Heidenburg
Encyclopedia
Heidenburg is an Ortsgemeinde – a municipality
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 Bernkastel-Wittlich
Bernkastel-Wittlich
Bernkastel-Wittlich is a district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is bounded by the districts of Vulkaneifel, Cochem-Zell, Rhein-Hunsrück, Birkenfeld, Trier-Saarburg and Bitburg-Prüm.- History :...

 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...

.

Location

The municipality lies in the Hunsrück
Hunsrück
The Hunsrück is a low mountain range in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is bounded by the river valleys of the Moselle , the Nahe , and the Rhine . The Hunsrück is continued by the Taunus mountains on the eastern side of the Rhine. In the north behind the Moselle it is continued by the Eifel...

 south of the bow in the Moselle between Leiwen
Leiwen
Leiwen is a municipality in the Trier-Saarburg district, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is within a ten mile radius of the city of Trier. Leiwen is one of the most significant wine growing municipalities on the Moselle river...

 and Trittenheim
Trittenheim
Trittenheim on the Middle Moselle is an Ortsgemeinde – a municipality belonging to a Verbandsgemeinde, a kind of collective municipality – in the Bernkastel-Wittlich district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany.- Location :...

. Between Heidenburg and the Moselle is the valley of the Kleine Dhron, a deep cut in the landscape. Not far downstream, the Kleine Dhron feeds the Dhron reservoir. An outstanding scenic view is to be had from the heights around Heidenburg: the Moselle valley from Klüsserath
Klüsserath
Klüsserath on the Moselle River is a commune of the Verbandsgemeinde Schweich in the district Trier-Saarburg in Rhineland-Palatinate in Germany, between Bernkastel-Kues and Trier.-Location:...

 through Leiwen
Leiwen
Leiwen is a municipality in the Trier-Saarburg district, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is within a ten mile radius of the city of Trier. Leiwen is one of the most significant wine growing municipalities on the Moselle river...

 and Trittenheim
Trittenheim
Trittenheim on the Middle Moselle is an Ortsgemeinde – a municipality belonging to a Verbandsgemeinde, a kind of collective municipality – in the Bernkastel-Wittlich district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany.- Location :...

 to Neumagen-Dhron
Neumagen-Dhron
Neumagen-Dhron is an Ortsgemeinde – a municipality belonging to a Verbandsgemeinde, a kind of collective municipality – in the Bernkastel-Wittlich district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is also the seat of the Verbandsgemeinde of Neumagen-Dhron and a state-recognized tourism community...

; the mountains 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....

 and the Erbeskopf
Erbeskopf
The Erbeskopf in the Hunsrück in Germany is a mountain with a height of 816 m. It forms the highest point in the state of Rhineland-Palatinate, as well as the highest point of German territory on the left bank of the Rhine.-External links:*...

 – the highest elevation in Rhineland-Palatinate – the Dhron reservoir and through the tree cover, Dhrönchen, the writer Stefan Andres
Stefan Andres
Stefan Paul Andres was a German novelist.He was a widely-read German writer in the post-World War II period.-Works:* Bruder Lucifer...

’s birthplace. As well as the views into the distance, the municipality offers a wealth of plantlife and wildlife in its meadows and forests.

Heidenburg belongs to the Verbandsgemeinde of Thalfang am Erbeskopf
Thalfang am Erbeskopf
Thalfang am Erbeskopf is a Verbandsgemeinde in the district Bernkastel-Wittlich, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Its seat of administration is in Thalfang....

, whose seat is in the municipality of Thalfang
Thalfang
The climatic spa of Thalfang is an Ortsgemeinde – a municipality belonging to a Verbandsgemeinde, a kind of collective municipality – in the Bernkastel-Wittlich district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany...

.

History

In 1053, Heidenburg had its first documentary mention. As a result of the turmoil of the French Revolution
French Revolution
The French Revolution , sometimes distinguished as the 'Great French Revolution' , was a period of radical social and political upheaval in France and Europe. The absolute monarchy that had ruled France for centuries collapsed in three years...

, Heidenburg lay under French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...

 rule beginning about 1800. In 1814 it was assigned to the Kingdom of Prussia
Prussia
Prussia was a German kingdom and historic state originating out of the Duchy of Prussia and the Margraviate of Brandenburg. For centuries, the House of Hohenzollern ruled Prussia, successfully expanding its size by way of an unusually well-organized and effective army. Prussia shaped the history...

 at the Congress of Vienna
Congress of Vienna
The Congress of Vienna was a conference of ambassadors of European states chaired by Klemens Wenzel von Metternich, and held in Vienna from September, 1814 to June, 1815. The objective of the Congress was to settle the many issues arising from the French Revolutionary Wars, the Napoleonic Wars,...

. Since 1947, it has been part of the then newly founded state
States of Germany
Germany is made up of sixteen which are partly sovereign constituent states of the Federal Republic of Germany. Land literally translates as "country", and constitutionally speaking, they are constituent countries...

 of 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 ....

. Since administrative reform in Rhineland-Palatinate in 1969, the municipality has belonged to the Verbandsgemeinde of Thalfang am Erbeskopf
Thalfang am Erbeskopf
Thalfang am Erbeskopf is a Verbandsgemeinde in the district Bernkastel-Wittlich, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Its seat of administration is in Thalfang....

. In 1997, Heidenburg was awarded the title “Child- and Family-Friendly Municipality, National Winner” (Bundessieger Kinder- und Familienfreundliche Gemeinde).

Municipal council

The council is made up of 12 council members, who were elected by proportional representation
Proportional representation
Proportional representation is a concept in voting systems used to elect an assembly or council. PR means that the number of seats won by a party or group of candidates is proportionate to the number of votes received. For example, under a PR voting system if 30% of voters support a particular...

 at the municipal election held on 7 June 2009, and the honorary mayor as chairman.

The municipal election held on 7 June 2009 yielded the following results:
  SPD
Social Democratic Party of Germany
The Social Democratic Party of Germany is a social-democratic political party in Germany...

 
CDU  FWG
Free Voters
Free Voters is a German concept in which an association of persons participates in an election without having the status of a registered political party. Usually it is a locally organized group of voters in the form of a registered association . In most cases, Free Voters are active only at the...

 
Total
2009 7 3 2 12 seats
2004 5 4 3 12 seats
1999 6 4 2 12 seats

Coat of arms

The German blazon reads: Schild von eingebogener Spitze, darin ein goldener Pflug mit silberner Flugschar, gespalten, vorne in Silber ein rotes Balkenkreuz, hinten in Silber zwei grüne Heidekrautstengel mit roten Blüten.

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: Tierced in mantle, dexter argent a cross gules, sinister argent two heath sprigs vert conjoined in base and with flowers gules, in base vert a plough Or with ploughshare of the first.

The German blazon does not mention 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...

 in the base division, although it is shown as vert (green) at the Verbandsgemeinde website

The arms have been borne since 1988 when they were approved by the Regierungsbezirk
Regierungsbezirk
In Germany, a Government District, in German: Regierungsbezirk – is a subdivision of certain federal states .They are above the Kreise, Landkreise, and kreisfreie Städte...

administration.

Town partnerships

Heidenburg fosters partnerships with the following places: Villeblevin
Villeblevin
Villeblevin is a commune in the Yonne department in Burgundy in north-central France.The town achieved prominence in 1960 when it was the site of the car crash that killed Albert Camus....

, Yonne
Yonne
Yonne is a French department named after the Yonne River. It is one of the four constituent departments of Burgundy in eastern France and its prefecture is Auxerre. Its official number is 89....

, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...


Economy and infrastructure

Heidenburg is a rural residential community. There are small businesses serving local demands.

Further reading

Rolf Blasius: Heidenburg – Ortsgeschichte des Dorfes zwischen Mosel und Hunsrück. Chronik. Ortsgemeinde Heidenburg, 2003, ISBN 3-00-011386-X

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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