Klingenberg am Main
Encyclopedia
Klingenberg am Main is a town in the Miltenberg district
in the Regierungsbezirk
of Lower Franconia
(Unterfranken) in Bavaria
, Germany
.
on the Lower Main, and is made up of the old centre of Klingenberg and the two centres of Trennfurt and Röllfeld that were amalgamated with the town in 1976. Lying on the Main’s right bank at the foot of the Spessart
(range) are Klingenberg and Röllfeld, whereas Trennfurt is over on the left bank at the foot of the Odenwald
(range).
Noteworthy are the two vineyards above the main town of Klingenberg with their terrace-shaped slopes, the Hohberg (towards Erlenbach) and the Schlossberg (towards Großheubach), at which, among others, the well known Klingenberg red wine is grown (mainly Pinot noir
and Blauer Portugieser
).
Klingenberg lies 12 km away from the district seat of Miltenberg
, 28 km from the greater centre
of Aschaffenburg
and 67 km from Frankfurt, and is – like the whole Bavarian Lower Main (Bayerischer Untermain) – part of the Frankfurt Rhine Main Region.
(on the same side of the Main as Klingenberg) and Wörth
(on the Trennfurt side), in the east on the Spessart communities of Mönchberg
and Röllbach
, in the south on the market community of Großheubach
(on the same side of the Main as Klingenberg) and the community of Laudenbach
(on the Trennfurt side) and in the west on the Hessian Odenwald community of Lützelbach
, which can, however, only be reached through Wörth.
worship stone, an early mediaeval
ringwall and the Grubinger Kirchhof (churchyard) on the road to Großheubach, likely going back to Alamanni
c times, are the oldest witnesses to Klingenberg’s history. In the 2nd century, the Romans built the border fortifications of the Limes Germanicus
through Germany, which ran along the Trennfurt side of the Main. The palisades were strengthened in Trennfurt with a castrum
.
In 1100, a nobleman named Heinrich named himself after the old Clingenburg (castle). He belonged to the noble family of Reginbodo. The Staufen Clingenburg was built in 1177 by Conradus Colbo, who belonged as an Imperial
cup-bearer
to Barbarossa’s
tight circle of confidants. About 1250, the Bickenbach noble family moved into the castle; the Bickenbachs later held many influential offices in the Holy Roman Empire
and many a time turned up in Imperial politics as brokers. In Bickenbach times, the town of Klingenberg beneath the castle had its first documentary mention, namely in 1276.
After the Bickenbachs died out in 1500, the town, castle and lordly domain passed to Electoral Mainz
, which spread across most of the areas in the Bavarian Lower Main – today’s greater centre
of Aschaffenburg
was already by the 10th century a Mainz holding and the Elector’s second seat. In 1552, Klingenberg’s old town, like many other towns, was almost utterly destroyed by the Albert Alcibiades, Margrave of Brandenburg-Kulmbach
in the Second Margrave War
. In the years that followed there was reconstruction.
After the dissolution of the Archbishopric of Mainz
in the course of the 1803 Reichsdeputationshauptschluss, Klingenberg at first belonged to Prince Primate
von Dalberg’s
newly formed Principality of Aschaffenburg
, which was swallowed in 1810 by the Grand Duchy of Frankfurt
along with its capital, Aschaffenburg. After the 1814 Congress of Vienna
, Klingenberg, along with the whole Aschaffenburg-Miltenberg region and the Grand Duchy of Würzburg
(the successor state to the old Prince-Bishopric of Würzburg) passed to the Kingdom of Bavaria
.
In the 19th and early 20th century, the clay mine (first mentioned in 1567) brought the town great wealth. The citizens were therefore exempt from taxes in the late 19th century and indeed were paid Bürgergeld (literally “citizens’ money”), a dividend from the town’s earnings. Furthermore, among other things, a lookout tower, a bridge across the Main, a school, a new town hall and many elegant middle-class houses (Bürgerhäuser), such as those on Wilhelmstraße and Ludwigstraße. Also, Klingenberg was one of the first municipalities in the region to get an underground electrical supply network with its own power station in 1897. The population figure rose sharply.
In 1945, late in the Second World War, there was fighting in Klingenberg between German troops
and advancing Americans
. The Germans eventually withdrew, but not before blowing up the Main bridge between Klingenberg and Trennfurt, which could only be replaced in 1950. The town’s historic building structure was hardly affected by the fighting.
In the framework of municipal reform, Klingenberg was united in 1976 with Trennfurt and Röllfeld to form the new greater town of Klingenberg.
(as at municipal election held on 2 March 2008)
The mayor is Reinhard Simon (Freie Wähler).
, Gironde
, France
since 1980
Saint-Laurent-d'Arce is a fellow winegrowing centre, near Bordeaux
.
might be described thus: Argent a wheel spoked of six gules, in base a mount of three vert.
Klingenberg’s coat of arms comes from the 16th century and shows the Wheel of Mainz
. The “mount of three” (or Dreiberg, as this device is called in German heraldry
) stands for the Schlossberg and Hohberg mountains.
The arms have been borne since the 16th century.
Clingenburg (castle). From 1177, the Lords of Clingenburg had their seat here, and later so did the Bickenbach family as of 1250. The Electoral Mainz
bailiffs (Amtmänner) resided at the castle until the mid 16th century. Thereafter, the castle fell into disrepair; the ruins were acquired by the town in 1871. In the 20th century it was opened up to tourism with a restaurant and a lookout platform affording visitors a good view over the old town and the Main valley. Since 1994, the renowned Clingenburg-Festspiele (“festive plays”) have been taking place, drawing many visitors each year with changing plays and musicals.
Klingenberg has at its disposal a picturesque and historical Old Town with many timber-frame
buildings from the 16th century, in particular what could well be the loveliest timber-frame house in Klingenberg, the Old Town Hall (Altes Rathaus) from 1561 (today a tourist information centre). Likewise in the Old Town stands the Stadtschloss (“Town Palace”), a Renaissance
building from 1560 wherein lived Mainz bailiffs of the Kottwitz von Aulenbach family and, beginning in 1693, the von Mairhofen family. The Old Town was once ringed by a town wall with three towers, most of which fell victim to the town’s development at the beginning of the 20th century. Today, the parts of the wall between the castle and the Old Town and at the palace estate are preserved. Also still standing is the southernmost of the three towers, the Brunntorturm (13th and 16th century) with a characteristic onion dome.
In 1903, in the forest on the Hohberg (mountain), a lookout tower was built in mediaeval style, which today is visited by many hikers and tourists.
at which several winemakers regularly take it in turns to serve their wares. In Klingenberg vineyards, it is mostly red wine that is grown, with Pinot noir
and Blauer Portugieser
as the dominant varieties. With white wine, Müller-Thurgau
is the commonest variety.
Since 1950, a wine festival, the Klingenberger Winzerfest, has been held each year in August. It is one of the biggest such festivals in the region. Klingenberg lies on the Fränkischer Rotwein Wanderweg (“Franconian Red Wine Hiking Trail”).
in Röllfeld and Mary Magdalene
in Trennfurt belong to the deaconry of Obernburg within the Diocese of Würzburg.
The oldest of the three churches is the Kirche St. Pankratius (“Saint Pancras’s”) in the main town of Klingenberg, which stands prominently above the Old Town. The Gothic
quire and the sacristy
come from the 15th century. The churchtower and the nave were built in 1617. Its current layout and the Gothic Revival
appointments the church was given in the late 19th century. Both the churches in Röllfeld and Trennfurt come from Baroque
times (17th to 18th century). The one in Trennfurt underwent some new building work after a fire in 1975 started by a lightning strike.
In 1976 Klingenberg earned worldwide notice for the case of a young woman named Anneliese Michel
, whom the Church believed to be possessed by demons
. After an exorcism
lasting several months, she died.
manufacturer Hemmelrath in Röllfeld. Besides industry, tourism is an important field. Klingenberg clay, which among other things is needed in the pencil industry as a graphite
additive, is still quarried
today as it has been since days of yore, albeit not in such great quantities as it was then. The town lies on the Route der Industriekultur Rhein-Main (“Rhine-Main Route of Industrial Culture”).
469, a four-lane highway running through Klingenberg, affords the town a link with Aschaffenburg and the Autobahnen A 3 (Frankfurt
-Würzburg
), A 45
(Dortmund
-Aschaffenburg
) and A 66
(Hanau
-Fulda
). The section running in the opposite direction to Miltenberg
, however, has only two lanes (2008), although a three-lane expansion of the heavily travelled road has been considered.
Klingenberg has at its disposal a railway station in the outlying centre of Trennfurt served by the Main Valley Railway
(Aschaffenburg-Miltenberg-Wertheim).
Miltenberg (district)
Miltenberg is an administrative district in Bavaria, Germany. It is bounded by the city of Aschaffenburg, the districts of Aschaffenburg and Main-Spessart, and the states of Baden-Württemberg and Hesse .-History:During the Middle Ages there was continuous...
in 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...
of Lower Franconia
Lower Franconia
Lower Franconia is one of the three administrative regions of Franconia in Bavaria , Germany ....
(Unterfranken) in Bavaria
Bavaria
Bavaria, formally the Free State of Bavaria is a state of Germany, located in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the largest state by area, forming almost 20% of the total land area of Germany...
, 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 town lies right on the boundary with HesseHesse
Hesse or Hessia is both a cultural region of Germany and the name of an individual German state.* The cultural region of Hesse includes both the State of Hesse and the area known as Rhenish Hesse in the neighbouring Rhineland-Palatinate state...
on the Lower Main, and is made up of the old centre of Klingenberg and the two centres of Trennfurt and Röllfeld that were amalgamated with the town in 1976. Lying on the Main’s right bank at the foot of the Spessart
Spessart
The Spessart is a low mountain range in northwestern Bavaria and southern Hesse, Germany. It is bordered on three sides by the Main River. The two most important towns located at the foot of the Spessart are Aschaffenburg and Würzburg....
(range) are Klingenberg and Röllfeld, whereas Trennfurt is over on the left bank at the foot of the Odenwald
Odenwald
The Odenwald is a low mountain range in Hesse, Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg in Germany.- Location :The Odenwald lies between the Upper Rhine Rift Valley with the Bergstraße and the Hessisches Ried in the west, the Main and the Bauland in the east, the Hanau-Seligenstadt Basin – a subbasin of...
(range).
Noteworthy are the two vineyards above the main town of Klingenberg with their terrace-shaped slopes, the Hohberg (towards Erlenbach) and the Schlossberg (towards Großheubach), at which, among others, the well known Klingenberg red wine is grown (mainly Pinot noir
Pinot Noir
Pinot noir is a black wine grape variety of the species Vitis vinifera. The name may also refer to wines created predominantly from Pinot noir grapes...
and Blauer Portugieser
Blauer Portugieser
Blauer Portugieser is a red Austrian and German wine grape found primarily in the Rheinhessen, Pfalz and wine regions of Lower Austria. It is also one of the permitted grapes in the Hungarian wine Egri Bikavér . In Germany, the cultivated area covered or 4.5% of the total vineyard area in 2007...
).
Klingenberg lies 12 km away from the district seat of Miltenberg
Miltenberg
Miltenberg is the seat of the like-named district in the Regierungsbezirk of Lower Franconia in Bavaria, Germany.- Location :...
, 28 km from the greater centre
Central Place Theory
Central place theory is a geographical theory that seeks to explain the number, size and location of human settlements in an urban system. The theory was created by the German geographer Walter Christaller, who asserted that settlements simply functioned as 'central places' providing services to...
of Aschaffenburg
Aschaffenburg
Aschaffenburg is a city in northwest Bavaria, Germany. The town of Aschaffenburg is not considered part of the district of Aschaffenburg, but is the administrative seat.Aschaffenburg is known as the Tor zum Spessart or "gate to the Spessart"...
and 67 km from Frankfurt, and is – like the whole Bavarian Lower Main (Bayerischer Untermain) – part of the Frankfurt Rhine Main Region.
Neighbouring communities
Klingenberg borders in the north on the towns of ErlenbachErlenbach am Main
Erlenbach am Main is the biggest town in the Miltenberg district in the Regierungsbezirk of Lower Franconia in Bavaria, Germany. It harbours one of the Miltenberg district’s two hospitals, and is well known for its good wine...
(on the same side of the Main as Klingenberg) and Wörth
Wörth am Main
Wörth am Main is a town in the Miltenberg district in the Regierungsbezirk of Lower Franconia in Bavaria, Germany.- Location :...
(on the Trennfurt side), in the east on the Spessart communities of Mönchberg
Mönchberg
Mönchberg is a market community in the Miltenberg district in the Regierungsbezirk of Lower Franconia in Bavaria, Germany, the of the Verwaltungsgemeinschaft of Mönchberg and a state-recognized open-air resort .- Location :Mönchberg lies in the Bavarian part of the Spessart , 13 km from the...
and Röllbach
Röllbach
Röllbach is a municipality in the Miltenberg district in the Regierungsbezirk of Lower Franconia in Bavaria, Germany and a member of the Verwaltungsgemeinschaft of Mönchberg.- Location :...
, in the south on the market community of Großheubach
Großheubach
Großheubach is a market community in the Miltenberg district in the Regierungsbezirk of Lower Franconia in Bavaria, Germany.- Location :...
(on the same side of the Main as Klingenberg) and the community of Laudenbach
Laudenbach, Bavaria
Laudenbach is a community in the Miltenberg district in the Regierungsbezirk of Lower Franconia in Bavaria, Germany and a member of the Verwaltungsgemeinschaft of Kleinheubach.- Location :...
(on the Trennfurt side) and in the west on the Hessian Odenwald community of Lützelbach
Lützelbach
-Location:The community lies in the northern Odenwald on the Hesse-Bavaria boundary in a richly wooded setting.-Neighbouring communities:Lützelbach borders in the north on the town of Breuberg and the town of Obernburg, in the east on the towns of Wörth am Main and Klingenberg , in the south on the...
, which can, however, only be reached through Wörth.
History
A RomanAncient Rome
Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....
worship stone, an early mediaeval
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...
ringwall and the Grubinger Kirchhof (churchyard) on the road to Großheubach, likely going back to Alamanni
Alamanni
The Alamanni, Allemanni, or Alemanni were originally an alliance of Germanic tribes located around the upper Rhine river . One of the earliest references to them is the cognomen Alamannicus assumed by Roman Emperor Caracalla, who ruled the Roman Empire from 211 to 217 and claimed thereby to be...
c times, are the oldest witnesses to Klingenberg’s history. In the 2nd century, the Romans built the border fortifications of the Limes Germanicus
Limes Germanicus
The Limes Germanicus was a line of frontier fortifications that bounded the ancient Roman provinces of Germania Inferior, Germania Superior and Raetia, dividing the Roman Empire and the unsubdued Germanic tribes from the years 83 to about 260 AD...
through Germany, which ran along the Trennfurt side of the Main. The palisades were strengthened in Trennfurt with a castrum
Castra
The Latin word castra, with its singular castrum, was used by the ancient Romans to mean buildings or plots of land reserved to or constructed for use as a military defensive position. The word appears in both Oscan and Umbrian as well as in Latin. It may have descended from Indo-European to Italic...
.
In 1100, a nobleman named Heinrich named himself after the old Clingenburg (castle). He belonged to the noble family of Reginbodo. The Staufen Clingenburg was built in 1177 by Conradus Colbo, who belonged as an Imperial
Holy Roman Empire
The Holy Roman Empire was a realm that existed from 962 to 1806 in Central Europe.It was ruled by the Holy Roman Emperor. Its character changed during the Middle Ages and the Early Modern period, when the power of the emperor gradually weakened in favour of the princes...
cup-bearer
Cup-bearer
A cup-bearer was an officer of high rank in royal courts, whose duty it was to serve the drinks at the royal table. On account of the constant fear of plots and intrigues, a person must be regarded as thoroughly trustworthy to hold this position. He must guard against poison in the king's cup, and...
to Barbarossa’s
Frederick I, Holy Roman Emperor
Frederick I Barbarossa was a German Holy Roman Emperor. He was elected King of Germany at Frankfurt on 4 March 1152 and crowned in Aachen on 9 March, crowned King of Italy in Pavia in 1155, and finally crowned Roman Emperor by Pope Adrian IV, on 18 June 1155, and two years later in 1157 the term...
tight circle of confidants. About 1250, the Bickenbach noble family moved into the castle; the Bickenbachs later held many influential offices in the Holy Roman Empire
Holy Roman Empire
The Holy Roman Empire was a realm that existed from 962 to 1806 in Central Europe.It was ruled by the Holy Roman Emperor. Its character changed during the Middle Ages and the Early Modern period, when the power of the emperor gradually weakened in favour of the princes...
and many a time turned up in Imperial politics as brokers. In Bickenbach times, the town of Klingenberg beneath the castle had its first documentary mention, namely in 1276.
After the Bickenbachs died out in 1500, the town, castle and lordly domain passed to Electoral Mainz
Archbishopric of Mainz
The Archbishopric of Mainz or Electorate of Mainz was an influential ecclesiastic and secular prince-bishopric in the Holy Roman Empire between 780–82 and 1802. In the Roman Catholic Church hierarchy, the Archbishop of Mainz was the primas Germaniae, the substitute of the Pope north of the Alps...
, which spread across most of the areas in the Bavarian Lower Main – today’s greater centre
Central Place Theory
Central place theory is a geographical theory that seeks to explain the number, size and location of human settlements in an urban system. The theory was created by the German geographer Walter Christaller, who asserted that settlements simply functioned as 'central places' providing services to...
of Aschaffenburg
Aschaffenburg
Aschaffenburg is a city in northwest Bavaria, Germany. The town of Aschaffenburg is not considered part of the district of Aschaffenburg, but is the administrative seat.Aschaffenburg is known as the Tor zum Spessart or "gate to the Spessart"...
was already by the 10th century a Mainz holding and the Elector’s second seat. In 1552, Klingenberg’s old town, like many other towns, was almost utterly destroyed by the Albert Alcibiades, Margrave of Brandenburg-Kulmbach
Albert Alcibiades, Margrave of Brandenburg-Kulmbach
Albert Alcibiades was a Margrave of Brandenburg-Kulmbach, also known as Brandenburg-Bayreuth.Because of his bellicose nature Albert received the cognomen Alcibiades after his death; during his lifetime Albert was known as Bellator .He was a member of the Franconian branch of the House of...
in the Second Margrave War
Second Margrave War
The Second Margrave War was a conflict in the Holy Roman Empire between 1552 and 1555. Instigated by Albert Alcibiades, Margrave of Brandenburg-Kulmbach and Brandenburg-Bayreuth, it involved numerous raids, plunderings and the destruction of many towns and castles in the empire, especially in...
. In the years that followed there was reconstruction.
After the dissolution of the Archbishopric of Mainz
Archbishopric of Mainz
The Archbishopric of Mainz or Electorate of Mainz was an influential ecclesiastic and secular prince-bishopric in the Holy Roman Empire between 780–82 and 1802. In the Roman Catholic Church hierarchy, the Archbishop of Mainz was the primas Germaniae, the substitute of the Pope north of the Alps...
in the course of the 1803 Reichsdeputationshauptschluss, Klingenberg at first belonged to Prince Primate
Prince primate
Prince-Primate is a rare princely title held by individual archbishops of specific sees in a presiding capacity in an august assembly of mainly secular princes, notably the following:-Germany - Confederation of the Rhine:The Rheinbund or 'Confederation of the Rhine' was founded in 1806, when several...
von Dalberg’s
Karl Theodor Anton Maria von Dalberg
Karl Theodor Anton Maria von Dalberg was Archbishop-Elector of Mainz, Arch-Chancellor of the Holy Roman Empire, Prince of Regensburg, primate of the Confederation of the Rhine and Grand-Duke of Frankfurt.-Biography:...
newly formed Principality of Aschaffenburg
Principality of Aschaffenburg
The Principality of Aschaffenburg was a principality of the Holy Roman Empire and the Confederation of the Rhine from 1803–10. Its capital was Aschaffenburg....
, which was swallowed in 1810 by the Grand Duchy of Frankfurt
Grand Duchy of Frankfurt
The Grand Duchy of Frankfurt was a German satellite state of Napoleonic creation. It came into existence in 1810 through the combination of the former territories of the Archbishops of Mainz along with the Free Imperial City of Frankfurt itself....
along with its capital, Aschaffenburg. After the 1814 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,...
, Klingenberg, along with the whole Aschaffenburg-Miltenberg region and the Grand Duchy of Würzburg
Grand Duchy of Würzburg
The Grand Duchy of Würzburg was a German grand duchy centered on Würzburg existing in the early 19th century.As a consequence of the 1801 Treaty of Lunéville, the Bishopric of Würzburg was secularized in 1803 and granted to Bavaria. In the same year Ferdinand III, former Grand Duke of Tuscany, was...
(the successor state to the old Prince-Bishopric of Würzburg) passed to the Kingdom of Bavaria
Kingdom of Bavaria
The Kingdom of Bavaria was a German state that existed from 1806 to 1918. The Bavarian Elector Maximilian IV Joseph of the House of Wittelsbach became the first King of Bavaria in 1806 as Maximilian I Joseph. The monarchy would remain held by the Wittelsbachs until the kingdom's dissolution in 1918...
.
In the 19th and early 20th century, the clay mine (first mentioned in 1567) brought the town great wealth. The citizens were therefore exempt from taxes in the late 19th century and indeed were paid Bürgergeld (literally “citizens’ money”), a dividend from the town’s earnings. Furthermore, among other things, a lookout tower, a bridge across the Main, a school, a new town hall and many elegant middle-class houses (Bürgerhäuser), such as those on Wilhelmstraße and Ludwigstraße. Also, Klingenberg was one of the first municipalities in the region to get an underground electrical supply network with its own power station in 1897. The population figure rose sharply.
In 1945, late in the Second World War, there was fighting in Klingenberg between German troops
Wehrmacht
The Wehrmacht – from , to defend and , the might/power) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the Heer , the Kriegsmarine and the Luftwaffe .-Origin and use of the term:...
and advancing Americans
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
. The Germans eventually withdrew, but not before blowing up the Main bridge between Klingenberg and Trennfurt, which could only be replaced in 1950. The town’s historic building structure was hardly affected by the fighting.
In the framework of municipal reform, Klingenberg was united in 1976 with Trennfurt and Röllfeld to form the new greater town of Klingenberg.
Town council and mayor
The council is made up of 20 council members, not counting the mayor, with seats apportioned thus:- CSUChristian Social Union of BavariaThe Christian Social Union in Bavaria is a Christian democratic and conservative political party in Germany. It operates only in the state of Bavaria, while its sister party, the Christian Democratic Union , operates in the other 15 states of Germany...
7 seats - SPDSocial Democratic Party of GermanyThe Social Democratic Party of Germany is a social-democratic political party in Germany...
3 seats - Grüne 3 seats
- Freie Wähler Klingenberg-Röllfeld 4 seats
- Freie Wähler Trennfurt 3 seats
(as at municipal election held on 2 March 2008)
The mayor is Reinhard Simon (Freie Wähler).
Town partnerships
Saint-Laurent-d'ArceSaint-Laurent-d'Arce
Saint-Laurent-d'Arce is a commune in the Gironde department in Aquitaine in southwestern France.-Population:-References:*...
, Gironde
Gironde
For the Revolutionary party, see Girondists.Gironde is a common name for the Gironde estuary, where the mouths of the Garonne and Dordogne rivers merge, and for a department in the Aquitaine region situated in southwest France.-History:...
, 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...
since 1980
Saint-Laurent-d'Arce is a fellow winegrowing centre, near Bordeaux
Bordeaux
Bordeaux is a port city on the Garonne River in the Gironde department in southwestern France.The Bordeaux-Arcachon-Libourne metropolitan area, has a population of 1,010,000 and constitutes the sixth-largest urban area in France. It is the capital of the Aquitaine region, as well as the prefecture...
.
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...
might be described thus: Argent a wheel spoked of six gules, in base a mount of three vert.
Klingenberg’s coat of arms comes from the 16th century and shows the Wheel of Mainz
Wheel of Mainz
thumb|150px|version until 1992thumb|150px|version from 1992 - 2008thumb|150px|version from 2008The Wheel of Mainz or Mainzer Rad, in German, was the coat of arms of the Archbishopric of Mainz and thus also of the Electorate of Mainz , in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It consists of a silver wheel...
. The “mount of three” (or Dreiberg, as this device is called in German 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"...
) stands for the Schlossberg and Hohberg mountains.
The arms have been borne since the 16th century.
Buildings
Above Klingenberg’s old town and the vineyards stands the mediaevalMiddle 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...
Clingenburg (castle). From 1177, the Lords of Clingenburg had their seat here, and later so did the Bickenbach family as of 1250. The Electoral Mainz
Archbishopric of Mainz
The Archbishopric of Mainz or Electorate of Mainz was an influential ecclesiastic and secular prince-bishopric in the Holy Roman Empire between 780–82 and 1802. In the Roman Catholic Church hierarchy, the Archbishop of Mainz was the primas Germaniae, the substitute of the Pope north of the Alps...
bailiffs (Amtmänner) resided at the castle until the mid 16th century. Thereafter, the castle fell into disrepair; the ruins were acquired by the town in 1871. In the 20th century it was opened up to tourism with a restaurant and a lookout platform affording visitors a good view over the old town and the Main valley. Since 1994, the renowned Clingenburg-Festspiele (“festive plays”) have been taking place, drawing many visitors each year with changing plays and musicals.
Klingenberg has at its disposal a picturesque and historical Old Town with many timber-frame
Timber framing
Timber 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...
buildings from the 16th century, in particular what could well be the loveliest timber-frame house in Klingenberg, the Old Town Hall (Altes Rathaus) from 1561 (today a tourist information centre). Likewise in the Old Town stands the Stadtschloss (“Town Palace”), a Renaissance
Renaissance
The Renaissance was a cultural movement that spanned roughly the 14th to the 17th century, beginning in Italy in the Late Middle Ages and later spreading to the rest of Europe. The term is also used more loosely to refer to the historical era, but since the changes of the Renaissance were not...
building from 1560 wherein lived Mainz bailiffs of the Kottwitz von Aulenbach family and, beginning in 1693, the von Mairhofen family. The Old Town was once ringed by a town wall with three towers, most of which fell victim to the town’s development at the beginning of the 20th century. Today, the parts of the wall between the castle and the Old Town and at the palace estate are preserved. Also still standing is the southernmost of the three towers, the Brunntorturm (13th and 16th century) with a characteristic onion dome.
In 1903, in the forest on the Hohberg (mountain), a lookout tower was built in mediaeval style, which today is visited by many hikers and tourists.
Winegrowing
Klingenberg has at its disposal roughly 30 ha of winegrowing lands under commercial cultivation, whose ancient terraces make up part of the town’s appearance. All together there are three vineyards, the Schlossberg (25 ha) and the Erlenbacher Hohberg (2 ha) on the same side of the Main as Klingenberg, and the Einsiedel (2 ha) in the outlying centre of Trennfurt. In the three Stadtteile there are all together 13 winemakers, among which is the municipal wine estate. Almost anytime there are traditional HäckerwirtschaftenStrausse
A Strausse or Strausswirtschaft is a type of wine tavern in winegrowing areas of German-speaking countries that is only open during certain times of the year. Typically it is a pub run by winegrowers and winemakers themselves, in which they sell their own wine directly to the public...
at which several winemakers regularly take it in turns to serve their wares. In Klingenberg vineyards, it is mostly red wine that is grown, with Pinot noir
Pinot Noir
Pinot noir is a black wine grape variety of the species Vitis vinifera. The name may also refer to wines created predominantly from Pinot noir grapes...
and Blauer Portugieser
Blauer Portugieser
Blauer Portugieser is a red Austrian and German wine grape found primarily in the Rheinhessen, Pfalz and wine regions of Lower Austria. It is also one of the permitted grapes in the Hungarian wine Egri Bikavér . In Germany, the cultivated area covered or 4.5% of the total vineyard area in 2007...
as the dominant varieties. With white wine, Müller-Thurgau
Müller-Thurgau
Müller-Thurgau is a variety of white grape which was created by Hermann Müller from the Swiss Canton of Thurgau in 1882. It is a crossing of Riesling with Madeleine Royale. It is used to make white wine in Germany, Austria, Northern Italy, Hungary, England, in Australia, Czech Republic, Slovakia,...
is the commonest variety.
Since 1950, a wine festival, the Klingenberger Winzerfest, has been held each year in August. It is one of the biggest such festivals in the region. Klingenberg lies on the Fränkischer Rotwein Wanderweg (“Franconian Red Wine Hiking Trail”).
Religion
The town of Klingenberg has a Catholic majority. The three parishes of Saint Pancras in Klingenberg, the Assumption of MaryAssumption of Mary
According to the belief of Christians of the Roman Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy, and parts of the Anglican Communion and Continuing Anglicanism, the Assumption of Mary was the bodily taking up of the Virgin Mary into Heaven at the end of her life...
in Röllfeld and Mary Magdalene
Mary Magdalene
Mary Magdalene was one of Jesus' most celebrated disciples, and the most important woman disciple in the movement of Jesus. Jesus cleansed her of "seven demons", conventionally interpreted as referring to complex illnesses...
in Trennfurt belong to the deaconry of Obernburg within the Diocese of Würzburg.
The oldest of the three churches is the Kirche St. Pankratius (“Saint Pancras’s”) in the main town of Klingenberg, which stands prominently above the Old Town. The 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....
quire and the sacristy
Sacristy
A sacristy is a room for keeping vestments and other church furnishings, sacred vessels, and parish records.The sacristy is usually located inside the church, but in some cases it is an annex or separate building...
come from the 15th century. The churchtower and the nave were built in 1617. Its current layout and the Gothic Revival
Gothic Revival architecture
The Gothic Revival is an architectural movement that began in the 1740s in England...
appointments the church was given in the late 19th century. Both the churches in Röllfeld and Trennfurt come from 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...
times (17th to 18th century). The one in Trennfurt underwent some new building work after a fire in 1975 started by a lightning strike.
In 1976 Klingenberg earned worldwide notice for the case of a young woman named Anneliese Michel
Anneliese Michel
Anneliese Michel was a German Catholic woman who was said to be possessed by demons and subsequently underwent an exorcism. Two motion pictures, The Exorcism of Emily Rose and Requiem, are loosely based on Michel's story.-Early life:Anneliese Michel was born on 21 September 1952, in Leiblfing,...
, whom the Church believed to be possessed by demons
Demonic possession
Demonic possession is held by many belief systems to be the control of an individual by a malevolent supernatural being. Descriptions of demonic possessions often include erased memories or personalities, convulsions, “fits” and fainting as if one were dying...
. After an exorcism
Exorcism
Exorcism is the religious practice of evicting demons or other spiritual entities from a person or place which they are believed to have possessed...
lasting several months, she died.
Economy and infrastructure
Big firms in Klingenberg are the WIKA manometer factory, the ceramic manufacturer Klingenberg Dekoramik in Trennfurt and the lacquerLacquer
In a general sense, lacquer is a somewhat imprecise term for a clear or coloured varnish that dries by solvent evaporation and often a curing process as well that produces a hard, durable finish, in any sheen level from ultra matte to high gloss and that can be further polished as required...
manufacturer Hemmelrath in Röllfeld. Besides industry, tourism is an important field. Klingenberg clay, which among other things is needed in the pencil industry as a graphite
Graphite
The mineral graphite is one of the allotropes of carbon. It was named by Abraham Gottlob Werner in 1789 from the Ancient Greek γράφω , "to draw/write", for its use in pencils, where it is commonly called lead . Unlike diamond , graphite is an electrical conductor, a semimetal...
additive, is still quarried
Quarry
A quarry is a type of open-pit mine from which rock or minerals are extracted. Quarries are generally used for extracting building materials, such as dimension stone, construction aggregate, riprap, sand, and gravel. They are often collocated with concrete and asphalt plants due to the requirement...
today as it has been since days of yore, albeit not in such great quantities as it was then. The town lies on the Route der Industriekultur Rhein-Main (“Rhine-Main Route of Industrial Culture”).
Transport
BundesstraßeBundesstraße
Bundesstraße , abbreviated B, is the denotation for German and Austrian national highways.-Germany:...
469, a four-lane highway running through Klingenberg, affords the town a link with Aschaffenburg and the Autobahnen A 3 (Frankfurt
Frankfurt
Frankfurt am Main , commonly known simply as Frankfurt, is the largest city in the German state of Hesse and the fifth-largest city in Germany, with a 2010 population of 688,249. The urban area had an estimated population of 2,300,000 in 2010...
-Würzburg
Würzburg
Würzburg is a city in the region of Franconia which lies in the northern tip of Bavaria, Germany. Located at the Main River, it is the capital of the Regierungsbezirk Lower Franconia. The regional dialect is Franconian....
), A 45
Bundesautobahn 45
is an autobahn in Germany, connecting Dortmund in the west with Aschaffenburg in the southwest. It is colloquially known by its byname Sauerlandlinie, which derives from the Sauerland, the landscape which said autobahn is running through between the cities of Hagen and Siegen. Many people think of...
(Dortmund
Dortmund
Dortmund is a city in Germany. It is located in the Bundesland of North Rhine-Westphalia, in the Ruhr area. Its population of 585,045 makes it the 7th largest city in Germany and the 34th largest in the European Union....
-Aschaffenburg
Aschaffenburg
Aschaffenburg is a city in northwest Bavaria, Germany. The town of Aschaffenburg is not considered part of the district of Aschaffenburg, but is the administrative seat.Aschaffenburg is known as the Tor zum Spessart or "gate to the Spessart"...
) and A 66
Bundesautobahn 66
is an autobahn in southwestern Germany. It connects the Taunus to Fulda, passing close to Frankfurt am Main. The first part of the autobahn between Wiesbaden and the Nordwestkreuz Frankfurt, was opened as early as 1934, then called the Rhein-Main-Schnellweg. It became an autobahn in 1965.The...
(Hanau
Hanau
Hanau is a town in the Main-Kinzig-Kreis, in Hesse, Germany. It is located 25 km east of Frankfurt am Main. Its station is a major railway junction.- Geography :...
-Fulda
Fulda
Fulda is a city in Hesse, Germany; it is located on the river Fulda and is the administrative seat of the Fulda district .- Early Middle Ages :...
). The section running in the opposite direction to Miltenberg
Miltenberg
Miltenberg is the seat of the like-named district in the Regierungsbezirk of Lower Franconia in Bavaria, Germany.- Location :...
, however, has only two lanes (2008), although a three-lane expansion of the heavily travelled road has been considered.
Klingenberg has at its disposal a railway station in the outlying centre of Trennfurt served by the Main Valley Railway
Main Valley Railway
The Main Valley Railway is a single-tracked, main line running alongside the Main River in Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg in southern Germany. In Miltenberg it connects to the Miltenberg–Walldürn railway. It also has a junction with the Tauber Valley Railway at the Baden town of Wertheim,...
(Aschaffenburg-Miltenberg-Wertheim).
Sons and daughters of the town
- Johann Valentin Adrian (1793 - 1864), writer, librarian
- Werner BeierwaltesWerner BeierwaltesWerner Beierwaltes is a German academic born in 1931 in Klingenberg am Main. He is best known as a historian of philosophy, and his most important areas of specialization are Neoplatonism and German Idealism...
(b. 8 May 1931), philosophy professor - Anneliese MichelAnneliese MichelAnneliese Michel was a German Catholic woman who was said to be possessed by demons and subsequently underwent an exorcism. Two motion pictures, The Exorcism of Emily Rose and Requiem, are loosely based on Michel's story.-Early life:Anneliese Michel was born on 21 September 1952, in Leiblfing,...
(1952 - 1976), well known exorcism victim - Willi NeubergerWilli NeubergerWilli Neuberger is a German former professional football defender.He played from 1966 until 1983 in the Bundesliga for Borussia Dortmund, Werder Bremen, Wuppertaler SV and Eintracht Frankfurt...
(b. 15 April 1946), footballer - Franz Georg Wassmuth (1707 - 1766), composer, Würzburg court orchestra master