Willich () is a town in the district of Viersen, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is 20 km west of Düsseldorf, 14 km north of Mönchengladbach, 10 km south of Krefeld, about 30 kilometres east of the border with the Netherlands and 45 km east of Roermond.

History

The city was founded in 1970 out of the formerly independent villages of Willich, Anrath, Schiefbahn and Neersen, although the villages are much older. Anrath was mentioned for the first time in 1010, Willich in 1245, Neersen in 1262 and Schiefbahn in 1420. The villages belonged to the

Electorate of Cologne The Electorate of Cologne (german: Kurfürstentum Köln), sometimes referred to as Electoral Cologne (german: Kurköln, links=no), was an ecclesiastical principality of the Holy Roman Empire that existed from the 10th to the early 19th century. ...

until the French Revolutionary Wars: in 1794, French troops occupied the left bank of the Rhine; France annexed the territory later ( 1797/1801) and kept it until 1814. After the Battle of Waterloo (June 1815), the Congress of Vienna was held and the villages fell to the Kingdom of Prussia.

1891–1945

In 1891 a tornado devastated Anrath. The village was already impoverished by the decline of previously dominant domestic weaving and now the municipal administration of Anrath even considered a dissolution of the village. To improve the economic situation a royal prison was built. It was completed in 1905. In 1908 ''Stahlwerk Becker'' (a steel mill) was built and up to its closing in 1932 (during the

Great Depression The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...

) was one of the largest employers in Willich. After the

Nazi seizure of power Adolf Hitler's rise to power began in the newly established Weimar Republic in September 1919 when Hitler joined the '' Deutsche Arbeiterpartei'' (DAP; German Workers' Party). He rose to a place of prominence in the early years of the party. Be ...

(30 January 1933), the steel mill got a new owner and was reopened in 1934. Military supplies (at first for the German rearmament and later for World War II) were manufactured there. The factory was finally closed in 1945 and the grounds were converted to a military base for the

British Armed Forces The British Armed Forces, also known as His Majesty's Armed Forces, are the military forces responsible for the defence of the United Kingdom, its Overseas Territories and the Crown Dependencies. They also promote the UK's wider interests, s ...

. During World War II, Willich suffered only minor damage to its infrastructure. During Operation Grenade on March 1, 1945, American forces which had entered Schiefbahn met a counterattack from a German Panzer unit. Heavy fighting erupted, with both sides suffering numerous casualties. During the 19th century more than 100 Jews lived in the four villages. During the Third Reich, the Nazis deported 40 Jews – of whom 38 were ultimately murdered in the Nazi death camps.

British Army

The British Army of the Rhine had soldiers stationed in Willich for more than 40 years: 40 Army Engineer Support Regiment (40 AESR), which by the early 1980s was reduced down to 40 Army Engineer Support Group (40 AESG). Both units belonged to the

Royal Engineers The Corps of Royal Engineers, usually called the Royal Engineers (RE), and commonly known as the ''Sappers'', is a corps of the British Army. It provides military engineering and other technical support to the British Armed Forces and is heade ...

. In 1992 the camp was closed and the group disbanded. In July 2009 a reunion took place in the old camp. 141 attended the evening event. There was a reunion again in 2012 with over 200 joining in the complete weekend.

Economy

Some international companies, especially from the Far East, have their European or German headquarters in Willich.

Transportation

Streets

There is an Interchange between Bundesautobahn 44 and Bundesautobahn 52 motorways within the municipal area of Willich. In the area there are five junctions.

Railway

The railway station in Anrath is on the railway between Duisburg and Mönchengladbach.

Notable places

Schloss Neersen

The most famous building is Schloss Neersen. The castle goes back to the 13th century and was heavily rebuilt in the 17th century. It now houses many town council offices. An open-air summer theatre is held in the grounds.

Klein-Jerusalem chapel

A moderately well-known pilgrimage destination is the 17th century Klein-Jerusalem wayside chapel.

Anrath Prison

The former royal prison in Anrath is now a federal state prison named Justizvollzugsanstalt Willich.

Twin towns – sister cities

Willich is

twinned Twinning (making a twin of) may refer to: * In biology and agriculture, producing two offspring (i.e., twins) at a time, or having a tendency to do so; * Twin towns and sister cities, towns and cities involved in town twinning * Twinning inst ...

with: *

Linselles Linselles (; nl, Linsele; pcd, Linséles) is a commune in the Nord department in northern France. It is part of the Métropole Européenne de Lille. On 17 August 1793, during the War of the First Coalition, it was the site of the Battle of Lin ...

, France * Smiltene, Latvia * Zogoré, Burkina Faso

References

External links

* {{Authority control Viersen (district) Holocaust locations in Germany