Fellheim is a

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality' ...

in the district of

Unterallgäu Unterallgäu (, ) is a ''Landkreis'' (district) in Swabia, Bavaria, Germany. Neighboring districts are (from the north clockwise) Neu-Ulm, Günzburg, Augsburg, Ostallgäu, Oberallgäu, and the districts Ravensburg und Biberach in Baden-Württ ...

Bavaria Bavaria, officially the Free State of Bavaria, is a States of Germany, state in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the list of German states by area, largest German state by land area, comprising approximately 1/5 of the total l ...

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 town has a

municipal association A municipal association, also called municipal league or local government association, is an organization made of municipal governments. They perform advocacy to higher-level governments. They also provide various public services more cheaply tha ...

with

Boos, Bavaria Boos is a municipality in the district of Unterallgäu in Bavaria in Germany. The town is the seat of the municipal association A municipal association, also called municipal league or local government association, is an organization made of m ...

History

Early history

Fellheim is located along the former fortification line of the

Danube–Iller–Rhine Limes The Danube–Iller–Rhine Limes () or DIRL was a large-scale defensive system of the Roman Empire that was built after the project for the Upper Germanic-Rhaetian Limes in the late 3rd century AD. In a narrower sense the term refers only to the f ...

, on the right side of the

Iller The Iller (; ancient name Ilargus) is a river of Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg in Germany. It is a right tributary of the Danube, long. It is formed at the confluence of the rivers Breitach, Stillach and Trettach near Oberstdorf in the Al ...

between

Kellmünz Kellmünz ''(official: Kellmünz a.d.Iller)'' is a municipality in the district of Neu-Ulm in Bavaria in Germany. Geographic location Kellmünz is located in Upper Swabia at the river Iller, approximately 30 km south of Ulm and 15 k ...

and

Memmingen Memmingen (; Swabian German, Swabian: ''Memmenge'') is a town in Swabia (Bavaria), Swabia, Bavaria, Germany. It is the economic, educational and administrative centre of the Danube-Iller region. To the west the town is flanked by the Iller, the ...

. After several changes in ownership, the Reichlin von Meldegg barons ultimately took ownership of Fellheim beginning on January 25, 1555, following the transfer of the feudal letter from the

Princely Abbey of Kempten The Princely Abbey of Kempten () was an Hochstift, ecclesiastical principality of the Holy Roman Empire for centuries until it was annexed to the Electorate of Bavaria in the course of the German mediatization in 1803. Geography Located within t ...

. Construction of their castle, Schloß Fellheim, began two years later in 1557. In 1620, the barony was granted the right to exercise high justice ( Blutbann). During the

Thirty Years' War The Thirty Years' War, fought primarily in Central Europe between 1618 and 1648, was one of the most destructive conflicts in History of Europe, European history. An estimated 4.5 to 8 million soldiers and civilians died from battle, famine ...

, the village was completely devastated and, from 1636 to 1643, no one lived in Fellheim. Only one farmer returned home following the war and the local lord, who had fled 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 ...

, returned to Fellheim in 1643. To increase the population, Baron Phillip Bernhard von Reichlin-Meldegg settled five Jewish families in Fellheim in 1670. With the implementations of the

Confederation of the Rhine The Confederated States of the Rhine, simply known as the Confederation of the Rhine or Rhine Confederation, was a confederation of German client states established at the behest of Napoleon some months after he defeated Austrian Empire, Austria ...

in 1806, Fellheim became part of Bavaria. Subsequent administrative reforms in Bavaria established the current municipality of Fellheim in 1818.

References

Unterallgäu {{Unterallgäu-geo-stub