Monheim am Rhein (, ; ) is a town on the right (eastern) bank of the river

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 ...

North Rhine-Westphalia North Rhine-Westphalia or North-Rhine/Westphalia, commonly shortened to NRW, is a States of Germany, state () in Old states of Germany, Western Germany. With more than 18 million inhabitants, it is the List of German states by population, most ...

, Germany. Monheim belongs to the district of Mettmann – with the southern suburbs of

Düsseldorf Düsseldorf is the capital city of North Rhine-Westphalia, the most populous state of Germany. It is the second-largest city in the state after Cologne and the List of cities in Germany with more than 100,000 inhabitants, seventh-largest city ...

to the north, and the

Bergisches Land The Bergisches Land (, ) is a low mountain range in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, east of the Rhine and south of the Ruhr. The landscape is shaped by forests, meadows, rivers and creeks and contains over twenty artificial lakes ...

to the south. It consists of the city districts (from north to south) Baumberg (about one third) and Monheim (two thirds).

Adjacent cities and districts

The following cities and

districts A district is a type of administrative division that in some countries is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions ...

border Monheim am Rhein: to the north

, to the east Langenfeld (also part of the district of Mettmann), to the south

Leverkusen Leverkusen () is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, on the eastern bank of the Rhine. To the south, Leverkusen borders the city of Cologne, and to the north the state capital, Düsseldorf. The city is part of the Rhine-Ruhr Metropolitan ...

and (both divided by the river

)

Cologne Cologne ( ; ; ) is the largest city of the States of Germany, German state of North Rhine-Westphalia and the List of cities in Germany by population, fourth-most populous city of Germany with nearly 1.1 million inhabitants in the city pr ...

to the southwest, and

Dormagen Dormagen (; Ripuarian: ''Dormaje'') is a town in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany in the Rhein-Kreis Neuss. Geography Dormagen is situated between Düsseldorf – Cologne – Mönchengladbach on the western bank of the river Rhine. Division of ...

to the west (part of the district of Neuss).

History

Monheim has approximately 850 years of recorded history. It was first documented in 1150 as a fishermen's village in the

Grafschaft A was originally the name given to the administrative area in the Holy Roman Empire over which a count, or , presided as judge. It is often, therefore, translated as 'county'. The term has survived as a placename in German-speaking countries, for ...

(Earldom)

Berg Berg may refer to: People *Berg (surname), a surname (including a list of people with the name) * General Berg (disambiguation) * Berg Ng (born 1960), Hong Kong actor * Berg (footballer, born 1963), Ninimbergue dos Santos Guerra, Brazilian footba ...

. It became the administrative centre for the surrounding villages (including many of the villages that now form

) in 1363, and stayed in that position until

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 ...

formed the

Rhine Confederation The Confederated States of the Rhine, simply known as the Confederation of the Rhine or Rhine Confederation, was a confederation of German client states established at the behest of Napoleon some months after he defeated Austrian Empire, Austria ...

in 1806. Monheim, Baumberg and Hitdorf were then combined into a

municipal corporation Municipal corporation is the legal term for a local governing body, including (but not necessarily limited to) cities, counties, towns, townships, charter townships, villages, and boroughs. The term can also be used to describe municipally o ...

. Monheim gained

city status City status is a symbolic and legal designation given by a monarch, national or subnational government. A municipality may receive city status because it already has the qualities of a city, or because it has some special purpose. Historically, ci ...

in 1960, ten years after it finally incorporated the neighbouring villages Baumberg and Hitdorf. At the end of 1974 Monheim was incorporated by

as part of a major

reform. After a successful complaint in the federal state's

constitutional court A constitutional court is a high court that deals primarily with constitutional law. Its main authority is to rule on whether laws that are challenged are in fact unconstitutional, i.e. whether they conflict with constitutionally established ru ...

Münster Münster (; ) is an independent city#Germany, independent city (''Kreisfreie Stadt'') in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is in the northern part of the state and is considered to be the cultural centre of the Westphalia region. It is also a ...

, the city became independent again on 1 July 1976, but lost Hitdorf to

. Since 1994 the official city name has been ''Monheim am Rhein''.

Sites of interest

* Schelmenturm – The 26m-high (85 ft) landmark of Monheim is a tower from the early 15th century, which was part of the former

fortification 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 Lati ...

built by the Earls of Berg. Since 1972, the tower has been reorganised, also being used as a cultural meeting place. * Deusserhaus – The Deusser

manor house A manor house was historically the main residence of the lord of the manor. The house formed the administrative centre of a manor in the European feudal system; within its great hall were usually held the lord's manorial courts, communal mea ...

, built around 1848, today is the museum of the ''Heimatbund'' (local history society) ''Monheim e.V.'' *Haus Bürgel – This house is located on the border between Baumberg and

in a landscape conservation area called ''"Urdenbacher Kämpe"'', a

flood plain A floodplain or flood plain or bottomlands is an area of land adjacent to a river. Floodplains stretch from the banks of a river channel to the base of the enclosing valley, and experience flooding during periods of high Discharge (hydrolog ...

of the

. The earliest source from 1019 states that the "

Castrum ''Castra'' () is a Latin language, Latin term used during the Roman Republic and Roman Empire for a military 'camp', and ''castrum'' () for a 'Fortification, fort'. Either could refer to a building or plot of land, used as a fortified milita ...

in Burgela" was built in the 4th century as part of the

Roman 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 ...

defences against 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 ...

on the left bank of the

. In the 14th century, the broadly

meander A meander is one of a series of regular sinuous curves in the Channel (geography), channel of a river or other watercourse. It is produced as a watercourse erosion, erodes the sediments of an outer, concave bank (cut bank, cut bank or river cl ...

ing river changed its bed after a flood, so that ''Haus Bürgel'' is actually on the right bank of the

today. Some remains of the Roman walls are still visible, although the place was transformed into a larger

Frankish Frankish may refer to: * Franks, a Germanic tribe and their culture ** Frankish language or its modern descendants, Franconian languages, a group of Low Germanic languages also commonly referred to as "Frankish" varieties * Francia, a post-Roman ...

manor house. In recent years, it has been used as a museum and biological-environmental research and information station. * Gänselieselbrunnen – The

fountain A fountain, from the Latin "fons" ( genitive "fontis"), meaning source or spring, is a decorative reservoir used for discharging water. It is also a structure that jets water into the air for a decorative or dramatic effect. Fountains were o ...

known locally as Gänselieselbrunnen is located next to the town hall of Monheim am Rhein. *

Friedenskirche The Protestant Church of Peace () is situated in the Marly Gardens on the Green Fence (''Am Grünen Gitter'') in the palace grounds of Sanssouci Park in Potsdam, Germany. The church was built according to the wishes and with the close involve ...

- The Friedenskirche (Peace Church) is a Protestant church in Monheim- Baumberg, built from 1968 to 1974 according to the plans of Walter Maria Foerderer and an outstanding example of

Brutalism Brutalist architecture is an architectural style that emerged during the 1950s in the United Kingdom, among the reconstruction projects of the post-war era. Brutalist buildings are characterised by minimalist constructions that showcase the b ...

in the Rhineland. Friedenskirche Baumberg - Winter

* Franz Boehm Memorial - The Catholic priest Franz Boehm, who became a

parish priest A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one or ...

in St. Gereon in 1938, was a resistance fighter against the

Nazi regime Nazi Germany, officially known as the German Reich and later the Greater German Reich, was the German state between 1933 and 1945, when Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party controlled the country, transforming it into a totalitarian dictat ...

who died in 1945 in the

Dachau concentration camp Dachau (, ; , ; ) was one of the first concentration camps built by Nazi Germany and the longest-running one, opening on 22 March 1933. The camp was initially intended to intern Hitler's political opponents, which consisted of communists, s ...

. A life-size bronze bust was erected in his honor in 2020 to mark his 140th birthday. Behind the life-size bust are two panes, each measuring 4.2 meters by 2.25 meters, which was designed by Thomas Kesseler using the silkscreen technique.

Transport

Monheim is part of both of the

public transport Public transport (also known as public transit, mass transit, or simply transit) are forms of transport available to the general public. It typically uses a fixed schedule, route and charges a fixed fare. There is no rigid definition of whic ...

associations

Verkehrsverbund Rhein-Ruhr The Verkehrsverbund Rhein-Ruhr (), abbreviated VRR, is a public transport association (Verkehrsverbund) in the Germany, German state of North Rhine-Westphalia. It covers large parts of the Ruhr, Ruhr area, the Lower Rhine region including Düsse ...

(VRR) and the

Verkehrsverbund Rhein-Sieg The Verkehrsverbund Rhein-Sieg (VRS), in English ''Rhine-Sieg Transport Association'', is the public transport association covering the area of the Cologne/Bonn Region, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Besides ''Aachener Verkehrsverbund'' (''AVV' ...

(VRS), situated on their borders. There are several bus lines running between the city districts, neighbouring towns, and the closest

S-Bahn The S-Bahn ( , ), , is a hybrid urban rail, urban–suburban rail system serving a metropolitan region predominantly in German language, German-speaking countries. Some of the larger S-Bahn systems provide service similar to rapid transit syst ...

railway stations on the border with Langenfeld, Langenfeld-Berghausen station and Langenfeld (Rheinland) station, as well as

. The Monheim ticket has enabled citizens of Monheim to use public transport free of charge within Monheim am Rhein and the neighbouring town Langenfeld (VRR tariff zone 73) as well as to the near train station in Düsseldorf, Düsseldorf-Hellerhof station since 1 April 2020. This was prolonged by the

town council A town council, city council or municipal council is a form of local government for small municipalities. Usage of the term varies under different jurisdictions. Republic of Ireland In 2002, 49 urban district councils and 26 town commissi ...

until 31 March 2025. Many of Monheim's residents are commuters to nearby

(20 minutes) and

(30 minutes). The A59 is connected to Monheim which connects to the nearby A46, as is the A542 which connects with the nearby A3 and A1. The town is in the vicinity of both

Düsseldorf Airport Düsseldorf is the capital city of North Rhine-Westphalia, the most populous state of Germany. It is the second-largest city in the state after Cologne and the seventh-largest city in Germany, with a 2022 population of 629,047. The Düsse ...

and the

Cologne Bonn Airport Cologne Bonn Airport () is an international airport in north-western Germany. It serves the country's fourth-largest city Cologne, as well as Bonn, the former capital of West Germany. With approximately 12.4 million passengers passing through i ...

Music

The band

Godspeed You! Black Emperor Godspeed You! Black Emperor (sometimes abbreviated to GY!BE or Godspeed) is a Canadian post-rock collective that originated in Montreal, Quebec in 1994. The group releases recordings through Constellation Records (Canada), Constellation, an in ...

would use the name of the town As a title for the first section of the song sleep off their second studio album '' Lift Your Skinny Fists like Antennas to Heaven''.

Twin towns – sister cities

Monheim am Rhein is twinned with: *

Wiener Neustadt Wiener Neustadt (; Lower_Austria.html" ;"title=".e. Lower Austria">.e. Lower Austria , ) is a city located south of Vienna, in the state of Lower Austria, in northeast Austria. It is a self-governed city and the seat of the district administr ...

, Austria (1971) *

Tirat Carmel Tirat Carmel (), or Tirat HaCarmel, is a city in the Haifa District in Israel. Throughout the ages, the site of the modern city was controlled by many people, including the Ancient Rome, Romans, the Ottoman Empire, Ottoman, and the United Kingdo ...

, Israel (1989) *

Delitzsch Delitzsch (; Slavic: ''delč'' or ''delcz'' for hill) is a town in Saxony in Germany, 20 km north of Leipzig and 30 km east of Halle (Saale). With 24,850 inhabitants at the end of 2015, it is the largest town in the district of Nordsach ...

, Germany (1990) *

Bourg-la-Reine Bourg-la-Reine () is a Communes of France, commune in the southern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the Kilometre Zero, center of Paris. History In 1792, during the French Revolution, Bourg-la-Reine (meaning "Town of the Queen") w ...

, France (2000) *

Malbork Malbork (German: ''Marienburg'') is a town in the Pomeranian Voivodeship, Poland. It is the seat of Malbork County and has a population of 36,709 people as of 2024. The town is located on the Nogat river, in the historical region of Pomerelia. Fo ...

, Poland (2005) *

Ataşehir Ataşehir is a municipality and Districts of Turkey, district of Istanbul, Istanbul, Turkey. Its area is 25 km2, and its population is 423,127 (2022). It is located at the junction of the Otoyol 2, O-2 and Otoyol 4, O-4 motorways on the Anato ...

, Turkey (2015)

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Monheim Am Rhein Towns in North Rhine-Westphalia Populated places on the Rhine Mettmann (district)