Emmerich am Rhein (, ; Low Rhenish and ) is a city and municipality in the northwest of the German

federal state A federation (also called a federal state) is an entity characterized by a union of partially self-governing provinces, states, or other regions under a federal government (federalism). In a federation, the self-governing status of the c ...

North Rhine-Westphalia North Rhine-Westphalia or North-Rhine/Westphalia, commonly shortened to NRW, is a States of Germany, state () in Old states of Germany, Western Germany. With more than 18 million inhabitants, it is the List of German states by population, most ...

. The city has a harbour and a quay at the

Rhine The Rhine ( ) is one of the List of rivers of Europe, major rivers in Europe. The river begins in the Swiss canton of Graubünden in the southeastern Swiss Alps. It forms part of the Swiss-Liechtenstein border, then part of the Austria–Swit ...

. In terms of local government organization, it is a medium-sized city belonging to the

district A district is a type of administrative division that in some countries is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or county, counties, several municipality, municip ...

Kleve Kleve (; traditional ; ; ; ; ; Low Rhenish: ''Kleff'') is a town in the Lower Rhine region of northwestern Germany near the Netherlands, Dutch border and the River Rhine. From the 11th century onwards, Cleves was capital of a county and lat ...

in the

administrative region Administrative divisions (also administrative units, administrative regions, subnational entities, or constituent states, as well as many similar generic terms) are geographical areas into which a particular independent sovereign state is divi ...

(''Regierungsbezirk'') of

Düsseldorf Düsseldorf is the capital city of North Rhine-Westphalia, the most populous state of Germany. It is the second-largest city in the state after Cologne and the List of cities in Germany with more than 100,000 inhabitants, seventh-largest city ...

Geography

Emmerich lies on the north bank of the Rhine, just within the German borders, and is the last German town on the Rhine before the river flows into the

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

, which is 4 km to the north and 5 km to the west.

Villages belonging to Emmerich am Rhein

The populated places which comprise the municipality of Emmerich am Rhein are Emmerich, Borghees, Dornick, Elten, Hüthum, Klein-Netterden, Leegmeer, Praest, Speelberg and Vrasselt.

Neighboring municipalities and cities

To the north, the municipality of Emmerich borders the Dutch municipalities of

Montferland Montferland () is a Municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality in the Netherlands, Dutch province of Gelderland. It was created on 1 January 2005 from the amalgamation of the former municipalities of Bergh and Didam. Population centres Fo ...

and

Oude IJsselstreek Oude IJsselstreek () is a municipality in the province of Gelderland, in the eastern Netherlands. It was established on 1 January 2005 by a merger of the former municipalities of Gendringen and Wisch, Gelderland, Wisch. Geography and population c ...

; both of which are in the Dutch province of

Gelderland Gelderland ( , ), also known as Guelders ( ) in English, is a Provinces of the Netherlands, province of the Netherlands, located in the centre-east of the country. With a total area of of which is water, it is the largest province of the Nethe ...

. To the east, it is bordered by the German city of Rees. To the south, it is bordered by the Rhine, and south of this river, by the German city of

. To the west, it is bordered by the Dutch municipality of

Zevenaar Zevenaar () is a Municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality and a city in the Gelderland province, in the eastern Netherlands near the border with Germany. In January 2018 the neighbouring municipality of Rijnwaarden was merged with Zevenaar ...

, which is also in the Dutch province of

History

Emmerich, formerly called ''Embrika'' and ''Emrik'', was originally a Roman colony. Around the year 700 Saint Willibrord founded the mission "Emmerich" in the

Utrecht Utrecht ( ; ; ) is the List of cities in the Netherlands by province, fourth-largest city of the Netherlands, as well as the capital and the most populous city of the Provinces of the Netherlands, province of Utrecht (province), Utrecht. The ...

diocese. The oldest documented name is ''Villa Embrici'', dating back to the year 828. The collegiate church ''St. Martinikirche'' was constructed in 1040. On 31 May 1233 Count Otto von Zutphen and Gelder became the royal of this prosperous city with the authorization of the Roman Emperor Frederick II and the German King Henry (VII). In 1371, Emmerich fell to the

Duchy of Cleves The Duchy of Cleves (; ) was a state of the Holy Roman Empire which emerged from the medieval . It was situated in the northern Rhineland on both sides of the Lower Rhine, around its capital Cleves and the towns of Wesel, Kalkar, Xanten, Emme ...

, The town joined the

Hanseatic League The Hanseatic League was a Middle Ages, medieval commercial and defensive network of merchant guilds and market towns in Central Europe, Central and Northern Europe, Northern Europe. Growing from a few Northern Germany, North German towns in the ...

in 1407. In 1609, Cleves, and by extension Emmerich, became part of

Brandenburg Brandenburg, officially the State of Brandenburg, is a States of Germany, state in northeastern Germany. Brandenburg borders Poland and the states of Berlin, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Lower Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, and Saxony. It is the List of Ger ...

. In 1686, a commune of French

Huguenots The Huguenots ( , ; ) are a Religious denomination, religious group of French people, French Protestants who held to the Reformed (Calvinist) tradition of Protestantism. The term, which may be derived from the name of a Swiss political leader, ...

was founded in the town. In 1794 it was bombarded by the French under General Vandamme, and in 1806 it was assigned to the

Duchy of Berg Berg () was a state—originally a county, later a duchy—in the Rhineland of Germany. Its capital was Düsseldorf. It existed as a distinct political entity from the early 12th to the 19th centuries. It was a member state of the Holy Roman Emp ...

. It passed into the possession of

Prussia Prussia (; ; Old Prussian: ''Prūsija'') was a Germans, German state centred on the North European Plain that originated from the 1525 secularization of the Prussia (region), Prussian part of the State of the Teutonic Order. For centuries, ...

in 1815. In 1856 the railway section

Oberhausen Oberhausen (, ) is a city on the river Emscher in the Ruhr Area, Germany, located between Duisburg and Essen ( ). The city hosts the International Short Film Festival Oberhausen and its Gasometer Oberhausen is an anchor point of the European Rout ...

Arnhem Arnhem ( ; ; Central Dutch dialects, Ernems: ''Èrnem'') is a Cities of the Netherlands, city and List of municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality situated in the eastern part of the Netherlands, near the German border. It is the capita ...

, of the

Cologne Cologne ( ; ; ) is the largest city of the States of Germany, German state of North Rhine-Westphalia and the List of cities in Germany by population, fourth-most populous city of Germany with nearly 1.1 million inhabitants in the city pr ...

Minden Minden () is a middle-sized town in the very north-east of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, the largest town in population between Bielefeld and Hanover. It is the capital of the district () of Minden-Lübbecke, situated in the cultural region ...

er Railway was opened. Emmerich was 91% destroyed on 7 October 1944 as a

strategic bombing Strategic bombing is a systematically organized and executed military attack from the air which can utilize strategic bombers, long- or medium-range missiles, or nuclear-armed fighter-bomber aircraft to attack targets deemed vital to the enemy' ...

target of the Oil Campaign of World War II. In 1949, Elten was annexed by the Netherlands until 1963. Since 1 February 2001 the city has officially been called ''Emmerich am Rhein'', until then it was simply ''Emmerich''. On 28 November 2004 the four Catholic congregations of the city (St. Martini, St. Aldegundis, Heilig-Geist and Liebfrauen) combined to form the new city parish St. Christophorus.

Municipality and county reform

As a part of the 1st municipal restructuring program, the municipalities of ''Borghees'', ''Dornick'', ''Hüthum'', ''Klein-Netterden'', ''Praest'' and ''Vrasselt'' were integrated into the city of Emmerich on 1 July 1969. In the course of the 2nd restructuring program, the municipality of ''Elten'' was integrated as well, on 1 January 1975.

Places of interest

Rhine Promenade. Emmerich's Rhine promenade is a popular spot for locals and visitors alike, offering peaceful views across the Rhine river and Emmerich's iconic Rhine Bridge. Having undergone a complete refurbishment between 2003 - 2007, the 1 km long promenade also boasts a variety of restaurants, coffee shops and the Rheinpark with its playground. Geistmarkt and Farmer's Market. Located in close proximity to the Rhine Promenade is the Geistmarkt, which hosts Emmerich's Farmer's Market every Wednesday and Saturday. Shoppers have a wide choice of fresh produce ranging from vegetables, fruits, fresh fish, meat, antipasti as well as flowers. Steinstraße. Running adjacent to the Rhine Promenade, the Steinstraße is Emmerich's main shopping mile, boasting a number of shops. Recent refurbishments have also opened up opportunities for new business ventures that are looking for a new HQ. Kaßstraße. Shoppers who are looking for additional shops and eateries can explore the Kaßstraße, which is a mere 5 minute walk from the Steinstraße. Rhine Museum. In the Rhine Museum, 130 ship models are exhibited, as well as a radar unit, examples of fish

taxidermy Taxidermy is the art of preserving an animal's body by mounting (over an armature) or stuffing, for the purpose of display or study. Animals are often, but not always, portrayed in a lifelike state. The word ''taxidermy'' describes the proces ...

, maps of the Rhine, a historic Christophorus figurine and a library of the city's history. In addition there is a Biber submarine, a one-man

U-boat U-boats are Submarine#Military, naval submarines operated by Germany, including during the World War I, First and Second World Wars. The term is an Anglicization#Loanwords, anglicized form of the German word , a shortening of (), though the G ...

from

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

and exhibitions regarding shipping on the Rhine, the history of the city and fisheries. PAN-Art Forum/Poster Museum. The famous poster collection is displayed in the former Lohmann chocolate factory in rotating exhibits. Aero Club Emmerich e.V.. Aviation fans and adrenalin junkies are encouraged to visit Emmerich's aero glider club
Aero Club Emmerich e.V.
. Holy Ghost Church This Catholic church was built in 1966 and is especially striking due to its version of the

cross A cross is a religious symbol consisting of two Intersection (set theory), intersecting Line (geometry), lines, usually perpendicular to each other. The lines usually run vertically and horizontally. A cross of oblique lines, in the shape of t ...

made of scrap metal and the

Stations of the Cross The Stations of the Cross or the Way of the Cross, also known as the Via Dolorosa, Way of Sorrows or the , are a series of fourteen images depicting Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ on the day of Crucifixion of Jesus, his crucifixion and acc ...

made of linen. The architectural development during the time of the

Second Vatican Council The Second Ecumenical Council of the Vatican, commonly known as the or , was the 21st and most recent ecumenical council of the Catholic Church. The council met each autumn from 1962 to 1965 in St. Peter's Basilica in Vatican City for session ...

shaped the design of the church. Emmerich am Rhein Christuskirche

Rhine Bridge. This bridge, which connects Emmerich on the north of the Rhine with

on the south, was opened in 1965, and with a length of 803 meters and a span of 500 meters it is the longest

suspension bridge A suspension bridge is a type of bridge in which the deck (bridge), deck is hung below suspension wire rope, cables on vertical suspenders. The first modern examples of this type of bridge were built in the early 1800s. Simple suspension bridg ...

in Germany. Approximately 500 ships pass underneath it every day. Castle Borghees. The manor house Borghees used as a cultural center was expanded in its present form in the mid-18th century. Borghees Castle became historically well known due to a love affair of the 17-year-old Katharina Rickers, the later imperial countess of Wartenberg, with the Prussian king Friedrich I.

Transport

Railways

Emmerich station is located about 1 km southeast of the city center on the double-track electrified " Holland Route," which plays an important role in passenger travel and commercial transport and is therefore treated in the EU as a part of the Trans-European Network in the category "priority projects which should be begun before 2010." In addition to the

ICE Ice is water that is frozen into a solid state, typically forming at or below temperatures of 0 ° C, 32 ° F, or 273.15 K. It occurs naturally on Earth, on other planets, in Oort cloud objects, and as interstellar ice. As a naturally oc ...

International from

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , ; ; ) is the capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, largest city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It has a population of 933,680 in June 2024 within the city proper, 1,457,018 in the City Re ...

Frankfurt am Main Frankfurt am Main () is the most populous city in the States of Germany, German state of Hesse. Its 773,068 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the List of cities in Germany by population, fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located in the forela ...

, the night train CityNightLine to southern Germany,

Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...

and to

Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...

travels through here with a stop in Emmerich. Emmerich Germany Train Depot

With regards to regional rail transport, the following trains pass through Emmerich, in general every hour: *the

Rhein-Express The Rhein-Express is a Regional-Express (RE 5 (RRX)) service, which generally follows the Rhine () river. It runs daily every hour from 5 am to 9 pm from Wesel via Oberhausen, Duisburg, Düsseldorf, Cologne, Bonn, Remagen and Andernach to Koblenz, ...

(RE5) from Emmerich to

Koblenz Koblenz ( , , ; Moselle Franconian language, Moselle Franconian: ''Kowelenz'') is a German city on the banks of the Rhine (Middle Rhine) and the Moselle, a multinational tributary. Koblenz was established as a Roman Empire, Roman military p ...

and *the Regional Train ''Der Weseler'' (RB35) from Emmerich to Duisburg, and at rush hour to Düsseldorf. Emmerich am Rhein PAN-Forum

There is another station located on the same line near Emmerich, the stop ''Praest'', which is only served by the Regional Train ''Der Weseler'' (RB 35).

Roads

Emmerich lies on the A3 motorway (known in German as the

Bundesautobahn 3 is an autobahn in Germany running from the Germany-Netherlands border near Wesel in the northwest to the Germany-Austria border near Passau. Major cities along its total length of 778 km (483 mi) include Oberhausen, Duisburg, Düsse ...

), which has the European designation E35. It also lies on the B8 (the Bundesstrasse 8) and the B220.

Inland waterways

* The

* The Municipal Rhine Harbour of Emmerich

Notable people

Wilhelm Normann Wilhelm Normann (16 January 1870, in Petershagen – 1 May 1939, in Chemnitz) (sometimes also spelled ''Norman'') was a German chemist who introduced the hydrogenation of fats in 1901. This invention, protected by German patent 141,029 in 1902 ...

, the inventor of fat hardening by hydrogenation * Albrecht Wolters (1822–1878), German Protestant theologian * Anton de Waal (1837–1917), German Catholic priest, prelate, historian and author * Friedrich Wilhelm Franz Nippold (1838–1918), German Protestant theologian * Ernst Heinrich Göring (1839–1913), German jurist, Reichkommissar for German South-West Africa, father of the national socialist politician

Hermann Göring Hermann Wilhelm Göring (or Goering; ; 12 January 1893 – 15 October 1946) was a German Nazism, Nazi politician, aviator, military leader, and convicted war criminal. He was one of the most powerful figures in the Nazi Party, which gov ...

* Ernst Diehl (1874–1947), German classical philologist and epigraph * Karl Scheele (1884–1966), German surgeon *Eugen Reintjes (1884–1966), promotion of sport and health, Eugen Reintjes Stadion * Eduard Künneke (1885–1953), German operetta composer * Werner Müller (1907–1990), German ethnologist * Ernst van Aaken (1910–1984), German sports physician and coach * Gottfried Wolters (1910–1989), composer and choral leader * Rainer Bonhof (born 1952), former Dutch-German footballer for the German national team * Ulrich Surau (born 1952), German footballer * Alexander Müller (born 1979), German racing driver *

Nico Hülkenberg Nicolas Hülkenberg (, born 19 August 1987) is a German racing driver who competes in Formula One for Sauber. In endurance racing (motorsport), endurance racing, Hülkenberg won the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 2015 24 Hours of Le Mans, 2015 with Por ...

(born 1987), Current

Formula 1 Formula One (F1) is the highest class of worldwide racing for open-wheel single-seater formula Auto racing, racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The FIA Formula One World Championship has been one ...

driver for Kick Sauber with car number 27,

2015 24 Hours of Le Mans Fifteen or 15 may refer to: *15 (number) *one of the years 15 BC, AD 15, 1915, 2015 Music *Fifteen (band), a punk rock band Albums * ''15'' (Buckcherry album), 2005 * ''15'' (Ani Lorak album), 2007 * ''15'' (Phatfish album), 2008 * ...

winner and 2009 GP2 champion * Robin Gosens (born 1994), German footballer

Twin towns – sister cities

Emmerich am Rhein is twinned with: *

King's Lynn King's Lynn, known until 1537 as Bishop's Lynn and colloquially as Lynn, is a port and market town in the borough of King's Lynn and West Norfolk in the county of Norfolk, England. It is north-east of Peterborough, north-north-east of Cambridg ...

, England, United Kingdom (1978) *

Šilutė Šilutė (; previously ''Šilokarčiama''; ) is a city in the south of the Klaipėda County in western Lithuania. The city was part of the Klaipėda Region and ethnographic Lithuania Minor. Šilutė was the interwar period, interwar capital of Š ...

, Lithuania (1990) *

Kirkland, Washington Kirkland is a city in King County, Washington, United States. A suburb east of Seattle, its population was 92,175 in the 2020 U.S. census which made it the sixth largest city in King County and the twelfth largest city in the state of Washington. ...

, United States (1995)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Emmerich Am Rhein Populated places on the Rhine Kleve (district) Members of the Hanseatic League Districts of the Rhine Province Germany–Netherlands border crossings