Schmallenberg ( Westphalian: ''Smalmereg'') is a town and a climatic health resort in the High Sauerland District,

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

. By area, it is the third biggest of all cities and towns of the

state State may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State * ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States * ''Our S ...

North Rhine-Westphalia North Rhine-Westphalia (german: Nordrhein-Westfalen, ; li, Noordrien-Wesfale ; nds, Noordrhien-Westfalen; ksh, Noodrhing-Wäßßfaale), commonly shortened to NRW (), is a state (''Land'') in Western Germany. With more than 18 million inha ...

and the second biggest of the region of

Westphalia Westphalia (; german: Westfalen ; nds, Westfalen ) is a region of northwestern Germany and one of the three historic parts of the state of North Rhine-Westphalia. It has an area of and 7.9 million inhabitants. The territory of the regio ...

. With small Schmallenberg central town and the rural Bad Fredeburg Kneipp health resort the town has two urban settlements. Additionally, 82

village A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town (although the word is often used to describe both hamlets and smaller towns), with a population typically ranging from a few hundred ...

s and

hamlets A hamlet is a human settlement that is smaller than a town or village. Its size relative to a parish can depend on the administration and region. A hamlet may be considered to be a smaller settlement or subdivision or satellite entity to a lar ...

belong to the town's territory. Also being called “the Schmallenberg Sauerland”, the Town of Schmallenberg is famous for its total of fiveStadt Schmallenberg: Kurort

health resorts and nineSchmallenberger Sauerland: Golddörfer Schmallenberg und Esloh

villages which have been awarded gold for their beauty in the nationwide “” contest.

Geography

Schmallenberg is located in the southeast of the Sauerland mountainous landscape. The

Rothaar Mountains The Rothaar Mountains (german: Rothaargebirge, , also ''Rotlagergebirge''), or Rothaar, is a low mountain range reaching heights of up to 843.1 m in North Rhine-Westphalia and Hesse, Germany. It is believed that its name must once have been ...

make up a part of the town's territory. Through the central town flows the river

Lenne The Lenne is a tributary of the river Ruhr in the Sauerland hills, western Germany. It has caused flooding in recent years. Having its source on top of the ''Kahler Asten'' near Winterberg in an intermittent spring at an elevation of , the Len ...

. It is situated (linear distances): * 14 miles (22 km) south of

Meschede Meschede () is a town in the Hochsauerland district, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is the capital of the district Hochsauerlandkreis. Education One of the five branches of South Westphalia University of Applied Sciences (also: Fachh ...

(capital of the High Sauerland District) * 20 miles (33 km) southeast of

Arnsberg Arnsberg (; wep, Arensperg) is a town in the Hochsauerland county, in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia. It is the location of the Regierungsbezirk Arnsberg administration and one of the three local administration offices of the Hoch ...

(most populous town of the district and capital of the larger Governmental District of

) * 44 miles (70 km) southeast of Dortmund (most populous city of the governmental district, of the Ruhr Metropolitan Area and of

.) * 60 miles (96 km) northeast of

Cologne Cologne ( ; german: Köln ; ksh, Kölle ) is the largest city of the German western state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) and the fourth-most populous city of Germany with 1.1 million inhabitants in the city proper and 3.6 millio ...

(most populous city of the state of

and of the Northern

Rhineland The Rhineland (german: Rheinland; french: Rhénanie; nl, Rijnland; ksh, Rhingland; Latinised name: ''Rhenania'') is a loosely defined area of Western Germany along the Rhine, chiefly its middle section. Term Historically, the Rhinelands ...

) * 66 miles (106 km) southeast of

Düsseldorf Düsseldorf ( , , ; often in English sources; Low Franconian and Ripuarian language, Ripuarian: ''Düsseldörp'' ; archaic nl, Dusseldorp ) is the capital city of North Rhine-Westphalia, the most populous state of Germany. It is the second- ...

(capital of the state) * 238 miles (383 km) southwest of

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and List of cities in Germany by population, largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's List of cities in the European Union by population within ci ...

(capital and most populous city of

)

Neighboring towns and municipalities

Schmallenberg in the north borders on the Municipality of

Bestwig Bestwig is a municipality in the Hochsauerland district, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Geography Bestwig is situated on the river Ruhr, approx. 10 km east of Meschede. It lies on the German Autobahn A 46. Bestwig has a railway station ...

and the Town of

, in the east on the Town of Winterberg, in the south on the Town of

Bad Berleburg Bad Berleburg (, earlier also Berleburg) is a town, in the district of Siegen-Wittgenstein, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is one of Germany's largest towns by land area. It is located approximately northeast of Siegen and northwest of ...

, and in the west on the Municipality of Eslohe (Sauerland) and the Town of

Lennestadt Lennestadt (occasionally also ''die Lennestadt'') lies in the Sauerland in southeast North Rhine-Westphalia and is a community in Olpe district. It is the district's most populous municipality. Lennestadt itself is not an actual town but a commun ...

Town divisions

In the 1975 local government reorganization in the Sauerland and

Paderborn Paderborn (; Westphalian: ''Patterbuorn'', also ''Paterboärn'') is a city in eastern North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, capital of the Paderborn district. The name of the city derives from the river Pader and ''Born'', an old German term for t ...

the already existing Town of Schmallenberg was merged with the ''Town of Fredeburg'' (“Bad Fredeburg” today) and with the ''Municipalities'' of ''Berghausen, Bödefeld-Land, Dorlar, Fleckenberg,

Freiheit ' is the German word for both liberty and political freedom. Freiheit may also refer to: Political parties * Freie Demokratische Partei, a liberal party in Germany * South Tyrolean Freedom (', STF), a nationalist political party active in South ...

Bödefeld, Grafschaft, Lenne, Oberkirchen, Rarbach'' and ''Wormbach'' which consisted of a total of 82

s and

. On December 31, 2019 the modern Town of Schmallenberg had 25,146 inhabitants by main residence in the following 83 places: * Schmallenberg (central town) (6,100) * Bad Fredeburg (3,900) * Fleckenberg (1,545) *

Gleidorf Gleidorf is a locality in the municipality Schmallenberg in the High Sauerland District in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. The village has 1371 inhabitants and lies in the east of the municipality of Schmallenberg at a height of around 393 m. T ...

(1,378) * Bödefeld (1,126) *

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

(1,096) *

Dorlar Dorlar is a locality in the municipality Schmallenberg in the district Hochsauerlandkreis in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. The village has 849 inhabitantsOberkirchen (788) * Westfeld (734) * Holthausen (567) * Bracht (454) *

Wormbach Wormbach is a locality in the municipality Schmallenberg in the High Sauerland District in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. The village has 417 inhabitants and lies in the north of the municipality of Schmallenberg at a height of around 500 m. W ...

(403) *

Oberhenneborn Oberhenneborn is a locality in the municipality Schmallenberg in the district Hochsauerlandkreis in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. The village has 388 inhabitants Lenne The Lenne is a tributary of the river Ruhr in the Sauerland hills, western Germany. It has caused flooding in recent years. Having its source on top of the ''Kahler Asten'' near Winterberg in an intermittent spring at an elevation of , the Len ...

(348) * Westernbödefeld (338) *

Kirchrarbach Kirchrarbach is a locality in the municipality Schmallenberg in the district Hochsauerlandkreis in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. The village has 273 inhabitantsArpe (238) *

Niederberndorf Niederberndorf is a locality in the municipality Schmallenberg in the High Sauerland District in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. The village has 205 inhabitantsNiedersorpe (227) *

Nordenau Nordenau is a locality in the municipality Schmallenberg in the High Sauerland District in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. The village has 209 inhabitantsBerghausen (218) * Winkhausen (212) *

Werpe Werpe is a locality in the municipality Schmallenberg in the district Hochsauerlandkreis in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. The Werpe has 203 inhabitants and lies in the west of the municipality of Schmallenberg at a height of around 430 m. The ...

(209) * Brabecke (204) *

Sellinghausen Sellinghausen is a locality in the municipality Schmallenberg in the district Hochsauerlandkreis in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. The village has 186 inhabitantsLatrop (177) *

Altenilpe Altenilpe is a locality in the municipality Schmallenberg in the district Hochsauerlandkreis in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. The village has 154 inhabitantsHuxel (150) *

Felbecke Felbecke is a locality in the municipality Schmallenberg in the district Hochsauerlandkreis in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. The locality Felbecke has 150 inhabitantsHarbecke (132) *

Mailar Mailar is a locality in the municipality Schmallenberg in the district Hochsauerlandkreis in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. The village has 111 inhabitantsGellinghausen (118) * Rehsiepen (112) *

Sögtrop Sögtrop is a locality in the municipality Schmallenberg in the district Hochsauerlandkreis in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. The village has 109 inhabitant and lies in the north of the municipality of Schmallenberg at a height of around 383 m o ...

(106) * Heiminghausen (102) *

Menkhausen Menkhausen is a locality in the municipality Schmallenberg in the district Hochsauerlandkreis in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. The village has 86 inhabitantsKückelheim (80) * Niederhenneborn (67) * Jagdhaus (66) * Werntrop (66) * Grimminghausen (58) * Hundesossen (56) * Lengenbeck (55) * Ohlenbach (53) * Obersorpe (51) *

Oberrarbach Oberrarbach is a locality in the municipality Schmallenberg in the district Hochsauerlandkreis in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. The village has 52 inhabitants Obringhausen Obringhausen is a locality in the municipality Schmallenberg in the district Hochsauerlandkreis in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. The village has 39 inhabitants Kirchilpe Kirchilpe is a locality in the municipality Schmallenberg in the district Hochsauerlandkreis in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. The village has 33 inhabitants Ebbinghof Ebbinghof is a locality in the municipality Schmallenberg in the district Hochsauerlandkreis in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. The village has 23 inhabitants and lies in the north of the municipality of Schmallenberg at a height of around 420 m ...

(26) * Mönekind (26) * Walbecke (23) *

Sellmecke Sellmecke is a locality in the municipality Schmallenberg in the district Hochsauerlandkreis in North Rhine-Westphalia North Rhine-Westphalia (german: Nordrhein-Westfalen, ; li, Noordrien-Wesfale ; nds, Noordrhien-Westfalen; ksh, Noodrhing ...

(16) * Vorwald (16) * Hanxleden (15) * Altenhof (13) * Almert (13) * Nesselbach (13) * Twismecke (11) *

Föckinghausen Föckinghausen is a locality in the municipality Schmallenberg in the district Hochsauerlandkreis in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. The village has 9 inhabitantsRellmecke (9) * Hebbecke (9) * Hoher Knochen (9) * Wulwesort (9) * Rotbusch (8) *

Sonderhof Sonderhof is a locality in the municipality Schmallenberg in the district Hochsauerlandkreis in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. The hamlet has 8 inhabitants Rimberg Rimberg is a locality in the municipality Schmallenberg in the district Hochsauerlandkreis in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. The hamlet has 4 inhabitantsLanfert (6) *

Landenbeckerbruch Landenbeckerbruch is a locality in the municipality Schmallenberg in the district Hochsauerlandkreis in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. The hamlet has 3 inhabitantsStörmecke (3)

Twin towns

Schmallenberg twin towns are: * Flag of the United Kingdom

Burgess Hill (

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

) *

Wimereux Wimereux (; vls, Wimeruwe) is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in the Hauts-de-France region of France. Geography Wimereux is a coastal town situated some north of Boulogne, at the junction of the D233 and the D940 roads, on the b ...

(

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

)

History

In 1072 a Benedictine monastery of Grafschaft was founded near the Wilzenberg mountain by St. Anno II, Archbishop of Cologne. The oldest available documents speaking of a “Town of Schmallenberg” are the archbishop's and the town council's deeds from 1243. There were several causes which let the place of “Smalenburg” (old German, “narrow castle”) receive town rights. Before Schmallenberg received town rights, there had been a castle of Schmallenberg which must have been destroyed around 1240. It was owned by the Archbishop of Cologne Conrad of Hochstadt and the Grafschaft Abbey. The Knight Johann Kolve had the order to protect this castle. At this time, there already must have been some kind of settlement around. The archbishop did not consider the destroyed castle as useful any more. Furthermore, the local settlement was unprotected and in a risky situation because of the castle. That is why the archbishop and the Grafschaft Abbey wanted to fortify the place, leaving the old castle outside the

town 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 with towers, bastions and gates ...

. In 1244 Schmallenberg received town rights and got a mayor and an own council. Johann Kolve, who had recommended this solution, became the commander of the new fortified town. He got 30 shillings every year on St. Martin’s Day as an indemnity, an own property and a judicial immunity was granted. The new Town of Schmallenberg thanked Kolve for its new protecting wall. He did not have to pay taxes and did not have any civic duties. There is evidence from 1273 and 1292 of

blacksmith A blacksmith is a metalsmith who creates objects primarily from wrought iron or steel, but sometimes from other metals, by forging the metal, using tools to hammer, bend, and cut (cf. tinsmith). Blacksmiths produce objects such as gates, gr ...

s working in Schmallenberg and there have been cutlers and

trip hammer A trip hammer, also known as a tilt hammer or helve hammer, is a massive powered hammer. Traditional uses of trip hammers include pounding, wikt:decorticate, decorticating and polishing of grain in agriculture. In mining, trip hammers were used f ...

s for a long time. The town joined alliances with Medebach,

Hallenberg Hallenberg is a town in the Hochsauerland district, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Geography Hallenberg is situated approximately 15 km southeast of Winterberg and 35 km north of Marburg (in Hesse). Neighbouring places * Alle ...

and Winterberg and was a member of the Hanseatic League. It used to be a Colognian minting place in the 13th century. After weapon techniques had changed and to the archbishop, Schmallenberg had lost its fortified status, the town went through an economical crisis in the 16th century. In 1812, the wall and its gates were torn down. In the last of the three big fires of 1732, 1746 and 1822, 131 of 151 houses burnt down and Schmallenberg was rebuilt in the now characteristic structure (“Prussian ladder system”) with its half-timbered houses and slated roofs. In 1800, the town's iron manufacturing industry was the second largest in the whole Duchy of Westphalia. Major competition and high costs led to the decline of the industry, and a shift towards textile manufacturing in Schmallenberg. By 1871, there were seven companies belonging to textile industry. Textile manufacturing remained the most important business type for the following years.

Economy

Since the 19th century Schmallenberg traditionally was one of the Sauerland's centers of

textile industry The textile industry is primarily concerned with the design, production and distribution of yarn, cloth and clothing. The raw material may be natural, or synthetic using products of the chemical industry. Industry process Cotton manufacturi ...

. The largest company today is the Falke company. That's why the town received the nickname ''die Strumpfstadt'' (“the sock town”). Today, 25 per cent of the population work in forest and wood economy or in tourism. In 2016 there were 9,503 jobs based on social insurances. Major Schmallenberg companies are: * “” (textile industry, 2019: 3,325 employees) * Feldhaus (construction company, 2019: 700 employees) * “” (

hidden champions Hidden champions are relatively small but highly successful companies that are concealed behind a curtain of inconspicuousness, invisibility, and sometimes secrecy. The term was coined by Hermann Simon. He first used the term as a title of a public ...

, bathroom furniture manufacturer with headquarters in Bad Fredeburg, 2021: 681 employees)

Fraunhofer Society

The

Fraunhofer Institute The Fraunhofer Society (german: Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft zur Förderung der angewandten Forschung e.V., lit=Fraunhofer Society for the Advancement of Applied Research) is a German research organization with 76institutes spread throughout Germany ...

for Molecular Biology and Applied Ecology (IME) conducts research in the field of applied life sciences from a molecular level to entire ecosystems. The IME has around 140 employees working at its locations in Schmallenberg and Aachen.

Transport

Air transport

Airfield

Schmallenberg’s aerodrome is the Rennefeld motorsport and glider airfield ''(Motorsport- und Segelflugplatz Rennefeld)'' between the villages of

and

. ICAO-Code: EDKR.

Airports

The town is surrounded by the following airports (near to far): Paderborn/Lippstadt (PAD), Dortmund (DTM), Kassel (KSF), Cologne/Bonn (CGN), Münster/Osnabrück (FMO),

(DUS) and

Frankfurt am Main Frankfurt, officially Frankfurt am Main (; Hessian: , "Frank ford on the Main"), is the most populous city in the German state of Hesse. Its 791,000 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located on its na ...

(FRA).

Private transport

Federal highways

The federal highways ''(

Bundesstraße ''Bundesstraße'' (German for "federal highway"), abbreviated ''B'', is the denotation for German and Austrian national highways. Germany Germany's ''Bundesstraßen'' network has a total length of about 40,000 km. German ''Bundesstraßen'' ...

n)'' B 236 and B 511 run through the town's territory.

Autobahn

The

Autobahn The (; German plural ) is the federal controlled-access highway system in Germany. The official German term is (abbreviated ''BAB''), which translates as 'federal motorway'. The literal meaning of the word is 'Federal Auto(mobile) Track' ...

closest to Schmallenberg is the one in * Bundesautobahn_46_number

, Enste

junction Junction may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Junction'' (film), a 2012 American film * Jjunction, a 2002 Indian film * Junction (album), a 1976 album by Andrew Cyrille * Junction (EP), by Basement Jaxx, 2002 * Junction (manga), or ''Hot ...

(20 mi/33 km for the A 46 to either Arnsberg or Brilon) Other close junctions to different directions can be found in * Bundesautobahn_45_number

Olpe, Olpe junction (27 mi/43 km for the A 45 to either Frankfurt am Main/Cologne or Dortmund) * Bundesautobahn_4_number

Wenden (Sauerland) Wenden is a municipality in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It belongs to the Olpe district in the Sauerland. It lies south of Olpe and northwest of Siegen. Geography Location Wenden lies at the southernmost tip of the Sauerland, an ar ...

, Krombach junction (27 mi/43 km for the A 4 to Cologne/Frankfurt am Main/Dortmund/Olpe/A 4/A 45) * Bundesautobahn_33_number

Bad Wünnenberg Bad Wünnenberg is a town in the district of Paderborn, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is situated on the river Aabach, approximately 20 km south of Paderborn Paderborn (; Westphalian: ''Patterbuorn'', also ''Paterboärn'') is ...

, Wünnenberg-Haaren interchange (43 mi/69 km for the A 33 to Bielefeld/Paderborn or the A 44 to either Kassel or Dortmund/Airport)

Public transport

Trains

The closest

train station A train station, railway station, railroad station or depot is a railway facility where trains stop to load or unload passengers, freight or both. It generally consists of at least one platform, one track and a station building providing s ...

s are the ones in Lennestadt-Altenhundem, Meschede and Winterberg.

Buses

Buses of Busverkehr Ruhr-Sieg (BRS) serve the town on the main routes. An association only founded for this purpose voluntarily provides a ''Bürgerbus'' (“civic bus”) on the less common routes. It mainly serves the smaller villages.

Media

The ''Westfalenpost'' newspaper has editorial offices in Schmallenberg and

and issues a daily local edition from Mondays to Saturdays. It shares its local edition with the ''Westfälische Rundschau'' which is another daily newspaper. The free advertising newspaper ''Sauerlandkurier'' also has an editorial office in Schmallenberg and is being issued on Wednesdays and Sundays. Radio and TV news can be received from the West German Broadcasting (WDR). There is a WDR regional studio in

Siegen Siegen () is a city in Germany, in the south Westphalian part of North Rhine-Westphalia. It is located in the district of Siegen-Wittgenstein in the Arnsberg region. The university town (nearly 20,000 students in the 2018–2019 winter semest ...

which daily broadcasts news for South Westphalia on

WDR 2 WDR 2 is a radio station owned and operated by the Westdeutscher Rundfunk (WDR) public broadcasting organization in Germany. It focuses on contemporary pop and rock music for an adult audience and on information. It is also WDR's broadcast sport ev ...

radio (on 93.8 FM) and in the ''Lokalzeit'' show for South Westphalia on television (

WDR Fernsehen WDR Fernsehen is a German free-to-air television network owned and operated by Westdeutscher Rundfunk and serving North Rhine-Westphalia. It is one of the seven regional "third programmes" television stations that are offered within the federal ...

). Another local radio channel is ''Radio Sauerland'' from Meschede which can be received at 89.1 or 106.5 FM in Schmallenberg and on different frequencies in the whole High Sauerland District.

Education

Schmallenberg has six elementary schools ''( Grundschulen)'' and three secondary schools (a ''

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 ...

,'' a ''

Realschule ''Realschule'' () 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''), ...

'' and a '' Gymnasium).'' There is also one special school of the High Sauerland District for emotional and social development, elementary and secondary level one ''(Martinsschule Dorlar)'', one folk high school ''(

Volkshochschule Folk high schools (also ''Adult Education Center'', Danish: ''Folkehøjskole;'' Dutch: ''Volkshogeschool;'' Finnish: ''kansanopisto'' and ''työväenopisto'' or ''kansalaisopisto;'' German: ''Volkshochschule'' and (a few) ''Heimvolkshochschule; ...

)'' a district's school of music (Kreismusikschule) and Music Education Centre Südwestfalen ''(Musikbildungszentrum Südwestfalen).''

Culture

Starting from Schmallenberg central town, trips to the

Nordenau Nordenau is a locality in the municipality Schmallenberg in the High Sauerland District in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. The village has 209 inhabitants Grafschaft Abbey Grafschaft Abbey (german: Kloster Grafschaft) is a community of the Sisters of Mercy of Saint Charles Borromeo, formerly a Benedictine monastery, in Schmallenberg-Grafschaft in the Sauerland, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. First foundation ...

or to the nearby Kneipp health resort of Bad Fredeburg are always worth to do. There are some local museums like the Slate Mining and Home Region Museum in Holthausen, the Hesse Cutlery Factory in Fleckenberg, the Monastery Museum in Grafschaft or the Jurisdiction Museum in Bad Fredeburg. Annual events in many places in town are the marksmen's festivals ''( Schützenfeste)'' lasting two to four days between April and August. They celebrate the local traditions including parades, traditional music and dance in a local hall or tent and a shooting of a wooden bird. There are 20 marksmen's clubs ''(

Schützenverein A Schützenverein (German for "marksmen's club") is a local voluntary association found in German-speaking countries revolving around shooting as a sport, often target shooting to Olympic rules or with historic weapons. Although originating as a ...

e)'' in town and each has its own Schützenfest. The biggest club is the Schmallenberg Marksmen's Society of 1820 ''(Schützengesellschaft Schmallenberg 1820)''. The oldest Schützenverein in the modern Town of Schmallenberg is the Wormbach St. Judoc Marksmen's Fraternity ''(St.-Jodokus-Schützenbruderschaft Wormbach)''. It was founded in 1525. Schmallenberg's town festival is the ''Schmallenberger Woche'' (“the Schmallenberg week”) and is being held every two years from a Wednesday to a Sunday in August. This event is celebrated in central Schmallenberg's old town and turns the Marksmen's Square park facility ''(Parkanlage Schützenplatz)'' and the ''Weststraße'' and ''Oststraße'' into a pedestrian area with music, entertainment and several stalls providing food, drinks, other commercial goods and information. Citizens from many of Schmallenberg's places, the twin towns and several associations take part in the festival. On each Second Sunday of Advent and Friday and Saturday before there is a Christmas market around the central town's Catholic church.Werbegemeinschaft Schmallenberg: Aktuelles und Info

Further Christmas markets can be found on different dates in other places of the town.

Sport

Schmallenberg has many

hiking Hiking is a long, vigorous walk, usually on trails or footpaths in the countryside. Walking for pleasure developed in Europe during the eighteenth century.AMATO, JOSEPH A. "Mind over Foot: Romantic Walking and Rambling." In ''On Foot: A Histor ...

trails adding up to approximately 2,500 kilometers, leading through forests, across mountains and through valleys. The

Rothaarsteig The Rothaarsteig is a 154.80 km long hiking trail along the crest of the Rothaargebirge mountain range in Germany in the border region between the states of North Rhine-Westphalia (NW) and Hesse (HE). It was opened in 2001. Overview T ...

, a hiking trail along the Rothaar Mountains from

Brilon Brilon (; Westphalian language, Westphalian: ''Brailen'') is a town in North Rhine-Westphalia, central Germany, that belongs to the Hochsauerlandkreis. Geography Brilon is situated on the Brilon Heights at an altitude of about 450 m on the up ...

Dillenburg Dillenburg, officially Oranienstadt Dillenburg, is a town in Hesse's Gießen region in Germany. The town was formerly the seat of the old Dillkreis district, which is now part of the Lahn-Dill-Kreis. The town lies on the German- Dutch holiday road ...

, leads through the town's territory. Recently, the town at the upper course of the

River has developed into one of Westphalia's

winter sport Winter sports or winter activities are competitive sports or non-competitive recreational activities which are played on snow or ice. Most are variations of skiing, ice skating and sledding. Traditionally, such games were only played in cold are ...

centers. The Nordic Center of

and the High Sauerland Cross-Country Skiing Center are both located in Westfeld. 250 kilometers of cross-country

ski A ski is a narrow strip of semi-rigid material worn underfoot to glide over snow. Substantially longer than wide and characteristically employed in pairs, skis are attached to ski boots with ski bindings, with either a free, lockable, or partia ...

tracks and 30 ski lifts make any kind of skiing possible.

Notable people

* Tom Astor (born 1943), is a German singer and composer * Carl Johann Ludwig Dham (1809–1871), was a German lawyer, politician and member of the

Frankfurt National Assembly The Frankfurt Parliament (german: Frankfurter Nationalversammlung, literally ''Frankfurt National Assembly'') was the first freely elected parliament for all German states, including the German-populated areas of Austria-Hungary, elected on 1 Ma ...

in 1848/49 *

Hans Frankenthal Hans Frankenthal (15 July 1926 – 22 December 1999) was a German Jew who was deported to the Auschwitz concentration camp in Occupation of Poland (1939–1945), occupied Poland in 1943. Having survived the Holocaust along with his brother Emil, ...

(1926–1999), was a Jew born in Schmallenberg who survived the holocaust and describes his ordeal in ''The Unwelcome One: Returning Home from Auschwitz'' *

Franziskus Hennemann Francis Xaver Hennemann Societas Apostolatus Catholici, S.A.C. (27 October 1882 – 17 January 1951), was a Titular Bishop in South Africa. Biography Hennemann was born in Germany in Holthausen (Schmallenberg), Holthausen (Schmallenberg). The ...

(1882–1951), was a Titular Bishop in South Africa * Hannah Neise (born 2000), is a German skeleton racer and Olympic gold medalists 2022 *

Julian Schauerte Julian Schauerte (born 2 April 1988) is a German professional footballer who plays as a right-back for 1. FC Kaan-Marienborn. Club career Schauerte comes from Grafschaft a locality in the municipality Schmallenberg. He was born in the neighbori ...

(born 1988), is a German footballer who plays for K.A.S. Eupen.

References

External links

Town administration of Schmallenberg

Schmallenberg Tourism

Sauerland Tourism
{{Authority control Hochsauerlandkreis Rothaar Mountains Members of the Hanseatic League