Bas-Rhin
Bas-Rhin () is a department in Alsace which is a part of the Grand Est region of France. The name means 'Lower Rhine', referring to its lower altitude among the two French Rhine departments: it is downstream of the Haut-Rhin (Upper Rhine) de ...
département
In the administrative divisions of France, the department (, ) is one of the three levels of government under the national level (" territorial collectivities"), between the administrative regions and the communes. There are a total of 101 ...
in
Grand Est
Grand Est (; ) is an Regions of France, administrative region in northeastern France. It superseded three former administrative regions, Alsace, Champagne-Ardenne and Lorraine, on 1 January 2016 under the provisional name of Alsace-Champagne-A ...
in north-eastern
France
France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
Strasbourg
Strasbourg ( , ; ; ) is the Prefectures in France, prefecture and largest city of the Grand Est Regions of France, region of Geography of France, eastern France, in the historic region of Alsace. It is the prefecture of the Bas-Rhin Departmen ...
and to the southwest of
Haguenau
Haguenau (; or ; ; historical ) is a Communes of France, commune in the Bas-Rhin Département in France, department of France, of which it is a Subprefectures in France, sub-prefecture.
It is second in size in the Bas-Rhin only to Strasbourg ...
, in the Brumath hills on the western edge of the Upper Rhine valley. The Lohgraben, an 11-kilometre long stream that flows into the Moder, has its source in the Kriegsheim commune. (It should not be confused with Kriegsheim in Germany, a village that is now part of the town of Monsheim, Germany.)
Surrounding communes are Niederschaeffolsheim in the north, Weitbruch to the east, Brumath to the south and Rottelsheim in the west.
The departmental road RD263 crosses the village, connecting to Haguenau in the north and the cantonal capital of Brumath five kilometres to the south. Brumath is the access point for the Autoroute A4 linking
Paris
Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...
with
Strasbourg
Strasbourg ( , ; ; ) is the Prefectures in France, prefecture and largest city of the Grand Est Regions of France, region of Geography of France, eastern France, in the historic region of Alsace. It is the prefecture of the Bas-Rhin Departmen ...
Merovingian
The Merovingian dynasty () was the ruling family of the Franks from around the middle of the 5th century until Pepin the Short in 751. They first appear as "Kings of the Franks" in the Roman army of northern Gaul. By 509 they had united all the ...
period graves demonstrates that the area was already settled before the eighth century.
The first surviving written record of the village dates from 823 and occurs in an exchange of documents between Prince Erchanger and Bernold, Bishop of Strasbourg. In 953 the Monastery at Lorsch received a grant of assets in Kriegsheim by imperial decree.
In 1236 Kriegsheim is listed as one of 28 villages in the region subject to shared ownership of the Bishopric of Strasbourg and The Empire.
Following the
Habsburg
The House of Habsburg (; ), also known as the House of Austria, was one of the most powerful dynasties in the history of Europe and Western civilization. They were best known for their inbreeding and for ruling vast realms throughout Europe d ...
s ascent to the
throne
A throne is the seat of state of a potentate or dignitary, especially the seat occupied by a sovereign (or viceroy
A viceroy () is an official who reigns over a polity in the name of and as the representative of the monarch of the territory ...
, Kriegsheim achieved the privileges of an
imperial village
The Imperial villages (, singular ''Reichsdorf'') were the smallest component entities of the Holy Roman Empire. They possessed imperial immediacy, having no lord but the Emperor, but were not estates. They were unencircled and did not have rep ...
, falling within the bailiwick of Haguenau. In terms of civil administration, the village adhereded to the Batzendorf
Schultheiß
In medieval Germany, the ''Schultheiß'' () was the head of a municipality (akin to today's office of mayor), a '' Vogt'' or an executive official of the ruler. As official (''villicus'') it was his duty to order his assigned village or county ( ...
right up until
1789
Events
January–March
* January – Emmanuel Joseph Sieyès publishes the pamphlet '' What Is the Third Estate?'' ('), influential on the French Revolution.
* January 7 – The 1788-89 United States presidential election ...
.
In 1460 half of the village was granted to St. Thomas, Strasbourg. At the height of 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 European history. An estimated 4.5 to 8 million soldiers and civilians died from battle, famine, or disease, whil ...
, in 1625, Georg Dietrich von Wangen received the other half, which he and his heirs held until the French Revolution.
Landmarks
The church of Saint Ulrich contains a modern organ, installed in 1977/1978 but the original frontage of the 1861 Martin Wetzel organ has been retained.