Weißenhorn is a

town A town is a type of a human settlement, generally larger than a village but smaller than a city. The criteria for distinguishing a town vary globally, often depending on factors such as population size, economic character, administrative stat ...

in the district of Neu-Ulm in

Bavaria Bavaria, officially the Free State of Bavaria, is a States of Germany, state in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the list of German states by area, largest German state by land area, comprising approximately 1/5 of the total l ...

. Weißenhorn is located about 22 km southeast of

Ulm Ulm () is the sixth-largest city of the southwestern German state of Baden-Württemberg, and with around 129,000 inhabitants, it is Germany's 60th-largest city. Ulm is located on the eastern edges of the Swabian Jura mountain range, on the up ...

History

Archaeologic finds prove that the area of Weißenhorn was once a settlement of the

Alamanni The Alemanni or Alamanni were a confederation of Germanic tribes * * * on the Upper Rhine River during the first millennium. First mentioned by Cassius Dio in the context of the campaign of Roman emperor Caracalla of 213 CE, the Alemanni c ...

. Also

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 ...

artifacts and artifacts from the Stone Age have been found. Weißenhorn was first mentioned in 1160 as ''villa Wizzenhorn''. Starting from the thirteenth century Weißenhorn was seat of a line from the aristocratic house of the Neuffen. When it expired in 1342, Weißenhorn came into possession of the dukes of

, which had pawned Weißenhorn during the most time. 1473 Louis IX of Bavaria held court in Weißenhorn. During the

Landshut War of Succession The War of the Succession of Landshut (''Landshuter Erbfolgekrieg'' in German) resulted from a dispute between the Duchies of Bavaria-Munich (''Bayern-München'' in German) and Bavaria-Landshut (''Bayern-Landshut''). Background George, Duk ...

Weißenhorn came into possession of Holy Roman Emperor Maximilian I and became a provincial city of

Further Austria Further Austria, Outer Austria or Anterior Austria (; , formerly ''die Vorlande'' (pl.)) was the collective name for the early (and later) possessions of the House of Habsburg in the former Swabian stem duchy of south-western Germany, includin ...

. Maximilian transferred the possession to

Jacob Fugger Jakob Fugger ''of the Lily'' (; 6 March 1459 – 30 December 1525), also known as Jakob Fugger ''the Rich'' or sometimes Jakob II, was a major Germans, German merchant, mining entrepreneur, and banker. He was a descendant of the Fugger merchant f ...

in 1507, due to Weißenhorns delivered and reconfirmed privileges the sovereignty rights however remained with Austria. The

Fugger The House of Fugger () is a German family that was historically a prominent group of European bankers, members of the fifteenth- and sixteenth-century mercantile patriciate of Augsburg, international mercantile bankers, and venture capitalists. ...

family, which held rule over centuries, promoted the local

fustian Fustian is a variety of heavy cloth woven from cotton, chiefly prepared for menswear. History and use Known in Late Latin as ''fustaneum'' or ''fustanum'' and in Medieval Latin as ''pannus fustāneus'' ('fustian cloth') or ''tela fustāne ...

weaving mill and made Weißenhorn into a flourishing commercial town. Besides

Augsburg Augsburg ( , ; ; ) is a city in the Bavaria, Bavarian part of Swabia, Germany, around west of the Bavarian capital Munich. It is a College town, university town and the regional seat of the Swabia (administrative region), Swabia with a well ...

Weißenhorn is the only town which is officially allowed to carry the title of "Fuggerstadt" (Fugger town). In the

German Peasants' War The German Peasants' War, Great Peasants' War or Great Peasants' Revolt () was a widespread popular revolt in some German-speaking areas in Central Europe from 1524 to 1525. It was Europe's largest and most widespread popular uprising befor ...

the town was attacked at 1 April 1525 by 12,000 farmers, led by their Captain Jörg von Ingstetten ("Bauern-Jörgl"), which spared the town after successful defense of the citizen and attacked the neighbouring

Roggenburg Abbey Roggenburg Abbey (Kloster Roggenburg or Reichsstift Roggenburg) is a Premonstratensian canonry in Roggenburg, Germany, Roggenburg near Neu-Ulm, Bavaria, in operation between 1126 and 1802, and again from its re-foundation in 1986. Since 1992 it has ...

. The known bandit and murderer Matthias Klostermayr alias "The Bavarian Hiasl", who was up to mischief in the 18th century, was nearly imprisoned by the police of Roggenburg. After the Peace of Pressburg in 1805 Weißenhorn was mediatised back to Bavaria. The gothic and later in the baroque style expanded church collapsed during the Wednesday liturgy on 22 February 1859, which resulted in eleven deaths. The cause for that was a too heavy basin for holy water, which was mounted on one of the main pillars. The discussion about the building of a new church lasted until 1872. On recommendation of

Ludwig II of Bavaria Ludwig II (Ludwig Otto Friedrich Wilhelm; 25 August 1845 – 13 June 1886), also called the Swan King or the Fairy Tale King (), was King of Bavaria from 1864 until his death in 1886. He also held the titles of Count Palatine of the Rhine, Duke ...

the head of the municipal planning and building control office of Munich, Knight August von Voith, became the task to plan the building. The parish church, sacred to the

Assumption of Mary The Assumption of Mary is one of the four Catholic Mariology#Dogmatic teachings, Marian dogmas of the Catholic Church. Pope Pius XII defined it on 1 November 1950 in his apostolic constitution as follows: It leaves open the question of w ...

, was built in the

Romanesque Revival architecture Romanesque Revival (or Neo-Romanesque) is a style of building employed beginning in the mid-19th century inspired by the 11th- and 12th-century Romanesque architecture. Unlike the historic Romanesque style, Romanesque Revival buildings tended t ...

style. The city wall has been broken off for this. 1862 the district court of Roggenburg and the police of

Illertissen Illertissen () is a Town#Germany, town in the Neu-Ulm (district), district of Neu-Ulm in Bavaria. It is situated approximately 20 km south from Ulm nearby the river Iller. Coat of arms The coat of arms lent by Erhard Vöhlin in the year 15 ...

were moved to Weißenhorn in order to the establishment of the Bezirksamt (district office) of Illertissen, which improved the central position of the city in the Roth valley. With the opening of the secondary train line through

Senden The town of Senden is the second-largest town of the district of Neu-Ulm in Bavaria and is located at the border to Baden-Württemberg. The town belongs to the Donau-Iller-Nahverkehrsverbund. Senden's neighbours are Neu-Ulm in the north, Weiße ...

in 1880 an active structural and economic development began. Weißenhorn was - except for two airstrikes at the Wehrmacht's gasoline depot in the Eschach forest - mostly spared from 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 ...

. It escaped the destruction through the U.S. Army by a non-official capitulation, which was shown by a white banner at the church tower. Therefore, the historic city is mostly preserved.

Religions

*Roman Catholics: 64.7% *Protestants: 13.4% *Other (Islamic, New Apostolic and others): 21.9%

Politics

Mayor and city council

Dr. Wolfgang Fendt (independent) is the town's

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilitie ...

since 2006. He is supported by the parties

SPD The Social Democratic Party of Germany ( , SPD ) is a social democratic political party in Germany. It is one of the major parties of contemporary Germany. Saskia Esken has been the party's leader since the 2019 leadership election together wi ...

and WüW. On 17 June 2012, he was reelected receiving 97,8% of the popular vote. In the March 2014 city council elections, the

CSU CSU may refer to: Universities and university systems United States * Columbia Southern University, in Orange Beach, Alabama * California State University system * Colorado State University, in Fort Collins, Colorado * Connecticut State Univers ...

got 38,2% of the votes. The following parties are present in the town council (24 seats) after the 2014 local elections: *

(Christian-Social Union in Bavaria): 9 seats *

(Social-Democratic Party of Germany): 6 seats * WüW (Weißenhorn Independent Electors): 5 seats *

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

(Alliance 90/The Greens): 2 seats * ÖDP (Ecological Democratic Party): 2 seats

Partnerships between cities

* since 2010:

Villecresnes Villecresnes () is a Communes of France, commune in the southeastern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the Kilometre Zero, center of Paris. Transport Villecresnes is not served by a station of the Paris Métro, RER, or suburban rail n ...

( )
auf www.weissenhorn.de * since 2017:

Valmadrera Valmadrera ( Lecchese: ) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Lecco in the Italian region Lombardy, located about northeast of Milan and about west of Lecco. Valmadrera borders the following municipalities: Canzo, Civate, Galbi ...

( ) Besides this official partnership Weißenhorn is in close contact with the municipality of

Prad am Stilfser Joch Prad am Stilfser Joch (; ), often abbreviated to Prad, is a ''comune'' (municipality) and a village in South Tyrol in northern Italy, located about west of the city of Bolzano, on the border with Switzerland, and near the Stelvio Pass. Geograp ...

South Tyrol South Tyrol ( , ; ; ), officially the Autonomous Province of Bolzano – South Tyrol, is an autonomous administrative division, autonomous provinces of Italy, province in northern Italy. Together with Trentino, South Tyrol forms the autonomo ...

(

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

). The local Nikolaus-Kopernikus- Gymnasium in Weissenhorn participates in several student exchange programs. The German American Partnership Program with Denton High School in Denton, Texas began in 2006. Apart from that, exchange programs with students from

Bangalore Bengaluru, also known as Bangalore (List of renamed places in India#Karnataka, its official name until 1 November 2014), is the Capital city, capital and largest city of the southern States and union territories of India, Indian state of Kar ...

(

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

Lyon Lyon (Franco-Provençal: ''Liyon'') is a city in France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of the French Alps, southeast of Paris, north of Marseille, southwest of Geneva, Switzerland, north ...

(

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 ...

) and

Ecuador Ecuador, officially the Republic of Ecuador, is a country in northwestern South America, bordered by Colombia on the north, Peru on the east and south, and the Pacific Ocean on the west. It also includes the Galápagos Province which contain ...

are regularly organized by the school.

Economy and Infrastructure

Traffic and Location

Train service between Weißenhorn and Senden (9.6 km) started on 15 September 1878. The line connected Weißenhorn to the more important

–

Memmingen Memmingen (; Swabian German, Swabian: ''Memmenge'') is a town in Swabia (Bavaria), Swabia, Bavaria, Germany. It is the economic, educational and administrative centre of the Danube-Iller region. To the west the town is flanked by the Iller, the ...

route. Due to the rise in individual transport, the train service to Weißenhorn was discontinued in 1966. But in December 2013, the old route was reactivated. Today an hourly 25-minute train service connects Weißenhorn to the city of

via

. From Ulm one can reach all major German and European cities since its railway station is part of the German high-speed railway network. A local bus network connects Weißenhorn to the surrounding villages. The city has an exit (123) at the

Bundesautobahn 7 is the longest German Autobahn and the longest national motorway in Europe at 963 km (598 mi). It bisects the country almost evenly between east and west. In the north, it starts at the border with Denmark as an extension of the Danish part of ...

. Weißenhorn is conveniently located between the two regional capitals

Munich Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...

(

) and

Stuttgart Stuttgart (; ; Swabian German, Swabian: ; Alemannic German, Alemannic: ; Italian language, Italian: ; ) is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Baden-Württemberg by population, largest city of the States of Germany, German state of ...

(

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 ...

can be reached in 90 minutes by car (150 km).

Employers and companies

Today's biggest employer is the company PERI GmbH (world market leader in Formwork and Scaffolding), which was founded in Weißenhorn in 1969. Apart from the aluminium company "Oettinger", there are several medium-size and small companies. A large number of employees commute to the nearby city of

Education

*2 elementary schools *Willhelm-Busch-Schule, a school for children with special needs *

Hauptschule A ''Hauptschule'' (, "general school") is a secondary school in Germany, starting after four years of elementary schooling (''Grundschule''), which offers Lower Secondary Education (Level 2) according to the International Standard Classification ...

Weißenhorn, a secondary school from year 5 to 9 *

Realschule Real school (, ) is a type of secondary school in Germany, Switzerland and Liechtenstein. It has also existed in Croatia (''realna gimnazija''), the Austrian Empire, the German Empire, Denmark and Norway (''realskole''), Sweden (''realskola''), F ...

Weißenhorn, a secondary school from year 5 to 10 *Nikolaus-Kopernikus- Gymnasium, a secondary school from year 5 to 12 *

Montessori School The Montessori method of education is a type of educational method that involves children's natural interests and activities rather than formal teaching methods. A Montessori classroom places an emphasis on hands-on learning and developing ...

(private) *public music school *public library *museum of local history

Subdivisions

Not all of the 13.599 inhabitants live in the main town of Weißenhorn. Several smaller villages are also part of the municipality of Weißenhorn.Population of Weißenhorn
Official data from the town administration.

Culture and sightseeing objects

Theatre

*''Historic town theatre'', built in 1876 through the change of a tenth barn from the 16th century. It was reconditioned in 1922 and again in 1979 and is one of the few good kept smallurban citizen-theatres from the 19th century. With only 150 seats it is the smallest in historical condition kept theatre in Bavaria and is used by groups of laymen and by the south-German chamber opera.

Museums

*''Weißenhorner Heimatmuseum'', (Local history museum) Collection for the town- and region history, founded 1908, 1992-1996 new conceived *''Archaeologic Museum

pre- and early-historical collection

Buildings

The old part of Weißenhorn is mostly kept in historical condition. Medieval citizen houses, some in framework construction, stately pubs and buildings from the 19th century show the tradition of a commercial town. The medieval wall was cleared away until 1837, the ''Oberes Tor'' (Upper Gate), the ''Unteres Tor'' (Lower Gate) and the ''Prügelturm'' (Flogging tower) were however kept. *The church place is framed by many sightseeing objects: **''Upper Gate'' with two round towers, built around 1470 **''City hall'', built 1761 **''Neuffen Château'' (''Old Château''), built 1460 **''Fugger Château'' (''New Château''), built 1513 **''Fugger Brewing House'', built 1565 **''City Parish Church Mariä Himmelfahrt'', built around 1872 in the style of the neoromanic from *Other worth seeing buildings are: **''Schranne'' (''Old City Hall''), built around 1390, extended 1584 **''Heilig-Geist-Church'', built around 1470 **''Lower Gate'', built around 1470

Regular events

*''Leonhardi-Ride'' on 6 November, rider pro assignment in honours of the holy Leonhard of Limoges *''Parish party of the Catholic church community'' in June *''Protestantic Community party'' at the last Sunday before the summer holidays *''Carnival-Tuesday-Parade'' at Tuesday after Rose Monday

Personalities

Nikolaus Thoman Nicholas is a male name, the Anglophone version of an ancient Greek name in use since antiquity, and cognate with the modern Greek , . It originally derived from a combination of two Greek words meaning 'victory' and 'people'. In turn, the name ...

(* around 1457, † around 1545), kaplan and chronicle (''Weißenhorn History'') * Sebastian Sailer (1714–1777), premonstratensian choir Leader, prayer and swabian dialect poet * Franz Martin Kuen (1719–1771), painter *Konrad Huber (1752–1831), painter * Anton von Henle (1902–1927), bishop of

Passau Passau (; ) is a city in Lower Bavaria, Germany. It is also known as the ("City of Three Rivers"), as the river Danube is joined by the Inn (river), Inn from the south and the Ilz from the north. Passau's population is about 50,000, of whom ...

and

Regensburg Regensburg (historically known in English as Ratisbon) is a city in eastern Bavaria, at the confluence of the rivers Danube, Naab and Regen (river), Regen, Danube's northernmost point. It is the capital of the Upper Palatinate subregion of the ...

* Jakob Streitle (1916-1982), football player *

Wilfried Hiller Wilfried Hiller (born 15 March 1941) is a German composer. He became known above all for his stage works for families, children and young people. Life and work Hiller was born the son of the teacher August Hiller and his wife Josepha Hiller, n ...

(1941– ), composer

Literature

*Joseph Holl: ''Geschichte der Stadt Weißenhorn''. Kempten 1904. Reproduction: Konrad, Weißenhorn 1983 *Hans Burkhardt: ''Geschichte der Stadt Weissenhorn und ihrer Stadtteile''. Weißenhorn 1988. *Wolfgang Ott, Monika Kolb: ''Weissenhorn 1945 bis 1965, Die Reihe Archivbilder'' Erfurt 2006, Sutton Verlad GmbH

References

External links

City of Weißenhorn (official site)Homepage of the Museum of local history in Weißenhorn
{{DEFAULTSORT:Weissenhorn Neu-Ulm (district)