Königstein im Taunus
Encyclopedia
Königstein im Taunus is a climatic spa and lies on the thickly wooded slopes of the Taunus
Taunus
The Taunus is a low mountain range in Hesse, Germany that composes part of the Rhenish Slate Mountains. It is bounded by the river valleys of Rhine, Main and Lahn. On the opposite side of the Rhine, the mountains are continued by the Hunsrück...

 in Hesse
Hesse
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...

, 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...

. Owing to its advantageous location for both scenery and transport on the edge of the Frankfurt Rhine Main Region, Königstein is a favourite residential town. Neighbouring places are Kronberg im Taunus
Kronberg im Taunus
Kronberg im Taunus is a town in the Hochtaunuskreis district, Hesse, Germany. Before 1866, it was in the Duchy of Nassau; in that year the whole Duchy was absorbed into Prussia. Kronberg lies at the foot of the Taunus, flanked in the north and southwest by forests...

, Glashütten
Glashütten
Glashütten is a small municipality in the Hochtaunuskreis. This community in the Taunus, which is made up of the three formerly independent communities of Glashütten, Schloßborn and Oberems, lies in the Hochtaunus Nature Park, not far from Königstein im Taunus, Germany.-Neighbouring...

, Schwalbach am Taunus
Schwalbach am Taunus
Schwalbach am Taunus is a town in the Main-Taunus-Kreis district, in Hesse, Germany. It is situated approx. 11 km west of Frankfurt .-History:In the years 1961 to 1963 were archaeological discoveries made in the area of the today’s town centre...

, Bad Soden am Taunus and Kelkheim
Kelkheim
Kelkheim is a town in the Main-Taunus-Kreis district in Hesse, Germany. Situated in the Taunus mountains, Kelkheim is noted for its attractive scenery. Kelkheim is situated approximately 10 km west of Frankfurt. Wiesbaden, the main capital of Hesse, is about 25 km from Kelkheim. Mainz,...

.

Neighbouring communities

Königstein borders in the north on the community of Schmitten
Schmitten, Germany
Schmitten is a climatic spa and municipality in the Hochtaunuskreis in Hesse, Germany.-Geography:Schmitten is the highest community in the Taunus some 24 km north of Frankfurt am Main within whose limits is the Großer Feldberg ....

 and the town of Oberursel
Oberursel
Oberursel is a town in Germany. It is located to the north west of Frankfurt, and is the second largest town in the county of Hochtaunuskreis and the 14th largest town in Hessen.-Extent of municipal area:...

, in the east on the towns of Kronberg
Kronberg im Taunus
Kronberg im Taunus is a town in the Hochtaunuskreis district, Hesse, Germany. Before 1866, it was in the Duchy of Nassau; in that year the whole Duchy was absorbed into Prussia. Kronberg lies at the foot of the Taunus, flanked in the north and southwest by forests...

 and Schwalbach
Schwalbach am Taunus
Schwalbach am Taunus is a town in the Main-Taunus-Kreis district, in Hesse, Germany. It is situated approx. 11 km west of Frankfurt .-History:In the years 1961 to 1963 were archaeological discoveries made in the area of the today’s town centre...

, in the south on the towns of Bad Soden
Bad Soden
Bad Soden is a town and spa in the Main-Taunus-Kreis, Hesse, Germany. Population 21,412 .Bad Soden is a popular residential town for commuters working in Frankfurt am Main. It is known for its various springs, which contain carbonic acid gas and various iron oxides. The waters are used both...

 and Kelkheim
Kelkheim
Kelkheim is a town in the Main-Taunus-Kreis district in Hesse, Germany. Situated in the Taunus mountains, Kelkheim is noted for its attractive scenery. Kelkheim is situated approximately 10 km west of Frankfurt. Wiesbaden, the main capital of Hesse, is about 25 km from Kelkheim. Mainz,...

 (all three in the Main-Taunus-Kreis
Main-Taunus-Kreis
Main-Taunus is a Kreis in the middle of Hesse, Germany and is part of the Frankfurt/Rhine-Main Metropolitan Region as well as the Frankfurt urban area...

), and in the west on the community of Glashütten
Glashütten
Glashütten is a small municipality in the Hochtaunuskreis. This community in the Taunus, which is made up of the three formerly independent communities of Glashütten, Schloßborn and Oberems, lies in the Hochtaunus Nature Park, not far from Königstein im Taunus, Germany.-Neighbouring...

.

Constituent communities

Besides the main town, which bears the same name as the whole, Königstein has three outlying centres: Falkenstein, Mammolshain and Schneidhain. Since 2001, Falkenstein has borne the designation Heilklimatischer Kurort – climatic spa – independently of the town's status as such.

History

Shrouded in legend, the town's founding date is unknown. The name 'Königstein' means 'King stone'. The best known legend says that it was the Merovingian King Chlodwig
Clovis I
Clovis Leuthwig was the first King of the Franks to unite all the Frankish tribes under one ruler, changing the leadership from a group of royal chieftains, to rule by kings, ensuring that the kingship was held by his heirs. He was also the first Catholic King to rule over Gaul . He was the son...

 (466-511), who had a castle
Castle
A castle is a type of fortified structure built in Europe and the Middle East during the Middle Ages by European nobility. Scholars debate the scope of the word castle, but usually consider it to be the private fortified residence of a lord or noble...

 built on a mountain and a chapel
Chapel
A chapel is a building used by Christians as a place of fellowship and worship. It may be part of a larger structure or complex, such as a church, college, hospital, palace, prison or funeral home, located on board a military or commercial ship, or it may be an entirely free-standing building,...

 in a neighbouring dale, who also founded the town in thanks for a prophecy that came his way there from a maiden who promised him victory over the Alemanni – which did indeed come true.

Königstein had its first documentary mention in 1215, making it likelier that the castle was built around the 12th century for the town's – and the Frankfurt-Cologne
Cologne
Cologne is Germany's fourth-largest city , and is the largest city both in the Germany Federal State of North Rhine-Westphalia and within the Rhine-Ruhr Metropolitan Area, one of the major European metropolitan areas with more than ten million inhabitants.Cologne is located on both sides of the...

 commercial road's – security.

Also in that time came the town's first lords, the Counts of Nürings, but they were supplanted in 1239 by the Lords of Hagen-Münzenberg into whose ownership the castle went as an Imperial fief. The Lords of Hagen-Münzenberg were in turn followed by the Lords of Bolanden-Falkenstein from 1255 to 1418, under whose rule Königstein was granted town rights in 1313. The Lords of Bolanden-Falkenstein were succeeded by the Lords of Eppstein, who were themselves followed by the Counts of Stolberg in 1535. It was they who introduced the Reformation
Protestant Reformation
The Protestant Reformation was a 16th-century split within Western Christianity initiated by Martin Luther, John Calvin and other early Protestants. The efforts of the self-described "reformers", who objected to the doctrines, rituals and ecclesiastical structure of the Roman Catholic Church, led...

 to the area.

By 1581, Königstein belonged to the Electorate of Mainz
Mainz
Mainz under the Holy Roman Empire, and previously was a Roman fort city which commanded the west bank of the Rhine and formed part of the northernmost frontier of the Roman Empire...

, which had incorporated the old County by force. Early in the 17th century, in connection with the Counterreformation, the castle was remodelled into a mighty fortress, but this newer military stronghold met its end in the French Revolutionary Wars
French Revolutionary Wars
The French Revolutionary Wars were a series of major conflicts, from 1792 until 1802, fought between the French Revolutionary government and several European states...

 when the 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...

 blew it up in 1796, although this may have been unintentional. (Local legend has it that that gunpowder was hid in the castle's well, and a spark from a careless French soldier's pipe started the explosion).

In 1803, Königstein passed to the Principality of Nassau-Usingen, which itself later merged with Nassau-Weilburg to form the Duchy of Nassau. By 1866 it was in 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...

n hands, and since 1945, it has been part of Hesse. The three constituent communities mentioned herein were amalgamated with Königstein as part of Hesse's municipal reforms in 1972.

Königstein enjoyed an economic upswing from less wealthy times when the coldwater spa first opened in 1851. It reached its high point just before the First World War broke out. The designation Heilklimatischer Kurort was granted in 1935, and is still borne by the town, and now also independently by the constituent community of Falkenstein.http://www.koenigstein.de/sis/zubesuch/geschichte/index.html

Jews health resort and summer residence of the Frankfurt Jews

Königstein was regarded as "Jews spa" - this was especially in the era of National Socialism on the topic. High proportions of Jewish guests (for example Otto Klemperer
Otto Klemperer
Otto Klemperer was a German conductor and composer. He is widely regarded as one of the leading conductors of the 20th century.-Biography:Otto Klemperer was born in Breslau, Silesia Province, then in Germany...

, Kurt Hahn
Kurt Hahn
Kurt Martin Hahn was a German educator whose philosophies are considered internationally influential.-Biography:...

, Carl Sternheim
Carl Sternheim
Carl Sternheim was a German playwright and short story writer. One of the major exponents of German Expressionism, he especially satirized the moral sensibilities of the emerging German middle class during the Wilhelmine period.-Biography:Born in Leipzig to a Jewish banker and his Protestant wife...

, Botho Graef
Botho Graef
Franz Botho Graef was a German classical archaeologist and art historian. His father was painter Gustav Graef, and his sister, Sabine Lepsius, was also an artist of some note. Graef taught at the University of Jena from 1904 until 1917.-Writings:* Hodlers und Hofmanns Wandbilder in der...

, Reinhold Lepsius
Reinhold Lepsius
Reinhold Lepsius was a German painter, especially of portraits, and graphic artist.He was born in Berlin, a son of Elisabeth Klein and Carl Richard Lepsius, the founder of German Egyptology. He was stylistically affiliated with the Berlin Secession school and to some degree with Impressionism. He...

) achieved mainly the internationally famous sanitarium Dr. Kohnstamm (the name stuck even after the death of the founder Oskar Kohnstamm
Oskar Kohnstamm
Dr. Oskar Felix Kohnstamm was a German neurologist and psychiatrist. Initially trained in internal medicine in Giessen and Strassbourg he received his doctors degree in Berlin in 1894. Kohnstamm then began as a general practitioner in Königstein im Taunus , a small town in Hesse...

 received in 1917) and Hotel Cahn, it was because of the kosher food attraction for many Jews
Jews
The Jews , also known as the Jewish people, are a nation and ethnoreligious group originating in the Israelites or Hebrews of the Ancient Near East. The Jewish ethnicity, nationality, and religion are strongly interrelated, as Judaism is the traditional faith of the Jewish nation...

 in Frankfurt, which could easily come from the year 1906 with the railroad in a short time for a day trip.

As Königstein was also a prominent resident of Jewish citizens (for example Mathilde Hannah von Rothschild
Mathilde Hannah von Rothschild
Hannah Mathilde Rothschild was a German patron in the Jewish faith....

, Sigmund Kohn-Speyer, L. Albert Hahn, Hermann Wronker, Albert Katzenellenbogen, Julius Blau, Max Neisser, Adolf Sabor, the family of Richard Musgrave
Richard Musgrave
Richard Abel Musgrave was an American economist of German heritage. His most cited work is The Theory of Public Finance , described as "the first English-language treatise in the field."-Life:...

), were about their friends and guests in turn-known "names" in the spa town. It is striking that the poet Stefan George
Stefan George
Stefan Anton George was a German poet, editor, and translator.-Biography:George was born in Bingen in Germany in 1868. He spent time in Paris, where he was among the writers and artists who attended the Tuesday soireés held by the poet Stéphane Mallarmé. He began to publish poetry in the 1890s,...

, who demonstrably often visited his school friend Oskar Kohnstamm
Oskar Kohnstamm
Dr. Oskar Felix Kohnstamm was a German neurologist and psychiatrist. Initially trained in internal medicine in Giessen and Strassbourg he received his doctors degree in Berlin in 1894. Kohnstamm then began as a general practitioner in Königstein im Taunus , a small town in Hesse...

, after his death in the year 1917 and the sale of the sanatorium, moved to his sister, Anna George, who lived two streets away. In her apartment he received members of the George circle for which special rooms had been rented. These include for example the poet Ernst Morwitz, with which he took long walks. Georges and Kohnstamms honored school friend Karl Wolfskehl
Karl Wolfskehl
Karl Wolfskehl was a German Jewish author who wrote poetry, prose and drama in German. He also translated from French, English, Italian, Hebrew, Latin and Middle High German into German....

 had contacts to the Sanatorium Dr. Amelung, where the director was a friend of Oskar Kohnstamm.

The governing mayor in 1938 commented in the discussion of the linearization of the Sanatorium Dr. Kohnstamm
Oskar Kohnstamm
Dr. Oskar Felix Kohnstamm was a German neurologist and psychiatrist. Initially trained in internal medicine in Giessen and Strassbourg he received his doctors degree in Berlin in 1894. Kohnstamm then began as a general practitioner in Königstein im Taunus , a small town in Hesse...

, that the "call Königstein than ‘Jews resort' is attached again to irreparable way". It should be noted again that the new owner of the renowned sanatorium Kohnstamm, Carl Frankl, saw as a brother of the famous fighter pilot Wilhelm Frankl, also for popularity.

Withdrawn in 1937 is still 24 holders of boarding houses to the pressure, an addition to make to include in the directory - but in 1938, led all 54 boarding houses in the Supplement to the flat indicator adding: "All the houses are made free of Jews." [. 6]

Even after the Second World War drew famous people of Jewish descent to Königstein. So moved, for example, Max Dessoir
Max Dessoir
Max Dessoir was a German philosopher and theorist of aesthetics.Dessoir was born in Berlin. He earned doctorates from the universities of Berlin and Würzburg...

 here to spend retirement (he lived there first in 'Sanatorium Amelung'), just as the wife of publisher Samuel Fischer - Hedwig, born Landshoff. Both died in Koenigstein. The visit of Paulette Goddard
Paulette Goddard
Paulette Goddard was an American film and theatre actress. A former child fashion model and in several Broadway productions as Ziegfeld Girl, she was a major star of the Paramount Studio in the 1940s. She was married to several notable men, including Charlie Chaplin, Burgess Meredith, and Erich...

 - Charlie Chaplin's
Charlie Chaplin
Sir Charles Spencer "Charlie" Chaplin, KBE was an English comic actor, film director and composer best known for his work during the silent film era. He became the most famous film star in the world before the end of World War I...

 wife - is also guaranteed.

Politics

Represented on town council are the CDU
Christian 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...

, the SPD
Social Democratic Party of Germany
The Social Democratic Party of Germany is a social-democratic political party in Germany...

, the FDP
Free Democratic Party (Germany)
The Free Democratic Party , abbreviated to FDP, is a centre-right classical liberal political party in Germany. It is led by Philipp Rösler and currently serves as the junior coalition partner to the Union in the German federal government...

 and the Greens
Alliance '90/The Greens
Alliance '90/The Greens is a green political party in Germany, formed from the merger of the German Green Party and Alliance 90 in 1993. Its leaders are Claudia Roth and Cem Özdemir...

, as well as the ALK (Aktionsgemeinschaft Lebenswertes Königstein), a citizens' coalition. At the moment, Königstein is governed by a CDU/FDP coalition.

Coat of arms

Königstein's civic coat of 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...

 was conferred in 1907. It is based on a town seal from 1535. The towers stand for the old Imperial Castle (Reichsburg). The Lords of Bolanden-Falkenstein are remembered in the red and gold field in the upper right (upper left heraldically speaking), as are the Counts of Nürings in the black lion, and indeed the Lords of Eppstein in the three chevrons.http://www.ngw.nl/int/dld/k/konigstt.htm

Purchasing power

Königstein has an extraordenary high level of purchasing power . In 2010, their purchasing power index was of 191 percent (compared to the national average of 100 percent) and with that the highest in Germany.

Transport

Königstein is advantageously placed for driving. By way of Federal Highways (Bundesstraßen) B8 and B455, which meet in town at a roundabout
Roundabout
A roundabout is the name for a road junction in which traffic moves in one direction around a central island. The word dates from the early 20th century. Roundabouts are common in many countries around the world...

, Autobahnen 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...

 (Frankfurt-Höchst interchange), A 661
Bundesautobahn 661
- also called Osttangente Frankfurt or Taunusschnellweg - is a 40 km long Autobahn in Germany. It starts in Oberursel and goes along Bad Homburg, Frankfurt am Main, Offenbach am Main and Neu-Isenburg until it is ending in Egelsbach.The today's A 661 were opened with section Bad Homburg ...

 (Oberursel interchange) and A 3 (Niedernhausen interchange) can be reached in a matter of minutes. Königstein's advantageous placement, however, brings problems, too. Rush hour
Rush hour
A rush hour or peak hour is a part of the day during which traffic congestion on roads and crowding on public transport is at its highest. Normally, this happens twice a day—once in the morning and once in the evening, the times during when the most people commute...

 traffic, both in the morning and evening, regularly results in heavy traffic jams on the way into the roundabout.

The nearest airport is Frankfurt International Airport
Frankfurt International Airport
Frankfurt am Main Airport , or simply Frankfurt Airport, known in German as Flughafen Frankfurt am Main or Rhein-Main-Flughafen, is a major international airport located in Frankfurt, Germany, southwest of the city centre....

.

By way of the Frankfurt-Königstein Railway (Frankfurt-Königsteiner Eisenbahn – FKE) and buslines connecting the towns to the S-Bahn
S-Bahn
S-Bahn refers to an often combined city center and suburban railway system metro in Austria, Germany, Switzerland and Denmark...

 stations at Bad Soden
Bad Soden
Bad Soden is a town and spa in the Main-Taunus-Kreis, Hesse, Germany. Population 21,412 .Bad Soden is a popular residential town for commuters working in Frankfurt am Main. It is known for its various springs, which contain carbonic acid gas and various iron oxides. The waters are used both...

 (S3) and Kronberg
Kronberg im Taunus
Kronberg im Taunus is a town in the Hochtaunuskreis district, Hesse, Germany. Before 1866, it was in the Duchy of Nassau; in that year the whole Duchy was absorbed into Prussia. Kronberg lies at the foot of the Taunus, flanked in the north and southwest by forests...

 (S4), Königstein is connected to Frankfurt's main railway station
Frankfurt (Main) Hauptbahnhof
is the central station for Frankfurt am Main. In terms of railway traffic, it is the busiest railway station in Germany. With about 350,000 passengers per day the station is the second most frequented railway station in Germany and one of the most frequented in Europe.- Proto-history :In the late...

 and the whole railway network run by the Rhine-Main Transport Network (Rhein-Main-Verkehrsverbund – RMV), and it has at its disposal stations in Königstein (main town) and Schneidhain. The Frankfurt-Königstein Railway accepts the Bahncard 100 as fare as far as Königstein im Taunus station, but the RMV only accepts it for fare area 5000 (Frankfurt am Main without the airport).

Established businesses

Königstein im Taunus is an attractive place for business. The citizens' above-average buying power is a boon to local retail
Retail
Retail consists of the sale of physical goods or merchandise from a fixed location, such as a department store, boutique or kiosk, or by mail, in small or individual lots for direct consumption by the purchaser. Retailing may include subordinated services, such as delivery. Purchasers may be...

 businesses, the range of which is correspondingly great. Furthermore there are quite a few independent business and personnel consultants, often former managers from industry. Through the takeover of the well known German personnel consultancy Hofmann Herbold & Partner, Königstein was for years headquarters to the biggest international executive search firm Korn/Ferry
Korn/Ferry
Korn/Ferry International, headquartered in Los Angeles, is the world's largest executive search firm, and the largest publicly-traded search firm in the United States, with 76 offices in North America, Europe, Asia/Pacific, Latin America, the Middle East and South Africa. Since the firm's...

. Several spinoffs brought into being by former Korn/Ferry employees are still in business in town now.

The Dresdner Bank
Dresdner Bank
Dresdner Bank AG was one of Germany's largest banking corporations and was based in Frankfurt. It was acquired by competitor Commerzbank in December 2009.- 19th century :...

 maintains a large training and conference centre at the edge of town, which is also available to third parties. The Deutsche Bank
Deutsche Bank
Deutsche Bank AG is a global financial service company with its headquarters in Frankfurt, Germany. It employs more than 100,000 people in over 70 countries, and has a large presence in Europe, the Americas, Asia Pacific and the emerging markets...

 also has one between Falkenstein and Kronberg.

Town partnerships

Königstein im Taunus maintains partnerships with the following towns: Le Cannet
Le Cannet
Le Cannet is a commune of the Alpes-Maritimes department in southeastern France.-Location:Le Cannet is located on the north of Cannes, on the French Riviera...

-Rocheville, 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...

 Königstein
Königstein (Sächsische Schweiz)
Königstein is a town in the Free State of Saxony in Germany. Königstein lies in the Sächsische Schweiz-Osterzgebirge District and has a population of 2,898 as of 2005. Near Königstein is the Festung Königstein fortress.- Geography :...

, Saxony
Saxony
The Free State of Saxony is a landlocked state of Germany, contingent with Brandenburg, Saxony Anhalt, Thuringia, Bavaria, the Czech Republic and Poland. It is the tenth-largest German state in area, with of Germany's sixteen states....

 Kórnik
Kórnik
Kórnik is a town with about 6,800 inhabitants , located in western Poland, approximately south-east of the city of Poznań. It is one of the major tourist attractions of the Wielkopolska region....

, 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...

 Le Mêle-sur-Sarthe
Le Mêle-sur-Sarthe
Le Mêle-sur-Sarthe is a commune in the Orne department in north-western France.In 1990, the town was twinned with Faringdon in England.-References:*...

, 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...

 (with Falkenstein)
There is also a friendship agreement with: Königstein in the Upper Palatinate
Upper Palatinate
The Upper Palatinate is one of the seven administrative regions of Bavaria, Germany, located in the east of Bavaria.- History :The region took its name first in the early 16th century, because it was by the Treaty of Pavia one of the main portions of the territory of the Wittelsbach Elector...


Regular events

The greatest folk festival
Folk festival
A Folk festival celebrates traditional folk crafts and folk music.-Canada:Alberta*Calgary Folk Music Festival*Canmore Folk Music Festival*Edmonton Folk Music Festival*Jasper Folk Festival*Wild Mountain Music FestOntario*Barriefolk...

 in Königstein is the yearly Burgfest, or Castle Festival, at the Königstein Castle ruins. Moreover, early in the year, and in the summer, further events also take place there: Ritterturnier ("Knights' Tournament"), Theater auf der Burg ("Theatre at the Castle"), as well as various musical and film events. Since 2005 also a series of concerts called Mittelalter rockt die Burg ("Middle Ages rock the castle").

As a new open-air highlight, from 2006, the Burgfestspiele Königstein ("Königstein Castle Festival Games") will be held, bringing to the stage a multi-faceted cultural programme in the unique atmosphere of the ruins: ambitious concerts and opera
Opera
Opera is an art form in which singers and musicians perform a dramatic work combining text and musical score, usually in a theatrical setting. Opera incorporates many of the elements of spoken theatre, such as acting, scenery, and costumes and sometimes includes dance...

tic and musical productions with large casts under the open sky. As well, business in the outlying communities is shaped by many festivals and activities.

Clubs

The Ritter von Königstein ("Knights of Königstein") have committed themselves to 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...

 and since 1998 have been staging a yearly Knights' Tournament with a mediaeval market at Königstein's picturesque castle ruins. The local young people who do this are supported in this endeavour by the club Stadtwache e.V. ("Town Watch").

Furthermore, each of Königstein's constituent communities has its own sport or football club
Football (soccer)
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a sport played between two teams of eleven players with a spherical ball...

. The biggest in the whole town is TSG Falkenstein, offering volleyball
Volleyball
Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules.The complete rules are extensive...

, judo
Judo
is a modern martial art and combat sport created in Japan in 1882 by Jigoro Kano. Its most prominent feature is its competitive element, where the object is to either throw or takedown one's opponent to the ground, immobilize or otherwise subdue one's opponent with a grappling maneuver, or force an...

, gymnastics
Gymnastics
Gymnastics is a sport involving performance of exercises requiring physical strength, flexibility, agility, coordination, and balance. Internationally, all of the gymnastic sports are governed by the Fédération Internationale de Gymnastique with each country having its own national governing body...

, athletics
Athletics (track and field)
Athletics is an exclusive collection of sporting events that involve competitive running, jumping, throwing, and walking. The most common types of athletics competitions are track and field, road running, cross country running, and race walking...

, Gardetanz (a kind of dancing popular in Germany involving dancers in old, often 18th-century, military uniforms), and football
Football (soccer)
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a sport played between two teams of eleven players with a spherical ball...

, and having more than 700 members. The most successful football club is the 1. FC-TSG Königstein (a fusion of 1. FC Königstein and TSG Falkenstein), whose first team has been plying for years in the top of the Regional Upper League (Bezirksoberliga). Moreover, the club has at its disposal 12 youth teams. Also, the SG (Spielgemeinschaft or "playing community") Schneidhain and FC Mammolshain Fußball play in Königstein, both, however, at much lower levels.

From 5 to 16 June 2006, on the occasion of the 2006 FIFA World Cup
2006 FIFA World Cup
The 2006 FIFA World Cup was the 18th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international football world championship tournament. It was held from 9 June to 9 July 2006 in Germany, which won the right to host the event in July 2000. Teams representing 198 national football associations from all six...

, the Brazilian National Team
Brazil national football team
The Brazil national football team represents Brazil in international men's football and is controlled by the Brazilian Football Confederation , the governing body for football in Brazil. They are a member of the International Federation of Association Football since 1923 and also a member of the...

 made its home at the Kempinski
Kempinski
Kempinski Hotels S.A. is a luxury hotel group. Kempinski Hotels, the trading name for Kempinski Hotels S.A., is an independent Swiss delisted S.A., which is involved in a number of luxury hotel and hospitality related businesses, including conference, catering and hotel supplies.Kempinski Hotels...

 Hotel in Falkenstein, a five-star hotel originally built as an officers' retreat for Kaiser Wilhelm
William II, German Emperor
Wilhelm II was the last German Emperor and King of Prussia, ruling the German Empire and the Kingdom of Prussia from 15 June 1888 to 9 November 1918. He was a grandson of the British Queen Victoria and related to many monarchs and princes of Europe...

. The team trained at the "Altkönigblick" sport ground, 1. FC-TSG Königstein's usual facility.

The Königstein Fanfare Corps (Fanfarencorps Königstein) won the Europa Musikfestival in Rödemis in 2005 and the Solothurn
Solothurn
The city of Solothurn is the capital of the Canton of Solothurn in Switzerland. The city also comprises the only municipality of the district of the same name.-Pre-roman settlement:...

er Marching Parade, in which the Königstein Fanfare Corps was the first foreign club to participate.

Königstein also has, from singing clubs to a mandolin
Mandolin
A mandolin is a musical instrument in the lute family . It descends from the mandore, a soprano member of the lute family. The mandolin soundboard comes in many shapes—but generally round or teardrop-shaped, sometimes with scrolls or other projections. A mandolin may have f-holes, or a single...

 club, a karate
Karate
is a martial art developed in the Ryukyu Islands in what is now Okinawa, Japan. It was developed from indigenous fighting methods called and Chinese kenpō. Karate is a striking art using punching, kicking, knee and elbow strikes, and open-handed techniques such as knife-hands. Grappling, locks,...

 and tennis
Tennis
Tennis is a sport usually played between two players or between two teams of two players each . Each player uses a racket that is strung to strike a hollow rubber ball covered with felt over a net into the opponent's court. Tennis is an Olympic sport and is played at all levels of society at all...

 club, and a volunteer fire brigade in every constituent community, more than 100 clubs.

Buildings

Besides the town's landmark, the Königstein Castle ruins, other buildings are worth seeing, such as the historic Old Town with its Old Town Hall (Rathaus), and Falkenstein Castle, and the Old Town also found there. Also of interest is the Villa Andreae, located at the top of a small wodded hill. Built in 1891 by Frankfurt Banker Albert Andreae de Neufville, it was transformed into a boarding school
Boarding school
A boarding school is a school where some or all pupils study and live during the school year with their fellow students and possibly teachers and/or administrators. The word 'boarding' is used in the sense of "bed and board," i.e., lodging and meals...

 (Schülerheim) in the post-war years (1957 - 1987). Thoroughly restored, it became famous as Jürgen Schneider's headquarters from 1987 until his multi-billion-Deutsche-Mark bankruptcy
Bankruptcy
Bankruptcy is a legal status of an insolvent person or an organisation, that is, one that cannot repay the debts owed to creditors. In most jurisdictions bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the debtor....

 in 1994.

Architecturally
Architecture
Architecture is both the process and product of planning, designing and construction. Architectural works, in the material form of buildings, are often perceived as cultural and political symbols and as works of art...

 important in its time was the Haus der Begegnung ("Meeting House") built in the 1950s. Controversial at the time, in 1977 when the baths were being built, was the blue-orange colour scheme.

Former Grand Duke of Luxembourg Adolph von Nassau
Adolphe, Grand Duke of Luxembourg
Adolphe I, Grand Duke of Luxembourg was the last Duke of Nassau, and the fourth Grand Duke of Luxembourg.-Biography:...

's stately home is known as the Luxemburgisches Schloss and houses now the court (Amtsgericht Königstein).

At the foot of the Burgberg ("Castle Mountain"), surrounded by a park through which flows the Woogbach and adjoining which is the Woogbach Valley is found Saint Angela's Ursuline
Ursulines
The Ursulines are a Roman Catholic religious order for women founded at Brescia, Italy, by Saint Angela de Merici in November 1535, primarily for the education of girls and the care of the sick and needy. Their patron saint is Saint Ursula.-History:St Angela de Merici spent 17 years leading a...

 Convent
Convent
A convent is either a community of priests, religious brothers, religious sisters, or nuns, or the building used by the community, particularly in the Roman Catholic Church and in the Anglican Communion...

 (Ursulinenkloster St. Angela), founded in 1884, and owning a like-named state-recognized private school
Private school
Private schools, also known as independent schools or nonstate schools, are not administered by local, state or national governments; thus, they retain the right to select their students and are funded in whole or in part by charging their students' tuition, rather than relying on mandatory...

.

Königstein is likewise well known for its idyllic Old Town. Its exclusive residential areas (also in Falkenstein) are mainly marked by Art Nouveau
Art Nouveau
Art Nouveau is an international philosophy and style of art, architecture and applied art—especially the decorative arts—that were most popular during 1890–1910. The name "Art Nouveau" is French for "new art"...

 and its Heimatstil-influenced offshoots as well as 1960s Chic (bungalow
Bungalow
A bungalow is a type of house, with varying meanings across the world. Common features to many of these definitions include being detached, low-rise , and the use of verandahs...

s). Lot sizes, however, are not comparable to those in other towns owing to new town planning and the building plans following therefrom.

Museums

The Castle and Town Museum (Burg- und Stadtmuseum) is found at the historic Old Town Hall (Altes Rathaus)

Schools

There are in Königstein various schools, among them three Gymnasien
Gymnasium (school)
A gymnasium is a type of school providing secondary education in some parts of Europe, comparable to English grammar schools or sixth form colleges and U.S. college preparatory high schools. The word γυμνάσιον was used in Ancient Greece, meaning a locality for both physical and intellectual...

: the state Taunusgymnasium (formerly Taunusschule), the private St. Angela Schule and the private Bischof-Neumann-Schule.

Primary schools

  • Grundschule Königstein
  • Grundschule Falkenstein
  • Grundschule Mammolshain
  • Grundschule Schneidhain

Secondary school
Secondary school
Secondary school is a term used to describe an educational institution where the final stage of schooling, known as secondary education and usually compulsory up to a specified age, takes place...

s

  • Taunusgymnasium Königstein, Gymnasium
  • Friedrich-Stoltze-Schule, Hauptschule
    Hauptschule
    A Hauptschule is a secondary school in Germany and Austria, starting after 4 years of elementary schooling, which offers Lower Secondary Education according to the International Standard Classification of Education...

     and Realschule
    Realschule
    The Realschule is a type of secondary school in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, and Liechtenstein. It has also existed in Croatia , Denmark , Sweden , Hungary and in the Russian Empire .-History:The Realschule was an outgrowth of the rationalism and empiricism of the seventeenth and...

  • Bischof-Neumann-Schule, private school, state-recognized
  • St.-Angela-Schule, private school, state-recognized

Philosophisch-Theologische Hochschule Königstein (1949 - 1978)

On 29 April 1949, a Königstein Philosophical-Theological College was founded in Königstein as a self-standing Catholic
Catholic
The word catholic comes from the Greek phrase , meaning "on the whole," "according to the whole" or "in general", and is a combination of the Greek words meaning "about" and meaning "whole"...

 university
University
A university is an institution of higher education and research, which grants academic degrees in a variety of subjects. A university is an organisation that provides both undergraduate education and postgraduate education...

, and acknowledged by the Hessian state government.

Bishop Maximilian Kaller
Maximilian Kaller
Maximilian Kaller was Roman Catholic Bishop of Ermland in East Prussia from 1930–1947, however, de facto expelled since mid-August 1945 he served as special bishop for the homeland-expellees until his death.-Early life:...

 – who was the first bishop with special authority over ethnic Germans who had been driven out of lost German territories at the end of the Second World War – appointed philosophy professor Erich Kleineidam to the new institution in late May 1947 as a Professor. In 1948, he also became head of the seminary, and in 1949 Rector of the Königstein Philosophical-Theological College. Besides Kleineidam, others who taught at the ecclesiastical university were Anton Janko, Philipp Schäfer and Leo Scheffczyk. Among well known graduates were Karl Gabriel, Johannes Gründel and Gerhard Pieschl.

The college produced 417 priests. It was dissolved on 15 February 1978.

Literature

For three years, from 1970 until his death in 1973, the writer and journalist
Journalist
A journalist collects and distributes news and other information. A journalist's work is referred to as journalism.A reporter is a type of journalist who researchs, writes, and reports on information to be presented in mass media, including print media , electronic media , and digital media A...

 Herbert Kranz (born 4 October 1891 in Nordhausen; died 30 August 1973 in Braunschweig) lived here.

The book Königstein im Taunus: Geschichte und Kunst ("Königstein im Taunus: History and Art") by Beate Großmann-Hofmann and Hans-Curt Köster (appeared in 1998, Verlag Langewiesche [publisher]) offers a detailed outline of the town's history, its castle and its outlying communities. It also includes a detailed catalogue of many buildings and objects worthy of protection.

Also of importance is the book Juden in Königstein ("Jews in Königstein") by Heinz Sturm-Godramstein (ISBN 3-9800793-0-9). The former town archivist's documentation first appeared in 1983 and was reissued in 1998 almost unchanged.

Health

There is in Königstein a comprehensive offering of health services. Besides the baths, there are various clinics, among them a migraine
Migraine
Migraine is a chronic neurological disorder characterized by moderate to severe headaches, and nausea...

 clinic, a special clinic for psychosomatic illness
Psychosomatic illness
Psychosomatic medicine is an interdisciplinary medical field studying the relationships of social, psychological, and behavioral factors on bodily processes and well-being in humans and animals...

es, a heart
Heart
The heart is a myogenic muscular organ found in all animals with a circulatory system , that is responsible for pumping blood throughout the blood vessels by repeated, rhythmic contractions...

 clinic and a neurological
Neurology
Neurology is a medical specialty dealing with disorders of the nervous system. Specifically, it deals with the diagnosis and treatment of all categories of disease involving the central, peripheral, and autonomic nervous systems, including their coverings, blood vessels, and all effector tissue,...

 clinic. The two spas of Königstein and Falkenstein have recently formed the entrance portal to Germany's first climatic healing park (Heilklimapark).

Famous Personalities

  • Max Dessoir
    Max Dessoir
    Max Dessoir was a German philosopher and theorist of aesthetics.Dessoir was born in Berlin. He earned doctorates from the universities of Berlin and Würzburg...

     (1867 - 1947) psychologist
    Psychologist
    Psychologist is a professional or academic title used by individuals who are either:* Clinical professionals who work with patients in a variety of therapeutic contexts .* Scientists conducting psychological research or teaching psychology in a college...

     and art historian
  • Franz Halder
    Franz Halder
    Franz Halder was a German General and the head of the Army General Staff from 1938 until September, 1942, when he was dismissed after frequent disagreements with Adolf Hitler.-Early life:...

     (1884 - 1972) Wehrmacht
    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:...

     general
  • Eduard Maurer (1886 - 1969) chemist
    Chemist
    A chemist is a scientist trained in the study of chemistry. Chemists study the composition of matter and its properties such as density and acidity. Chemists carefully describe the properties they study in terms of quantities, with detail on the level of molecules and their component atoms...

     and metallurgist (developed V2A stainless steel
    Stainless steel
    In metallurgy, stainless steel, also known as inox steel or inox from French "inoxydable", is defined as a steel alloy with a minimum of 10.5 or 11% chromium content by mass....

    )
  • Herbert Karl Ludwig Kranz (1891 - 1973) writer
  • Walter Christaller
    Walter Christaller
    Walter Christaller , was a German geographer whose principal contribution to the discipline is Central Place Theory, first published in 1933...

     (1893 - 1969) geographer
    Geography
    Geography is the science that studies the lands, features, inhabitants, and phenomena of Earth. A literal translation would be "to describe or write about the Earth". The first person to use the word "geography" was Eratosthenes...

  • Eugen Kogon
    Eugen Kogon
    Eugen Kogon was a historian and a survivor of the Holocaust. A well-known Christian opponent of the Nazi Party, he was arrested more than once and spent six years at Buchenwald concentration camp. Kogon was known in Germany as a journalist, sociologist, political scientist, author and politician...

     (1903 - 1987) political scientist, writer, Antifascist
  • Richard Musgrave
    Richard Musgrave
    Richard Abel Musgrave was an American economist of German heritage. His most cited work is The Theory of Public Finance , described as "the first English-language treatise in the field."-Life:...

     (1910 - 2007) economist
    Economist
    An economist is a professional in the social science discipline of economics. The individual may also study, develop, and apply theories and concepts from economics and write about economic policy...

  • Leo Cardinal Scheffczyk (1920 - 2005)
  • Jürgen Schneider (1934 - ) building speculator
  • Volker Reiche (1944 - ) comic strip
    Comic strip
    A comic strip is a sequence of drawings arranged in interrelated panels to display brief humor or form a narrative, often serialized, with text in balloons and captions....

     artist
  • Birgit Friedmann (1960 - ) athlete
  • Christoph Neubronner (1960 - ) jazz
    Jazz
    Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...

     pianist
    Pianist
    A pianist is a musician who plays the piano. A professional pianist can perform solo pieces, play with an ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers, solo instrumentalists, or other performers.-Choice of genres:...

  • Hans Zimmer
    Hans Zimmer
    Hans Florian Zimmer is a German film composer and music producer. He has composed music for over 100 films, including critically acclaimed film scores for The Lion King , Crimson Tide , The Thin Red Line , Gladiator , The Dark Knight and Inception .Zimmer spent the early part of his career in the...

     (1957 - ) film composer and Oscar
    Academy Awards
    An Academy Award, also known as an Oscar, is an accolade bestowed by the American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize excellence of professionals in the film industry, including directors, actors, and writers...

     winner
  • Father Werenfried van Straaten
    Werenfried van Straaten
    Father Werenfried van Straaten O.Praem. who came to be known as the "Bacon Priest", was a Premonstratensian priest known for his humanitarian work, particularly as founder of the international Catholic association Aid to the Church in Need...

     (1913 - 2003) called "Speckpater" ("Bacon Father"); founder of the international relief organization Kirche in Not/Ostpriesterhilfe
  • Eva Pfaff
    Eva Pfaff
    Eva Pfaff is a former German tennis player.During her career she won 5 doubles WTA titles. Her peak world rankings in the sport were 17th in singles and 16th in doubles ....

     (1961 - ) tennis player
  • Karl-Heinz Körbel
    Karl-Heinz Körbel
    Karl-Heinz "Charly" Körbel is a German former professional football defender. He is currently a member of Eintracht Frankfurt's Directors of Football, and runs their football academy....

     (1954 - ) soccer player aka Charly Körbel
  • Jürgen Hardt
    Jürgen Hardt
    Jürgen Hardt is a German politician. He is a Christian Democratic Union member of the Bundestag.-Biography:After obtaining Abitur 1982 in Königstein im Taunus, Hardt served as a naval officer in the Bundeswehr for four years and studied economics in Heidelberg and Cologne from 1986 to 1993...

     (1963 - ) german Politician, Christian Democratic Union
    Christian 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...

     member of the Bundestag
    Bundestag
    The Bundestag is a federal legislative body in Germany. In practice Germany is governed by a bicameral legislature, of which the Bundestag serves as the lower house and the Bundesrat the upper house. The Bundestag is established by the German Basic Law of 1949, as the successor to the earlier...


External links

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