Ronshausen is a municipality and a ''Luftkurort'' (“air spa”) in

Hersfeld-Rotenburg Hersfeld-Rotenburg is a ''Kreis'' (Districts of Germany, district) in the east of Hesse, Germany. Neighboring districts are Werra-Meißner, Wartburgkreis, Fulda (district), Fulda, Vogelsbergkreis, Schwalm-Eder. History In 1821, districts were crea ...

district in northeastern

Hesse Hesse or Hessen ( ), officially the State of Hesse (), is a States of Germany, state in Germany. Its capital city is Wiesbaden, and the largest urban area is Frankfurt, which is also the country's principal financial centre. Two other major hist ...

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 ...

Geography

Location

The community lies in the valley of the Ulfe, which in

Bebra Bebra () is a small town in Hersfeld-Rotenburg district in northeastern Hesse, Germany. Geography Location Bebra lies some south of Kassel on the Fulda River, Fulda. The town is easy to find on most maps thanks to its prominent location on the ' ...

empties into the

Fulda Fulda () (historically in English called Fuld) is a city in Hesse, Germany; it is located on the river Fulda and is the administrative seat of the Fulda district (''Kreis''). In 1990, the city hosted the 30th Hessentag state festival. Histor ...

. It lies in the

Seulingswald The Seulingswald (also called the Sillingswald) is a hill range in the German Central Uplands which reaches heights of up to . It is part of the Fulda-Werra Uplands in the East Hesse Highlands within the Hessian county of Hersfeld-Rotenburg; ...

and the

Richelsdorf Hills The Richelsdorf Hills () is the name given to a landscape in the German Central Uplands. The terrain is up to high and forms a landscape characterised by mining ( copper shale, cobalt, nickel) in the county of Hersfeld-Rotenburg in East Hesse. Des ...

(ranges). The nearest major towns are

Bad Hersfeld The festival and spa town of Bad Hersfeld (''Bad'' is "spa" in German; the Old High German name of the city was ''Herolfisfeld'') is the district seat of the Hersfeld-Rotenburg district in northeastern Hesse, Germany, roughly 50 km southeast ...

(some 15 km to the southwest), Rotenburg (some 12 km to the northwest) and

Eisenach Eisenach () is a Town#Germany, town in Thuringia, Germany with 42,000 inhabitants, west of Erfurt, southeast of Kassel and northeast of Frankfurt. It is the main urban centre of western Thuringia, and bordering northeastern Hesse, Hessian re ...

(some 35 km to the east).

Neighbouring communities

Ronshausen borders in the northwest on the town of

(outlying centre of Weiterode), in the northeast on the community of Nentershausen, in the east on the community of

Wildeck Wildeck is a municipality in Hersfeld-Rotenburg district in northeastern Hesse, Germany lying right at the boundary with Thuringia, 54 km southeast of Kassel. Geography Location The community lies partly in the middle Werra valley, in t ...

, in the south Friedewald and in the west on the community of

Ludwigsau Ludwigsau is a municipality in Hersfeld-Rotenburg district in northeastern Hesse, Germany. With an area of 112 km² it is Hesse's biggest community by land area. Geography Location The community lies on the Fulda in the triangle defined by t ...

(all in Hersfeld-Rotenburg).

Constituent communities

Ronshausen has only one outlying ''

Ortsteil A village is a human settlement or Residential community, community, larger than a hamlet (place), hamlet but smaller than a town with a population typically ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand. Although villages are often located ...

'', Machtlos.

History

In 1061, Ronshausen had its first documentary mention as ''Runteshuson'' in a donation document to the

Fulda Abbey The Abbey of Fulda (; ), from 1221 the Princely Abbey of Fulda () and from 1752 the Prince-Bishopric of Fulda (), was a Benedictine abbey and ecclesiastical principality centered on Fulda, in the present-day German state of Hesse. The monastery ...

. The outlying centre of Machtlos had its first documentary mention as ''villa Mechtolves'' in 1329. The name Mechtolves ( gen.) meant “of the mighty wolf” From 1359, a toll station was set up at Ronshausen, which exacted road tolls for the Ulfestraße (road) until 1834. As early as 1386, Ronshausen belonged to the

Landgraves of Hesse The Landgraviate of Hesse () was a Princes of the Holy Roman Empire, principality of the Holy Roman Empire. It existed as a single entity from 1264 to 1567, when it was divided among the sons of Philip I, Landgrave of Hesse. History In the early ...

. In 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 ...

from 1618 to 1648 and the

Seven Years' War The Seven Years' War, 1756 to 1763, was a Great Power conflict fought primarily in Europe, with significant subsidiary campaigns in North America and South Asia. The protagonists were Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain and Kingdom of Prus ...

from 1756 to 1763, the community was abandoned several times, but already by 1780, there was a mention of Ronshausen as a big village of 468 inhabitants. Until the mid 19th century, the community was characterized by

agricultural Agriculture encompasses crop and livestock production, aquaculture, and forestry for food and non-food products. Agriculture was a key factor in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created f ...

pursuits. Only when the Bebra-Eisenach

railway Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport using wheeled vehicles running in railway track, tracks, which usually consist of two parallel steel railway track, rails. Rail transport is one of the two primary means of ...

was built did this change.

Tourism Tourism is travel for pleasure, and the Commerce, commercial activity of providing and supporting such travel. World Tourism Organization, UN Tourism defines tourism more generally, in terms which go "beyond the common perception of tourism as ...

has played a rôle since the mid 20th century. The community of Machtlos was amalgamated with Ronshausen in 1972 as part of municipal reform.

Politics

Community council

The municipal election held on 26 March 2006 yielded the following results: The community's executive (''Gemeindevorstand'') is made up of five members, with four seats allotted to the SPD and one to the CDU.

Mayor

Mayor Friedhold Zilch (SPD) was once again elected on 30 October 2005 with 62.7% of the vote.

Town partnerships

* Genas,

Rhône The Rhône ( , ; Occitan language, Occitan: ''Ròse''; Franco-Provençal, Arpitan: ''Rôno'') is a major river in France and Switzerland, rising in the Alps and flowing west and south through Lake Geneva and Southeastern France before dischargi ...

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 ...

since 1976 * Frauensee,

Thuringia Thuringia (; officially the Free State of Thuringia, ) is one of Germany, Germany's 16 States of Germany, states. With 2.1 million people, it is 12th-largest by population, and with 16,171 square kilometers, it is 11th-largest in area. Er ...

since 1990

Culture and sightseeing

Buildings

* 800-year-old fortress church with rustic Baroque paintings

Culinary specialities

At a local butcher shop is made a local speciality called the Januar-Stracke, a kind of aged pork

sausage A sausage is a type of meat product usually made from ground meat—often pork, beef, or poultry—along with salt, spices and other flavourings. Other ingredients, such as grains or breadcrumbs, may be included as fillers or extenders. ...

Economy and infrastructure

Transport

Ronshausen has a

railway station Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport using wheeled vehicles running in railway track, tracks, which usually consist of two parallel steel railway track, rails. Rail transport is one of the two primary means of ...

on the Thüringer Bahn from

References

External links

* {{Authority control Hersfeld-Rotenburg