Weinheim (; pfl, Woinem) is a town with about 43,000 inhabitants in northwest

Baden-Württemberg Baden-Württemberg (; ), commonly shortened to BW or BaWü, is a German state () in Southwest Germany, east of the Rhine, which forms the southern part of Germany's western border with France. With more than 11.07 million inhabitants across a ...

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 betwee ...

. It is in the Rhine-Neckar Metropolitan Region, approximately north of

Heidelberg Heidelberg (; Palatine German: ') is a city in the German state of Baden-Württemberg, situated on the river Neckar in south-west Germany. As of the 2016 census, its population was 159,914, of which roughly a quarter consisted of students ...

and northeast of

Mannheim Mannheim (; Palatine German: or ), officially the University City of Mannheim (german: Universitätsstadt Mannheim), is the second-largest city in the German state of Baden-Württemberg after the state capital of Stuttgart, and Germany's ...

. Weinheim is known as the "Zwei-Burgen-Stadt", the "town of two castles", after two fortresses overlooking the town from the edge of the

Odenwald The Odenwald () is a low mountain range in the German states of Hesse, Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg. Location The Odenwald is located between the Upper Rhine Plain with the Bergstraße and the ''Hessisches Ried'' (the northeastern section ...

in the east.

Geography

Weinheim is situated on the Bergstraße theme route on the western rim of the

. The old town lies in the valley, with the new part of town further to the west. The Market Square is filled with numerous cafes, as well as the old ''Rathaus'' (guildhall). Further to the south is the ''Schlossgarten'' (Palace Garden) and the ''Exotenwald'' (Exotic Forest), which contains species of trees imported from around the world, but mostly from North America and Japan.

History

Weinheim celebrated its 1250th anniversary in 2005. The earliest record of Weinheim dates back to 755 CE, when the name "Winenheim" was recorded in the Lorsch codex, the record book of Lorsch Abbey. In 1000, Emperor

Otto III Otto III (June/July 980 – 23 January 1002) was Holy Roman Emperor from 996 until his death in 1002. A member of the Ottonian dynasty, Otto III was the only son of the Emperor Otto II and his wife Theophanu. Otto III was crowned as King of ...

bestowed on Weinheim the right to hold markets, and in 1065 the right to mint and issue coins. A new town developed next to the old town from 1250. In 1308, the old town was transferred to the

Electorate of the Palatinate The Electoral Palatinate (german: Kurpfalz) or the Palatinate (), officially the Electorate of the Palatinate (), was a state that was part of the Holy Roman Empire. The electorate had its origins under the rulership of the Counts Palatine o ...

. From 1368 the whole town belonged to the

, and since the end of the 14th century to the

''Oberamt'' district. With the transfer to

Baden Baden (; ) is a historical territory in South Germany, in earlier times on both sides of the Upper Rhine but since the Napoleonic Wars only East of the Rhine. History The margraves of Baden originated from the House of Zähringen. Baden i ...

in 1803, Weinheim became the seat of its own ''

Amt Amt is a type of administrative division governing a group of municipalities, today only in Germany, but formerly also common in other countries of Northern Europe. Its size and functions differ by country and the term is roughly equivalent to ...

'', which was unified with

Landkreis In all German states, except for the three city states, the primary administrative subdivision higher than a '' Gemeinde'' (municipality) is the (official term in all but two states) or (official term in the states of North Rhine-Westphalia ...

in 1936. From 1938 onwards Weinheim belonged to Landkreis Mannheim until January 1, 1973, when the Rhein-Neckar-Kreis was formed. A Jewish community in Weinheim is first recorded in 1228. There were persecutions in Weinheim in 1298 ( Rintfleisch massacres) and 1348–49 ( Black Death persecutions). The Jews were expelled from Weinheim in 1391. The Weinheim Jewish community began to grow again in the

Thirty Years' War The Thirty Years' War was one of the longest and most destructive conflicts in European history, lasting from 1618 to 1648. Fought primarily in Central Europe, an estimated 4.5 to 8 million soldiers and civilians died as a result of batt ...

. There was a

synagogue A synagogue, ', 'house of assembly', or ', "house of prayer"; Yiddish: ''shul'', Ladino: or ' (from synagogue); or ', "community". sometimes referred to as shul, and interchangeably used with the word temple, is a Jewish house of wor ...

, a

beth midrash A ''beth midrash'' ( he, בית מדרש, or ''beis medrash'', ''beit midrash'', pl. ''batei midrash'' "House of Learning") is a hall dedicated for Torah study, often translated as a "study hall." It is distinct from a synagogue (''beth knes ...

, and a

mikveh Mikveh or mikvah (, ''mikva'ot'', ''mikvoth'', ''mikvot'', or (Yiddish) ''mikves'', lit., "a collection") is a bath used for the purpose of ritual immersion in Judaism to achieve ritual purity. Most forms of ritual impurity can be purifi ...

, and, in the 19th century, a school for boys and a teacher-training college. The synagogue was destroyed in the Kristallnacht (9–10 November 1938) and the last few Jews sent to Gurs on 22 October 1940.

Local attractions

* Windeck Castle, originally built around 1100 to protect the Lorsch monastery; it was badly damaged in the Thirty Years' War and again by Louis XIV of France in the

Nine Years' War The Nine Years' War (1688–1697), often called the War of the Grand Alliance or the War of the League of Augsburg, was a conflict between Kingdom of France, France and a European coalition which mainly included the Holy Roman Empire (led by t ...

. * Wachenburg Castle, built between 1907 and 1928 by German Student Corps fraternities; the annual convention of the Weinheimer Senioren-Convent is held at the Wachenburg. * The Market Square * The Schloss, home of the town council * Gerberbach Quarter, old haunt of the leather makers * Schlosspark * Waidsee Lido (), swimming beach on the Waidsee artificial lake * Miramar (Weinheim) thermal spa and sauna complex, next to the Waidsee lake * Exotenwald Weinheim, a forest

arboretum An arboretum (plural: arboreta) in a general sense is a botanical collection composed exclusively of trees of a variety of species. Originally mostly created as a section in a larger garden or park for specimens of mostly non-local species, man ...

* Schau- und Sichtungsgarten Hermannshof, a

botanical garden A botanical garden or botanic gardenThe terms ''botanic'' and ''botanical'' and ''garden'' or ''gardens'' are used more-or-less interchangeably, although the word ''botanic'' is generally reserved for the earlier, more traditional gardens, an ...

Museum

Weinheim's town museum occupies what used to be the local headquarters of the

Teutonic Order The Order of Brothers of the German House of Saint Mary in Jerusalem, commonly known as the Teutonic Order, is a Catholic religious institution founded as a military society in Acre, Kingdom of Jerusalem. It was formed to aid Christians on ...

and holds exhibits about Weinheim and its surroundings:

archaeology Archaeology or archeology is the scientific study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of artifacts, architecture, biofacts or ecofacts, sites, and cultural landsc ...

from the prehistoric through to the

Merovingian dynasty The Merovingian dynasty () was the ruling family of the Franks from the middle of the 5th century until 751. They first appear as "Kings of the Franks" in the Roman army of northern Gaul. By 509 they had united all the Franks and northern Gauli ...

, the highlight of which is the Nächstenbach bronze hoard of 76 objects from the late Bronze Age; displays documenting the Medieval and modern social history of the town and works from contemporary artists.

Events

*February: High-jump Gala, with world class high-jumpers *March: the ''Sommertagszug'', a festival celebrating the coming of summer. *May/June (near

Ascension Day The Solemnity of the Ascension of Jesus Christ, also called Ascension Day, Ascension Thursday, or sometimes Holy Thursday, commemorates the Christian belief of the bodily Ascension of Jesus into heaven. It is one of the ecumenical (i.e., shared b ...

): day of the Weinheimer Senioren-Convents *June–August: Weinheim's summer of culture *June: ''Scheuerfest'' (barn party) in Ritschweier *July: the Weinheim road race *May–September: Kerwes in Rippenweier, Sulzbach, Lützelsachsen, Oberflockenbach und Hohensachsen *August (second weekend thereof): Weinheim's Kerwe (Friday to Monday) *September (first Friday-Sunday): Weinheimer UKW-Tagung, a three-day international

amateur radio Amateur radio, also known as ham radio, is the use of the radio frequency spectrum for purposes of non-commercial exchange of messages, wireless experimentation, self-training, private recreation, radiosport, contesting, and emergency commu ...

meeting held annually since 1956 *October: ''Bergsträßer Winzerfest'' (lit. "mountain-road vintner festival") in Lützelsachsen

Local businesses

*Beltz Verlag * Freudenberg Group * Schlegel und Partner GmbH *Kukident GmbH, Reckitt Benckiser AG *Naturin *OAGIS *T-Systems ITS GmbH * Wiley-VCH publishers *3 Glocken *Weinheimer Nachrichten *Druckhaus Diesbach *

SAP SE Sap is a fluid transported in xylem cells (vessel elements or tracheids) or phloem sieve tube elements of a plant. These cells transport water and nutrients throughout the plant. Sap is distinct from latex, resin, or cell sap; it is a ...

*Domaniecki Carpetence *DLCON

Transport

Trains

Weinheim has two main train stations on the Main-Neckar Railway, these being Weinheim (Bergstraße) station (served by Regional and long-distance IC trains) and Lützelsachsen (served by Regional trains). These provide connections to Frankfurt, Hamburg and other destinations within Germany. * Deutsche Bahn * Rhein-Neckar Verkeh
VRN , Startseite
Weinheim is also served by the OEG tramway, which is used daily by people who use this to commute to the cities of Mannheim and Heidelberg.

Air

The closest airports to Weinheim are: *

Frankfurt Airport Frankfurt Airport (; german: link=no, Flughafen Frankfurt Main , also known as ''Rhein-Main-Flughafen'') is a major international airport located in Frankfurt, the fifth-largest city of Germany and one of the world's leading financial centres ...

* Baden Airpark

Twin towns – sister cities

Weinheim is twinned with: * Anet, France * Cavaillon, France *

Eisleben Eisleben is a town in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. It is famous as both the hometown of the influential theologian Martin Luther and the place where he died; hence, its official name is Lutherstadt Eisleben. First mentioned in the late 10th century, ...

, Germany * Imola, Italy *

Ramat Gan Ramat Gan ( he, רָמַת גַּן or , ) is a city in the Tel Aviv District of Israel, located east of the municipality of Tel Aviv and part of the Tel Aviv metropolitan area. It is home to one of the world's major diamond exchanges, and man ...

, Israel * Varces-Allières-et-Risset, France

Population

These are the population figures for particular years. There are drawn from guesses, Volkszählungsergebnisse'' (semi-official figures, demarcated by a ¹) and official statistics based on place of residence (

Hauptwohnsitz In German-speaking countries, Hauptwohnsitz ( en, Main domicile) denotes the primary place of residence. In Germany and Austria, the concept of Hauptwohnsitz has special legal ramifications, primarily involving tax. In Austria the Hauptwohnsitz

). ¹ These are taken from a Volkszählungsergebnis.

Notable people

* Friedrich Rauch (1786–1829), colonel who fought and died in Argentina * Heinrich Hübsch (1795–1863), head of public works *Karl Seidenadel (1829–1894), translator of Greek works *Philipp Bickel (1829–1914), baptist theologian and publisher *Friedrich August Bender (1847–1926), chemist and entrepreneur *Wilhelm Platz (1866–1929), factory owner and author * Richard Freudenberg (1892–1975), politician (FDP) *

Erwin Linder Erwin Linder (1903–1968) was a German stage, film and television actor.Meyer p.76 Selected filmography * '' Only One Night'' (1950) * '' Klettermaxe'' (1952) * '' Dreaming Lips'' (1953) * '' Wedding in Transit'' (1953) * ''Don't Forget Love'' ...

(1903–1968), actor and voice actor *

Heidi Mohr Heidi Mohr (29 May 1967 – 7 February 2019) was a German footballer who played as a forward. She was renowned for her speed and her ability to shoot with both feet. In 1999 she was voted Europe's Footballer of the Century. Club career Mohr pl ...

(born 1967), footballer * Ralf Sonn (born 1967), high jumper * Markus Kuhn (born 1986), NFL player

Worked in the town

* Ingrid Noll (born 1935), writer (e.g. "Die Apothekerin"), lived in Weinheim *Karl Friedrich Bender (1806–1869), theologian, teacher, principal of the ''Erziehungsanstalt für Knaben'' (boys' school)

Honorary citizens

The town of Weinheim has made the following people honorary citizens (''Ehrenbürger''): *1894: Carl Johann Freudenberg, ''Geheimer Kommerzienrat'' (royal economist) *1904: Erhard Bissinger, Consul general *1913: Aute Bode, chief engineer and the architect behind the Wachenburg *1918: Hermann Ernst Freudenberg, ''Geheimer Kommerzienrat'' (royal economist) *1922: Georg Friedrich Vogler, vice-mayor *1923: Adam Karrillon, doctor and author *1928:

Emil Hartmann Emil Hartmann (1 February 1836, Denmark – 18 July 1898, Copenhagen, Denmark) was a Danish composer of the romantic period, fourth generation of composers in the Danish Hartmann musical family. Early life and education Hartmann was born o ...

, construction engineer *1928: Prof. Arthur Wienkoop, Architect *1933:

Paul von Hindenburg Paul Ludwig Hans Anton von Beneckendorff und von Hindenburg (; abbreviated ; 2 October 1847 – 2 August 1934) was a German field marshal and statesman who led the Imperial German Army during World War I and later became President of Germany fr ...

, German PresidentFor those made honorary citizens in 1933, see Heinz Keller: ''Weinheim 1933-1945 − Zeitskizzen.'' in: Stadt Weinheim (Hrsg.): ''Die Stadt Weinheim zwischen 1933 und 1945.'' (= ''Weinheimer Geschichtsblatt Nr. 38''), Weinheim 2000, , S. 13f. *1940: Georg Peter Nickel, agriculturist *1949: Richard Freudenberg, factory owner *1953: Hans Freudenberg, factory owner *1954: Sepp Herberger, sports trainer, trainer of the German World Cup winning side of 1954 *1962: Wilhelm Brück, Lord Mayor *1986: Theo Gießelmann, Lord Mayor *2004: Dieter Freudenberg, factory owner *2004: Wolfgang Daffinger, mayor, representative in the

Landtag A Landtag (State Diet) is generally the legislative assembly or parliament of a federated state or other subnational self-governing entity in German-speaking nations. It is usually a unicameral assembly exercising legislative competence in non ...

*2005: Uwe Kleefoot, Lord Mayor

References

External links

{{Authority control Towns in Baden-Württemberg Rhein-Neckar-Kreis Baden