Lichtenau () is a small town in Rastatt district in southwestern

Baden-Württemberg Baden-Württemberg ( ; ), commonly shortened to BW or BaWü, is a states of Germany, German state () in Southwest Germany, east of the Rhine, which forms the southern part of Germany's western border with France. With more than 11.07 million i ...

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 ...

Geography

Lichtenau is located in the

Upper Rhine River Plains 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 ...

on the right bank of 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 ...

between

Rastatt Rastatt () is a town with a Baroque core, District of Rastatt, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is located in the Upper Rhine Plain on the Murg river, above its junction with the Rhine and has a population of around 51,000 (2022). Rastatt was an ...

and

Kehl Kehl (; ) is a city with around 38,000 inhabitants in the southwestern Germany, German state of Baden-Württemberg. It lies in the region of Baden on the Rhine River, at the confluence with the smaller Kinzig (Rhine), Kinzig River, directly oppo ...

Neighboring communities

The city shares borders with the following communities, listed clockwise from the north: Rheinmünster, Ottersweier,

Achern Achern (; ) is a city in Western Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is located approximately 18 km southwest of Baden-Baden and 19 km northeast of Offenburg. Achern is the fourth largest town in the district of Ortenau (Ortenaukreis), aft ...

and Rheinau. West of the city is the Rhine and with it the French border.

Boroughs

The city of Lichtenau consists of Lichtenau (proper), Scherzheim, Ulm, Muckenschopf and Grauelsbaum.

History

Lichtenau developed from a water castle that the

Bishop of Strasbourg Archbishops

*Charles Amarin Brand (16 July 1984 – 23 October 1997) (with rank of archbishop from 1988) *Joseph Doré (23 October 1997 – 25 August 2006) *Jean-Pierre Grallet (21 April 2007 – 18 February 2017) *Luc Ravel (18 February 2017 ...

had built in the years 1293 to 1296, complete with

defensive wall A defensive wall is a fortification usually used to protect a city, town or other settlement from potential aggressors. The walls can range from simple palisades or earthworks to extensive military fortifications such as curtain walls with t ...

ditch A ditch is a small to moderate trench created to channel water. A ditch can be used for drainage, to drain water from low-lying areas, alongside roadways or fields, or to channel water from a more distant source for plant irrigation. Ditches ...

and

parapet A parapet is a barrier that is an upward extension of a wall at the edge of a roof, terrace, balcony, walkway or other structure. The word comes ultimately from the Italian ''parapetto'' (''parare'' 'to cover/defend' and ''petto'' 'chest/brea ...

. In 1300 Lichtenau received its city charter and until its

Slighting Slighting is the deliberate damage of high-status buildings to reduce their value as military, administrative, or social structures. This destruction of property is sometimes extended to the contents of buildings and the surrounding landscape. It ...

in 1686 it remained a

fortress A fortification (also called a fort, fortress, fastness, or stronghold) is a military construction designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from L ...

. After the line of the Counts of Hanau-Lichtenau ended the city became part of

Hesse Hesse or Hessen ( ), officially the State of Hesse (), is a States of Germany, state in Germany. Its capital city is Wiesbaden, and the largest urban area is Frankfurt, which is also the country's principal financial centre. Two other major hist ...

in 1736 and then was made part of

Baden Baden (; ) is a historical territory in southern Germany. In earlier times it was considered to be on both sides of the Upper Rhine, but since the Napoleonic Wars, it has been considered only East of the Rhine. History The margraves of Ba ...

together with the '' Hanauerland'' in 1803.

District reform

In Lichtenau the

district reform of the 1970s took place in stages.

Government

The city is part of the administrative district of "Rheinmünster-Lichtenau" with seat in Rheinmünster.

City council

In addition to the mayor and city council president the council is made up of 20 members. The councilmen and councilwomen belong to political parties as follows:

People

* Gabriele Frechen (born October 12, 1956), politician.

Twin cities

Lichtenberg, Bas-Rhin Lichtenberg () is a Communes of France, commune in the Bas-Rhin Departments of France, department in Grand Est in north-eastern France. The village forms a part of the ''Parc naturel régional des Vosges du Nord''. Geography Surrounding commun ...

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

References

''This article is based on a translation of an article from the

German Wikipedia The German Wikipedia () is the German-language edition of Wikipedia, a free and publicly editable online encyclopedia. Founded on 16 March 2001, it is the second-oldest Wikipedia edition (after the English Wikipedia). It has articles, ma ...

''. Rastatt (district) {{Rastatt-geo-stub