Hergenrath () or Hergenraedt (

Standard Dutch Dutch ( ) is a West Germanic language of the Indo-European language family, spoken by about 25 million people as a first language and 5 million as a second language and is the third most spoken Germanic language. In Europe, Dutch is the nati ...

: ''Hergenraat'';

Limburgish Limburgish ( or ; ; also Limburgian, Limburgic or Limburgan) refers to a group of South Low Franconian Variety (linguistics), varieties spoken in Belgium and the Netherlands, characterized by their distance to, and limited participation ...

: ''Herjent'') is a village and

sub-municipality A (, literally ''sub-municipality''), or section (), is a subdivision of a municipality in Belgium and, until March 2014, in the Netherlands as well. Belgium Each Municipalities of Belgium, municipality in Belgium that existed as a separate ...

Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...

. It is located in the municipality of

Kelmis Kelmis (; , ) is a Municipalities of Belgium, municipality located in the Belgium, Belgian province of Liège (province), Liège, named for the historical deposits of Calamine (mineral), calamine (zinc ore) nearby. , the population was 10,881; the ...

Liège Province Liège ( ; ; ; ; ) is the easternmost province of the Wallonia region of Belgium. Liège Province is the only Belgian province that has borders with three countries. It borders (clockwise from the north) the Dutch province of Limburg, the ...

, part of

Wallonia Wallonia ( ; ; or ), officially the Walloon Region ( ; ), is one of the three communities, regions and language areas of Belgium, regions of Belgium—along with Flemish Region, Flanders and Brussels. Covering the southern portion of the c ...

. It is part of the

German-speaking Community of Belgium The German-speaking Community (, , DG), also known as East Belgium ( ), is one of the three Communities, regions and language areas of Belgium, federal communities of Belgium. The community is composed of nine municipalities in Liège Province, ...

History

Hergenrath was historically part of the

Duchy of Limburg The Duchy of Limburg or Limbourg was an imperial estate of the Holy Roman Empire. Much of the area of the duchy is today located within Liège Province of Belgium, with a small portion in the municipality of Voeren, an Enclave and exclave, excla ...

, one of the provinces of the

Burgundian Netherlands The Burgundian Netherlands were those parts of the Low Countries ruled by the Dukes of Burgundy during the Burgundian Age between 1384 and 1482. Within their Burgundian State, which itself belonged partly to the Holy Roman Empire and partly t ...

. A dialect of German is spoken in Hergenrath, but the duchy it was part of was multilingual, with Dutch, French, and German dialects spoken. The area was annexed by France in 1794, then awarded to the

Kingdom of Prussia The Kingdom of Prussia (, ) was a German state that existed from 1701 to 1918.Marriott, J. A. R., and Charles Grant Robertson. ''The Evolution of Prussia, the Making of an Empire''. Rev. ed. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1946. It played a signif ...

by 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 ...

, and became part of Belgium after World War I. In 1940, Belgium was invaded by Nazi-Germany who merged

Moresnet Neutral Moresnet (, , , ) was a small Belgium, Belgian–Prussian condominium (international law), condominium in western Europe that existed from 1816 to 1921 and was administered jointly by the United Kingdom of the Netherlands (Belgium after ...

Neu-Moresnet Neu-Moresnet (, ) is a village and deelgemeente, sub-municipality of Kelmis in the German-speaking Community of Belgium, German-speaking community of the province of Liège Province, Liège, Wallonia, Belgium. The village was founded as Prussian-Mo ...

, and Hergenrath into Amt Moresnet as an integral part of Germany. In 1944, the villages were returned to Belgium. Hergenrath is now part of the Belgian Liège Province and forms part of the

.Alfred Bertha: ''Hergenrath: Eine Dorfchronik''. GEV, Eupen 1996, . It was an independent municipality until 1977 when it was merged into

Eyneburg Castle

Eyneburg Castle dominates the village of Hergenrath. It is located on a hill, and was first mentioned in 1260. According to legend, Emma, the daughter of

Charlemagne Charlemagne ( ; 2 April 748 – 28 January 814) was List of Frankish kings, King of the Franks from 768, List of kings of the Lombards, King of the Lombards from 774, and Holy Roman Emperor, Emperor of what is now known as the Carolingian ...

, lived in the castle. In 1640, a fire destroyed most of the original castle. It was also extensively rebuilt and enlarged in the 20th century. In 1966, castle Eyneburg was declared a monument. In 2001, it was bought by the Eyne company and publicly accessible. As of 2011, the castle is closed and for sale.

References

{{Authority control Kelmis Populated places in Liège Province Former municipalities of Liège Province Populated places in the German-speaking Community