The Wasgau (german: Wasgau, french: Vasgovie) is a
Franco
Franco may refer to:
Name
* Franco (name)
* Francisco Franco (1892–1975), Spanish general and dictator of Spain from 1939 to 1975
* Franco Luambo (1938–1989), Congolese musician, the "Grand Maître"
Prefix
* Franco, a prefix used when re ...
-
German hill range in the German state of
Rhineland-Palatinate
Rhineland-Palatinate ( , ; german: link=no, Rheinland-Pfalz ; lb, Rheinland-Pfalz ; pfl, Rhoilond-Palz) 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 ...
and the French
departments of
Bas-Rhin
Bas-Rhin (; Alsatian: ''Unterelsàss'', ' or '; traditional german: links=no, Niederrhein; en, Lower Rhine) is a department in Alsace which is a part of the Grand Est super-region of France. The name means 'Lower Rhine', referring to its low ...
and
Moselle
The Moselle ( , ; german: Mosel ; lb, Musel ) is a river that rises in the Vosges mountains and flows through north-eastern France and Luxembourg to western Germany. It is a left bank tributary of the Rhine, which it joins at Koblenz. A ...
. It is formed from the southern part of the
Palatine Forest and the northern part of the
Vosges mountains
The Vosges ( , ; german: Vogesen ; Franconian and gsw, Vogese) are a range of low mountains in Eastern France, near its border with Germany. Together with the Palatine Forest to the north on the German side of the border, they form a single ...
, and extends from the River
Queich in the north over the French border to the
Col de Saverne in the south.
The highest hill in the entire Wasgau is the
Grand Wintersberg (581 m above
NHN) near
Niederbronn-les-Bains in northern
Alsace
Alsace (, ; ; Low Alemannic German/ gsw-FR, Elsàss ; german: Elsass ; la, Alsatia) is a cultural region and a territorial collectivity in eastern France, on the west bank of the upper Rhine next to Germany and Switzerland. In 2020, it ha ...
. Next, at 577 m is the only slightly lower
Rehberg near
Annweiler
Annweiler am Trifels (), or Annweiler is a town in the Südliche Weinstraße district, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is situated on the river Queich, 12 km west of Landau. Annweiler am Trifels station is on the Landau–Saarbrück ...
in the
South Palatinate, which is the highest summit on German soil in the Wasgau.
The Wasgau forms the southern part of the
Palatine Forest-North Vosges Biosphere Reserve.
Geography
Location
The Wasgau runs from a line between
Pirmasens
Pirmasens (; pfl, Bärmesens (also ''Bermesens'' or ''Bärmasens'')) is an independent town in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany, near the border with France. It was famous for the manufacture of shoes. The surrounding rural district was called ''La ...
and
Landau
Landau ( pfl, Landach), officially Landau in der Pfalz, is an autonomous (''kreisfrei'') town surrounded by the Südliche Weinstraße ("Southern Wine Route") district of southern Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is a university town (since 1990) ...
in the north that, from
Wilgartswiesen coincides with the course of the River Queich, to the Col de Saverne and a line between
Phalsbourg to
Saverne in the south. Its eastern boundary, running from
Albersweiler in the Queich valley via
Bad Bergzabern
Bad Bergzabern () is a municipality in the Südliche Weinstraße district, on the German Wine Route in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is situated near the border with France, on the south-eastern edge of the Palatinate forest, approximately ...
,
Wissembourg
Wissembourg (; South Franconian: ''Weisseburch'' ; German: ''Weißenburg'' ) is a commune in the Bas-Rhin department in Grand Est in northeastern France.
It is situated on the little river Lauter close to the border between France and Germany ...
in Alsace and
Niederbronn-les-Bains to Saverne is the
edge of the Rhine Graben. In the west the hills transition smoothly into the landscape region of the
Westrich Plateau; from there the younger rock strata of the
muschelkalk
The Muschelkalk (German for "shell-bearing limestone"; french: calcaire coquillier) is a sequence of sedimentary rock strata (a lithostratigraphic unit) in the geology of central and western Europe. It has a Middle Triassic (240 to 230 million ye ...
cover the
bunter sandstone
The Buntsandstein (German for ''coloured'' or ''colourful sandstone'') or Bunter sandstone is a lithostratigraphic and allostratigraphic unit (a sequence of rock strata) in the subsurface of large parts of west and central Europe. The Buntsandste ...
that dominates the Wasgau. This natural boundary runs roughly from Pirmasens via
Eppenbrunn,
Bitche
Bitche ( , ; German and Lorraine Franconian: ) is a commune in the Moselle department, administrative region of Grand Est, northeastern France. It is the Pays de Bitche's capital city and the seat of the Canton of Bitche and the communauté de ...
and
Lemberg
Lviv ( uk, Львів) is the largest city in western Ukraine, and the seventh-largest in Ukraine, with a population of . It serves as the administrative centre of Lviv Oblast and Lviv Raion, and is one of the main cultural centres of Ukrain ...
in
Lorraine
Lorraine , also , , ; Lorrain: ''Louréne''; Lorraine Franconian: ''Lottringe''; german: Lothringen ; lb, Loutrengen; nl, Lotharingen is a cultural and historical region in Northeastern France, now located in the administrative region of G ...
towards the south and, near Phalsbourg, finally reaches the fault zone of the narrow Col de Saverne; this separates the Wasgau from the "real" (North) Vosges immediately to the south, although this transition is rather gradual and the dividing line not particularly clear.
[Landesamt für Vermessung und Geobasisinformation Rheinland-Pfalz (pub.)]
''Topografische Karten 1:25.000 und 1:50.000
retrieved, 13 February 2012.[Institut Géographique National (ed.): ''Cartes Topographiques 1:25.000 und 1:50.000''. Paris, verschiedene Jahrgänge.][Landesamt für Geologie und Bergbau Rheinland-Pfalz]
''Geologische Übersichtskarte Rheinland-Pfalz''
retrieved 13 February 2012.
A central sub-region of the Wasgau is the Dahn-Annweilerer-
''Wasgauer Felsenland'', which extends from the Queich valley near Annweiler in the northeast to the area of the
Falkensteinerbach stream and
Zinsel du Nord near
Baerenthal and
Philippsbourg
Philippsbourg (; german: Philippsburg, link=no ; Lorraine Franconian: ''Phillipsburch''; gsw-FR, Phillipsbueri) is a commune in the department of Moselle, administrative region of Grand Est, northeastern France.
The village belongs to the Pay ...
in the southwest.
Structure
The uplands of the Wasgau differ from those of the central Palatine Forest that border it to the north. The landscape of the Wasgau has a characteristically variable nature, with numerous conical hills (''Kegelberge'') as well as clearly rounded domes (''Kuppen''). Between the hills are conspicuously level plains, some of them extensive.
The Wasgau is drained mostly towards the east by left-hand tributaries of the
River Rhine
), Surselva, Graubünden, Switzerland
, source1_coordinates=
, source1_elevation =
, source2 = Rein Posteriur/Hinterrhein
, source2_location = Paradies Glacier, Graubünden, Switzerland
, source2_coordinates=
, sourc ...
, namely the Queich, the
Lauter (called the ''Wieslauter'' in its upper reaches) and the
Saarbach, which continues as the ''Sauer'' in North Alsace. setzt. There it is followed by the
Moder, whose
catchment area
In human geography, a catchment area is the area from which a location, such as a city, service or institution, attracts a population that uses its services and economic opportunities. Catchment areas may be defined based on from where people are ...
extends southwards via its right-hand tributary, the
Zorn
Zorn is a family name of German origin meaning "wrath". Historically, it was predominantly strong in German influenced cities such as Strasbourg, Kempten, Innsbruck, and Würzburg. Today, the surname Zorn can be frequently found in Bavaria, Baden ...
, beyond the Col de Saverne.
There are no natural
lake
A lake is an area filled with water, localized in a basin, surrounded by land, and distinct from any river or other outlet that serves to feed or drain the lake. Lakes lie on land and are not part of the ocean, although, like the much larger ...
s in the Wasgau, but especially in the area of the Saarbach stream, historic ponds or ''
woogs'' have survived from the
Middle Ages
In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...
. These are small
lake
A lake is an area filled with water, localized in a basin, surrounded by land, and distinct from any river or other outlet that serves to feed or drain the lake. Lakes lie on land and are not part of the ocean, although, like the much larger ...
s that were artificially created to
breed fish or to utilize their water in the operation of
watermills
A watermill or water mill is a mill that uses hydropower. It is a structure that uses a water wheel or water turbine to drive a mechanical process such as milling (grinding), rolling, or hammering. Such processes are needed in the production ...
or iron
hammer mill
A hammer mill, hammer forge or hammer works was a workshop in the pre-industrial era that was typically used to manufacture semi-finished, wrought iron products or, sometimes, finished agricultural or mining tools, or military weapons. The featur ...
s. The water of the
Zinsel du Nord near
Baerenthal in the
Pays de Bitche
The Pays de Bitche (, literally ''Land of Bitche'', german: Bitscherland or ) is a natural region located in the Moselle department of the Grand Est region of France. It corresponds to the present French part of the former principality of Zweibrü ...
was used during the 18th and 19th centuries for processing iron in the
ironworks
An ironworks or iron works is an industrial plant where iron is smelted and where heavy iron and steel products are made. The term is both singular and plural, i.e. the singular of ''ironworks'' is ''ironworks''.
Ironworks succeeded bloomeri ...
and
blast furnaces
A blast furnace is a type of metallurgical furnace used for smelting to produce industrial metals, generally pig iron, but also others such as lead or copper. ''Blast'' refers to the combustion air being "forced" or supplied above atmospheric p ...
. To that end, several larger and smaller ponds were laid out between
Mouterhouse and Baerenthal, which have been mainly used for tourism since the closure of the last ironworks in 1923. Even the
Étang de Hanau, a pond a few miles east of Bitche in
Éguelshardt has become a major tourist centre with swimming facilities, boat rentals and camping.
Splash dam
A splash dam was a temporary wooden dam used to raise the water level in streams to float logs downstream to sawmills. By impounding water and allowing it to be released on the log drive's schedule, these dams allowed many more logs to be brough ...
s (''ecluses'') were constructed, for example on the Wieslauter stream, as part of the
timber rafting industry, that was practised until the end of the 19th century. These dams were able to trap logs after temporary flooding which, after the opening of a
weir
A weir or low head dam is a barrier across the width of a river that alters the flow characteristics of water and usually results in a change in the height of the river level. Weirs are also used to control the flow of water for outlets of l ...
could be transported downstream on the water.
Hills
General
Due to its small-scale relief, the uplands of the Wasgau are characterized by considerable diversity of forms with rather isolated individual peaks - particularly the conical hills or ''Kegelberge'' - which reach an average height of 400–500 metres above
sea level
Mean sea level (MSL, often shortened to sea level) is an average surface level of one or more among Earth's coastal bodies of water from which heights such as elevation may be measured. The global MSL is a type of vertical datuma standardised g ...
. The highest peaks are in the northern and central Wasgau (such as the
Wegelnburg, 572 m, and the ''Mohnenberg'', 547 m), especially near the edge of the Rhine trough (e.g. the Grand Winterberg, 581 m, and the Rehberg, 577 m), while the bunter sandstone block in the west and south descends from about 500 m (
Wasenkoepfel, 526 m and
Großer Eyberg, 513 m) to an average of about 350–400 m at the Saverne. Also typical is the number of variably shaped rock formations, mainly rocks of the
Lower Triassic sandstone, the ''Trifels'' and ''Rehberg'' beds, that are found on many hills in the Wasgau (see the sections on
Geology
Geology () is a branch of natural science concerned with Earth and other astronomical objects, the features or rocks of which it is composed, and the processes by which they change over time. Modern geology significantly overlaps all other Ear ...
and
rock formations). In his typology of mountain and rock formations of the Wasgau, Geiger distinguishes the following six forms: hill blocks with rock outcrops, table hills; rock slabs; ridges with rock faces, hill cones with rock blocks; hill cones with rock towers and domed hills. In addition there is a host of hilltop observation towers (e.g. on the Grand Wintersberg, Rehberg, ''Stäffelsberg'' and Wasenkoepfel) that offer visitors a 360° panorama.
Detailed overview
The columns in the table are based on the Natural Region Division Concept of the Wasgau. Each column shows the important hills of each sub-region in order of height.
File:Tour-du-grand-wintersberg.JPG, Observation tower on the Grand Wintersberg (Wasgau Felsenland)
File:2011 Pfälzerwald 122 Rehberg.jpg, The Rehberg and Asselstein (left) (Wasgau Felsenland)
File:Wegelnburg.jpg, The Schlossberg (Wegelnburg) (Wasgau Felsenland)
File:Schlossberg (Hohenburg).JPG, The Schlossberg (Hohenburg) (Wasgau Felsenland): view from the Wegelnburg
File:Hohe Derst (Wasgau).JPG, Hohe Derst (eastern Wasgau): view from the Stäffelsberg
File:2012 Pfälzerwald 363 Hohenberg 552 m.JPG, The Hohenberg (eastern Wasgau): view from the Rehberg
File:Mohnenberg2.jpg, The Mohnenberg (eastern Wasgau): view from Schöneck Castle
File:2012 Pfälzerwald 366 Föhrlenberg.JPG, The Föhrlenberg (eastern Wasgau): view from the Rehberg
File:Blick vom Rehbergturm nach Südosten.JPG, View from the Rehberg towards Treutelsberg (eastern Wasgau)
File:Trifels.jpg, The Sonnenberg and Trifels Castle (Wasgau Felsenland)
File:Rothenberg mit Madenburg.JPG, The Rothenberg mit Madenburg (eastern Wasgau)
File:2012 Pfälzerwald 375 Ebersberg 462m.JPG, The Ebersberg (Wasgau Felsenland): view from the Rehberg
File:Mont-St Michel St Jean vue générale.JPG, View from Saint-Jean-Saverne of Mont Saint-Michel (southern Wasgau)
Geology
Formation and deposition of the rock strata
The Wasgau, as part of the Palatine Forest and the North Vosges, is characterized by rock strata of bunter sandstone and, to a lesser extent,
Zechstein
The Zechstein ( German either from ''mine stone'' or ''tough stone'') is a unit of sedimentary rock layers of Middle to Late Permian (Guadalupian to Lopingian) age located in the European Permian Basin which stretches from the east coast of Engla ...
, which was deposited in the late
Permian
The Permian ( ) is a geologic period and stratigraphic system which spans 47 million years from the end of the Carboniferous Period million years ago (Mya), to the beginning of the Triassic Period 251.9 Mya. It is the last period of the Paleoz ...
(256–251 million years ago) and early
Triassic
The Triassic ( ) is a geologic period and system which spans 50.6 million years from the end of the Permian Period 251.902 million years ago ( Mya), to the beginning of the Jurassic Period 201.36 Mya. The Triassic is the first and shortest period ...
(251–243 million years ago), predominantly under
desert-like climatic conditions.
Sedimentary sequences were formed with a thickness of about 500 metres, of different strengths, thicknesses and colouring, and comprising mainly strongly hardened, silica-cemented, medium- and coarse-grained
sandstone
Sandstone is a clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate grains. Sandstones comprise about 20–25% of all sedimentary rocks.
Most sandstone is composed of quartz or feldspar (both silicates) ...
s, but also some fine-grained sandstones, bonded with clay cement, and
shales
Shale is a fine-grained, clastic sedimentary rock formed from mud that is a mix of flakes of clay minerals (hydrous aluminium phyllosilicates, e.g. kaolin, Al2 Si2 O5( OH)4) and tiny fragments ( silt-sized particles) of other minerals, especial ...
. These rocks are
divided
Division is one of the four basic operations of arithmetic, the ways that numbers are combined to make new numbers. The other operations are addition, subtraction, and multiplication.
At an elementary level the division of two natural numbers ...
into various
strata that, in the case of the bunter sandstone region, comprise Lower, Middle and Upper levels.
During the formation of the
Upper Rhine Graben in the
Paleogene
The Paleogene ( ; also spelled Palaeogene or Palæogene; informally Lower Tertiary or Early Tertiary) is a geologic period and system that spans 43 million years from the end of the Cretaceous Period million years ago ( Mya) to the beginning o ...
period (66–23.8 million years ago), these rock strata experienced
tectonically
Tectonics (; ) are the processes that control the structure and properties of the Earth's crust and its evolution through time. These include the processes of mountain building, the growth and behavior of the strong, old cores of continents ...
induced displacements that have had a significance impact on the appearance of the landscape of the Wasgau today. At that time the edges of the Rhine Graben were uplifted and the layers of bunter sandstone and, in places also older rocks (Zechstein,
Rotliegendes) were exposed after the overlying rock was eroded away. This resulted in tilting, bulging (thrusting and folding) and the fracturing (formation of
faults) of the various rock strata.
Development of the present topography
Due to the synclinal-anticlinal structure of the hills on the left bank of the Rhine which runs from southwest to northeast, these bulges in the northern and central parts of the Wasgau, i.e. in the region of the South Palatine Saddle (''Südpfälzer Sattel'') are particularly prominent, with the result that their surface layers were more heavily eroded. Because the formations of the
Zechstein
The Zechstein ( German either from ''mine stone'' or ''tough stone'') is a unit of sedimentary rock layers of Middle to Late Permian (Guadalupian to Lopingian) age located in the European Permian Basin which stretches from the east coast of Engla ...
, for example, the Annweiler and Speyerbach beds, consist more of fine-grained sandstones with clayey binding and shales and therefore have a softer consistency, this material could be more easily carried awayl leaving the older rocks of the Zechstein and
Rotliegendes exposed. This resulted in erosion surfaces and broad valleys, as are particularly characteristic of the northeastern Wasgau, for example, in
Gossersweiler and
Völkersweiler, also in
Hauenstein
Hauenstein is a municipality in the Südwestpfalz district, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is situated in the Palatinate forest, approximately 20 km east of Pirmasens, and 20 km west of Landau.
Hauenstein is the seat of the ''Ver ...
,
Busenberg or
Fischbach bei Dahn. At the same time, parts of the Lower
Bunter Sandstone
The Buntsandstein (German for ''coloured'' or ''colourful sandstone'') or Bunter sandstone is a lithostratigraphic and allostratigraphic unit (a sequence of rock strata) in the subsurface of large parts of west and central Europe. The Buntsandste ...
, the so-called Trifels and Rehberg beds remained, because they mostly consist of harder
quartz
Quartz is a hard, crystalline mineral composed of silica (silicon dioxide). The atoms are linked in a continuous framework of SiO4 silicon-oxygen tetrahedra, with each oxygen being shared between two tetrahedra, giving an overall chemical fo ...
sandstone
Sandstone is a clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate grains. Sandstones comprise about 20–25% of all sedimentary rocks.
Most sandstone is composed of quartz or feldspar (both silicates) ...
and are therefore particularly resistant to
weathering
Weathering is the deterioration of rocks, soils and minerals as well as wood and artificial materials through contact with water, atmospheric gases, and biological organisms. Weathering occurs ''in situ'' (on site, with little or no movement), ...
and
erosion
Erosion is the action of surface processes (such as water flow or wind) that removes soil, rock, or dissolved material from one location on the Earth's crust, and then transports it to another location where it is deposited. Erosion is di ...
. The micro-
relief of the Wasgau was developed during the
Neogene
The Neogene ( ), informally Upper Tertiary or Late Tertiary, is a geologic period and system that spans 20.45 million years from the end of the Paleogene Period million years ago ( Mya) to the beginning of the present Quaternary Period Mya. ...
period (23.8 to 2.8 million years ago), and especially the
Quaternary
The Quaternary ( ) is the current and most recent of the three periods of the Cenozoic Era in the geologic time scale of the International Commission on Stratigraphy (ICS). It follows the Neogene Period and spans from 2.58 million yea ...
period (2.8 to 0.01 million years ago), as a result of
erosion
Erosion is the action of surface processes (such as water flow or wind) that removes soil, rock, or dissolved material from one location on the Earth's crust, and then transports it to another location where it is deposited. Erosion is di ...
, that is characterized by diversely-shaped, often conical and isolated
hill
A hill is a landform that extends above the surrounding terrain. It often has a distinct summit.
Terminology
The distinction between a hill and a mountain is unclear and largely subjective, but a hill is universally considered to be not as ...
s with bizarre
rock formation
A rock formation is an isolated, scenic, or spectacular surface rock outcrop. Rock formations are usually the result of weathering and erosion sculpting the existing rock. The term ''rock formation'' can also refer to specific sedimen ...
s (the Wasgau Rock Country or ''Wasgau Felsenland''). This rock country extends from Annweiler in the northeast roughly to the stream of the Falkensteiner Bach at Phillipsburg in the southwest and forms the actual core area of the Wasgau.
Had the rock strata been undisturbed, the typical landscape structure of the rock country would end shortly after Annweiler due to their inclination. Tectonic processes, however, led to the shifting and displacement of individual layers of rock so that, west of the
Elmstein Fault roughly from
Wilgartswiesen,
Spirkelbach,
Schwanheim Erlenbach,
Niederschlettenbach up to
Lembach in Alsace the rock forming Trifels beds were uplifted by about 80 to 100 metres and so these rocks continue to shape the surface of the landscape in the
Dahner Felsenland and Schönau Felsenland. Only west of the
(Wies-)Lauter and
Sauer or Saarbach do they dive permanently beneath the younger strata of the Middle Bunter Sandstein, for example, the Karlstal beds, so that the landscape of the western Wasgau appears similar to that of the Middle Palatinate Forest. This also applies to the southern part of Wasgau because, in the area of the
Col de Saverne or Pfalzburg Trough (''Pfalzburger Mulde'') the various rock formations are less strongly arched and therefore their surface layers were not as severely eroded. For this reason, younger rocks of the Middle and Upper Bunter form the surface of the hills, whilst Rehberg and Trifels beds only occur in deep V-shaped valleys. Also, south of a line from
Ingweiler through
Wingen-sur-Moder
Wingen-sur-Moder (; german: Wingen an der Moder; Rhine Franconian: ''Winge'') is a commune in the Bas-Rhin department in Grand Est in north-eastern France. The name, literally translated as "Wingen on the Moder", is often shortened to ''Winge ...
to
Diemeringen
Diemeringen () is a commune in the Bas-Rhin department in Grand Est in north-eastern France.
See also
* Communes of the Bas-Rhin department
The following is a list of the 514 communes of the Bas-Rhin department of France.
The communes ...
, the main distribution zone of Bunter sandstone from the eastern edge of the trough to the rocks of the Lower Muschelkalk in the west narrows from a width of about 15 km to a minimum of 7 km in the area of the Col de Saverne (see map above).
Name and history
The names ''Wasgau'' and ''Vosges'' have the same linguistic source: the originally
Celtic hill and forest god, ''
Vosegus'', who was adopted by the Romans who incorporated it into their
Latin
Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through ...
names for the region, ''Vosegus mons'' ''("Vosegus Hill")'' and ''Silva Vosegus'' ("Vosegus Wood").
This name became the French ''Vosges'', and the
Middle High German
Middle High German (MHG; german: Mittelhochdeutsch (Mhd.)) is the term for the form of German spoken in the High Middle Ages. It is conventionally dated between 1050 and 1350, developing from Old High German and into Early New High German. Hi ...
''Wasigen'', which further evolved into ''Wasgau'' and ''Wasgenwald'' ("Wasgen Forest"). Linguistically these terms are also related to the
Vôge region which is adjacent to the Vosges to the southwest, whose name derives from the feminine form ''*Vosagia''.
Gradually the names branched and developed separately due to the Franco-German border. Today the Alsace-Lorraine part of the range is called the ''Vosges'' and the Palatine part is the ''Wasgau''. During the time from 1871 to 1919, when Alsace and parts of Lorraine temporarily belonged to Germany, the Vosges was generally referred to as the ''Wasgenwald'' in order to emphasise the distance from the Roman-Latin term.
As part of the European treaty (
Schengen Agreement
The Schengen Agreement ( , ) is a treaty which led to the creation of Europe's Schengen Area, in which internal border checks have largely been abolished. It was signed on 14 June 1985, near the town of Schengen, Luxembourg, by five of the t ...
), however, there is now a tendency to go the opposite way: both parts of the range are see as a single, cross-border, natural-regional and cultural-historical unit. So in addition to the use of the official landscape names of ''Vosges du Nord'' ("North Vosges") and ''Südlicher Pfälzerwald'' ("Southern Palatine Forest"), the range is called by the overall term of ''Wasgau'' or ''Vasgovie''; in keeping with the historical development of the name, these terms are used not just for the Palatine, but also for the Alsace-Lorraine part of the region.
The so-called "South Route" (''Südroute'') of the historic
Way of St. James
The Camino de Santiago ( la, Peregrinatio Compostellana, "Pilgrimage of Compostela"; gl, O Camiño de Santiago), known in English as the Way of St James, is a network of pilgrims' ways or pilgrimages leading to the shrine of the apostle Saint ...
used to run through the Wasgau; today it is more of touristic rather than religious significance.
Sights
Castles
File:Trifels - aus der Hubschrauberperspektive.JPG, Trifels
File:090906-Berwartstein-01.jpg, Berwartstein
File:Drachenfels-Turm.jpg, Drachenfels
File:Altdahn südturm.jpg, Altdahn
File:Fleckenstein.jpg, View of the Fleckenstein from the Hohenbourg
File:Lichtenberg Alsace 05.jpg, Lichtenberg
Of the numerous
castle
A castle is a type of fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by military orders. Scholars debate the scope of the word ''castle'', but usually consider it to be the private fortified ...
s in the region, several have written history.
Trifels Castle, which was partially restored during the 20th century, was where the
imperial regalia
The Imperial Regalia, also called Imperial Insignia (in German ''Reichskleinodien'', ''Reichsinsignien'' or ''Reichsschatz''), are regalia of the Holy Roman Emperor. The most important parts are the Crown, the Imperial orb, the Imperial sce ...
were kept for a time during the
Middle Ages
In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...
. Together with the castles of
Anebos and
Scharfenberg, Trifels is the symbol of Annweiler.
Berwartstein Castle owned by the legendary knight,
Hans von Trotha, called "Hans Trapp", has been restored, is occupied and managed.
Drachenfels Castle was destroyed because part of it had belonged to the rebellious knight,
Franz von Sickingen
Franz von Sickingen (2 March 14817 May 1523) was an Imperial Knight who, with Ulrich von Hutten, led the so-called " Knights' Revolt," and was one of the most notable figures of the early period of the Protestant Reformation. Sickingen was nic ...
. Other castles of the region include (from north to south):
*
Lemberg
Lviv ( uk, Львів) is the largest city in western Ukraine, and the seventh-largest in Ukraine, with a population of . It serves as the administrative centre of Lviv Oblast and Lviv Raion, and is one of the main cultural centres of Ukrain ...
*
Neudahn
*
Madenburg
*
Castles of Dahn, consisting of
Altdahn,
Grafendahn and
Tanstein
*
Landeck
Landeck () is a city in the Austrian state of Tyrol, the capital of the district of Landeck.
Geography
Landeck is located in the Tyrolean Oberland in the west of the state at an elevation of about . The town is situated in the valley of the In ...
*
Lindelbrunn
*
Wegelnburg,
Hohenbourg and
Lœwenstein
*
Fleckenstein
*
Blumenstein
*
Wasigenstein
*
Falkenstein
*
Wasenbourg
*
Lichtenberg
Lichtenberg () is the eleventh borough of Berlin, Germany. In Berlin's 2001 administrative reform it absorbed the former borough of Hohenschönhausen.
Overview
The district contains the Tierpark Berlin in Friedrichsfelde, the larger of Berlin' ...
*
Hunebourg
Rock formations
Shapes
The Wasgau Felsenland ("rock country") is rich in bizarre sandstone rock formations, which have been formed over the millennia by the weathering and erosion of strata of differing hardness belonging to the Lower and Middle Bunter (see
Geology
Geology () is a branch of natural science concerned with Earth and other astronomical objects, the features or rocks of which it is composed, and the processes by which they change over time. Modern geology significantly overlaps all other Ear ...
section). In the Palatine part of the Wasgau alone there are over 200 rock massifs and free-standing rock pinnacles. Depending on the erosion of the Trifels, Rehberg and Karlstal beds they are classified as rock terraces (''Felsriffe'', e. g. the Heidenpfeiler and Buhlsteinpfeiler near
Busenberg; the Lämmerfelsen rocks near
Dahn), rock faces (''Felswände'', e.g. the
Asselstein near Annweiler; the Erbsenfelsen near Egelshardt) and rock walls (''Felsmauern'', e. g. the Dimberg near
Dimbach). Other rock forms are pinnacles (''Felstürme'', e. g. the Hundsfelsen near
Waldrohrbach; the Hühnerstein near
Hauenstein
Hauenstein is a municipality in the Südwestpfalz district, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is situated in the Palatinate forest, approximately 20 km east of Pirmasens, and 20 km west of Landau.
Hauenstein is the seat of the ''Ver ...
) and blocks (''Felsklötze'', e. g.
Lindelbrunn near
Vorderweidenthal;
Fleckenstein near
Hirschthal and
Lembach), which are mainly found on top of conical hills.
Small scale weathering of narrow strata with varying hardness has produced rock openings, rock gateways (''Torfelsen'', e.g. the Eilöchelfelsen near
Busenberg), rock columns (''Felsspalten'', e.g. the
Bride and Groom Bride and Groom may refer to:
* ''Bride and Groom'' (radio program) (1945-1950), an old-time radio program
* ''Bride and Groom'' (TV series) (1951-1958), based on the radio show
* Bride and Groom (rock formation)
* ''Bride and Groom'' (book), a ...
near Dahn) and rock tables (''Tischfelsen'', e.g. the
Devil's Table). On many rocks - for example, the almost two-kilometre-long rock terrace of the
Altschlossfelsen near
Eppenbrunn –
cornice
In architecture, a cornice (from the Italian ''cornice'' meaning "ledge") is generally any horizontal decorative moulding that crowns a building or furniture element—for example, the cornice over a door or window, around the top edge of a ...
-like overhangs and
honeycomb weathering may also be seen.
Many castles in the Wasgau were built on rock terraces or blocks of rock; especially prominent examples are the "castle trinity" of Trifels, Anebos and Scharfenberg near Annweiler and Lindelbrunn Castle, a few kilometres to the southwest. Well known rock castles also include the Berwartstein near
Erlenbach, the Drachenfels near Busenberg and the Fleckenstein near Hirschthal and Lembach (see
Castles
A castle is a type of fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by military orders. Scholars debate the scope of the word ''castle'', but usually consider it to be the private fortified r ...
section).
Fauna und Flora
From a
botanical
Botany, also called , plant biology or phytology, is the science of plant life and a branch of biology. A botanist, plant scientist or phytologist is a scientist who specialises in this field. The term "botany" comes from the Ancient Gree ...
perspective many rock regions form
biotope
A biotope is an area of uniform environmental conditions providing a living place for a specific assemblage of plants and animals. ''Biotope'' is almost synonymous with the term "habitat", which is more commonly used in English-speaking countri ...
s with particularly hardy and undemanding sandstone vegetation, that is mainly composed of
mountain pine,
common heather
''Calluna vulgaris'', common heather, ling, or simply heather, is the sole species in the genus ''Calluna'' in the flowering plant family Ericaceae. It is a low-growing evergreen shrub growing to tall, or rarely to and taller, and is found wide ...
and simple
grass
Poaceae () or Gramineae () is a large and nearly ubiquitous family of monocotyledonous flowering plants commonly known as grasses. It includes the cereal grasses, bamboos and the grasses of natural grassland and species cultivated in lawns and ...
es (e. g.
wavy hair-grass), and, in wet areas, also
moss
Mosses are small, non-vascular flowerless plants in the taxonomic division Bryophyta (, ) ''sensu stricto''. Bryophyta (''sensu lato'', Schimp. 1879) may also refer to the parent group bryophytes, which comprise liverworts, mosses, and horn ...
es and
fern
A fern (Polypodiopsida or Polypodiophyta ) is a member of a group of vascular plants (plants with xylem and phloem) that reproduce via spores and have neither seeds nor flowers. The polypodiophytes include all living pteridophytes except t ...
s. In addition, since the 1980s,
peregrine falcon
The peregrine falcon (''Falco peregrinus''), also known as the peregrine, and historically as the duck hawk in North America, is a cosmopolitan bird of prey ( raptor) in the family Falconidae. A large, crow-sized falcon, it has a blue-grey ba ...
s have settled on a host of rocks, so that restrictions have had to be introduced for climbers, walkers and special users. In order to avoid conflicts of usage these regulations (out-of-bounds areas and the guarding of breeding rocks) are laid down annually by the Palatine Climbing Association and the Palatine Conservation Clubs (e. g. the Peregrine Conservation Working Group (''Arbeitskreis Wanderfalkenschutz'') of
NABU
Nabu ( akk, cuneiform: 𒀭𒀝 Nabû syr, ܢܵܒܼܘܼ\ܢܒܼܘܿ\ܢܵܒܼܘܿ Nāvū or Nvō or Nāvō) is the ancient Mesopotamian patron god of literacy, the rational arts, scribes, and wisdom.
Etymology and meaning
The Akkadian "nab� ...
).
Sports climbers and walkers
The Wasgauer Felsenland offers
sport climbers a variety of different options which, thanks to the highly variable nature and weathering of sandstone rock, offer a wide range of
climbing grade
In rock climbing, mountaineering, and other climbing disciplines, climbers give a grade to a climbing route or boulder problem, intended to describe concisely the difficulty and danger of climbing it. Different types of climbing (such as sport ...
s. Well known
climbing areas include the regions around Annweiler (e. g. the Asselstein),
Lug (e. g. ''Luger Friedrich'') and Hauenstein (e. g. ''Spirkelbacher Rauhfels''), as well as the Dahn (e. g. ''Lämmerfelsen'') and
Erfweiler regions (e. g. ''Heegerturm''), to which the well known
Bärenbrunner Tal belongs (e. g. ''Pferchfeldfelsen)''.
In order to enable walkers to experience this rock landscape at closer hand, in recent years a range of
themed walks has been established. In the Wasgau these include the Dahn Rock Path (''Dahner Felsenpfad''), the Busenberg Clog Path (''Busenberger Holzschuhpfad'') the Hauenstein Cobbler Path (''Hauensteiner Schusterpfad'') and the Annweiler Red Sandstone Path (''Annweilerer Buntsandsteinpfad''). Whilst most rocks remain the province of professional climbers, certain rock terraces may be accessed on foot (e. g. the ''Buhlsteine'', ''Heidenpfeiler'' and ''Rötzenstein'') or may be climbed, with care, with the aid of ladders and steps (e. g. ''Hühnerstein'' near Hauenstein).
Gallery
File:Biosphärenhaus.jpg, Biosphere House
File:WipfelpfadTurm.jpg, Baumwipfel Path
File:Deutsches Schuhmuseum.jpg, German Shoe Museum
File:Schuh gross fcm.jpg, Shoe Museum: shoe size 180
File:Château de La Petite-Pierre (2).JPG, Administration centre of the North Vosges Nature Park
File:Graufthal (5).jpg, Rock homes in Graufthal
Amongst the other attractions of the Wasgau are the
Biosphere House with its adjacent
tree walk in
Fischbach, the
Südliche Weinstraße Wildlife Park in
Silz, the
German Shoe Museum, the
Glass Shoe Factory in
Hauenstein
Hauenstein is a municipality in the Südwestpfalz district, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is situated in the Palatinate forest, approximately 20 km east of Pirmasens, and 20 km west of Landau.
Hauenstein is the seat of the ''Ver ...
and the administrative centre of the
North Vosges Nature Park in
La Petite-Pierre (German: ''Lützelstein''), which has an exhibition of the Palatine Forest-North Vosges Biosphere Reserve. Also in La Petite-Pierre is the Alsace Seal Museum (''Musée du sceau alsacien'') and a local history museum (''Musée des Arts et Traditions populaires'').
Another attraction are the rock dwellings a few kilometres south of
La Petite-Pierre in Graufthal; in three houses that are built into the rock face, up to 37 people have lived over the centuries. After the death of their last inhabitant in 1958 the rock dwellings were preserved as a cultural monument and may be viewed today as an open-air museum.
Economy and infrastructure
Settlement
About 237,000 inhabitants live in the Palatine Forest-North Vosges Biosphere Reserve, spread over 215 municipalities. With a total area of 3,105 km
2 this gives a population density of slightly more than 76 inhabitants per km
2. On the German side, the density is higher, with an average of 89 inhabitants per km
2, but, on the French side, it drops to just 59 inhabitants per km
2. The biosphere reserve includes not only the actual forest-covered mountains, but also densely populated areas along the edge of the
Rhine Graben and the
Westrich Plateau. If these areas are excluded to leave the area of the actual natural region itself, the population density is only about 20-30 inhabitants per km
2 (e.g. 24 inhabitants per km
2 in
Phillipsbourg in Canton de Bitche) which, for Central Europe, are extremely low values. For example, the population density for the whole of
Germany is 229 persons per km
2. Similarly, the number of settlements is lower in the natural region; the German part of the Wasgau has only about 50 and the French part, about 40, i.e. a total of about 90 communities. These relatively small settlements only occupy 5% of the total area, and are surrounded by vast, desolate forests (some 70-90 % of the total land area), and lie mainly in the valleys and on the plateaux of the low mountain range. Exceptions are upland villages such as
Climbach
Climbach () is a commune in the Bas-Rhin department in Grand Est in north-eastern France.
See also
*Communes of the Bas-Rhin department
The following is a list of the 514 communes of the Bas-Rhin department of France.
The communes coop ...
in the eastern Hochwald,
Lviv
Lviv ( uk, Львів) is the largest city in western Ukraine, and the seventh-largest in Ukraine, with a population of . It serves as the administrative centre of Lviv Oblast and Lviv Raion, and is one of the main cultural centres of Ukra ...
in the Palatinate and in Lorraine, and, in the southwest, the tourist destination of La Petite-Pierre; the latter settlements being in the high, plateau-like, transition region between the red sandstone landscape of the Wasgau and the limestone formations of the Westrich Plateau.
Other, larger settlements on the German side are
Annweiler am Trifels
Annweiler am Trifels (), or Annweiler is a town in the Südliche Weinstraße district, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is situated on the river Queich, 12 km west of Landau. Annweiler am Trifels station is on the Landau–Saarbrücken ...
,
Dahn and
Hauenstein
Hauenstein is a municipality in the Südwestpfalz district, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is situated in the Palatinate forest, approximately 20 km east of Pirmasens, and 20 km west of Landau.
Hauenstein is the seat of the ''Ver ...
. On the French, in addition to the aforementioned places, are the villages of
Lembach,
Obersteinbach,
Niedersteinbach and
Wingen-sur-Moder
Wingen-sur-Moder (; german: Wingen an der Moder; Rhine Franconian: ''Winge'') is a commune in the Bas-Rhin department in Grand Est in north-eastern France. The name, literally translated as "Wingen on the Moder", is often shortened to ''Winge ...
. The eastern edge of the range includes the settlements of Albersweiler and Bad Bergzabern in the Palatinate, and
Wissembourg
Wissembourg (; South Franconian: ''Weisseburch'' ; German: ''Weißenburg'' ) is a commune in the Bas-Rhin department in Grand Est in northeastern France.
It is situated on the little river Lauter close to the border between France and Germany ...
,
Niederbronn-les-Bains,
Ingwiller
Ingwiller (; ) is a commune in the Bas-Rhin department in Grand Est in north-eastern France.
The commune lies within the North-Vosges natural park.
History
The first known mention of Ingwiller dates from the year 742 a.C. as ''Ingoniunilare' ...
and
Saverne in Alsace. In the southwest to northwest running strip on the edge of the Wasgau lie the settlements of
Phalsbourg and
Bitche
Bitche ( , ; German and Lorraine Franconian: ) is a commune in the Moselle department, administrative region of Grand Est, northeastern France. It is the Pays de Bitche's capital city and the seat of the Canton of Bitche and the communauté de ...
in Lorraine, and Eppenbrunn and Pirmasens in the Palatinate, the last-named being the largest town on the edge of the Wasgau.
Economy
Iron production and processing, which was important in earlier times (for example, iron smelting in
Schönau) came to an end in the late 19th century. A number of so-called
Gienanth fountains bear witness to this traditional industry today.
In the 19th and 20th centuries,
forestry
Forestry is the science and craft of creating, managing, planting, using, conserving and repairing forests, woodlands, and associated resources for human and environmental benefits. Forestry is practiced in plantations and natural stands. ...
-related industry and small businesses dominated, especially those involved in
shoe
A shoe is an item of footwear intended to protect and comfort the human foot. They are often worn with a sock. Shoes are also used as an item of decoration and fashion. The design of shoes has varied enormously through time and from culture t ...
manufacturing.
After the
Second World War
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...
, the shoe industry waned and the economy increasingly turned to
tourism
Tourism is travel for pleasure or business; also the theory and practice of touring (disambiguation), touring, the business of attracting, accommodating, and entertaining tourists, and the business of operating tour (disambiguation), tours. Th ...
, which has now become the main source of income. In addition to mere relaxation, active holidays are offered, for example,
climbing
Climbing is the activity of using one's hands, feet, or any other part of the body to ascend a steep topographical object that can range from the world's tallest mountains (e.g. the eight thousanders), to small boulders. Climbing is done ...
in the South Palatinate Climbing Area or
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 Histo ...
. There are several well-maintained cycle paths that mainly follow the valleys in the Wasgau.
Transport
In addition to the main transport artery of the
B 10 federal highway along the northern edge of the Wasgau, the region is accessible on the Palatine side in the east from the
B 48, from Annweiler to
Bad Bergzabern
Bad Bergzabern () is a municipality in the Südliche Weinstraße district, on the German Wine Route in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is situated near the border with France, on the south-eastern edge of the Palatinate forest, approximately ...
, and in the west and south via the
B 427, from
Hinterweidenthal via Dahn to Bad Bergzabern. On the other side of the border, the well-developed departement road, the D 662, along the western edge of the Wasgau, links Bitche with Niederbronn-le-Bain and
Haguenau
Haguenau (; Alsatian: or ; and historically in English: ''Hagenaw'') is a commune in the Bas-Rhin department of France, of which it is a sub-prefecture.
It is second in size in the Bas-Rhin only to Strasbourg, some to the south. To the ...
in the Rhine plain. The A 4 motorway from
Paris
Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...
to
Strasbourg
Strasbourg (, , ; german: Straßburg ; gsw, label=Bas Rhin Alsatian, Strossburi , gsw, label= Haut Rhin Alsatian, Strossburig ) is the prefecture and largest city of the Grand Est region of eastern France and the official seat of the ...
and the D 604 cross the Col de Saverne, right in the south of the natural region.
The railway line from Pirmasens to Landau, the
Queich Valley Railway which runs parallel to the B 10, was once part of the
trunk route between
Saarbrücken
Saarbrücken (; french: link=no, Sarrebruck ; Rhine Franconian: ''Saarbrigge'' ; lb, Saarbrécken ; lat, Saravipons, lit=The Bridge(s) across the Saar river) is the capital and largest city of the state of Saarland, Germany. Saarbrücken is ...
and
Munich
Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the third-largest city in Germany, after Berlin and H ...
, but has been repeatedly downgraded in importance. On the
Wieslauter Railway in the west there are excursion services on Sundays and holidays. The line from
Saarbrücken
Saarbrücken (; french: link=no, Sarrebruck ; Rhine Franconian: ''Saarbrigge'' ; lb, Saarbrécken ; lat, Saravipons, lit=The Bridge(s) across the Saar river) is the capital and largest city of the state of Saarland, Germany. Saarbrücken is ...
via
Sarreguemines through the valley of the
Moder to Strasbourg mainly serves regional traffic. Currently under construction is the
TGV link between Paris and Strasbourg, which will cross under the Col de Saverne through a tunnel.
See also
*
Südliche Weinstraße Wildlife Park
References
Literature
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*
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External links
Biosphärenreservat Pfälzerwald–Vosges du NordBiosphärenhaus mit Baumwipfelpfad
{{Authority control
Regions of Rhineland-Palatinate
Regions of Europe
Geography of Rhineland-Palatinate
Natural regions of the Palatinate Forest
Hill ranges of France
Hill ranges of Germany
Mountains of Bas-Rhin
Landforms of Moselle (department)