Bongard
Encyclopedia
Bongard is an Ortsgemeinde – a municipality
belonging to a Verbandsgemeinde
, a kind of collective municipality – in the Vulkaneifel district
in Rhineland-Palatinate
, Germany
. It belongs to the Verbandsgemeinde of Kelberg
, whose seat is in the like-named municipality
.
, a part of the Eifel
known for its volcanic history, geographical and geological features, and even ongoing activity today, including gases that sometimes well up from the earth.
From the Middle Ages
until the late 18th century, Bongard belonged to the Electorate of Trier.
at the municipal election held on 7 June 2009, and the honorary mayor as chairman.
The municipality’s arms
might in English heraldic
language be described thus: Argent on a mount vert a falcon surgerant gules armed Or, the dexter leg raised, in a chief of the third a pair of tongs fesswise of the first.
According to information from the Koblenz Main State Archive, the noble family “von dem Bongart gen Dumegin” bore a charge
in their seal much like the falcon in these arms. The seal was localized for Bongard by Kelberg and showed “einen auffliegenen Falken mit erhobenem rechten Fuß” or “a falcon surgerant (or rising, that is, getting ready to fly as shown by the position of the wings) with raised dexter (that is, right) foot”. This old noble armorial bearing now appears on Bongard’s municipal arms below the chief
. Bongard has long revered Saint Agatha
as the church’s and the village’s patron saint. One of her attributes, the tongs, appears as a charge in the chief. The field tincture
s gules and argent (red and silver) refer to the village’s former allegiance to the Electorate of Trier.
Municipalities of Germany
Municipalities are the lowest level of territorial division in Germany. This may be the fourth level of territorial division in Germany, apart from those states which include Regierungsbezirke , where municipalities then become the fifth level.-Overview:With more than 3,400,000 inhabitants, the...
belonging to a Verbandsgemeinde
Verbandsgemeinde
A Verbandsgemeinde is an administrative unit in the German Bundesländer of Rhineland-Palatinate and Saxony-Anhalt.-Rhineland-Palatinate:...
, a kind of collective municipality – in the Vulkaneifel district
Districts of Germany
The districts of Germany are known as , except in the states of North Rhine-Westphalia and Schleswig-Holstein where they are known simply as ....
in Rhineland-Palatinate
Rhineland-Palatinate
Rhineland-Palatinate is one of the 16 states of the Federal Republic of Germany. It has an area of and about four million inhabitants. The capital is Mainz. English speakers also commonly refer to the state by its German name, Rheinland-Pfalz ....
, Germany
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...
. It belongs to the Verbandsgemeinde of Kelberg
Kelberg (Verbandsgemeinde)
Kelberg is a Verbandsgemeinde in the district Vulkaneifel, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. The seat of the Verbandsgemeinde is in Kelberg....
, whose seat is in the like-named municipality
Kelberg
Kelberg is an Ortsgemeinde – a municipality belonging to a Verbandsgemeinde, a kind of collective municipality – in the Vulkaneifel district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It belongs to the like-named Verbandsgemeinde, and is home to its seat...
.
Location
The municipality lies in the VulkaneifelVulkan Eifel
The Vulkan Eifel is a region in the Eifel Mountains in Germany, that is defined to a large extent by its volcanic geological history. Characteristic of the Vulkan Eifel are its typical explosion crater lakes or maars, and numerous other signs of volcanic activity such as volcanic tuffs, lava...
, a part of the Eifel
Eifel
The Eifel is a low mountain range in western Germany and eastern Belgium. It occupies parts of southwestern North Rhine-Westphalia, northwestern Rhineland-Palatinate and the south of the German-speaking Community of Belgium....
known for its volcanic history, geographical and geological features, and even ongoing activity today, including gases that sometimes well up from the earth.
History
The first known dwellers of the lands in and around what is now Bongard were the Celts (about 500 BC). They lived on and at the Barsberg (mountain), and even today, the once roughly 60 m-long and perhaps 7 m-high protective wall can still be made out.From the Middle Ages
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...
until the late 18th century, Bongard belonged to the Electorate of Trier.
Municipal council
The council is made up of 6 council members, who were elected by majority votePlurality voting system
The plurality voting system is a single-winner voting system often used to elect executive officers or to elect members of a legislative assembly which is based on single-member constituencies...
at the municipal election held on 7 June 2009, and the honorary mayor as chairman.
Coat of arms
The German blazon reads: Unter rotem Schildhaupt mit silberner Zange, in Silber auf grünem Boden ein auffliegender roter, goldbewehrter Falke mit erhobenem rechten Fuß.The municipality’s arms
Coat 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...
might in English heraldic
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"...
language be described thus: Argent on a mount vert a falcon surgerant gules armed Or, the dexter leg raised, in a chief of the third a pair of tongs fesswise of the first.
According to information from the Koblenz Main State Archive, the noble family “von dem Bongart gen Dumegin” bore a charge
Charge (heraldry)
In heraldry, a charge is any emblem or device occupying the field of an escutcheon . This may be a geometric design or a symbolic representation of a person, animal, plant, object or other device...
in their seal much like the falcon in these arms. The seal was localized for Bongard by Kelberg and showed “einen auffliegenen Falken mit erhobenem rechten Fuß” or “a falcon surgerant (or rising, that is, getting ready to fly as shown by the position of the wings) with raised dexter (that is, right) foot”. This old noble armorial bearing now appears on Bongard’s municipal arms below the chief
Chief (heraldry)
In heraldic blazon, a chief is a charge on a coat of arms that takes the form of a band running horizontally across the top edge of the shield. Writers disagree in how much of the shield's surface is to be covered by the chief, ranging from one-fourth to one-third. The former is more likely if the...
. Bongard has long revered Saint Agatha
Agatha of Sicily
Saint Agatha of Sicily is a Christian saint. Her memorial is on 5 February. Agatha was born at Catania, Sicily, and she was martyred in approximately 251...
as the church’s and the village’s patron saint. One of her attributes, the tongs, appears as a charge in the chief. The field tincture
Tincture (heraldry)
In heraldry, tinctures are the colours used to emblazon a coat of arms. These can be divided into several categories including light tinctures called metals, dark tinctures called colours, nonstandard colours called stains, furs, and "proper". A charge tinctured proper is coloured as it would be...
s gules and argent (red and silver) refer to the village’s former allegiance to the Electorate of Trier.
Buildings
- Saint Agatha’s Catholic Church, Blankenheimer Straße, Baroque Revival quarrystone aisleless churchAisleless churchAn Aisleless church is a single-nave church building that consists of a single hall-like room. While similar to the hall church, the aisleless church lacks aisles or passageways either side of the nave separated from the nave by colonnades or arcades, a row of pillars or columns...
, whole complex surrounded by churchyard, itself surrounded by a quarrystone wall - Blankenheimer Straße 4 – timber-frameTimber framingTimber framing , or half-timbering, also called in North America "post-and-beam" construction, is the method of creating structures using heavy squared off and carefully fitted and joined timbers with joints secured by large wooden pegs . It is commonplace in large barns...
house, partly solid, early or mid 19th century - Blankenheimer Straße 21 – timber-frame estate along street, 18th century
- Blankenheimer Straße 26 – timber-frame house, partly solid, plastered, possibly essentially from the 18th century, perhaps older
- Blankenheimer Straße 27 (nearby) – stately barn, quarrystone and timber-frame, earlier half of 19th century
- Blankenheimer Straße 30 – sprawling estate complex, former plastered timber-frame house, partly solid, current house a six-axis plastered house, latter half of 19th century, bakehouse and other commercial buildings
Religion
The citizens of Bongard are roughly 90% Roman Catholic. Bongard belongs to the parish of Bodenbach. People from Bongard also like to visit the Heyerbergkapelle (chapel) with its Way of the Cross in the forest.External links
- Municipality’s official webpage
- Bongard in the collective municipality’s Web pages
- http://www.swr.de/landesschau-rp/hierzuland/-/id=100766/nid=100766/did=4039674/2wx6gt/index.htmlBrief portrait of Bongard with film at SWR FernsehenSWR FernsehenSWR Fernsehen is a German regional television channel targeting the states of Baden-Württemberg and Rhineland-Palatinate. It is produced by Südwestrundfunk and is one of eight regional "third channels" broadcast by the ARD members....
]