Falkenstein () is a municipality in the

Donnersbergkreis The Donnersbergkreis is a district (''Kreis'') in the middle of Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Neighboring districts are Bad Kreuznach, Alzey-Worms, Bad Dürkheim, Kaiserslautern, Kusel. History The district was created in 1969 by merging the dist ...

district, in

Rhineland-Palatinate Rhineland-Palatinate ( , ; ; ; ) 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 sixteen states. Mainz is the capital and largest city. Other cities are ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

. The castle was the seat of the

Counts of Falkenstein Counts of Falkenstein may refer to: *Counts of Falkenstein (Bavaria) *Counts of Falkenstein (Rhineland-Palatinate) The Counts of Falkenstein was a dynasty of German nobility descending from the Ministerialis, Ministeriales of Bolanden, who held lan ...

Geography

Falkenstein is located in the

North Palatine Uplands The North Palatine Uplands (, ), sometimes shortened to Palatine Uplands (''Pfälzer Bergland''), is a low mountain range and landscape unit in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate and belongs mainly to the Palatinate region. It is part of ...

west of the

Donnersberg The Donnersberg (; literally: "thunder mountain") is the highest peak of the Palatinate () region of Germany. The mountain lies between the towns of Rockenhausen and Kirchheimbolanden, in the Donnersbergkreis district, which is named after th ...

mountain. The

linear settlement A linear settlement is a (normally small to medium-sized) settlement or group of buildings that is formed in a long line. Many of these settlements are formed along a transport route, such as a road, river, or canal. Others form due to physical r ...

is located along an old

pass road Pass, PASS, The Pass or Passed may refer to: Places *Pass, County Meath, a townland in Ireland *Pass, Poland, a village in Poland *El Paso, Texas, a city which translates to "The Pass" * Pass, an alternate term for a number of straits: see Li ...

that reaches its highest elevation at 464 m (1522 ft). The village's main street is one of the steepest public roads in Germany with a 25% gradient. Along the road to

Winnweiler Winnweiler () is a municipality in the Donnersbergkreis, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is situated on the upper course of the river Alsenz (river), Alsenz, approx. north-east of Kaiserslautern. Winnweiler is the seat of the ''Verbandsgemei ...

the ''Falkensteiner Tal'' (Falkenstein Valley), known for its rock formations is situated. Most of the district is forested. Besides the village proper a holiday colony and the outlying settlements Bornshof, Fuchshof, Merzauerhof and Wambacherhof belong to the municipality. Neighbouring municipalities are

Rockenhausen Rockenhausen () is a town in the Donnersbergkreis, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is situated on the river Alsenz, approx. north of Kaiserslautern. Rockenhausen is the seat of the ''Verbandsgemeinde'' ("collective municipality") Nordpfälz ...

(borough of Marienthal),

Imsbach Imsbach is a municipality in the Donnersbergkreis district, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north ...

, Winnweiler and Schweisweiler. The next bigger city is

Kaiserslautern Kaiserslautern (; ) is a town in southwest Germany, located in the state of Rhineland-Palatinate at the edge of the Palatinate Forest. The historic centre dates to the 9th century. It is from Paris, from Frankfurt am Main, 666 kilometers (414 m ...

25 km (15 mi) south of Falkenstein.

History

In 1255, the Counts of Falkenstein inherited territories of extinct Hagen-Munzenberg. In 1418, the line died out, the territory was passed to

Lords of Eppstein The Lords of Eppstein () were a family of German nobility in the Middle Ages. From the 12th century they ruled extensive territories in the Rhine Main area from their castle in Eppstein, northwest of Frankfurt, Germany. History Between 1180 and 1 ...

and Counts of Solms. Later the Solms portion passed to Isenburg-Budingen by female inheritance. In 1647, there was a siege, shelling and storming of the castle by the French. In 1654 Falkensteiners stormed the building and shot the Lorraine commander Weingart. The last Count of Falkenstein, William Wirich, sold 1667, the impoverished county to the

Duke of Lorraine The kings and dukes of Lorraine have held different posts under different governments over different regions, since its creation as the kingdom of Lotharingia by the Treaty of Prüm, in 855. The first rulers of the newly established region were ...

. In 1736 the Imperial House of Habsburg possessed the county through the marriage of

Francis Stephen of Lorraine Francis I (Francis Stephen; ; ; ; 8 December 1708 – 18 August 1765) was Holy Roman Emperor from 1745 to 1765, Archduke of Austria from 1740 to 1765, Duke of Lorraine and Bar from 1729 to 1737, and Grand Duke of Tuscany from 1737 to 1765. He ...

with

Maria Theresia Maria Theresa (Maria Theresia Walburga Amalia Christina; 13 May 1717 – 29 November 1780) was the ruler of the Habsburg monarchy from 1740 until her death in 1780, and the only woman to hold the position in her own right. She was the sovereig ...

. In 1816 Falkenstein was transferred along with the rest of Palatinate to the

Kingdom of Bavaria The Kingdom of Bavaria ( ; ; spelled ''Baiern'' until 1825) was a German state that succeeded the former Electorate of Bavaria in 1806 and continued to exist until 1918. With the unification of Germany into the German Empire in 1871, the kingd ...

as a result of decisions taken at the

Congress of Vienna The Congress of Vienna of 1814–1815 was a series of international diplomatic meetings to discuss and agree upon a possible new layout of the European political and constitutional order after the downfall of the French Emperor Napoleon, Napol ...

agreements.

Politics

Council

The

village council A municipal council is the legislative body of a municipality or local government area. Depending on the location and classification of the municipality it may be known as a city council, town council, town board, community council, borough counci ...

is composed of 6 members who were elected in a personalized proportional representation in the local elections on June 9, 2024, and the honorary mayor as chairman.

Heraldry

The coat of arms shows an

oak An oak is a hardwood tree or shrub in the genus ''Quercus'' of the beech family. They have spirally arranged leaves, often with lobed edges, and a nut called an acorn, borne within a cup. The genus is widely distributed in the Northern Hemisp ...

branch at the top. The lower half is occupied by a castle and a

falcon Falcons () are birds of prey in the genus ''Falco'', which includes about 40 species. Some small species of falcons with long, narrow wings are called hobbies, and some that hover while hunting are called kestrels. Falcons are widely distrib ...

Culture and sights

Protected buildings

Falkenstein Protestantischer Glockenturm

Falkenstein Castle and the Jewish cemetery are protected ensembles. The castle is located above the village and was partly restored in 1979. There are an open-air stage as well as a restaurant. The grounds were once owned by the Gienanth family and later the

and

districts. Since 1996 it belongs to the municipality. Renovations were made in 1978 and 1984 and the castle was added to the list of protected buildings. There are four other protected buildings in the municipality.

Other buildings

Saint Catherine's catholic church was built in 1976 and replaced an older chapel from 1764. There is a Kneipp facility near the cemetery, opened in 1997.

Nature

The Falkenstein Valley was a protected natural monument. The ''Schelmenkopf-Falkenstein'' nature reserve is located west of the village.

Economy and infrastructure

Traffic

Falkenstein is connected by a minor road to Marienthal and Imsbach. B48 federal road, through which A63 highway is reachable, runs west of the village. 137 and 905 bus lines of the VRN serve a bus stop at the lower end of the village. Winnweiler has a

station Station may refer to: Agriculture * Station (Australian agriculture), a large Australian landholding used for livestock production * Station (New Zealand agriculture), a large New Zealand farm used for grazing by sheep and cattle ** Cattle statio ...

along the

Alsenz Valley Railway The Alsenz Valley Railway () is a line that runs from Hochspeyer station, Hochspeyer via Winnweiler station, Winnweiler and Alsenz station, Alsenz to Bad Münster am Stein station, Bad Munster am Stein in the German state of Rhineland-Palatina ...

Tourism

Several hiking trails run through and around Falkenstein. The Palatine Ridgeway touches the south of its district.

Personalities

Honorary citizen

* Josef Fischer (born 1940), baker, mayor from 1989 to 2004, acknowledged for his service and commitment in 2008

Born in Falkenstein

* Luitgard of Falkenstein (~1357-1391), noblewoman

Connected to Falkenstein

* Kuno II von Falkenstein (~1320-1388), archbishop and elector of Trier * Emich Christian of Leiningen-Dagsburg (1642-1702), count of Leiningen-Dagsburg, married here in 1664

References

{{Authority control Municipalities in Rhineland-Palatinate Donnersbergkreis