
Schalkenmehren is an ''
Ortsgemeinde'' – a
municipality
A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate.
The term ''municipality' ...
belonging to a ''
Verbandsgemeinde
A (; plural ) is a low-level administrative division, administrative unit in the Germany, German States of Germany, federal states of Brandenburg, Rhineland-Palatinate and Saxony-Anhalt. A is typically composed of a small group of Municipalitie ...
'', a kind of collective municipality – in the
Vulkaneifel
Vulkaneifel () is a district (''Kreis'') in the northwest of the state Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is the least densely populated district in the state and the fourth most sparsely populated district in Germany. The administrative centre of ...
district
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 county, counties, several municipality, municip ...
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 belongs to the
''Verbandsgemeinde'' of Daun, whose seat is in the
like-named town.
Geography
The municipality of Schalkenmehren lies in the
Vulkaneifel
Vulkaneifel () is a district (''Kreis'') in the northwest of the state Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is the least densely populated district in the state and the fourth most sparsely populated district in Germany. The administrative centre of ...
, a part of 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 ...
known for its volcanic history, geographical and geological features, and even ongoing activity today, including gases that sometimes well up from the earth. It is roughly 4 km south-southeast of
Daun as the crow flies
The expression ''as the crow flies'' is an idiom for the most direct path between two points.
Etymology
The meaning of the expression is attested from the early 19th century, and appeared in the Charles Dickens novel ''Oliver Twist'' (1838):
...
, at the northeast foot of the Hoher List, a
stratovolcano
A stratovolcano, also known as a composite volcano, is a typically conical volcano built up by many alternating layers (strata) of hardened lava and tephra. Unlike shield volcanoes, stratovolcanoes are characterized by a steep profile with ...
which is home to a former
observatory
An observatory is a location used for observing terrestrial, marine, or celestial events. Astronomy, climatology/meteorology, geophysics, oceanography and volcanology are examples of disciplines for which observatories have been constructed.
Th ...
. Several
volcanic lakes
A volcanogenic lake is a lake formed as a result of volcanic activity. They are generally a body of water inside an inactive volcanic crater ( crater lakes) but can also be large volumes of molten lava within an active volcanic crater ( lava lake ...
, like the
Schalkenmehrener Maar, the
Weinfelder Maar
__NOTOC__
The Weinfelder Maar, also called the Totenmaar, is a maar around two kilometres southeast of the town of Daun in the Eifel Mountains, in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate.
Geography
The maar lake was formed about 10,500 years ...
and the
Gemündener Maar, lie within the municipality’s limits.
The Schalkenmehrener Maar has a popular bathing area.
History
On 25 November 1287, Schalkenmehren had its first documentary mention in a document from
Himmerod Abbey
Himmerod Abbey (Kloster Himmerod) was a Cistercian monastery in the community of Großlittgen in the ''Verbandsgemeinde'' of Manderscheid in the district of Bernkastel-Wittlich, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany, located in the Eifel, in the valle ...
.
Some mention of the now vanished village of Weinfeld must be made, for it is linked historically with Schalkenmehren. The only building from this forsaken village that still stands today is a small church which even now appears as a
charge
Charge or charged may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Films
* ''Charge, Zero Emissions/Maximum Speed'', a 2011 documentary
Music
* ''Charge'' (David Ford album)
* ''Charge'' (Machel Montano album)
* '' Charge!!'', an album by The Aqu ...
in Schalkenmehren’s
coat of arms
A coat of arms is a heraldry, heraldic communication design, visual design on an escutcheon (heraldry), escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the last two being outer garments), originating in Europe. The coat of arms on an escutcheon f ...
. It is consecrated to
Saint Martin. Weinfeld lay east of this church, where a cross-country path to
Mehren now leads. It had been a
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 ...
settlement that
converted early on to
Christianity
Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion, which states that Jesus in Christianity, Jesus is the Son of God (Christianity), Son of God and Resurrection of Jesus, rose from the dead after his Crucifixion of Jesus, crucifixion, whose ...
, perhaps as early as
Constantine’s time, but certainly after
Saint Boniface
Boniface, OSB (born Wynfreth; 675 –5 June 754) was an English Benedictines, Benedictine monk and leading figure in the Anglo-Saxon mission to the Germanic parts of Francia during the eighth century. He organised significant foundations of ...
’s works in Germany.
The village’s name is variously interpreted as being derived from ''Weihefeld'' (roughly "Hallowed Field") or from ''Winefeld'', meaning "Friend’s Field" (this root also shows up in
English, in names such as "Baldwin").
Weinfeld was a parish quite early on. The Altburg (
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 ...
), built in 731, belonged to the parish of Weinfeld. The parish included Weinfeld, Schalkenmehren with the Altburg,
Saxler,
Udler and three houses from Gemünden. The chapel in Schalkenmehren was considered a branch of the one in Weinfeld. Today, the Weinfeld chapel is a
pilgrimage
A pilgrimage is a travel, journey to a holy place, which can lead to a personal transformation, after which the pilgrim returns to their daily life. A pilgrim (from the Latin ''peregrinus'') is a traveler (literally one who has come from afar) w ...
site. In the yard around the chapel, the dead of Schalkenmehren are still buried, as they have been for centuries.
By 1562, though, Weinfeld had been forsaken. It was in this year that the last pastor left the now dead village and moved to Schalkenmehren. In 1522, the
Plague had broken out in the German Emperor’s army. A chronicle from the Saarland reports: "At that time, warring peoples had brought a plaguelike sickness in, which in the Rhinelands wrought great devastation. The people died en masse and suddenly." Weinfeld was one of quite a few
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 ...
villages that were wiped out in the
epidemic
An epidemic (from Greek ἐπί ''epi'' "upon or above" and δῆμος ''demos'' "people") is the rapid spread of disease to a large number of hosts in a given population within a short period of time. For example, in meningococcal infection ...
. The statues of the "
Plague Saints",
Saint Sebastian
Sebastian (; ) was an early Christianity, Christian saint and martyr. According to traditional belief, he was killed during the Diocletianic Persecution of Christians. He was initially tied to a post or tree and shot with arrows, though this d ...
and
Saint Roch
Roch (lived c. 1348 – 15/16 August 1376/79; traditionally c. 1295 – 16 August 1327), also called Rock in English, was a Majorcan Catholic confessor whose death is commemorated on 16 August and 9 September in Italy; he was especially invo ...
, recall this time. The survivors migrated away or moved to Schalkenmehren. However, Weinfeld remained a parish until 1803 – the onset of
Napoleonic times – and the pastors still bore the title Parish Priest of Weinfeld, even though they lived in Schalkenmehren.
In 1920, the young schoolteacher Anna Droste-Lehnert came to Schalkenmehren. It struck her that the Eifel farmers were very poor, and also that they could weave very pretty cloths, the so-called ''Maartuch'' ("
maar
A maar is a broad, low-relief volcanic crater caused by a phreatomagmatic eruption (an explosion which occurs when groundwater comes into contact with hot lava or magma). A maar characteristically fills with water to form a relatively shallow ...
cloth"). With friends from the
Wandervogel
''Wandervogel'' (plural: ''Wandervögel''; English: "Wandering Bird") is the name adopted by a popular movement of German youth groups from 1896 to 1933, who protested against industrialization by going to hike in the country and commune with na ...
movement, she convinced the villagers to found, together with her, a coöperative. In 1926, nineteen Schalkenmehren citizens joined together to form the ''Heimweberei-Genossenschaft Schalkenmehren e.G.'' The farmers wove, the farmers’ wives did the cutting and sewing, and the coöperative marketed the products. Mrs. Droste-Lehnert also designed new patterns for the weavers. In the 1930s, the coöperative was very successful, and even in the difficult time just after 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 managed to keep itself going. In the 1970s, one episode of the German
children’s television programme ''
Die Sendung mit der Maus
' (''The Show with the Mouse''), often ' (''The Mouse''), is a German children's series, children's television series, popular nationwide and across all ages for its educational content.Bernhard Borgeest"Von Mäusen und Machern"''Focus (German ma ...
'' featured the coöperative.
When the village’s structure moved away from
farming
Agriculture encompasses crop and livestock production, aquaculture, and forestry for food and non-food products. Agriculture was a key factor in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created ...
and the numbers of active weavers declined, the coöperative was dissolved in 1983.
Some active women citizens of the municipality of Schalkenmehren later founded the ''Heimweberei-Museum Schalkenmehren'' ("Schalkenmehren Home Weaving Museum"), which exhibits the history of the ''Heimweberei-Genossenschaft Schalkenmehren e.G.'' They run it as a volunteer operation.
Politics
Municipal council
The council is made up of 12 council members, who were elected by
majority vote
A majority is more than half of a total; however, the term is commonly used with other meanings, as explained in the "#Related terms, Related terms" section below.
It is a subset of a Set (mathematics), set consisting of more than half of the se ...
at the municipal election held on 7 June 2009, and the honorary mayor as chairman.
Mayor
Schalkenmehren’s mayor is Peter Hartogh, and his deputies are Lothar Kaspers and Elfriede Geibel.
Coat of arms
The municipality’s
arms
Arms or ARMS may refer to:
*Arm or arms, the upper limbs of the body
Arm, Arms, or ARMS may also refer to:
People
* Ida A. T. Arms (1856–1931), American missionary-educator, temperance leader
Coat of arms or weapons
*Armaments or weapons
**Fi ...
might be described thus: Per fess wavy, azure a chapel argent with roof sable and argent three fish of the first.
The
chapel
A chapel (from , a diminutive of ''cappa'', meaning "little cape") is a Christianity, Christian place of prayer and worship that is usually relatively small. The term has several meanings. First, smaller spaces inside a church that have their o ...
shown in the upper part of the arms is the only building still standing from what was once the village of Weinfeld. The parish of Weinfeld was mentioned as early as the 14th century. The wavy line of partition, and the fish as well, are meant to refer to the
maar
A maar is a broad, low-relief volcanic crater caused by a phreatomagmatic eruption (an explosion which occurs when groundwater comes into contact with hot lava or magma). A maar characteristically fills with water to form a relatively shallow ...
s that characterize the area and the municipality itself. Furthermore, the fish are supposed to represent the wealth of fish in these bodies of water.
Culture and sightseeing
Museums
Schalkenmehren has a
museum
A museum is an institution dedicated to displaying or Preservation (library and archive), preserving culturally or scientifically significant objects. Many museums have exhibitions of these objects on public display, and some have private colle ...
dedicated to the
weaving
Weaving is a method of textile production in which two distinct sets of yarns or threads are interlaced at right angles to form a fabric or cloth. Other methods are knitting, crocheting, felting, and braiding or plaiting. The longitudinal ...
industry that was once an important livelihood to many in the municipality.
Sport and leisure
Schalkenmehren also has a small airfield for both motorized aircraft and gliders.
Observatory
The municipality was also home to an
astronomical
Astronomy is a natural science that studies celestial objects and the phenomena that occur in the cosmos. It uses mathematics, physics, and chemistry in order to explain their origin and their overall evolution. Objects of interest include ...
observatory
An observatory is a location used for observing terrestrial, marine, or celestial events. Astronomy, climatology/meteorology, geophysics, oceanography and volcanology are examples of disciplines for which observatories have been constructed.
Th ...
which belonged to the
University of Bonn
The University of Bonn, officially the Rhenish Friedrich Wilhelm University of Bonn (), is a public research university in Bonn, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It was founded in its present form as the () on 18 October 1818 by Frederick Willi ...
, the
Hoher List Observatory
Hoher List Observatorium is an Observatory located on the Hoher List mountain (549 m Height above sea level, ASL) about 60 km south-west of the city of Bonn, close to the town of Daun in the Eifel region (Rheinland-Pfalz, Rhineland-Palatinat ...
. It stands on the mountain of the same name.
Buildings
*
Saint Martin’s Catholic
The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...
Parish Church (''Pfarrkirche St. Martin''), Mehrener Straße 3 –
Classicist
Classics, also classical studies or Ancient Greek and Roman studies, is the study of classical antiquity. In the Western world, ''classics'' traditionally refers to the study of Ancient Greek literature, Ancient Greek and Roman literature and ...
aisleless church
An aisleless church () is a single-nave church building that consists of a single hall-like room. While similar to the hall church, the aisleless church lacks aisles or passageways on either side of the nave and separated from the nave by col ...
, 1840-1844; tomb from 1891; warriors’ memorial 1914-1918, round temple.
* Mehrener Straße 5 – former school, hipped roof, Reform architecture, from 1913-1914.
* Mehrener Straße 27 – former
railway station
Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport using wheeled vehicles running in railway track, tracks, which usually consist of two parallel steel railway track, rails. Rail transport is one of the two primary means of ...
, standard design, half-hipped roof,
timber-frame
Timber framing () and "post-and-beam" construction are traditional methods of building with heavy timbers, creating structures using squared-off and carefully fitted and joined timbers with joints secured by large wooden pegs. If the struc ...
goods shed, from about 1909.
* Mehrener Straße/corner of Auf Koop – wayside chapel, plastered building, 19th century.
* Udlerstraße –
Baroque
The Baroque ( , , ) is a Western Style (visual arts), style of Baroque architecture, architecture, Baroque music, music, Baroque dance, dance, Baroque painting, painting, Baroque sculpture, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished from ...
sandstone
Sandstone is a Clastic rock#Sedimentary clastic rocks, clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of grain size, sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate mineral, silicate grains, Cementation (geology), cemented together by another mineral. Sand ...
''Heiligenhäuschen'' (a small, shrinelike structure consecrated to a saint or saints), 18th century.
* Udlerstraße 5/7 – plastered building with high saddle roof, may have been remodelled in the 19th century.
* Udlerstraße 9 – timber-frame barn, partly solid, earlier half of 19th century (baselessly said to be from 1502).
* Uscherberg 9 – timber-frame house, partly solid, date unclear.
* Uscherberg 11 – so-called ''Haus Hinners'' timber-frame house, partly solid, later marked with year 1742.
* Zum Scheid 2 – timber-frame house, partly solid, 18th century, but marked 1832 (or perhaps 1852).
* Zur Sternwarte 1 – timber-frame house, partly solid, 18th century, oven porch.
* At Zur Sternwarte 1 –
wayside cross
A wayside cross is a cross by a footpath, track or road, at an intersection, along the edge of a field or in a forest. It can be made of wood, stone or metal. Stone crosses may also be conciliation crosses. Often they serve as waymarks for wal ...
,
shaft cross A shaft cross () is a specific type of Latin or High cross, named after its method of construction. The majority of these external monuments consist of the cross or crucifix itself. The cross or crucifix is usually made of stone (often sandstone), ...
, early 18th century.
* At Zur Sternwarte 1 – Artesian well, latter half of 19th century.
* Zur Sternwarte 2 – timber-frame house, partly solid, 18th century.
* ''Dronketurm'', northwest of the village – lookout tower, 1900-1902.
* ''Heiligenhäuschen'', northwest of the village, east of the Weinfelder Maar – brick, sandstone relief, 18th century (?).
* ''Heiligenhäuschen'', west of the village on ''Landesstraße'' (State Road) 64 – brick, sandstone relief, 18th/19th century.
* ''Heiligenhäuschen'', northwest of the village on the road to
Daun – round enclosed brick housing, 18th/19th century.
* ''Weinfelder Kirche'' (church), northeast of the village up from the Weinfelder Maar – former Saint Martin’s Parish Church in the vanished village of Weinfeld; biaxial
aisleless church
An aisleless church () is a single-nave church building that consists of a single hall-like room. While similar to the hall church, the aisleless church lacks aisles or passageways on either side of the nave and separated from the nave by col ...
, 1723, west tower and quire
Gothic, possibly 14th century.
Directory of Cultural Monuments in Vulkaneifel district
/ref>
Economy and infrastructure
On 1 December 1909, Schalkenmehren was linked to the railway
Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport using wheeled vehicles running in railway track, tracks, which usually consist of two parallel steel railway track, rails. Rail transport is one of the two primary means of ...
network with the opening of the ''Maare-Mosel-Bahn'', but since 29 May 1988, it has no longer been possible to reach Schalkenmehren by rail. Today, the former railway track is a cycle path, the ''Maare-Mosel-Radweg''.
References
External links
*
Municipality’s official webpage
Schalkenmehren Home Weaving Museum
{{Authority control
Municipalities in Rhineland-Palatinate
Vulkaneifel