann Nikolaus Stumm (1668-1743) was a
smeltery owner and his sons, Johann Ferdinand,
Friedrich Philipp and
Christian Philipp Stumm, bought the
Neunkirchen ironworks on 22 March 1806, part of today's
Saarstahl AG.
Johann Michael Stumm (1683-1747) was the founder of an
organ building workshop.
The notorious robbers, Johannes Bückler (known as ''
Schinderhannes
Johannes Bückler ( 177821 November 1803; ) was a German outlaw who orchestrated one of the most famous crime sprees in German history. He has been nicknamed Schinderhannes and Schinnerhannes () in German and John the Scorcher, John the Flayer ...
'') and
Johann Peter Petri (''Black Peter'') brought insecurity to the Hunsrück in the late 18th century.
In 1792, as a result of the
French Revolution and the seizure of power by
Napoleon
Napoleon Bonaparte (born Napoleone di Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French general and statesman who rose to prominence during the French Revolution and led Military career ...
, French troops once again invaded the territories west of the Rhine and annexed them during the
French period
In Northern European historiography, the term French period (, , ) refers to the period between 1794 and 1815 during which most of Northern Europe was controlled by Republican or Napoleonic France.Eduard Rothert''Rheinland-Westfalen im Wechsel d ...
. After the defeat of Napoleon at
Waterloo
Waterloo most commonly refers to:
* Battle of Waterloo, 1815 battle where Napoleon's French army was defeated by Anglo-allied and Prussian forces
* Waterloo, Belgium
Waterloo may also refer to:
Other places
Australia
* Waterloo, New South Wale ...
in 1815, most of the Hunsrück was reallocated at the
Congress of Vienna
The Congress of Vienna of 1814–1815 was a series of international diplomatic meetings to discuss and agree upon a possible new layout of the European political and constitutional order after the downfall of the French Emperor Napoleon, Napol ...
to
Prussia
Prussia (; ; Old Prussian: ''Prūsija'') was a Germans, German state centred on the North European Plain that originated from the 1525 secularization of the Prussia (region), Prussian part of the State of the Teutonic Order. For centuries, ...
's
Rhine Province
The Rhine Province (), also known as Rhenish Prussia () or synonymous with the Rhineland (), was the westernmost Provinces of Prussia, province of the Kingdom of Prussia and the Free State of Prussia, within the German Reich, from 1822 to 1946. ...
. Parts of today's
Birkenfeld
Birkenfeld () is a town and the district seat of the Birkenfeld (district), Birkenfeld Districts of Germany, district in southwest Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is also the seat of the Birkenfeld (Verbandsgemeinde), like-named ''Verbandsge ...
and the northern Saarland belonged to the Oldenburg
Principality of Birkenfeld
The Principality of Birkenfeld (), known after 1919 as the Region of Birkenfeld (), was an exclave of the Grand Duchy and then the Free State of Oldenburg from 1817 until 1937, when it was incorporated into Prussia. It was located in the Nahe reg ...
until 1937.
Prussia era and emigration
The economic situation in the Hunsrück became serious during the years 1815-1845. A poor harvest in 1815 was followed by the
year without a summer
The year 1816 is known as the Year Without a Summer because of severe climate abnormalities that caused average global temperatures to decrease by . Summer temperatures in Europe were the coldest of any on record between 1766 and 2000, resultin ...
in 1816; grain prices rose rapidly and 1817 became a year of famine.
In September 1822, the Brazilian government sent
Georg Anton Schäffer
Georg Anton Schäffer (rarely russified as ''Yegor Nikolayevich'' or ''Egor Antonovich'' ''Sheffer''; ''von Schaeffer'' in Portuguese sources; 27 January 1779 – 1836) was a German physician in the employ of the Russian-American Company wh ...
to Germany to recruit
mercenaries
A mercenary is a private individual who joins an War, armed conflict for personal profit, is otherwise an outsider to the conflict, and is not a member of any other official military. Mercenaries fight for money or other forms of payment rath ...
and
colonists
A settler or a colonist is a person who establishes or joins a permanent presence that is separate to existing communities. The entity that a settler establishes is a settlement. A settler is called a pioneer if they are among the first settli ...
. He arrived in 1823, as a representative of Emperor
Dom Pedro I of Brazil, and visited the
Hanseatic cities
The Hanseatic League was a Middle Ages, medieval commercial and defensive network of merchant guilds and market towns in Central Europe, Central and Northern Europe, Northern Europe. Growing from a few Northern Germany, North German towns in the ...
,
Frankfurt
Frankfurt am Main () is the most populous city in the States of Germany, German state of Hesse. Its 773,068 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the List of cities in Germany by population, fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located in the forela ...
and many of the German courts. This mission sparked the first major wave of German emigrants to
Brazil
Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...
. Many of them were recruited by Schäffer from the Hunsrück, the northern and western parts of present-day
Saarland
Saarland (, ; ) is a state of Germany in the southwest of the country. With an area of and population of 990,509 in 2018, it is the smallest German state in area apart from the city-states of Berlin, Bremen, and Hamburg, and the smallest in ...
and the
Western Palatinate.
The first immigrants from the Hunsrück settled in 1824 in what is now the Brazilian state of
Rio Grande do Sul
Rio Grande do Sul (, ; ; "Great River of the South") is a Federative units of Brazil, state in the South Region, Brazil, southern region of Brazil. It is the Federative units of Brazil#List, fifth-most populous state and the List of Brazilian s ...
, near the city of
São Leopoldo
São Leopoldo () (Portuguese for ''Saint Leopold'') is a Brazilian industrial city located in the south state of Rio Grande do Sul.
Geography
It occupies a total area of 103.9 km2 (around 80 km2 urban area) at ''circa'' 30 km fr ...
. Not until 1830 did the number of emigrants to Brazil begin to fall.
The 1840s in Europe were marked by inflation,
crop failure
Harvesting is the process of collecting plants, animals, or fish (as well as fungi) as food, especially the process of gathering mature crops, and "the harvest" also refers to the collected crops. Reaping is the cutting of grain or pulses fo ...
s and a degree of social unrest, so that again (especially in 1846 and 1861) many people in Hunsrück decided to leave in two more waves of emigration, especially to
North America
North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere, Northern and Western Hemisphere, Western hemispheres. North America is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South Ameri ...
and
Brazil
Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...
.
In August 1846, it was announced in
Dunkirk
Dunkirk ( ; ; ; Picard language, Picard: ''Dunkèke''; ; or ) is a major port city in the Departments of France, department of Nord (French department), Nord in northern France. It lies from the Belgium, Belgian border. It has the third-larg ...
, that free passage to Brazil would no longer be possible. At this time there were over 800 people waiting there. Prussia refused to give any assistance to the impoverished and helpless emigrants. They were transported from France in three warships to
Algeria
Algeria, officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It is bordered to Algeria–Tunisia border, the northeast by Tunisia; to Algeria–Libya border, the east by Libya; to Alger ...
and settled in the villages of Stidia and Sainte-Léonie. Most of their descendants returned to France after the
Algerian War
The Algerian War (also known as the Algerian Revolution or the Algerian War of Independence) ''; '' (and sometimes in Algeria as the ''War of 1 November'') was an armed conflict between France and the Algerian National Liberation Front (Algeri ...
in 1962.
Algerian emigration in regional history
at www.auswanderung-rlp.de.
As a result of the increasing neglect and deprivation of parts of the population in Germany during the era of industrialization
Industrialisation (British English, UK) American and British English spelling differences, or industrialization (American English, US) is the period of social and economic change that transforms a human group from an agrarian society into an i ...
, an Inner Mission association was founded at the initiative of the Simmern pastor, and later superintendent, Julius Reuss, in Simmern, with the aim of building a rescue centre in the Hunsrück for children living in poverty. In 1851, an area between Simmern and Nannhausen, the ''Schmiedel'', was acquired. There, the first building was erected as a "mother house" (''Mutterhaus'' or ''domus materna''), which opened on 13 September 1851 with a householder and twelve boys. Even today, the head offices of the ''Schmiedel'' organization remain on the site.
German Reich
After the Franco-Prussian War
The Franco-Prussian War or Franco-German War, often referred to in France as the War of 1870, was a conflict between the Second French Empire and the North German Confederation led by the Kingdom of Prussia. Lasting from 19 July 1870 to 28 Janua ...
of 1870/1871 and the foundation of the German Reich
German ''Reich'' (, from ) was the constitutional name for the German nation state that existed from 1871 to 1945. The ''Reich'' became understood as deriving its authority and sovereignty entirely from a continuing unitary German ''Volk'' ("na ...
under Prussia
Prussia (; ; Old Prussian: ''Prūsija'') was a Germans, German state centred on the North European Plain that originated from the 1525 secularization of the Prussia (region), Prussian part of the State of the Teutonic Order. For centuries, ...
's leadership, the so-called ''Gründerzeit
The (; ) was a period of Economic history of Europe (1000 AD–present), European economic history in mid- and late-19th century German Empire, Germany and Austria-Hungary between Industrialization in Germany, industrialization and the great P ...
'' began. Its success did not impact the Hunsrück until later, which is why many job seekers and even entire families went looking for work in the Ruhr area
The Ruhr ( ; , also ''Ruhrpott'' ), also referred to as the Ruhr Area, sometimes Ruhr District, Ruhr Region, or Ruhr Valley, is a polycentric urban area in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. With a population density of 1,160/km2 and a populati ...
and migrated there.
The Protestant pastor, later Prussian Landtag MP, Richard Oertel, founder of the Hunsrück Farmers' Union in 1892, and Albert Hackenberg, acting pastor in Hottenbach from 1879 to 1912, successfully worked to improve the economic, social and technological conditions in the Hunsrück region. They achieved this through the creation of dairy cooperatives
A dairy is a place where milk is stored and where butter, cheese, and other dairy products are made, or a place where those products are sold. It may be a room, a building, or a larger establishment. In the United States, the word may also des ...
, postal agencies and, in particular, through adult education
Adult education, distinct from child education, is a practice in which adults engage in systematic and sustained educating activities in order to gain new knowledge, skills, attitudes, or values. Merriam, Sharan B. & Brockett, Ralph G. ''The Pr ...
.
First and Second World War
The First World War
World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
, the Occupation Period and inflation
In economics, inflation is an increase in the average price of goods and services in terms of money. This increase is measured using a price index, typically a consumer price index (CPI). When the general price level rises, each unit of curre ...
also had a serious impact on the economy of the Hunsrück and its inhabitants, but there were not the political tensions that arose in many places in the German Reich.
A pioneer of industrialisation
Industrialisation ( UK) or industrialization ( US) 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 reorganisation of an economy for th ...
in the Hunsrück was entrepreneur, Michael Felke
Michael Felke (Laufersweiler, 18 April 1895 - Sohren, 8 April 1977) was a German furniture manufacturer.
Life
Michael Felke was the first of four children and came from a poor family background. He learned the job of a joiner in his father’s ...
. In 1919 he founded the Felke Möbelwerke, a company that produced and sold furniture in Central Europe until the late 1990s. It was one of the first major employers in the region.
In 1938 and 1939, the German army became interested in the Hunsrück region as a strategic deployment route to the German-French border and the Siegfried Line
The Siegfried Line, known in German as the ''Westwall (= western bulwark)'', was a German defensive line built during the late 1930s. Started in 1936, opposite the French Maginot Line, it stretched more than from Kleve on the border with the ...
, building the Hunsrück Highway, 140 kilometres long, in just 100 days. Supply depots and airfields were built in the woods on both sides of the road. In the Second World War
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
and post-war period, two places in the Hunsrück rose to notoriety: Hinzert concentration camp
Hinzert was a concentration camp in Nazi Germany, in what is now Rhineland-Palatinate, from the border with Luxembourg. Between 1939 and 1945, 13,600 political prisoners between the ages of 13 and 80 were imprisoned at Hinzert. Many were in trans ...
and Bretzenheim POW camp, the so-called "Field of Misery".
Cold War to the present
In 1946, most of the Hunsrück became part of the new state of Rhineland-Palatinate
Rhineland-Palatinate ( , ; ; ; ) 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 sixteen states. Mainz is the capital and largest city. Other cities are ...
, with small elements around Nonnweiler
Nonnweiler () is a municipality in the district of Sankt Wendel, in Saarland, Germany.
Overview
It is situated approximately 20 km northwest of Sankt Wendel, and 30 km southeast of Trier. The village is well known for the " Hillfort of ...
going to the Saarland.
During the Cold War
The Cold War was a period of global Geopolitics, geopolitical rivalry between the United States (US) and the Soviet Union (USSR) and their respective allies, the capitalist Western Bloc and communist Eastern Bloc, which lasted from 1947 unt ...
until the early 1990s, the Hunsrück was home to numerous military airfields, ammunition dumps, command positions and missile sites. The most famous were Hahn Air Base
Hahn Air Base was a United States Air Force (USAF) installation near Lautzenhausen in Germany for over forty years. The major unit was the 50th Tactical Fighter Wing of the USAF during most of the years it was active. In the mid-1970s, Hahn Air ...
, Pferdsfeld Air Base, the Börfink Command Bunker and the Pydna Missile Base.
In 1986/87, as a result of the NATO Double-Track Decision
The NATO Double-Track Decision was the decision by NATO from December 12, 1979, to offer the Soviet Union and Warsaw Pact a mutual limitation of medium-range ballistic missiles and intermediate-range ballistic missiles amidst the Soviet invasion o ...
, 96 cruise missile
A cruise missile is an unmanned self-propelled guided missile that sustains flight through aerodynamic lift for most of its flight path. Cruise missiles are designed to deliver a large payload over long distances with high precision. Modern cru ...
s, fitted with nuclear warhead
A nuclear weapon is an explosive device that derives its destructive force from nuclear reactions, either fission (fission or atomic bomb) or a combination of fission and fusion reactions (thermonuclear weapon), producing a nuclear expl ...
s, were to be stored at Pydna. On 11 Oct 1986, on the market place in Bell, what was probably the largest demonstration in the Hunsrück's history took place. Around 200,000 people, 95% of whom were not from the Hunsrück, peacefully protested against the deployment of the missiles. At the end of the day the "Hunsrück Declaration" was read out which called for a reversal of the security policy. This did not happen, however, the Cold War ended two years later anyway, and the missile based was closed on 31 August 1993, the land being acquired by the Kastellaun garrison authority.
Likewise the US airbase at Hahn was transferred in 1993 to the German authorities and became a civilian facility, . The airport has expanded steadily since that time.
In the early 1980s, the film director Edgar Reitz
Edgar Reitz (born 1 November 1932) is a German filmmaker and Professor of Film at the Staatliche Hochschule für Gestaltung (State University of Design) in Karlsruhe. He is best-known for his internationally acclaimed Heimat (film series), ''Hei ...
shot the first part of his trilogy ''Heimat
''Heimat'' () is a German word
translating to 'home' or 'homeland'.
The word has connotations specific to German culture, German society and specifically German Romanticism, German nationalism, German statehood and regionalism so that it h ...
'' in the Hunsrück, a large part of it in Woppenroth, also known as ''Schabbach''. In 2012, Reitz returned to the Hunsrück for the shooting of his film '' Die andere Heimat - Chronik einer Sehnsucht'' in the village of Gehlweiler. The film focuses on the Vormärz
' (; English: ''pre-March'') was a period in the history of Germany preceding the 1848 March Revolution in the states of the German Confederation. The beginning of the period is less well-defined. Some place the starting point directly after ...
era in the mid-19th century and the waves of emigration from the Hunsrück to Brazil.
Sights and attractions
* Baybach valley and Waldeck Castle
* Birkenfeld
Birkenfeld () is a town and the district seat of the Birkenfeld (district), Birkenfeld Districts of Germany, district in southwest Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is also the seat of the Birkenfeld (Verbandsgemeinde), like-named ''Verbandsge ...
: museum of the local history society; Birkenfeld Castle was the ''residenz
''Residenz'' () is a German word for "domicile", now obsolete except in the formal sense of an official residence. A related term, ''Residenzstadt'', denotes a city where a sovereign ruler resided, and thus carries a similar meaning to the contemp ...
'' of the Wittelsbach line of Palatinate-Birkenfeld {{short description, Collateral line of the Palatine Wittelsbachs
The House of Palatinate-Birkenfeld (German language, German: ''Pfalz-Birkenfeld''), later Palatinate-Birkenfeld-Zweibrücken, was the name of a collateral line of the Electoral Palat ...
; residenz ''schloss
''Schloss'' (; pl. ''Schlösser''), formerly written ''Schloß'', is the German term for a building similar to a château, palace, or manor house.
Related terms appear in several Germanic languages. In the Scandinavian languages, the cogn ...
'' of the grand dukes of Oldenburg
The Grand Duchy of Oldenburg (, also known as Holstein-Oldenburg) was a grand duchy within the German Confederation, North German Confederation and German Empire, that consisted of three widely separated territories: Oldenburg Land, Oldenburg, ...
* Bundenbach: ''Herrenberg'' roofing slate pit, Celtic settlement
* Dhaun Castle: medieval knight's castle
* Dickenschied: where the martyr
A martyr (, ''mártys'', 'witness' Word stem, stem , ''martyr-'') is someone who suffers persecution and death for advocating, renouncing, or refusing to renounce or advocate, a religious belief or other cause as demanded by an external party. In ...
Paul Schneider worked and is buried
* Dill
Dill (''Anethum graveolens'') is an annual herb in the celery family Apiaceae. It is native to North Africa, Iran, and the Arabian Peninsula; it is grown widely in Eurasia, where its leaves and seeds are used as a herb or spice for flavouring ...
: ruins of one of the Sponheim family castles; church with ceiling murals by Johann Georg Engisch
* Emmelshausen: Ehrbach Gorge, Baybach valley, Hunsrück Railway
The Hunsrück Railway () is a partially disused railway branch line in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate, which branches from the West Rhine Railway in Boppard and used to run as far as Simmern. The 38 kilometre section south of Emmelsh ...
* Erbeskopf
The Erbeskopf () is a mountain in the Hunsrück range in central Germany. At a height of , it is the highest point in the state of Rhineland-Palatinate, as well as the highest point of German territory on the western bank of the Rhine. It lies ...
''(part of Deuselbach
Deuselbach is an ''Ortsgemeinde'' – a Municipalities of Germany, municipality belonging to a ''Verbandsgemeinde'', a kind of collective municipality – in the Bernkastel-Wittlich Districts of Germany, district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany.
...
)'': ''Hunsrückhaus'' Museum, highest mountain in the Hunsrück
* Feilbingert: ''Schmittenstollen'' show mine
A show mine is a mine that is accessible to visitors.
A mine, i.e. an industrial facility for the underground extraction of mineral products, has three operating phases: it may be open or running, or closed or it may be a working museum. Most ...
* Fischbach (Nahe): Historic copper mine (open to visitors)
* Gemünden: Gemünden Castle, Koppenstein Castle
* Hattgenstein
Hattgenstein is an '' Ortsgemeinde'' – a municipality belonging to a ''Verbandsgemeinde'', a kind of collective municipality – in the Birkenfeld district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It belongs to the ''Verbandsgemeinde'' of Birkenfeld, w ...
: observation tower
* Hermeskeil
Hermeskeil () is a city in the Trier-Saarburg district, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is situated in the Hunsrück, approx. 25 km southeast of Trier. Its population is about 5,900.
Data
Hermeskeil is the seat of the ''Verbandsgemeind ...
: steam engine museum, Firefighting Museum and aviation museum
An aviation museum, air museum, or air and space museum is a museum exhibiting the history and cultural artifacts, artifacts of aviation. In addition to actual, replica or accurate reproduction aircraft, exhibits can include photographs, maps, Ph ...
* Herrstein: historic town centre
* Hinzert: memorial to the victims of Nazism at Hinzert concentration camp
Hinzert was a concentration camp in Nazi Germany, in what is now Rhineland-Palatinate, from the border with Luxembourg. Between 1939 and 1945, 13,600 political prisoners between the ages of 13 and 80 were imprisoned at Hinzert. Many were in trans ...
* Idar-Oberstein
Idar-Oberstein () is a town in the Birkenfeld (district), Birkenfeld Districts of Germany, district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. As a ''Große kreisangehörige Stadt'' (large city belonging to a district), it assumes some of the respons ...
: German Gemstone Museum, Rock church
Rock most often refers to:
* Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids
* Rock music, a genre of popular music
Rock or Rocks may also refer to:
Places United Kingdom
* Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...
, Gemstone show mine and much more.
* Kastellaun
Kastellaun () is a town in the Rhein-Hunsrück-Kreis (district) in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is the seat of the like-named ''Verbandsgemeinde'', a kind of collective municipality.
Geography
Location
The town lies in the eastern Hunsrüc ...
: castle ruins and old US nuclear missile base of Pydna
Pydna (; Greek: Πύδνα, ''Pýdna'') is a small town and a former municipality in the northeastern part of Pieria regional unit, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Pydna-Kolindros, of which it is a ...
* Kempfeld
Kempfeld is an ''Ortsgemeinde (Germany), Ortsgemeinde'' – a Municipalities of Germany, municipality belonging to a ''Verbandsgemeinde'', a kind of collective municipality – in the Birkenfeld (district), Birkenfeld Districts of Germany, district ...
: Wildenburg Castle and wildlife park on the Wildenburger Kopf
* Kirchberg: market place, St. Michael's Market (Thursday after St. Michael's Day)
* Krummenau: refuge of the famous ''Schinderhannes
Johannes Bückler ( 177821 November 1803; ) was a German outlaw who orchestrated one of the most famous crime sprees in German history. He has been nicknamed Schinderhannes and Schinnerhannes () in German and John the Scorcher, John the Flayer ...
''
* Leisel: Heiligenbösch church and Roman baths
* Morbach
Morbach is a Municipalities of Germany, municipality that belongs to no ''Verbandsgemeinde'' – a kind of collective municipality – in the Bernkastel-Wittlich Districts of Germany, district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is also a state ...
: telephone museum, Hinzerath: Baldenau Castle, Wederath: Belginum archaeological park, Weiperath: timber museum and Hunolstein: Hunolstein Castle
* Neuerkirch: Cultural History Museum, agricultural implements and machines, old handicraft skills, their products and village life and culture of bygone times
* Otzenhausen: Hunnenring, a Celtic
Celtic, Celtics or Keltic may refer to:
Language and ethnicity
*pertaining to Celts, a collection of Indo-European peoples in Europe and Anatolia
**Celts (modern)
*Celtic languages
**Proto-Celtic language
*Celtic music
*Celtic nations
Sports Foot ...
fortification
* Pfalzfeld: Flammensäule
* Ravengiersburg: "Hunsrück Cathedral" from the 12th/13th century
* Rhaunen
Rhaunen is an ''Ortsgemeinde (Germany), Ortsgemeinde'' – a Municipalities of Germany, municipality belonging to a ''Verbandsgemeinde'', a kind of collective municipality – in the Birkenfeld (district), Birkenfeld Districts of Germany, distri ...
: Protestant church with the oldest surviving Stumm organ dating to 1723, village with historic buildings from various style periods
* Sargenroth: the Nunkirche with fresco in the tower, Nunkircher Market (early September)
* Schneppenbach
Schneppenbach is an '' Ortsgemeinde'' – a municipality belonging to a ''Verbandsgemeinde'', a kind of collective municipality – in the Bad Kreuznach district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It belongs to the ''Verbandsgemeinde'' Kirner Lan ...
: Schmidtburg
The Schmidtburg is a ruined hill castle next to Schneppenbach (Hunsrück) in Germany. The castle was built up in 926, and was destroyed during the War of the Grand Alliance (1688–1697) by French troops in 1688.
File:Schmidtburg Castle Panora ...
, extensive castle
A castle is a type of fortification, fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by Military order (monastic society), military orders. Scholars usually consider a ''castle'' to be the private ...
ruins above the Hahnenbach stream
* Schwollen
Schwollen is an '' Ortsgemeinde'' – a municipality belonging to a ''Verbandsgemeinde'', a kind of collective municipality – in the Birkenfeld district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It belongs to the ''Verbandsgemeinde'' of Birkenfeld, whos ...
: Sauerbrunnen (fountain)
* Seesbach
Seesbach is a municipality in the district of Bad Kreuznach in Rhineland-Palatinate, in western Germany
Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea t ...
: Gateway to the Soonwald
The Soonwald () is a forested, low mountain region, up to , which forms part of the Hunsrück mountains in the German Central Uplands. It lies within the counties of Rhein-Hunsrück-Kreis and Landkreis Bad Kreuznach, Bad Kreuznach in the state of ...
, Semendis Chapel (murals by Bishop Willigis) Rock formation in the centre of the village dating to the last ice age
An ice age is a long period of reduction in the temperature of Earth's surface and atmosphere, resulting in the presence or expansion of continental and polar ice sheets and alpine glaciers. Earth's climate alternates between ice ages, and g ...
, RC parish church, Schinderhannes' Cave
* Siesbach: Roman gravesite
* Simmern: Schinderhannes Tower, local history museum in Simmern Castle, Hunsrück Museum, Simmern
* Spabrücken
Spabrücken is a municipality in the district of Bad Kreuznach in Rhineland-Palatinate, in western Germany
Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North S ...
: RC church with the "Black Mother of God of the Soon" (''Schwarzer Mutter Gottes vom Soon''), active monastery, ''Gräfenbacher Hütte'' with remains of a free-standing furnace for Soonwald ore
* Stipshausen: "Hunsrück Baroque" church and Stumm organ
* Stromberg: Stromburg Castle, home of the deutschen Michel
* Sulzbach: home of the Stumm organ-building family with a large Stumm organ, the last one made by Johann Michael Stumm
* Trollbach valley: rock landscape between Rümmelsheim Castle Layen and Münster-Sarmsheim
Münster-Sarmsheim is an ''Ortsgemeinde'' – a municipality belonging to a ''Verbandsgemeinde'', a kind of collective municipality – in the Mainz-Bingen district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany.
Geography
Location
Münster-Sarmsheim lies betw ...
along the Trollbach
* Woppenroth: the village which was one of the main locations for the films ''Heimat
''Heimat'' () is a German word
translating to 'home' or 'homeland'.
The word has connotations specific to German culture, German society and specifically German Romanticism, German nationalism, German statehood and regionalism so that it h ...
'' and '' Heimat 3'' by Edgar Reitz
Edgar Reitz (born 1 November 1932) is a German filmmaker and Professor of Film at the Staatliche Hochschule für Gestaltung (State University of Design) in Karlsruhe. He is best-known for his internationally acclaimed Heimat (film series), ''Hei ...
. From Woppenroth one can reach the Hahnenbach valley and the Hellkirch
* Züsch: Züscher Hammer Mill, a former hammer mill
A hammer mill, hammer forge or hammer works was a workshop in the pre-industrial era that was typically used to manufacture semi-finished, wrought iron products or, sometimes, finished agricultural or mining tools, or military weapons. The featur ...
once driven by water power
In popular culture
The German television drama series ''Heimat
''Heimat'' () is a German word
translating to 'home' or 'homeland'.
The word has connotations specific to German culture, German society and specifically German Romanticism, German nationalism, German statehood and regionalism so that it h ...
'', directed by Edgar Reitz
Edgar Reitz (born 1 November 1932) is a German filmmaker and Professor of Film at the Staatliche Hochschule für Gestaltung (State University of Design) in Karlsruhe. He is best-known for his internationally acclaimed Heimat (film series), ''Hei ...
, examined the 20th-century life of a small fictional village in the Hunsrück.
The electronic music festival Nature One is held at the Pydna missile base in Kastellaun
Kastellaun () is a town in the Rhein-Hunsrück-Kreis (district) in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is the seat of the like-named ''Verbandsgemeinde'', a kind of collective municipality.
Geography
Location
The town lies in the eastern Hunsrüc ...
.
Gallery
Image:Hunsrueck01.jpg, A typical view of the Hunsrück countryside
Image:Baldiunseck1.jpg, Balduinseck ruins near Buch
Image:Rauschenburg mermuth.jpg, Rauschenburg ruin near Mermuth
Image:Burg Baldenau.jpg, Baldenau Castle
Image:Ehrenburg aus der Vogelperspektive.jpg, Ehrenburg castle
IMage:Ehrbachklamm (6).JPG, Ehrbachklamm
References
External links
Photos of HEIMAT- und HEIMAT3 - film locations at Hunsrück/Germany
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hunsruck
Landscapes of Rhineland-Palatinate
Rhineland
Rhenish Massif
Mountain ranges of Rhineland-Palatinate
Central Uplands
Natural regions of the Central Uplands
Late Neolithic