Roßdorf () is a municipality in the district of
Darmstadt-Dieburg
Darmstadt-Dieburg is a Kreis (district) in the south of Hesse, Germany. Neighboring districts are Offenbach, Aschaffenburg, Miltenberg, Odenwaldkreis, Bergstraße, Groß-Gerau, and the district-free city of Darmstadt, which it surrounds.
Histo ...
, in
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. It has a population of 12,619 (as of 2020). It is situated 8 km east of
Darmstadt
Darmstadt () is a city in the States of Germany, state of Hesse in Germany, located in the southern part of the Frankfurt Rhine Main Area, Rhine-Main-Area (Frankfurt Metropolitan Region). Darmstadt has around 160,000 inhabitants, making it the ...
.
Geographic Situation
Neighbouring Towns and Municipalities
Roßdorf borders in the north and east on the municipality of
Groß-Zimmern
Groß-Zimmern (, , in contrast to " Little Zimmern") is a municipality in the district of Darmstadt-Dieburg, in Hessen, Germany. It is situated east of Darmstadt and right next to Dieburg
Dieburg () is a small town in southern Hesse, Germany. It ...
, in the southeast on the town of
Reinheim
Reinheim () is a town in the Darmstadt-Dieburg district, in Hesse, Germany. It is situated southeast of Darmstadt.
International relations
Twin towns - Sister cities
Reinheim is twinned with:
* Licata, Italy (since 29.6.2001)
* Cestas, Fran ...
, in the south on the town of
Ober-Ramstadt
Ober-Ramstadt (, , in contrast to ":de:Nieder-Ramstadt, Lower Ramstadt") is a town in the Darmstadt-Dieburg district, in Hessen, Germany. It is situated 9 km southeast of Darmstadt. As of 2020, its population was 15,127.
Geography
Locatio ...
, and in the west on the city of
Darmstadt
Darmstadt () is a city in the States of Germany, state of Hesse in Germany, located in the southern part of the Frankfurt Rhine Main Area, Rhine-Main-Area (Frankfurt Metropolitan Region). Darmstadt has around 160,000 inhabitants, making it the ...
.
Structure of the Municipality
The Municipality of Roßdorf is divided into two parts: Gundernhausen and Roßdorf.
Demographic development
Inhabitants:
*1575: 500
*1635: 50
*1814: 200
*2003: 12,114
*2005: 12,434
*2007: 12,169
History
The first official mention of Roßdorf is in the year 1250. At this time, Abbot Heinrich
vested
In law, vesting is the point in time when the rights and interests arising from legal ownership of a property are acquired by some Legal person, person. Vesting creates an immediately secured right of present or future deployment. One has a vest ...
Counts Diether and Eberhardt I of
Katzenelnbogen
Katzenelnbogen () is the name of a castle and small town in the district of Rhein-Lahn-Kreis in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Katzenelnbogen is the seat of the ''Verbandsgemeinde'' ("collective municipality") Aar-Einrich.
History
Katzenelnbog ...
with the villages of Roßdorf and Gundernhausen. In 1479, the family line died out and the inheritance went to
Landgrave
Landgrave (, , , ; , ', ', ', ', ') was a rank of nobility used in the Holy Roman Empire, and its former territories. The German titles of ', ' ("margrave"), and ' ("count palatine") are of roughly equal rank, subordinate to ' ("duke"), and su ...
Heinrich III of Hesse.
In 1621, Bavarian soldiers took up quarters in Roßdorf and plundered the town. In addition,
witch-hunt
A witch hunt, or a witch purge, is a search for people who have been labeled witches or a search for evidence of witchcraft. Practicing evil spells or Incantation, incantations was proscribed and punishable in early human civilizations in the ...
s took place, during which the inhabitants were accused of witchcraft. The worst period for Roßdorf was in the years 1634/35, 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 forces of the
Holy Roman Empire
The Holy Roman Empire, also known as the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation after 1512, was a polity in Central and Western Europe, usually headed by the Holy Roman Emperor. It developed in the Early Middle Ages, and lasted for a millennium ...
and Sweden opposed each other in the region, each in turn laying waste to and scavenging the entire countryside and heavily decimating the population. In the summer of 1635, the plague broke out, reducing the number of inhabitants to 50. In 1672, during the
Franco-Dutch War
The Franco-Dutch War, 1672 to 1678, was primarily fought by Kingdom of France, France and the Dutch Republic, with both sides backed at different times by a variety of allies. Related conflicts include the 1672 to 1674 Third Anglo-Dutch War and ...
,
Louis XIV
LouisXIV (Louis-Dieudonné; 5 September 16381 September 1715), also known as Louis the Great () or the Sun King (), was King of France from 1643 until his death in 1715. His verified reign of 72 years and 110 days is the List of longest-reign ...
's troops took up quarters. In 1814, Russian soldiers passed through on their way to
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 ...
.
In 1852, Roßdorf was incorporated into the district of Darmstadt. Since 1977, amalgamated with its neighbour Gundernhausen, it has belonged to the district of Darmstadt-Dieburg.
Politics
Municipal Council
The communal election of 26 March 2006 returned the following result (compared to the result from 2001):
Mayor
*Heinrich Kloß (SPD, 1954–1982)
*Alfred Jakoubek (SPD, 1982–1997)
*Manfred Pfeiffer (SPD, 1997–2003)
*Christel Sprößler (SPD, since 2003)
Coat of Arms
The coat of arms consists of a shield with blue background. At the centre is a silver moon, over which a golden horseshoe hangs. Underneath these, there is a silver rose, the centre of which is blue. The remaining free space is taken up by seven golden stars (five in the upper area, two in the lower area). The coat of arms was approved by the president of the regional government in 1952.
The coat of arms is based on the seal of the combined village court of Roßdorf and Gundernhausen. An imprint of this seal can be found on the so-called "Mansfeld Catalogue of Damages" from 1625, which is kept in the National Archive in Darmstadt. This Catalogue lists the losses suffered by the subjects of the Counts of
Katzenelnbogen
Katzenelnbogen () is the name of a castle and small town in the district of Rhein-Lahn-Kreis in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Katzenelnbogen is the seat of the ''Verbandsgemeinde'' ("collective municipality") Aar-Einrich.
History
Katzenelnbog ...
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 ...
. In the 1950s, a face was added to the moon on the coat of arms, a move which has been criticised by many of Roßdorf's inhabitants.
Twinnings
*
Vösendorf
Vösendorf (Central Bavarian: ''Vesnduaf'') is a town in the district of Mödling in the Austrian state of Lower Austria
Lower Austria ( , , abbreviated LA or NÖ) is one of the nine states of Austria, located in the northeastern corner of the ...
in Austria
*
Reggello
Reggello is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Metropolitan City of Florence in the Italian region of Tuscany, located about southeast of Florence, between the north-western side of Pratomagno and the Upper Valdarno.
The municipality borders ...
in Italy
*
Kindberg
Kindberg is a municipality with a population in 2023 of 8,183 in the district of Bruck-Mürzzuschlag in Styria, Austria. Kindberg's landmark is the Kindberger Zunftbaum, an approximately 30-metre high wooden pole on the main square.
Geography
...
in Austria
*
Benátky nad Jizerou
Benátky nad Jizerou (; ) is a town in Mladá Boleslav District in the Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 7,900 inhabitants. The historic town centre is well preserved and is protected as an urban monument zone.
Administr ...
in the Czech Republic
*
Roßdorf
Roßdorf () is a municipality in the district of Darmstadt-Dieburg, in Hesse, Germany. It has a population of 12,619 (as of 2020). It is situated 8 km east of Darmstadt.
Geographic Situation
Neighbouring Towns and Municipalities
Roßdo ...
in the Rhön region of Thuringia, Germany
*
Lichtentanne in the district of Zwickau, in Saxony, Germany
Culture and Tourist Attractions

* In Roßdorf, there is a Catholic and a Protestant church; in Gundernhausen there is a Protestant church
* The historic town hall (Rathaus) dates from the year 1575
* The Museum of Skilled Trades in Southern Hesse (Südhessische Handwerksmuseum) is located in the old train station (Alter Bahnhof)
* From the
summit cross
A summit cross is a Christian cross on the summit of a mountain or hill that marks the top. Often there will be a summit register (''Gipfelbuch'') at the cross, either in a container or other weatherproof case.
The practice originated in the Ge ...
of the "Rehberg", one can take in the view for a great distance in the directions of Aschaffenburg and Frankfurt
* Roßdorf has a large heated outdoor swimming pool
* Adjoining the outdoor swimming pool, there is a roller skating rink, which is used in winter as an ice rink
Roßdorf is famous for horse breeding and in recent years has produced several prize-winning riders.
Clubs and Associations
The largest club in Roßdorf is the Sport and Cultural Association (Sport- und Kulturgemeinde - SKG - Roßdorf 1877 e.V.)
Roßdorf is also the headquarters of the
Gesellschaft zur wissenschaftlichen Untersuchung von Parawissenschaften (GWUP; "Society for the Scientific Investigation of Parasciences"), the
European Council of Skeptical Organisations
The European Council of Skeptical Organisations (ECSO) is an Umbrella organization, umbrella of organisations defending scientific skepticism in Europe.
Goals
Founded on 25 September 1994, the ECSO aims to co-ordinate activities of European org ...
(ECSO) and the
Center for Inquiry
The Center for Inquiry (CFI) is a U.S. nonprofit organization that works to mitigate belief in pseudoscience and the paranormal and to fight the influence of religion in government.
History
The Center for Inquiry was established in 1991 by ...
-Europe.
Transport Infrastructure
Roßdorf is connected to the
Bundesstraße
''Bundesstraße'' (, ), abbreviated ''B'', is the denotation for German and Austrian national highways.
Germany
Germany's ''Bundesstraßen'' network has a total length of about 40,000 km.
German ''Bundesstraßen'' are labelled with re ...
B 26 by three slip roads. (The B 26 has interchanges in Darmstadt with the
Autobahn
The (; German , ) is the federal controlled-access highway system in Germany. The official term is (abbreviated ''BAB''), which translates as 'federal motorway'. The literal meaning of the word is 'Federal Auto(mobile) Track'.
Much of t ...
s A 5 and A 67 and in Aschaffenburg with the A 3). Roßdorf is also the starting point of the B 38.
In addition, a number of bus routes serve Roßdorf:
*''K 55'': Darmstadt - Roßdorf - Reinheim - Ueberau/Groß-Bieberau - Niedernhausen
*''K 56'': Darmstadt - Roßdorf - Ober-Ramstadt - Rohrbach - Asbach/Lichtenberg
*''672'': Darmstadt - Roßdorf - Gundernhausen - Groß-Zimmern - Dieburg
*''673'': Darmstadt - Roßdorf - Gundernhausen Stetteritz
*''693'': Darmstadt - Roßdorf - Reinheim - Gr.-Bieberau - Brensbach - Reichelsheim - Fürth (not all buses serve Fürth)
The rail line between the "Darmstadt Ost" and "Bessunger Forsthaus" halts is still occasionally used for historical train rides. The rest of the line between Darmstadt and Groß Zimmern has been dismantled.
Notable people
*
Klaus Teuber
Klaus Wilhelm Heinrich Teuber (25 June 1952 – 1 April 2023) was a German board game designer best known as the creator of ''Catan''. Originally working as a dental technician, he began designing games first as a hobby then as a full-time care ...
(1952-2023), inventor of ''
The Settlers of Catan
''Catan'', previously known as ''The Settlers of Catan'' or simply ''Settlers'', is a multiplayer board game designed by Klaus Teuber. It was first published in 1995 in Germany by Franckh-Kosmos Verlag (Kosmos) as ''Die Siedler von Catan'' (). ...
''; probably the best known German board game designer
*
Markus Rühl
Markus Rühl (born 22 February 1972, in Roßdorf, Darmstadt, West Germany) is a retired IFBB professional bodybuilder, who is widely regarded as one of the biggest "mass monster" bodybuilders of all time.
Early life
Rühl began training at the ...
(born 1972), bodybuilder
*
Yannick Lebherz
Yannick Lebherz (born 13 January 1989) is a German swimmer who won a gold and a silver medal at the 2010 European Short Course Swimming Championships in the 200 m backstroke and 400 m medley events, respectively. He competed in the same discipline ...
(born 1989), swimmer
*
André Greipel
André Greipel (born 16 July 1982) is a German cyclist, who rode professionally in road bicycle racing between 2005 and 2021. Since his retirement from road racing, Greipel has worked as a directeur sportif for UCI Continental teams and , and in ...
, road sprinter (cycling)
Companies
*
Envirochemie GmbH – a company that designs and manufactures wastewater treatment facilities
Literature
''Mein Dorf'', Heinz Friedrich, Munich 1996, , (available only in German language)
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rossdorf
Darmstadt-Dieburg