Attendorn
Encyclopedia
Attendorn is a German
town in the Olpe
district in North Rhine-Westphalia
.
As of 2008 it had a population of 24, 801.
The town’s location was favoured by the good climate in the Attendorn-Elsper Limestone Double Basin (Attendorn-Elsper-Kalkdoppelmulde), the fruitful soil and favourable transport potential, and was already attracting people in prehistoric times. Heavier settlement, however, can be traced only as far back as the Middle Ages
.
The town lies at the crossroads of two former long-distance roads, the Heidenstraße (“Heath Road”) and the so-called Königsstraße (“King’s Road”). Here, in Charlemagne
’s time, arose a parish. Under the St.-Johannes-Kirche (church) are found the foundations of an old missionary church. In 1072, Archbishop Anno of Cologne
endowed the Grafschaft Monastery and granted it, among other things, rights to an estate in Attendorn. Indeed, the monastery’s endowment document stands as the town’s earliest documentary mention.
In 1222, town rights, on the Soest
model, were granted the town under Engelbert II of Berg
. Schnellenberg Castle, built about 1200, and the acquisition of the Waldenburg (another castle) in 1248 served to safeguard Cologne’s interests in the region.
Attendorn’s heyday was brought about not only by its nine guild
s but also, and mainly, by its wool and linen weavers. Furthermore, the town’s political and ecclesiastical status as a bulwark against the County of Mark and as seat of a deanery in the old Archbishopric of Cologne brought it wealth and prosperity. As the Sauerland’s only town, Attendorn joined the Rhenish League of Towns in 1255. Attendorn was only an indirect member of the Hanse, and was thus represented at the Hanseatic League
’s great assemblies by the town of Soest.
By about 1200, Attendorn was already home to one of the archbishopric’s mints
. Mediaeval coin
s from Attendorn have been found as far afield as Brussels
, Lubnice
(Poland
) and the island of Gotland
.
From the early 14th century until today there has existed a hospital
with a church and graveyard
outside the town’s walls. In 1420, Heinrich Weke endowed the Ewig Monastery. In 1429, he also added a hospital for the poor. For a time, the town was so well off that it could even grant the Archbishop of Cologne himself credit. Moreover, the town also supported him during his dispute with the town of Soest. In 1444 and 1445, the town helped the Archbishop conquer the castle and the land of Bilstein in the so-called Soest Feud.
Four times, in 1464, 1597, 1598 and 1613, the Plague
beset the town. Great fires, too, ravaged the town in 1613, 1623, 1656, 1710, 1732, 1742 and 1783. The one in 1656 destroyed half the town. Attendorn also suffered as a result of war, sackings and occupations. Examples include the War of the Limburg-Hohenlimburg
Succession in 1280, the Soest Feud from 1444 to 1449, the Truchsess War in 1583 and 1584 and the Thirty Years' War
from 1618 to 1648. Attendorn reached its deepest economic despair in Napoleonic times
, only recovering from the downturn in the mid 19th century.
The rise of Nazis and the Second World War affected Attendorn much like the rest of Germany. An Attendorn teacher and historian, supported by the government, documented the persecution of Attendorn Jewish families under Nazi rule. As in many places, this included destruction of property, boycotting Jewish stores, approriating factories, and shipping Jews to concentration camps. Attendorn lost many citizens during the war and suffered heavy destruction under bombing on 28 March 1945, and also on 15 June that same year as a result of a munitions explosion.
The town of Attendorn lies in the Naturpark Ebbegebirge, right on the Biggesee (lake) in the district’s northwest. The town’s highest point is the Rüenhardt (636 m), whereas the Ahauser Stausee (reservoir) has an elevation of only 248 m. The municipal area comprises 97 km², roughly half of which is wooded. It is a part of South Westphalia
.
in England
.
show the black cross of the Electorate of Cologne on a white/silver background with a waxing crescent moon in the upper left (or right – dexter – in heraldry
). The oldest surviving town seal, from 1243, shows Saint Peter
, patron of the Archbishopric of Cologne, with his key and a half moon next to his head, and in later seals enthroned on the Electorate’s shield. In 1910, the coat of arms was officially approved in its current form, and after municipal reform, it was also approved for further use in 1970. The half moon was used as a symbol for John the Baptist
, who was also to be found as the parish’s holy protector in early secret seals.
customs, among them the Semmelsegnen – which might be translated “Blessing of the Buns” – on Easter Saturday, and the felling, erection and burning of the Easter Crosses on Easter Saturday and Sunday.
The Attendorn Easter bread, called Ostersemmel – “Easter bun” – is a mixed bread with caraway
baked in local bakeries in the week leading up to Easter. Especially striking about these buns are the notches at each end that look somewhat like a fish’s fins. This is an old Christian symbol. On Easter Saturday at 14:00, Attendorners gather outside the parish church to have their buns blessed by the minister. This custom is witnessed in documents as far back as 1658, but is likely much older.
In the weeks leading up to Easter, the (male) members of the Easter fire club, the so-called Poskebrüder, gather in the woods that ring the town for the Holzstellen. This entails gathering brushwood to make faggots, called Bürden – “burdens” – which are later used to burn the crosses. The Easter fire club is divided into four Porten, based on the town’s former “quarters” each of which was to be reached through its own town gate. Each Attendorner goes with his Porte, either the one in which he was born or the one in which his family lives. Not surprisingly, this leads to a rivalry, not always taken seriously, that can be seen not only at Easter but also throughout the year.
After the Semmelsegnen on Easter Saturday, members of the four Porten move into the town forest, and each fells a great spruce
, whereafter these trees are borne into the town, to the marketplace
, where they are measured. This is a contest, too, to try to get the longest spruce with the greatest diameter. Then, the trees go to the Osterköpfe – “Easter heads” – which are high spots at the edge of town or outside the town where the Easter crosses are put up the next day (Easter Sunday).
On Easter Sunday they gather on the Osterköpfe and prepare the spruces for the fire to come that evening. Each spruce is given a crossbar swathed in straw
, and is lifted into place by muscle power alone. Once this has been done, the faggots are heaped in layers at the foot of the cross, and are likewise wrapped in straw.
Towards 20:40, the Poskebrüder begin their Fackelschwenken – “Torch Swinging” – in which torches cut from sprucewood are lit from the torch fire, itself in turn having been lit beforehand from the Easter candle. Participants stand around the Easter cross and, holding the torches upright, swing them back and forth, either beside or before the body. At 21:00, when the lighting for the cross on the parish church’s steeple is switched on, the torches are thrown onto the faggots and the cross goes up in flames.
At 20:30, the four columns of the Easter procession, waiting at the town’s former gates, begin to move towards the church, signalled by the four burning crosses. There, the Easter festivities are concluded with a celebratory prayer
.
The Pfarrkirche St. Johannes Baptist is also called the Sauerländer Dom – Sauerland Cathedral. It has a Romanesque
tower from about 1200 and a Gothic
nave from the 14th century. Striking about the church is the tower’s Baroque
cupola, which has adorned the church since 1634.
s at the sides. The ground floor, which opens into an arcade, was once used as a shopping centre, but is now given over to the Südsauerlandmuseum. This has exhibits from the Olpe district, and also the Westphalian Tin Figure Cabinet (Westfälisches Zinnfigurenkabinett).
, Kaspar von Fürstenberg, bought this castle complex, which had Imperial immediacy, in South Westphalia. It houses a hotel and a restaurant.
Of the town fortifications demolished in 1812, two towers, the Pulverturm and the Bieketurm from the 13th century have been kept. The latter is nowadays used by the Schützengesellschaft Attendorn 1222 e. V. (a shooting club) as an armoury. Flags, king’s chains, armour and other things may be viewed Saturdays from May to October between 10:00 and 12:00. On the tower’s side, the former wall’s height may be gauged from remnants there.
exposed during limestone
mining in 1907 and one of Germany’s biggest interconnected cave systems. Its genesis lies mainly in the limestone deposits in the Attendorn-Elsper Double Basin
, Aquatherm, GEDIA, Isphording and BeulCo.
. Moreover, the town lies on the Biggetalbahn (railway) which has several halts and stations in the municipal area.
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
town in the Olpe
Olpe (district)
Olpe is a Kreis in the south-east of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Neighboring districts are Märkischer Kreis, Hochsauerland, Siegen-Wittgenstein, Altenkirchen, Oberbergischer Kreis.- History :...
district in North Rhine-Westphalia
North Rhine-Westphalia
North Rhine-Westphalia is the most populous state of Germany, with four of the country's ten largest cities. The state was formed in 1946 as a merger of the northern Rhineland and Westphalia, both formerly part of Prussia. Its capital is Düsseldorf. The state is currently run by a coalition of the...
.
As of 2008 it had a population of 24, 801.
History
Middle Ages
The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...
.
The town lies at the crossroads of two former long-distance roads, the Heidenstraße (“Heath Road”) and the so-called Königsstraße (“King’s Road”). Here, in Charlemagne
Charlemagne
Charlemagne was King of the Franks from 768 and Emperor of the Romans from 800 to his death in 814. He expanded the Frankish kingdom into an empire that incorporated much of Western and Central Europe. During his reign, he conquered Italy and was crowned by Pope Leo III on 25 December 800...
’s time, arose a parish. Under the St.-Johannes-Kirche (church) are found the foundations of an old missionary church. In 1072, Archbishop Anno of Cologne
Anno II, Archbishop of Cologne
Saint Anno II was Archbishop of Cologne from 1056 to 1075.He was born around 1010, belonging to the Swabian family of the von Steusslingen, and was educated at Bamberg. He became confessor to the Emperor Henry III, who appointed him archbishop of Cologne in 1056...
endowed the Grafschaft Monastery and granted it, among other things, rights to an estate in Attendorn. Indeed, the monastery’s endowment document stands as the town’s earliest documentary mention.
In 1222, town rights, on the Soest
Soest, Germany
Soest is a town in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is the capital of the Soest district. After Lippstadt, a neighbouring town, Soest is the second biggest town in its district.-Geography:...
model, were granted the town under Engelbert II of Berg
Engelbert II of Berg
Count Engelbert II of Berg, also known as Saint Engelbert, Engelbert of Cologne, Engelbert I, Archbishop of Cologne or Engelbert I of Berg, Archbishop of Cologne was Archbishop of Cologne and a saint; he was the victim of a notorious murder by a member of his own family.-Early life:Engelbert was...
. Schnellenberg Castle, built about 1200, and the acquisition of the Waldenburg (another castle) in 1248 served to safeguard Cologne’s interests in the region.
Attendorn’s heyday was brought about not only by its nine guild
Guild
A guild is an association of craftsmen in a particular trade. The earliest types of guild were formed as confraternities of workers. They were organized in a manner something between a trade union, a cartel, and a secret society...
s but also, and mainly, by its wool and linen weavers. Furthermore, the town’s political and ecclesiastical status as a bulwark against the County of Mark and as seat of a deanery in the old Archbishopric of Cologne brought it wealth and prosperity. As the Sauerland’s only town, Attendorn joined the Rhenish League of Towns in 1255. Attendorn was only an indirect member of the Hanse, and was thus represented at the Hanseatic League
Hanseatic League
The Hanseatic League was an economic alliance of trading cities and their merchant guilds that dominated trade along the coast of Northern Europe...
’s great assemblies by the town of Soest.
By about 1200, Attendorn was already home to one of the archbishopric’s mints
Mint (coin)
A mint is an industrial facility which manufactures coins for currency.The history of mints correlates closely with the history of coins. One difference is that the history of the mint is usually closely tied to the political situation of an era...
. Mediaeval coin
Coin
A coin is a piece of hard material that is standardized in weight, is produced in large quantities in order to facilitate trade, and primarily can be used as a legal tender token for commerce in the designated country, region, or territory....
s from Attendorn have been found as far afield as Brussels
Brussels
Brussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the capital of Belgium and the de facto capital of the European Union...
, Lubnice
Lubnice
Lubnice is a village and municipality in Znojmo District in the South Moravian Region of the Czech Republic.The municipality covers an area of , and has a population of 77 ....
(Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
) and the island of Gotland
Gotland
Gotland is a county, province, municipality and diocese of Sweden; it is Sweden's largest island and the largest island in the Baltic Sea. At 3,140 square kilometers in area, the region makes up less than one percent of Sweden's total land area...
.
From the early 14th century until today there has existed a hospital
Hospital
A hospital is a health care institution providing patient treatment by specialized staff and equipment. Hospitals often, but not always, provide for inpatient care or longer-term patient stays....
with a church and graveyard
Graveyard
A graveyard is any place set aside for long-term burial of the dead, with or without monuments such as headstones...
outside the town’s walls. In 1420, Heinrich Weke endowed the Ewig Monastery. In 1429, he also added a hospital for the poor. For a time, the town was so well off that it could even grant the Archbishop of Cologne himself credit. Moreover, the town also supported him during his dispute with the town of Soest. In 1444 and 1445, the town helped the Archbishop conquer the castle and the land of Bilstein in the so-called Soest Feud.
Four times, in 1464, 1597, 1598 and 1613, the Plague
Bubonic plague
Plague is a deadly infectious disease that is caused by the enterobacteria Yersinia pestis, named after the French-Swiss bacteriologist Alexandre Yersin. Primarily carried by rodents and spread to humans via fleas, the disease is notorious throughout history, due to the unrivaled scale of death...
beset the town. Great fires, too, ravaged the town in 1613, 1623, 1656, 1710, 1732, 1742 and 1783. The one in 1656 destroyed half the town. Attendorn also suffered as a result of war, sackings and occupations. Examples include the War of the Limburg-Hohenlimburg
Limburg-Hohenlimburg
Limburg-Hohenlimburg was a County of mediæval Germany. It was created as a partition of Limburg-Isenberg in 1246, and was annexed to Limburg-Styrum in 1304.-Counts of Limburg-Hohenlimburg :*John I...
Succession in 1280, the Soest Feud from 1444 to 1449, the Truchsess War in 1583 and 1584 and the Thirty Years' War
Thirty Years' War
The Thirty Years' War was fought primarily in what is now Germany, and at various points involved most countries in Europe. It was one of the most destructive conflicts in European history....
from 1618 to 1648. Attendorn reached its deepest economic despair in Napoleonic times
Napoleonic Wars
The Napoleonic Wars were a series of wars declared against Napoleon's French Empire by opposing coalitions that ran from 1803 to 1815. As a continuation of the wars sparked by the French Revolution of 1789, they revolutionised European armies and played out on an unprecedented scale, mainly due to...
, only recovering from the downturn in the mid 19th century.
The rise of Nazis and the Second World War affected Attendorn much like the rest of Germany. An Attendorn teacher and historian, supported by the government, documented the persecution of Attendorn Jewish families under Nazi rule. As in many places, this included destruction of property, boycotting Jewish stores, approriating factories, and shipping Jews to concentration camps. Attendorn lost many citizens during the war and suffered heavy destruction under bombing on 28 March 1945, and also on 15 June that same year as a result of a munitions explosion.
Geography
Westphalia
Westphalia is a region in Germany, centred on the cities of Arnsberg, Bielefeld, Dortmund, Minden and Münster.Westphalia is roughly the region between the rivers Rhine and Weser, located north and south of the Ruhr River. No exact definition of borders can be given, because the name "Westphalia"...
.
Constituent communities
Attendorn is subdivided into the following communities (with population figures): Albringhausen (91), Attendorn (13,684), Berlinghausen (20), Beukenbeul (291), Biekhofen (623), Biggen (55), Borghausen (26), Bremge bei Ennest (7), Bremge/Biggesee (37), Bürberg (49), St. Claas (182), Dahlhausen (6), Dünschede (650), Ebbe, Forsthaus (2), Ebbelinghagen (36), Eichen (30), Ennest (2,039), Erlen (36), Ewig (24), Fernholte (4), Hebberg (39), Helden (1,144), Hofkühl (14), Hohen Hagen (8), Holzweg (406), Jäckelchen (15), Keseberg (29), Keuperkusen (11), Kraghammer (66), Lichringhausen (516), Listerscheid (161), Mecklinghausen (196), Merklinghausen (17), Milstenau (80), Neuenhof (429), Neu-Listernohl (1,195), Niederhelden (324), Nuttmecke (23), Papiermühle (111), Petersburg (535), Rauterkusen (38), Rautersbeul (3), Repe (158), Rieflinghausen (75), Röllecken (478), Roscheid (21), Schnellenberg (8), Silbecke (93), Uelhof (17), Voßsiepen (3), Wamge (204), Weltringhausen (29), Weschede (60), Weuste (18), Windhausen (668) and Wörmge (24).Population development
(each time for 31 December)- 1998 - 24,126
- 1999 - 24,267
- 2000 - 24,460
- 2001 - 24,688
- 2002 - 24,791
- 2003 - 24,776
- 2004 - 24,836
- 2005 - 25,153
- 2006 - 25,120
Mayor
Owing to the fire that burnt the town down in 1783, no information about the time before that is still available.Mayors (1783-1804)
- 1783-1804: Franz Anton Plange
- 1783: Johann Eberhard Hoberg
- 1783-1784: Johann Emmerich Gottfried Joanvahrs
- 1786-1794: Johann Pieper
- 1790-1796: Johann Arnold Gertmann
- 1791-1793: Dr. Theodor Greve
- 1800-1802: Ferdinand Dingerkus
- 1802-1804: Johann Greve
- 1804: [Stephan?] Dingerkus
Stadtschultheiße (1812-1826)
A Schultheiß in German history was an official somewhat akin to a sheriffSheriff
A sheriff is in principle a legal official with responsibility for a county. In practice, the specific combination of legal, political, and ceremonial duties of a sheriff varies greatly from country to country....
in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
.
- 1812-1818: Johann Anton Goebel
- 1818-1826: Adolf Salomon
Mayors from 1826
- 1826-1829: Adolf Salomon
- 1829-1832: Kaspar Belke
- 1832-1835: Eberhard Belke
- 1835-1862: Arnold Becker
- 1862-1864: Franz Lex
- 1864-1865: Ferdinand Wurzer
- 1865-1866: Eberhard Wilmes (acting mayor during a vacancy)
- 1866-1908: Richard Heim
- 1908-1911: Heinrich Tück
- 1911-1919: Dr. Theodor Laymann
- 1920-1932: Wilhelm Hennemann
- 1932-1933: Hans Becker (commisary)
- 1933-1934: Peter Struif (NSDAPNational Socialist German Workers PartyThe National Socialist German Workers' Party , commonly known in English as the Nazi Party, was a political party in Germany between 1920 and 1945. Its predecessor, the German Workers' Party , existed from 1919 to 1920...
) - 1934-1945: Josef Schütte (NSDAP)
- 1945: Dr. Wolfram Ebers (CDUChristian Democratic Union (Germany)The Christian Democratic Union of Germany is a Christian democratic and conservative political party in Germany. It is regarded as on the centre-right of the German political spectrum...
) - 1945-1946: Dr. Johannes Weber (CDU)
- 1946: Josef Mayworm (SPDSocial Democratic Party of GermanyThe Social Democratic Party of Germany is a social-democratic political party in Germany...
) - 1946-1948: Robert Schmidt (CDU)
- 1948-1949: Erich Berghoff (CDU)
- 1949-1950: August Bruse (SPD)
- 1951-1952: Robert Schmidt (CDU)
- 1952-1969: Alois Albus (CDU)
- 1969-1978: Karl Hammer (CDU)
- 1978-1994: Josef Rüenauver (CDU) – Honorary Mayor
- 1994-2009: Alfons Stumpf (SPD)
- since 2009: Wolfgang Hilleke (impartially)
Coat of arms
The town’s armsCoat of arms
A coat of arms is a unique heraldic design on a shield or escutcheon or on a surcoat or tabard used to cover and protect armour and to identify the wearer. Thus the term is often stated as "coat-armour", because it was anciently displayed on the front of a coat of cloth...
show the black cross of the Electorate of Cologne on a white/silver background with a waxing crescent moon in the upper left (or right – dexter – in heraldry
Heraldry
Heraldry is the profession, study, or art of creating, granting, and blazoning arms and ruling on questions of rank or protocol, as exercised by an officer of arms. Heraldry comes from Anglo-Norman herald, from the Germanic compound harja-waldaz, "army commander"...
). The oldest surviving town seal, from 1243, shows Saint Peter
Saint Peter
Saint Peter or Simon Peter was an early Christian leader, who is featured prominently in the New Testament Gospels and the Acts of the Apostles. The son of John or of Jonah and from the village of Bethsaida in the province of Galilee, his brother Andrew was also an apostle...
, patron of the Archbishopric of Cologne, with his key and a half moon next to his head, and in later seals enthroned on the Electorate’s shield. In 1910, the coat of arms was officially approved in its current form, and after municipal reform, it was also approved for further use in 1970. The half moon was used as a symbol for John the Baptist
John the Baptist
John the Baptist was an itinerant preacher and a major religious figure mentioned in the Canonical gospels. He is described in the Gospel of Luke as a relative of Jesus, who led a movement of baptism at the Jordan River...
, who was also to be found as the parish’s holy protector in early secret seals.
Easter customs
Attendorners practise many specific EasterEaster
Easter is the central feast in the Christian liturgical year. According to the Canonical gospels, Jesus rose from the dead on the third day after his crucifixion. His resurrection is celebrated on Easter Day or Easter Sunday...
customs, among them the Semmelsegnen – which might be translated “Blessing of the Buns” – on Easter Saturday, and the felling, erection and burning of the Easter Crosses on Easter Saturday and Sunday.
Semmelsegnen
The Attendorn Easter bread, called Ostersemmel – “Easter bun” – is a mixed bread with caraway
Caraway
Caraway also known as meridian fennel, or Persian cumin is a biennial plant in the family Apiaceae, native to western Asia, Europe and Northern Africa....
baked in local bakeries in the week leading up to Easter. Especially striking about these buns are the notches at each end that look somewhat like a fish’s fins. This is an old Christian symbol. On Easter Saturday at 14:00, Attendorners gather outside the parish church to have their buns blessed by the minister. This custom is witnessed in documents as far back as 1658, but is likely much older.
Easter fire
After the Semmelsegnen on Easter Saturday, members of the four Porten move into the town forest, and each fells a great spruce
Spruce
A spruce is a tree of the genus Picea , a genus of about 35 species of coniferous evergreen trees in the Family Pinaceae, found in the northern temperate and boreal regions of the earth. Spruces are large trees, from tall when mature, and can be distinguished by their whorled branches and conical...
, whereafter these trees are borne into the town, to the marketplace
Marketplace
A marketplace is the space, actual, virtual or metaphorical, in which a market operates. The term is also used in a trademark law context to denote the actual consumer environment, ie. the 'real world' in which products and services are provided and consumed.-Marketplaces and street markets:A...
, where they are measured. This is a contest, too, to try to get the longest spruce with the greatest diameter. Then, the trees go to the Osterköpfe – “Easter heads” – which are high spots at the edge of town or outside the town where the Easter crosses are put up the next day (Easter Sunday).
On Easter Sunday they gather on the Osterköpfe and prepare the spruces for the fire to come that evening. Each spruce is given a crossbar swathed in straw
Straw
Straw is an agricultural by-product, the dry stalks of cereal plants, after the grain and chaff have been removed. Straw makes up about half of the yield of cereal crops such as barley, oats, rice, rye and wheat. It has many uses, including fuel, livestock bedding and fodder, thatching and...
, and is lifted into place by muscle power alone. Once this has been done, the faggots are heaped in layers at the foot of the cross, and are likewise wrapped in straw.
Towards 20:40, the Poskebrüder begin their Fackelschwenken – “Torch Swinging” – in which torches cut from sprucewood are lit from the torch fire, itself in turn having been lit beforehand from the Easter candle. Participants stand around the Easter cross and, holding the torches upright, swing them back and forth, either beside or before the body. At 21:00, when the lighting for the cross on the parish church’s steeple is switched on, the torches are thrown onto the faggots and the cross goes up in flames.
At 20:30, the four columns of the Easter procession, waiting at the town’s former gates, begin to move towards the church, signalled by the four burning crosses. There, the Easter festivities are concluded with a celebratory prayer
Prayer
Prayer is a form of religious practice that seeks to activate a volitional rapport to a deity through deliberate practice. Prayer may be either individual or communal and take place in public or in private. It may involve the use of words or song. When language is used, prayer may take the form of...
.
St. John the Baptist parish church
Romanesque architecture
Romanesque architecture is an architectural style of Medieval Europe characterised by semi-circular arches. There is no consensus for the beginning date of the Romanesque architecture, with proposals ranging from the 6th to the 10th century. It developed in the 12th century into the Gothic style,...
tower from about 1200 and a Gothic
Gothic architecture
Gothic architecture is a style of architecture that flourished during the high and late medieval period. It evolved from Romanesque architecture and was succeeded by Renaissance architecture....
nave from the 14th century. Striking about the church is the tower’s Baroque
Baroque architecture
Baroque architecture is a term used to describe the building style of the Baroque era, begun in late sixteenth century Italy, that took the Roman vocabulary of Renaissance architecture and used it in a new rhetorical and theatrical fashion, often to express the triumph of the Catholic Church and...
cupola, which has adorned the church since 1634.
Town Hall with South Sauerland Museum
The old town hall (Rathaus) likely dates back to the 14th century, and it was thoroughly remodelled in the 18th and 19th centuries. Between 1962 and 1964, on the basis of some findings and an illustration kept at the parish church, the town hall’s exterior was remodelled so that it once again took on its original appearance. It is a massive building with reconstructed crow-stepped gableCrow-stepped gable
A Stepped gable, Crow-stepped gable, or Corbie step is a stair-step type of design at the top of the triangular gable-end of a building...
s at the sides. The ground floor, which opens into an arcade, was once used as a shopping centre, but is now given over to the Südsauerlandmuseum. This has exhibits from the Olpe district, and also the Westphalian Tin Figure Cabinet (Westfälisches Zinnfigurenkabinett).
Schnellenberg Castle
On one of the town’s hills is found the Burg Schnellenberg. Since 1594 it has been owned by the family of the Barons of Fürstenberg. In 1594, the later Landdroste of the Duchy of WestphaliaDuchy of Westphalia
The Duchy of Westphalia was a historic territory in the greater region of Westphalia, located in the east of modern North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Originally, Westphalia formed with Angria and Eastphalia one of the three main regions of Saxony...
, Kaspar von Fürstenberg, bought this castle complex, which had Imperial immediacy, in South Westphalia. It houses a hotel and a restaurant.
Town wall’s towers
Atta Cave
The best known sightseeing place in Attendorn is the Atta Cave (Atta-Höhle), a caveCave
A cave or cavern is a natural underground space large enough for a human to enter. The term applies to natural cavities some part of which is in total darkness. The word cave also includes smaller spaces like rock shelters, sea caves, and grottos.Speleology is the science of exploration and study...
exposed during limestone
Limestone
Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....
mining in 1907 and one of Germany’s biggest interconnected cave systems. Its genesis lies mainly in the limestone deposits in the Attendorn-Elsper Double Basin
Bigge reservoir
In the south of the municipal area is the dam that holds the Biggetalsperre, or Bigge Reservoir. Together with the Listertalsperre and the Ahauser Stausee – two other reservoirs – it forms a large recreation area for the town and its environs.Economy and infrastructure
Attendorn’s economy is based on midsize enterprises of the metal industry, which specialize for the most part in manufacturing armatures, pipes and other metal parts. Among them are Mubea, ViegaViega
Viega is a family owned international manufacturer of Plumbing and HVACsolutions. Viega sells PEX for Radiant heating andplumbing systems along with copper, stainless, and metal alloy pipe along with mechanical pressure fitting products.-History:...
, Aquatherm, GEDIA, Isphording and BeulCo.
Transport
Near Attendorn lies the Attendorn-Finnentrop airportAirport
An airport is a location where aircraft such as fixed-wing aircraft, helicopters, and blimps take off and land. Aircraft may be stored or maintained at an airport...
. Moreover, the town lies on the Biggetalbahn (railway) which has several halts and stations in the municipal area.
Sons and daughters of the town
- Johannes Rivius, 1 August 1500 – 1 January 1553, educator and theologian
- Heinrich Baron of Heuel, 28 March 1648–1722, Imperial court councillor
- Josef Mayworm, 22 May 1877 – 20 February 1953, politician (SPDSocial Democratic Party of GermanyThe Social Democratic Party of Germany is a social-democratic political party in Germany...
), MdLMDLMDL may mean:* Mazagon Dock Limited, an Indian shipyard* MdL , an American music producer* MDL , a biochemical compound* MDL , a derivative of the LISP language...
, Mayor of Attendorn - August Bruse, 26 October 1903 – 27 August 1984, politician (SPDSocial Democratic Party of GermanyThe Social Democratic Party of Germany is a social-democratic political party in Germany...
), MdBMDBMDB may refer to:In computing:* .mdb, a file-extension used in certain versions of Microsoft Access databases* MDB or MDB2, PHP database abstraction layers* Message Driven Bean, a special type of Enterprise JavaBean...
, Mayor of Attendorn - Lioba Albus, 1958/1959, cabaret performer, actress, radio moderator
- Maria Cäcilia Angela Autsch, 1900, Sr. Maria Angela from the Holiest Heart of Jesus, MötzMötzMötz is a municipality in the Imst district and is located 16.30 km east of Imst and 9 km west of Telfs. The village was mentioned for the first time in the 12th century. Once connected with Mieming, Mötz became an own municipality after World War II...
Convent, Tyrol, born in Rölleken near Attendorn, died 1944 at AuschwitzAuschwitz concentration campConcentration camp Auschwitz was a network of Nazi concentration and extermination camps built and operated by the Third Reich in Polish areas annexed by Nazi Germany during World War II...
, resistance to the Hitler régime, 1990 beatification process begun by the Archdiocese of Vienna. - Aline von Spee
- WWII U-boat commander Herbert Sohler
Further reading
- Josef Brunabend: Attendorn, Schnellenberg, Waldenburg und Ewig. Ein Beitrag zur Geschichte Westfalens. 2nd edition, by appointment by the town of Attendorn edited by Prof. Julius Pickert, finished by Karl Boos Münster (1958) (the first edition appeared in 1878 in Münster)
- Westfälischer Städteatlas; Band: II; 1 Teilband. By appointment by the Historical Commission for Westphalia and with support of the Landschaftsverband Westfalen-Lippe, published by the late Heinz Stoob and Wilfried Ehbrecht. Stadtmappe Attendorn, Author: Heinz Stoob. ISBN 3-89115-344-9; Dortmund-Altenbeken, 1981.
- "Judisch in Attendorn," by Hartmut Hosenfeld, 2006. ISBN 978-3-9802697-6-6. English Translation in preparation