Schmitten im Taunus (until 25 August 2021 ''Schmitten'') 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

Hochtaunuskreis The Hochtaunuskreis is a ''Kreis'' (district) in the middle of Hesse, Germany and is part of the Frankfurt/Rhine-Main Metropolitan Region. Neighbouring districts are Lahn-Dill, Wetteraukreis, district-free Frankfurt, Main-Taunus-Kreis, Rheingau- ...

Hessen Hesse or Hessen ( ), officially the State of Hesse (), is a 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 historic cities are Da ...

, Germany.

Geography

Schmitten is the highest community in the

Taunus The Taunus () is a mountain range in Hesse and Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany, located north west of Frankfurt and north of Wiesbaden. The tallest peak in the range is '' Großer Feldberg'' at 878 m; other notable peaks are '' Kleiner Feldberg' ...

, approximately 24 km north of

Frankfurt am Main Frankfurt am Main () is the most populous city in the States of Germany, German state of Hesse. Its 773,068 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the List of cities in Germany by population, fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located in the forela ...

, within which is the ''

Großer Feldberg The Großer Feldberg ('Great Field Mountain') is, at a height of 879.5 metres, the highest elevation of the Taunus mountains, and of the entire Rhenish Massif. It is situated in the Hochtaunuskreis district in Hesse, Germany. The Feldberg/Taunus ...

'' (881m). DSC00400 Blick vom Wiegerfelsen auf Schmitten im Taunus

Neighbouring communities

Schmitten borders in the north on the community of

Weilrod Weilrod is a municipality made up of several villages in the northwest Hochtaunuskreis lying in the Weil Valley in Hesse, Germany. Geography Location Weilrod lies north of the crest of the Taunus, from 210 to 600 m above sea level. The nea ...

and the town of

Usingen Usingen () is a small town in the Hochtaunuskreis in Hessen, Germany. Until 1972, this residential and school town was the seat of the former district of Usingen. Coat of arms The earliest seal whose appearance is known – there had been earlier ...

, in the east on the towns of

Neu-Anspach Neu-Anspach () is a town in the Hochtaunuskreis in Hesse, Germany. Geography Neighbouring communities Neu-Anspach borders in the north on the town of Usingen, in the east on the community of Wehrheim, in the south on the town of Bad Homburg v ...

and

Bad Homburg Bad Homburg vor der Höhe (, ) is the district town of the Hochtaunuskreis, Hesse, Germany, on the southern slope of the Taunus mountains. Bad Homburg is part of the Frankfurt Rhein-Main urban area. The town's official name is ''Bad Homburg ...

, in the south on the towns of

Oberursel Oberursel (Taunus) (, , in contrast to " Lower Ursel") is a town in Germany and part of the Frankfurt Rhein-Main urban area. It is located to the north west of Frankfurt, in the Hochtaunuskreis county. It is the 13th largest town in Hesse. In ...

and Königstein, and in the west on the communities of Glashütten and

Waldems Waldems () is a municipality in the Rheingau-Taunus-Kreis in the ''Regierungsbezirk'' of Darmstadt in Hesse, Germany. The municipality's administrative seat is Waldems-Esch. Geography Location Waldems is located in the Taunus in a widely wooded ...

(

Rheingau-Taunus-Kreis Rheingau-Taunus is a Kreis (Districts of Germany, district) in the west of Hesse, Germany. Rheingau-Taunus-Kreis is part of the Darmstadt (region), Darmstadt region; its main administrative seat is Bad Schwalbach. Outposted sections of the local ad ...

Constituent communities

The greater community has nine centres (until municipal reform in 1972, all independent communities) named Arnoldshain, Brombach, Dorfweil, Hunoldstal, Niederreifenberg, Oberreifenberg, Schmitten, Seelenberg and Treisberg.

History

Schmitten had its first documented mention in 1399 as ''Waldschmidt''. The name comes from a nail-making

smith Smith may refer to: People and fictional characters * Metalsmith, or simply smith, a craftsman fashioning tools or works of art out of various metals * Smith (given name) * Smith (surname), a family name originating in England ** List of people ...

in the woods nearby (''Wald'' is

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

for "forest"; ''Schmidt'' has the same root as ''Schmiede'' – smith) which were attached to Hattstein Castle(mentioned in 1215). The Hattstein Knights ("Hazechenstein") were akin to the Reifenbergers ("Riffinberg"), possibly even the same. These families' origins were either in the

Westerwald The Westerwald (; literally 'Western forest') is a low mountain range on the right bank of the river Rhine in the States of Germany, German federal states of Rhineland-Palatinate, Hesse and North Rhine-Westphalia. It is a part of the Rhenish Ma ...

area north of the

Lahn The Lahn () is a , right (or eastern) tributary of the Rhine in Germany. Its course passes through the States of Germany, federal states of North Rhine-Westphalia (23.0 km), Hesse (165.6 km), and Rhineland-Palatinate (57.0 km). ...

or the

Limburg Limburg or Limbourg may refer to: Regions * Limburg (Belgium), a province since 1839 in the Flanders region of Belgium * Limburg (Netherlands), a province since 1839 in the south of the Netherlands * Diocese of Limburg, Roman Catholic Diocese in ...

area. In the ''Walsdorfer Gründungsurkunde'' ("Walsdorf Founding Document") of 1156, a "Guntramus de Hazechenstein" is named. The Hattstein Knights, whose

castle A castle is a type of fortification, fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by Military order (monastic society), military orders. Scholars usually consider a ''castle'' to be the private ...

was destroyed several times, had property in

Bad Camberg Bad Camberg () is, with 14,500 inhabitants, the second largest town in Limburg-Weilburg district in Hesse, Germany, as well as the southernmost town in the ''Regierungsbezirk'' of Gießen (region), Gießen. It is located in the eastern Taunus in th ...

("Hattsteiner Weiher"),

Stockheim Stockheim () is a municipality in the district of Kronach in Bavaria in Germany. It is located on Bundesstraße 85 The Bundesstraße 85 (abbr. B 85) runs southeast through Thuringia and Bavaria, from Kyffhäuser to Passau, near the Austrian b ...

, Weilbach,

Aschaffenburg Aschaffenburg (; Hessian: ''Aschebersch'', ) is a town in northwest Bavaria, Germany. The town of Aschaffenburg, despite being its administrative seat, is not part of the district of Aschaffenburg. Aschaffenburg belonged to the Archbishopric ...

Mainaschaff Mainaschaff is a community in the Aschaffenburg (district), Aschaffenburg district in the ''Regierungsbezirk'' of Lower Franconia (''Unterfranken'') in Bavaria, Germany. It has a population of around 9,000 (2020). Geography Location The commun ...

, Königstein and

. The Hattsteiners also participated in the founding of Münzenberg Castle in the

Wetterau The Wetterau (, ) is a fertile undulating tract, watered by the Wetter (river), Wetter, a tributary of the Nidda (river), Nidda River, in the western German state of Hesse, between the hilly province Oberhessen and the north-western Taunus mounta ...

. The noble family von Hattstein was throughout the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire and ...

one of Hesse's most influential families. Baron Marquard von Hattstein was Bishop of

Speyer Speyer (, older spelling ; ; ), historically known in English as Spires, is a city in Rhineland-Palatinate in the western part of the Germany, Federal Republic of Germany with approximately 50,000 inhabitants. Located on the left bank of the r ...

(1560–1581). Together with the Knights of Kronberg, the Hattsteiners and Reiffenbergers declared the so-called "Kronberg Feud" in 1389. When on 13 May a great force from

Frankfurt Frankfurt am Main () is the most populous city in the States of Germany, German state of Hesse. Its 773,068 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the List of cities in Germany by population, fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located in the forela ...

swept to Kronberg Castle, Hanau and

Electorate of the Palatinate The Electoral Palatinate was a Imperial State, constituent state of the Holy Roman Empire until it was annexed by the Electorate of Baden in 1803. From the end of the 13th century, its ruler was one of the Prince-electors who elected the Holy ...

troops rushed to help those being beset, driving the Frankfurt forces off on 14 May in the Battle of Eschborn and taking 620 prisoners, among them the mayor, a few noble council members and all the town's

baker A baker is a tradesperson who baking, bakes and sometimes Sales, sells breads and other products made of flour by using an oven or other concentrated heat source. The place where a baker works is called a bakery. History Ancient histo ...

butcher A butcher is a person who may Animal slaughter, slaughter animals, dress their flesh, sell their meat, or participate within any combination of these three tasks. They may prepare standard cuts of meat and poultry for sale in retail or wholesale ...

locksmith Locksmithing is the work of creating and bypassing locks. Locksmithing is a traditional trade and in many countries requires completion of an apprenticeship. The level of formal education legally required varies by country, ranging from no formal ...

s and

shoemaker Shoemaking is the process of making footwear. Originally, shoes were made one at a time by hand, often by groups of shoemakers, or '' cordwainers'' (sometimes misidentified as cobblers, who repair shoes rather than make them). In the 18th cen ...

s. Only a ransom payment of 73,000 golden

guilder Guilder is the English translation of the Dutch and German ''gulden'', originally shortened from Middle High German ''guldin pfenninc'' (" gold penny"). This was the term that became current in the southern and western parts of the Holy Rom ...

s ended the fight with Frankfurt and laid the groundwork for the ''Frankfurter

Landwehr ''Landwehr'' (), or ''Landeswehr'', is a German language term used in referring to certain national army, armies, or militias found in nineteenth- and early twentieth-century Europe. In different context it refers to large-scale, low-strength fo ...

'' fortifications and Frankfurt's four

watchtower A watchtower or guardtower (also spelt watch tower, guard tower) is a type of military/paramilitary or policiary tower used for guarding an area. Sometimes fortified, and armed with heavy weaponry, especially historically, the structures are ...

s. The noble family of the Hattstein Knights, which was inseparably bound with Schmitten's history, came to an end with Johann Constantin Philipp von Hattstein's death in 1767.

Arnoldshain

Saint Lawrence's Church (''Laurentiuskirche'') at Arnoldshain was first mentioned early in the 13th century in the ''Rotulus omnium iurium'' (Directory of all rights). A few expansions to the once eight-sided chapel notwithstanding, the old part is preserved to this day. The ''Laurentiuskirche'' is thereby one of the oldest buildings still in use in the Hochtaunus. In a glass window from 1480 one can still clearly see the Reifenberg family's coat of arms. Politically Arnoldshain belonged to the Lords of Hattstein, but later partly under Reifenberg (Bassenheim) rule.

Dorfweil

Dorfweil had its first documentary mention in 772. Lying 410 m above

sea level Mean sea level (MSL, often shortened to sea level) is an mean, average surface level of one or more among Earth's coastal Body of water, bodies of water from which heights such as elevation may be measured. The global MSL is a type of vertical ...

in the Weil Valley, the community has many

hiking A hike is a long, vigorous walk, usually on trails or footpaths in the countryside. Walking for pleasure developed in Europe during the eighteenth century. Long hikes as part of a religious pilgrimage have existed for a much longer time. "Hi ...

trails. With an area of 367ha and 684 inhabitants (as of the end of 2004), Dorfweil is one of Schmitten's smallest constituent communities.

Sightseeing

Großer Feldberg

The Taunus's highest mountain attracts hundreds of thousands of visitors every year, especially from the

Frankfurt Rhein-Main Region The Rhine-Main Metropolitan Region, often simply referred to as Frankfurt Rhine-Main, Frankfurt Rhine-Main area or Rhine-Main area (German: ''Rhein-Main-Gebiet'', ''Frankfurt/Rhein-Main'' or ''FrankfurtRheinMain'', abbreviated FRM), is the third-l ...

. In Oberreifenberg lifts for

skiing Skiing is the use of skis to glide on snow for basic transport, a recreational activity, or a competitive winter sport. Many types of competitive skiing events are recognized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC), and the International S ...

and

sledding Sledding, sledging or sleighing is a winter sport typically carried out in a prone or seated position on a vehicle generically known as a sled (North American), a sledge (British), or a sleigh. It is the basis of three Olympic sports: luge, Skel ...

are abundant. The main attraction, however, is the Taunus's nature and many kilometres of hiking trails.

Treisberg

The lookout tower on the 663-m-high Pferdskopf ("Horse's Head") near Treisberg affords a fantastic view of the Taunus landscape and is the object of many outings. In the winter, skiers and

toboggan A toboggan is a simple sled used in snowy winter recreation. It is also a traditional form of cargo transport used by the Innu, Cree and Ojibwe of North America, sometimes part of a dog train. It is used on snow to carry one or more people (o ...

ers are drawn to the Taunus's most attractive skilifts.

Weiltal

Rising on the Feldberg, the little brook Weil snakes its way through the Hochtaunus Nature Park through to Weilburg. Alongside the Weil runs the ''Weiltalwanderweg'' (Weil Valley Hiking Trail). A Weil Valley visit is popular among families and nature lovers, but also for

cyclists Cycling, also known as bicycling or biking, is the activity of riding a bicycle or other types of pedal-driven human-powered vehicles such as balance bikes, unicycles, tricycles, and quadricycles. Cycling is practised around the world for pur ...

and

motorcyclists Motorcycling is the act of riding a motorcycle. For some people, motorcycling may be the only affordable form of individual motorized transportation, and small-displacement motorcycles are the most common motor vehicle in the most populous co ...

. Besides the yearly Weiltal-Marathon, the traditional "Rund um den Henninger-Turm" bicycle race also runs through the Weil Valley.

Limes

The

Roman Empire The Roman Empire ruled the Mediterranean and much of Europe, Western Asia and North Africa. The Roman people, Romans conquered most of this during the Roman Republic, Republic, and it was ruled by emperors following Octavian's assumption of ...

's old

border Borders are generally defined as geography, geographical boundaries, imposed either by features such as oceans and terrain, or by polity, political entities such as governments, sovereign states, federated states, and other administrative divisio ...

runs above Niederreifenberg and Oberreifenberg across the crest of the Taunus. Within Schmitten's municipal limits lies the ''Limeskastell Kleiner Feldberg'', a Roman fort. The preserved foundation walls offer a glimpse into Roman history.

Reifenberg Castle ruins

The castle's

keep A keep is a type of fortified tower built within castles during the Middle Ages by European nobility. Scholars have debated the scope of the word ''keep'', but usually consider it to refer to large towers in castles that were fortified residen ...

and tower are preserved and loom over Oberreifenberg and the Weil Valley.

Politics

Municipal council

The municipal elections on 26 March 2006 yielded the following results: * CDU 10 seats (2001: 9 seats) *

SPD The Social Democratic Party of Germany ( , SPD ) is a social democratic political party in Germany. It is one of the major parties of contemporary Germany. Saskia Esken has been the party's leader since the 2019 leadership election together wi ...

3 seats (2001: 5 seats) * Greens 3 seats (2001: 3 seats) * FDP 4 seats (2001: 4 seats) * UBB 4 seats (2001: 5 seats) * FWG 7 seats (2001: 5 seats) Note: FWG is a citizens' coalition.

Partnerships

Schmitten maintains partnerships with the following places, all in

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 ...

Public institutions

Educational institutions

The community of Schmitten has two

primary school A primary school (in Ireland, India, the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, South Africa, and Singapore), elementary school, or grade school (in North America and the Philippines) is a school for primary ...

s. * Jürgen-Schuhmann-Schule in Arnoldshain * Grundschule Reifenberg in Niederreifenberg Furthermore, there exists in Arnoldshain an

Evangelical Evangelicalism (), also called evangelical Christianity or evangelical Protestantism, is a worldwide, interdenominational movement within Protestantism, Protestant Christianity that emphasizes evangelism, or the preaching and spreading of th ...

Academy called the ''"

Martin Niemöller Friedrich Gustav Emil Martin Niemöller (; 14 January 1892 – 6 March 1984) was a German theologian and Lutheran pastor. He opposed the Nazi regime during the late 1930s, and was sent to a concentration camp for his affiliation with the Confes ...

" Haus''.

Sports and leisure

* Schmitten (the main town) offers Hesse's highest outdoor

swimming pool A swimming pool, swimming bath, wading pool, paddling pool, or simply pool, is a structure designed to hold water to enable Human swimming, swimming and associated activities. Pools can be built into the ground (in-ground pools) or built abo ...

. * In Niederreifenberg,

quad bikes An all-terrain vehicle (ATV), also known as a light utility vehicle (LUV), a quad bike or quad (if it has four wheels), as defined by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI), is a vehicle that travels on low-pressure tires, has a seat ...

may be hired. * In Oberreifenberg the Taunatours company offers

rock climbing Rock climbing is a climbing sports discipline that involves ascending climbing routes, routes consisting of natural rock in an outdoor environment, or on artificial resin climbing walls in a mostly indoor environment. Routes are documented in c ...

Personalities

Notable residents

* Oil-drilling pioneer Anton Raky was born in Seelenberg in 1868. *

Theologian Theology is the study of religious belief from a religious perspective, with a focus on the nature of divinity. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of ...

Anton Abt was born in Seelenberg in 1841. * German singer

Ivan Rebroff Ivan Rebroff (born Hans Rolf Rippert; 31 July 193127 February 2008) was a German vocalist, allegedly of Russian ancestry, who rose to prominence for his distinct and extensive vocal range of four octaves, ranging "from a low F to a high F, one ...

lived at the edge of the Hunodstal Valley. * The German writer

Gerhard Zwerenz Gerhard Zwerenz (3 June 1925 in Gablenz, Saxony – 13 July 2015) was a German writer and politician. From 1994 until 1998 he was a member of the Bundestag for the Party of Democratic Socialism (PDS). Life Gerhard Zwerenz was born in Gablenz ...

lived in Arnoldshain.

References

External links

Official websiteUnofficial Seelenberg website
{{Authority control Hochtaunuskreis