Höchst () is a neighbourhood and
market town
A market town is a settlement most common in Europe that obtained by custom or royal charter, in the Middle Ages, a market right, which allowed it to host a regular market; this distinguished it from a village or city. In Britain, small rura ...
in the ''
Ortsbezirk'' of Frankfurt-West in
Frankfurt am Main
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 ...
,
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 ...
. Höchst is situated west of Frankfurt city centre, on the north bank of the
Main at the
confluence
In geography, a confluence (also ''conflux'') occurs where two or more watercourses join to form a single channel (geography), channel. A confluence can occur in several configurations: at the point where a tributary joins a larger river (main ...
with the
River Nidda. Its old town is famous for around 400 timber framed houses.
On 1 July 1917,
Sindlingen,
Unterliederbach and
Zeilsheim were incorporated to Höchst am Main. In 1928 Höchst became incorporated into Frankfurt am Main, along with Sindlingen, Unterliederbach and Zeilsheim.
The well-preserved old city with its 400 half-timbered houses has been under the ''
Denkmalschutz
The ''Deutsche Stiftung Denkmalschutz'' ("German Foundation for Monument Protection") is a German private initiative founded in 1985 that works for the preservation of cultural heritage in Germany and to promote the idea of cultural heritage man ...
'' protection law since 1972. An important cultural event is the folklore festival, the ''Höchster Schloßfest'', that brings many visitors to Höchst. It begins in the middle of June and last four weeks. It includes a festival in the old city, fireworks, and a jazz festival in the castle.
History
Middle Ages
Höchst was first recorded as Hostat (meaning high site or high place). On 11 February 1355, Höchst received its town privileges by emperor
Charles IV. In a charter dated 12 January 1356, Charles IV gave additional privileges to Höchst including
the right to hold markets every Tuesday.
On 22 June 1622, during 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 ...
, the
Battle of Höchst saw a
Catholic League and
Spanish Empire
The Spanish Empire, sometimes referred to as the Hispanic Monarchy (political entity), Hispanic Monarchy or the Catholic Monarchy, was a colonial empire that existed between 1492 and 1976. In conjunction with the Portuguese Empire, it ushered ...
armies defeat a Protestant force. A second
Battle of Höchst occurred on 11 October 1795 when
Habsburg
The House of Habsburg (; ), also known as the House of Austria, was one of the most powerful dynasties in the history of Europe and Western civilization. They were best known for their inbreeding and for ruling vast realms throughout Europe d ...
soldiers clashed with
Republican French troops.
The fires
In 1586, the first major fire in Höchst occurred. The fire destroyed 56 houses, 25 barns, the
town hall
In local government, a city hall, town hall, civic centre (in the UK or Australia), guildhall, or municipal hall (in the Philippines) is the chief administrative building of a city, town, or other municipality. It usually houses the city o ...
, the
bath house and the Mainz Gate, which was half the town at the time.
20th century
Höchst am Main became part of Frankfurt am Main in 1928.
Until 1987, Höchst was the administrative seat of an independent
Landkreis. Höchst is now the center of the
Frankfurt-West Ortsbezirk (administrative district) with 135,000 residents.
Economy
The name Höchst became known throughout the world for the chemical and pharmaceutical corporation
Hoechst AG
Hoechst AG () was a German chemicals, later life sciences, company that became Aventis Deutschland after its merger with France's Rhône-Poulenc S.A. in 1999. With the new company's 2004 merger with Sanofi-Synthélabo, it became a subsidiar ...
which was established in 1863. The Hoechst AG was headquartered in Höchst until in 1999, when the company was merged with the French
Rhône-Poulenc S.A. and became
Aventis which, after another merger, became
Sanofi-Aventis
Sanofi S.A. is a French multinational pharmaceutical and healthcare company headquartered in Paris, France. The corporation was established in 1973 and merged with Synthélabo in 1999 to form Sanofi-Synthélabo. In 2004, Sanofi-Synthélabo merg ...
. Major research and production activities of the company continue to be conducted in Höchst. The site of the Hoechst works is now operated as the Höchst Industrial Park (''Industriepark Höchst''). It includes a notable expressionist building designed by
Peter Behrens, the
Technical Administration Building (''Technische Verwaltungsgebäude'').
Image:Hoechster Altstadt September 2010 Pano 1.jpg, Timber-framed houses of the old town
Image:Höchster Mainufer Batterie 2.jpg, Main river bank in Höchst, called "Batterie"
Image:Bolongarostrasse.jpg, Bolongarostraße in Höchst
Image:Hoechster Wochenmarkt.jpg, October 2008: Market in Höchst
File:Dalberghaus2.jpg, Porcelain manufacturer in the ''Dalberghouse''
Image:Höchster-Schloss-2019-Ffm-Höchst-10391.jpg, Höchster Schloss
Image:Justinuskirche Hoechst.jpg, Saint Justin's Church, Frankfurt-Höchst
Image:Bolongaropalast F-Hoechst Strassenfront.jpg, Bolongaropalast
Notable people
*
Joseph Aschbach (1801-1882),
historian
A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human species; as well as the ...
well known for his studies on the
Visigoths
The Visigoths (; ) were a Germanic people united under the rule of a king and living within the Roman Empire during late antiquity. The Visigoths first appeared in the Balkans, as a Roman-allied Barbarian kingdoms, barbarian military group unite ...
.
*
Tristan Brübach (1984–1998), murder victim.
*
Carl Chun (1852–1914), German marine biologist, born in Höchst.
*
Hans Fischer (1881–1945), recipient of 1930
Nobel Prize for Chemistry
The Nobel Prize in Chemistry () is awarded annually by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences to scientists in the various fields of chemistry. It is one of the five Nobel Prizes established by the will of Alfred Nobel in 1895, awarded for outst ...
.
*
Mahide Lein (born 1949), LGBTQ+ activist
Further reading
* Wilhelm Frischholz: ''Alt-Höchst. Ein Heimatbuch in Wort und Bild.'' Frankfurt am Main 1926: Hauser.
* Markus Grossbach: ''Frankfurt-Höchst. Geschichte 1860–1960. Bildband.'' Erfurt 2001: Sutton.
* Wilhelm Grossbach: ''Alt Höchst auf den zweiten Blick. Impressionen aus einer alten Stadt.'' Frankfurt-Höchst 1980: Höchster Verlagsgesellschaft.
* Wilhelm Grossbach: ''Höchst am Main''. Gestern, heute, morgen. Frankfurt am Main 2006: Frankfurter Sparkasse.
* Michael König: ''Die Krise großstädtischer Subzentren. Bedeutungsverlust gewachsener Nebenzentren mit eigener städtischer Tradition. Gründe, Situation und mögliche Auswege am Beispiel von Frankfurt-Höchst''. (= ISR Graue Reihe; Bd. 3). Institut für Stadt- und Regionalplanung Berlin 2007: TU Berlin,
online
* Franz Lerner: ''Frankfurt am Main und seine Wirtschaft: Wiederaufbau seit 1945.'' Frankfurt am Main 1958: Ammelburg.
* Wolfgang Metternich: ''Die städtebauliche Entwicklung von Höchst am Main.'' Frankfurt-Höchst 1990: Stadt Frankfurt und Verein für Geschichte und Altertumskunde.
* Günter Moos: ''Rundgang durch das alte Frankfurt-Höchst.'' Gudensberg-Gleichen 2001: Wartberg.
* Rudolf Schäfer: ''Höchst am Main.'' Frankfurt am Main 1981: Frankfurter Sparkasse von 1822.
* Rudolf Schäfer: ''Chronik von Höchst am Main.'' Frankfurt am Main 1986: Waldemar Kramer.
References
External links
Official web site Frankfurt Höchst (German)Private web site Frankfurt Höchst (German)Höchst on internet project 'Alt Frankfurt' (English/German)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hochst (Frankfurt Am Main)
Districts of Frankfurt
Towns in Hesse