Hörnum
Encyclopedia
Hörnum is a municipality in the district of Nordfriesland
, in Schleswig-Holstein
, Germany
. It is located on the southern headland of the island of Sylt
. The municipality is part of the Amt Landschaft Sylt
.
s but also shifting dune
s, which would repeatedly bury houses, made a colonisation difficult. Only in the late 18th century, this effect could be stopped by planting vegetation on the dunes. "On Hörnum", as the entire southern peninsula of Sylt used to be called, there were at first only a few fishermen. A single house stood in the dunes at Budersand from 1765 to 1785. It served for storing flotsam, but was soon torn down by people from Amrum
and Rantum
. In 1787, only the foundations were left.
(HAPAG) pier and the island railway in the early 20th century, those being the meanwhile demolished "Island Station" (Inselbahnhof) and the former HAPAG building, which was later the "Hotel Bettina" and at last the "Hörnumer Fischerreuse". Long since, Hörnum had had a natural harbour east of Budersand, which remained largely unnoticed though. Only after a wooden wharf had been constructed, a regular ship line to Hamburg
via Cuxhaven took up operations on 29 June 1901. With this new pier of the seaside resort line Hörnum-Heligoland
-Hamburg being active, a small settlement was quickly developed on the Hörnum peninsula. Thus the importance as a port town was also rising and a railway connection to Westerland was established.
As the island was only in 1927 connected to the mainland by the construction of the Hindenburg causeway
, this local rail line was greatly popular. 91% of the tourists would use Hörnum as their port of call. Because a road to Westerland was missing though, a narrow-gauge railway was built, which was in use until 1970 and reached beyond Westerland to Germany's northernmost village, List. The track was later demolished and is now used as a bicycle road.
In 1906, the Hörnum water tower
was built; after the connection of Hörnum to the island's common water supply it became superfluous and was demolished in 1967.
In 1907, Hörnum got a 33.5 metres tall lighthouse, which was built with serial design. Other such constructions were erected on the island of Pellworm
and at Westerhever
. From 1918 to 1930, the lighthouse was also used as a school house, the lessons took place at an elevation of 30 meters. At the end of World War I
, Hörnum counted 21 inhabitants who were administrated by Rantum. In both World Wars, Hörnum was deemed a strategically important location which needed special defense.
(today in Denmark
), who used light signals to communicate. From the List "Elbow" peninsula in the north to Hörnum in the south, bunkers and shelters were dug into the dunes of Sylt and wired with telephone lines. Mostly elderly, local soldiers were tasked with searching the horizon for hostile troops, but the island did not witness any combat.
During World War II, troops were deployed to the village. The port was mainly used by the Kriegsmarine
and a small air field for minor planes was constructed. In 1935, the Luftwaffe
had built a naval air station and the "Hörnum Military Settlement (Militärische Siedlung Hörnum)" as a preparation for the war. The living quarters, planned by architect Ferdinand Keilmann, consisted of two parts: the so-called "Red Settlement", constructed in brick and the "White settlement," built from whitewashed brick. The war prevented the project from being finished and so the gaps in the colony, which was designed as a garden city
, are now filled with post-war buildings. The number of inhabitants in Hörnum exploded due to the opening of the naval air station and the adjacent quarters and rose above 1,000 when the troops brought their families to the island. Shortly after, electricity was available from a local power station and in 1941 Hörnum was connected to Westerland's water supply.
Hörnum's seaplane base was the location of the first bombs dropped on German soil during the Second World War, on the night of 19 March 1940 during a raid by No 61 Squadron RAF's Handley Page Hampden
s based at RAF Hemswell
in Lincolnshire
, England
.
In 1948, a wooden hut was erected with donations from Norway and consecrated as a church. It was named St. Martin. When St. Thomas' church was built in 1970, the St. Martin building shortly served
as a kindergarten and a storage for Strandkorb
beach chairs. Since 1974, this so-called Norwegian House is seat of the Wadden Sea Conservation Station
(Schutzstation Wattenmeer), an environmental protection society, and since 1989 also serves as a youth club. In 1985, the hut was named after the Hörnum teacher and environmentalist Kuno Ehlfeldt.
Also in 1948, Hörnum was connected to the island's road network. The original concrete slabs track consisted of a single lane and was broadened in 1969.
In 1960, the Kersiegsiedlung colony, known for its thatched roofs, was built in the dunes. The Catholic St. Joseph's church followed in 1962 and in 1969/1970 the Evangilical St. Thomas' church was built according to a design by Niebüll
based architect Martin-Bernhard Christiansen. The latter building constitutes Schleswig-Holstein's youngest historically preserved
church. It is built in the shape of a white sail. Another notability is the ex-voto
ship which hangs inside the church house - a scale model of the paddlesteamer "Cobra", a Hamburg America Line ship, which from 1901 on contributed greatly to the exploration and development of the Hörnum area.
In 1994, the Pidder Lüng Barracks, which had replaced the former naval station, were closed. After the demolition of all buildings on the site, a golf course with an adjacent five stars hotel was built there.
In 2002, the Hörnum harbour was slightly renovated. The Hörnum Yacht Club was created and a new ticket vending facility for Adler shippings was opened. Later, several neighbourhoods in Hörnum were also renovated.
In 1999, the old therapy centre was closed as it dd nt povide modern standards for cures any more and was in deficit. In its place, a hotel is being constructed by the Swiss Hapimag Group, which is due to open in 2009.
and SPD
each hold two and the FBGH association and the SSW
hold one seat since the municipal elections of 2008.
: Or, a lighthouse gules with a band argent, emitting rays of four-pointed mullets gules. A base azure, therein a conch horn or.
and the salt marsh
es and promotes the protection of the local landscape among tourists. Another attraction is the hiking around the Hörnum-Odde, the island's southernmost edge, which due to erosion is constantly shrinking. After the storm Erwin in winter 2005, the Hörnum-Odde had lost 20 metres of land alone. From this southern headland, a good view may be had on the neighbouring islands of Föhr
and Amrum.
.
Nordfriesland
Nordfriesland, English "Northern Friesland" or "North Frisia", is a district in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. It includes almost all of traditional North Frisia along with adjacent areas to the east and south and is bounded by the districts of Schleswig-Flensburg and Dithmarschen, the North Sea and...
, in Schleswig-Holstein
Schleswig-Holstein
Schleswig-Holstein is the northernmost of the sixteen states of Germany, comprising most of the historical duchy of Holstein and the southern part of the former Duchy of Schleswig...
, 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 is located on the southern headland of the island of Sylt
Sylt
Sylt is an island in northern Germany, part of Nordfriesland district, Schleswig-Holstein, and well known for the distinctive shape of its shoreline. It belongs to the North Frisian Islands and is the largest island in North Frisia...
. The municipality is part of the Amt Landschaft Sylt
Landschaft Sylt
Landschaft Sylt is an Amt in the district of Nordfriesland, in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. It covers the island of Sylt , in the North Sea, approx. 65 km northwest of Husum...
.
First settlements
Although fishermen had reportedly settled in the area prior to 1500 AD, the place is first recorded in 1649 as Hornum. The name "Hörnum" was already known to the chronicler Muchel-Madis (* 11 November 1572 in Morsum; † 21 January 1651), who in his chronicles reports a shipwrecking "1571... off Hörnum". In 1648, the area was named "Hörnum" on a map by cartographer Johannes Mejer (1606-1674). The southern tip of the island remained unsettled though for a long time, because not only storm surgeStorm surge
A storm surge is an offshore rise of water associated with a low pressure weather system, typically tropical cyclones and strong extratropical cyclones. Storm surges are caused primarily by high winds pushing on the ocean's surface. The wind causes the water to pile up higher than the ordinary sea...
s but also shifting dune
Dune
In physical geography, a dune is a hill of sand built by wind. Dunes occur in different forms and sizes, formed by interaction with the wind. Most kinds of dunes are longer on the windward side where the sand is pushed up the dune and have a shorter "slip face" in the lee of the wind...
s, which would repeatedly bury houses, made a colonisation difficult. Only in the late 18th century, this effect could be stopped by planting vegetation on the dunes. "On Hörnum", as the entire southern peninsula of Sylt used to be called, there were at first only a few fishermen. A single house stood in the dunes at Budersand from 1765 to 1785. It served for storing flotsam, but was soon torn down by people from Amrum
Amrum
Amrum is one of the North Frisian Islands on the German North Sea coast, south of Sylt and west of Föhr. It is part of the Nordfriesland district in the federal state of Schleswig-Holstein...
and Rantum
Rantum
Rantum is a village and a former municipality on the island of Sylt in the district of Nordfriesland, in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany...
. In 1787, only the foundations were left.
Post 1900
The first regular buildings were erected due to the construction of a Hamburg America LineHamburg America Line
The Hamburg Amerikanische Packetfahrt Actien Gesellschaft was a transatlantic shipping enterprise established in Hamburg, Germany during...
(HAPAG) pier and the island railway in the early 20th century, those being the meanwhile demolished "Island Station" (Inselbahnhof) and the former HAPAG building, which was later the "Hotel Bettina" and at last the "Hörnumer Fischerreuse". Long since, Hörnum had had a natural harbour east of Budersand, which remained largely unnoticed though. Only after a wooden wharf had been constructed, a regular ship line to Hamburg
Hamburg
-History:The first historic name for the city was, according to Claudius Ptolemy's reports, Treva.But the city takes its modern name, Hamburg, from the first permanent building on the site, a castle whose construction was ordered by the Emperor Charlemagne in AD 808...
via Cuxhaven took up operations on 29 June 1901. With this new pier of the seaside resort line Hörnum-Heligoland
Heligoland
Heligoland is a small German archipelago in the North Sea.Formerly Danish and British possessions, the islands are located in the Heligoland Bight in the south-eastern corner of the North Sea...
-Hamburg being active, a small settlement was quickly developed on the Hörnum peninsula. Thus the importance as a port town was also rising and a railway connection to Westerland was established.
As the island was only in 1927 connected to the mainland by the construction of the Hindenburg causeway
Hindenburgdamm
The Hindenburgdamm is an 11 km-long causeway joining the North Frisian island of Sylt to mainland Schleswig-Holstein. Its coordinates are . It was opened on 1 June 1927 and is exclusively a railway corridor...
, this local rail line was greatly popular. 91% of the tourists would use Hörnum as their port of call. Because a road to Westerland was missing though, a narrow-gauge railway was built, which was in use until 1970 and reached beyond Westerland to Germany's northernmost village, List. The track was later demolished and is now used as a bicycle road.
In 1906, the Hörnum water tower
Water tower
A water tower or elevated water tower is a large elevated drinking water storage container constructed to hold a water supply at a height sufficient to pressurize a water distribution system....
was built; after the connection of Hörnum to the island's common water supply it became superfluous and was demolished in 1967.
In 1907, Hörnum got a 33.5 metres tall lighthouse, which was built with serial design. Other such constructions were erected on the island of Pellworm
Pellworm
Pellworm is one of the North Frisian Islands on the North Sea coast of Germany. It is part of the Nordfriesland district in the federal state of Schleswig-Holstein. Its area is 37 km², and its population is roughly 1,200....
and at Westerhever
Westerhever
Westerhever is a municipality in Nordfriesland in the German state of Schleswig-Holstein.-Geography:Westerhever lies on the northwestern tip of the Eiderstedt Peninsula...
. From 1918 to 1930, the lighthouse was also used as a school house, the lessons took place at an elevation of 30 meters. At the end of World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, Hörnum counted 21 inhabitants who were administrated by Rantum. In both World Wars, Hörnum was deemed a strategically important location which needed special defense.
Military importance during the World Wars
The first barracks were built in 1914 for troops of the so-called "Island Guard". At the beginning of the Great War, island guards were stationed on Amrum, Sylt and RømøRømø
Rømø is a Danish island in the Wadden Sea. Rømø is part of Tønder municipality. The island has 650 inhabitants as of 1 January 2011 and covers an area of 129 km². Rømø is a popular tourist spot each year....
(today in Denmark
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
), who used light signals to communicate. From the List "Elbow" peninsula in the north to Hörnum in the south, bunkers and shelters were dug into the dunes of Sylt and wired with telephone lines. Mostly elderly, local soldiers were tasked with searching the horizon for hostile troops, but the island did not witness any combat.
During World War II, troops were deployed to the village. The port was mainly used by the Kriegsmarine
Kriegsmarine
The Kriegsmarine was the name of the German Navy during the Nazi regime . It superseded the Kaiserliche Marine of World War I and the post-war Reichsmarine. The Kriegsmarine was one of three official branches of the Wehrmacht, the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany.The Kriegsmarine grew rapidly...
and a small air field for minor planes was constructed. In 1935, the Luftwaffe
Luftwaffe
Luftwaffe is a generic German term for an air force. It is also the official name for two of the four historic German air forces, the Wehrmacht air arm founded in 1935 and disbanded in 1946; and the current Bundeswehr air arm founded in 1956....
had built a naval air station and the "Hörnum Military Settlement (Militärische Siedlung Hörnum)" as a preparation for the war. The living quarters, planned by architect Ferdinand Keilmann, consisted of two parts: the so-called "Red Settlement", constructed in brick and the "White settlement," built from whitewashed brick. The war prevented the project from being finished and so the gaps in the colony, which was designed as a garden city
Garden city movement
The garden city movement is a method of urban planning that was initiated in 1898 by Sir Ebenezer Howard in the United Kingdom. Garden cities were intended to be planned, self-contained communities surrounded by "greenbelts" , containing proportionate areas of residences, industry and...
, are now filled with post-war buildings. The number of inhabitants in Hörnum exploded due to the opening of the naval air station and the adjacent quarters and rose above 1,000 when the troops brought their families to the island. Shortly after, electricity was available from a local power station and in 1941 Hörnum was connected to Westerland's water supply.
Hörnum's seaplane base was the location of the first bombs dropped on German soil during the Second World War, on the night of 19 March 1940 during a raid by No 61 Squadron RAF's Handley Page Hampden
Handley Page Hampden
The Handley Page HP.52 Hampden was a British twin-engine medium bomber of the Royal Air Force serving in the Second World War. With the Whitley and Wellington, the Hampden bore the brunt of the early bombing war over Europe, taking part in the first night raid on Berlin and the first 1,000-plane...
s based at RAF Hemswell
RAF Hemswell
RAF Hemswell was an airfield used by RAF Bomber Command for 20 years between 1937 and 1957 and saw most of its operational life during World War II. Later used by RAF Fighter Command as a nuclear ballistic missile base during the Cold War it closed to military use in 1967...
in Lincolnshire
Lincolnshire
Lincolnshire is a county in the east of England. It borders Norfolk to the south east, Cambridgeshire to the south, Rutland to the south west, Leicestershire and Nottinghamshire to the west, South Yorkshire to the north west, and the East Riding of Yorkshire to the north. It also borders...
, 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...
.
Post war era
In 1947, Hörnum split from the neighbouring municipality of Rantum and became independent. Only two years later, the village was awarded the title Nordseebad (North Sea resort). An influx of tourists and "New Hörnumers" set in. In 1947, the village briefly provided shelter for more than 2000 refugees from Germany's former eastern territories and also 40 families from Heligoland dwelt there after the evacuation of their island.In 1948, a wooden hut was erected with donations from Norway and consecrated as a church. It was named St. Martin. When St. Thomas' church was built in 1970, the St. Martin building shortly served
as a kindergarten and a storage for Strandkorb
Strandkorb
A strandkorb is a special chair designed to provide comfort and protection from sun, wind, rain, and sand on beaches frequented by tourists....
beach chairs. Since 1974, this so-called Norwegian House is seat of the Wadden Sea Conservation Station
Wadden Sea Conservation Station
The Wadden Sea Conservation Station is a non-profit, NGO in North Germany. The organisation was founded in 1962 and, since then, has been one of the official NGO partners of the Wadden Sea National Parks...
(Schutzstation Wattenmeer), an environmental protection society, and since 1989 also serves as a youth club. In 1985, the hut was named after the Hörnum teacher and environmentalist Kuno Ehlfeldt.
Also in 1948, Hörnum was connected to the island's road network. The original concrete slabs track consisted of a single lane and was broadened in 1969.
In 1960, the Kersiegsiedlung colony, known for its thatched roofs, was built in the dunes. The Catholic St. Joseph's church followed in 1962 and in 1969/1970 the Evangilical St. Thomas' church was built according to a design by Niebüll
Niebüll
Niebüll is a town in the district of Nordfriesland, in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. It is situated near the North Sea coast and the border with Denmark, approx. 35 km northwest of Husum.-International relations:...
based architect Martin-Bernhard Christiansen. The latter building constitutes Schleswig-Holstein's youngest historically preserved
Historic preservation
Historic preservation is an endeavor that seeks to preserve, conserve and protect buildings, objects, landscapes or other artifacts of historical significance...
church. It is built in the shape of a white sail. Another notability is the ex-voto
Ex-voto
An ex-voto is a votive offering to a saint or divinity. It is given in fulfillment of a vow or in gratitude or devotion...
ship which hangs inside the church house - a scale model of the paddlesteamer "Cobra", a Hamburg America Line ship, which from 1901 on contributed greatly to the exploration and development of the Hörnum area.
Touristical development since the 1970s
In the mid-1970s a spa and therapy centre was built and opened in 1977.In 1994, the Pidder Lüng Barracks, which had replaced the former naval station, were closed. After the demolition of all buildings on the site, a golf course with an adjacent five stars hotel was built there.
In 2002, the Hörnum harbour was slightly renovated. The Hörnum Yacht Club was created and a new ticket vending facility for Adler shippings was opened. Later, several neighbourhoods in Hörnum were also renovated.
In 1999, the old therapy centre was closed as it dd nt povide modern standards for cures any more and was in deficit. In its place, a hotel is being constructed by the Swiss Hapimag Group, which is due to open in 2009.
Politics
Of the twelve seats in the municipality council, the AWGH association holds six seats, 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...
and SPD
Social Democratic Party of Germany
The Social Democratic Party of Germany is a social-democratic political party in Germany...
each hold two and the FBGH association and the SSW
South Schleswig Voter Federation
The South Schleswig Voter Federation is a regional political party in Schleswig-Holstein in northern Germany...
hold one seat since the municipal elections of 2008.
Arms
BlazonBlazon
In heraldry and heraldic vexillology, a blazon is a formal description of a coat of arms, flag or similar emblem, from which the reader can reconstruct the appropriate image...
: Or, a lighthouse gules with a band argent, emitting rays of four-pointed mullets gules. A base azure, therein a conch horn or.
Tourism and sights
Hörnum's original economic dependence on fishery and also whaling has been relieved by tourism as the main means of income. The beaches east and west of the village, the port and the dunes provide the village's assetts. A popular route for mudflat hiking leads along the eastern shore to Rantum. The Schutzstation Wattenmeer offers information on the Wadden SeaWadden Sea
The Wadden Sea is an intertidal zone in the southeastern part of the North Sea. It lies between the coast of northwestern continental Europe and the range of Frisian Islands, forming a shallow body of water with tidal flats and wetlands. It is rich in biological diversity...
and the salt marsh
Salt marsh
A salt marsh is an environment in the upper coastal intertidal zone between land and salt water or brackish water, it is dominated by dense stands of halophytic plants such as herbs, grasses, or low shrubs. These plants are terrestrial in origin and are essential to the stability of the salt marsh...
es and promotes the protection of the local landscape among tourists. Another attraction is the hiking around the Hörnum-Odde, the island's southernmost edge, which due to erosion is constantly shrinking. After the storm Erwin in winter 2005, the Hörnum-Odde had lost 20 metres of land alone. From this southern headland, a good view may be had on the neighbouring islands of Föhr
Föhr
Föhr is one of the North Frisian Islands on the German coast of the North Sea. It is part of the Nordfriesland district in the federal state of Schleswig-Holstein. Föhr is the second-largest North Sea island of Germany....
and Amrum.
Tales
The chronicles of Hörnum provide ample space for fairy tales. Repeatedly, witches are mentioned who use to dance in the dunes, but also the souls of shipwrecked sailors who had been slain by pirates and robbers and most of all the so-called Dikjendälmann, a sort of goblinGoblin
A goblin is a legendary evil or mischievous illiterate creature, a grotesquely evil or evil-like phantom.They are attributed with various abilities, temperaments and appearances depending on the story and country of origin. In some cases, goblins have been classified as constantly annoying little...
.