Meckenheim, Rhineland-Palatinate
Encyclopedia
Meckenheim is an Ortsgemeinde – a municipality
belonging to a Verbandsgemeinde
, a kind of collective municipality – in the Bad Dürkheim
district in Rhineland-Palatinate
, Germany
.
, whose seat is in the like-named town
.
village of Meckenheim is believed to have arisen in the 5th century AD. In 768, a first donation from Meckenheim to Lorsch Abbey
was documented; further donations to other monasteries followed. In 991, some Meckenheim holdings passed to Duke Otto of Weißenburg (now Wissembourg
in nearby Alsace
, France
). In the 12th century, Saint Giles
’s Church (Ägidiuskirche) was built.
In 1287, Meckenheim was bought by Count Palatine Louis II, and thus it thereafter belonged to Electoral Palatinate. In 1459 or 1460, Meckenheim was burnt down by the Counts of Leiningen (Emich VII). With the introduction of the Reformation
into Electoral Palatinate, Meckenheim became Protestant
. In 1585, Saint Giles’s Church was newly built.
After widespread destruction in the Thirty Years' War
, Meckenheim’s inhabitants forsook it in 1641. The Meckenheim church passed to the Catholics in 1707; in 1747 and 1748, the Protestant church was built. During the French Revolutionary Wars
in the late 18th century, Meckenheim sustained great damage. As a result of decisions made at the Congress of Vienna
, Meckenheim passed in 1816, together with the rest of the Palatinate to the Kingdom of Bavaria
.
In 1824, the schoolhouse-municipal house (Hauptstraße 98) was built, and in 1872 the building that now serves as town hall (Hauptstraße 58). In 1894, the agricultural coöperative society and the Raiffeisen
credit coöperative, which were merged in 1938, were founded.
In 1911, the Lokalbahn – or local railway – between Ludwigshafen and Dannstadt, which had opened in 1890, was extended to Meckenheim. Service continued until 1955, when it was replaced by buslines. In 1913, Meckenheim was connected to a public electrical grid, and in 1928 to a public water supply system. In 1922, the Meckenheim Winemakers’ Association was founded. In 1936, the fruit market hall was built.
After the Second World War, Meckenheim passed in 1946 together with the rest of the Palatinate to the newly founded state
of Rhineland-Palatinate
. Between 1952 and 1955, the sporting ground with the clubhouse was laid out. In 1956, Meckenheim was connected to a public gas supply system. In 1961, a new folk high school
opened and in 1964, it was connected to a public sewer system.
and 29.4% Catholic. The rest belonged to other faiths or adhered to none.
The municipality’s arms
might in English heraldic
language be described thus: Quarterly, first and fourth sable a lion rampant Or armed, langued and crowned gules, second and third bendy lozengy argent and azure, surmounting the whole at the fess point a roundel of the first, itself surmounted by a bezant charged with the letter M of the first.
The arms were approved in 1926 by the Bavarian State Ministry of the Interior and go back to a court seal from 1473. It is similar to arms borne by Electoral Palatinate. The first and fourth quarters show the Palatine Lion, and the second and third show the Bavarian “bendy lozengy” pattern (that is, diamond shapes formed by two sets of bends set at different angles overlapping). The M in the middle is an old municipal symbol used for marking the municipal area.
, Saône-et-Loire
, France
since 1980
and also more locally to the Mittelhaardt-Deutsche Weinstraße growing area. Belonging to Meckenheim are two local appellations, namely Neuberg and Spielberg, themselves both within the greater appellation of Hofstück.
In Meckenheim there are 51 winegrowing businesses with planted vineyard areas of 0.3 ha or more; the average area for each business is 4.8 ha. All together, vineyards cover 258 ha within Meckenheim’s municipal area. White wines produced by Meckenheim winegrowing businesses account for 57% of the production, while the other 43% is red wines (as at 2003).
Municipalities of Germany
Municipalities are the lowest level of territorial division in Germany. This may be the fourth level of territorial division in Germany, apart from those states which include Regierungsbezirke , where municipalities then become the fifth level.-Overview:With more than 3,400,000 inhabitants, the...
belonging to a Verbandsgemeinde
Verbandsgemeinde
A Verbandsgemeinde is an administrative unit in the German Bundesländer of Rhineland-Palatinate and Saxony-Anhalt.-Rhineland-Palatinate:...
, a kind of collective municipality – in the Bad Dürkheim
Bad Dürkheim (district)
Bad Dürkheim is a district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is bounded by the districts of Kaiserslautern, Donnersbergkreis and Alzey-Worms, the city of Worms, the Rhein-Pfalz-Kreis, the city of Neustadt/Weinstraße, the districts of Südliche Weinstraße, the city of Landau , the district...
district in Rhineland-Palatinate
Rhineland-Palatinate
Rhineland-Palatinate is one of the 16 states of the Federal Republic of Germany. It has an area of and about four million inhabitants. The capital is Mainz. English speakers also commonly refer to the state by its German name, Rheinland-Pfalz ....
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
.
Location
The municipality lies at the edge of the Weinstraße region (as distinct from the Deutsche Weinstraße – or German Wine Route – itself) and is part of the Rhine-Neckar urban agglomeration. Meckenheim belongs to the Verbandsgemeinde of DeidesheimDeidesheim (Verbandsgemeinde)
Deidesheim is a Verbandsgemeinde in the district of Bad Dürkheim, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. The seat of the Verbandsgemeinde is in Deidesheim....
, whose seat is in the like-named town
Deidesheim
Deidesheim is a town in the Bad Dürkheim district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany with some 3,700 inhabitants.The town lies in the northwest of the Rhine-Neckar urban agglomeration and since 1973 it has been the seat of the Verbandsgemeinde of Deidesheim. The most important industries are tourism...
.
History
The FrankishFranks
The Franks were a confederation of Germanic tribes first attested in the third century AD as living north and east of the Lower Rhine River. From the third to fifth centuries some Franks raided Roman territory while other Franks joined the Roman troops in Gaul. Only the Salian Franks formed a...
village of Meckenheim is believed to have arisen in the 5th century AD. In 768, a first donation from Meckenheim to Lorsch Abbey
Lorsch Abbey
The Abbey of Lorsch is a former Imperial Abbey in Lorsch, Germany, about 10 km east of Worms, one of the most renowned monasteries of the Carolingian Empire. Even in its ruined state, its remains are among the most important pre-Romanesque–Carolingian style buildings in Germany...
was documented; further donations to other monasteries followed. In 991, some Meckenheim holdings passed to Duke Otto of Weißenburg (now Wissembourg
Wissembourg
Wissembourg is a commune in the Bas-Rhin department in Alsace in northeastern France.It is situated on the little River Lauter close to the border between France and Germany approximately north of Strasbourg and west of Karlsruhe. Wissembourg is a sub-prefecture of the department...
in nearby Alsace
Alsace
Alsace is the fifth-smallest of the 27 regions of France in land area , and the smallest in metropolitan France. It is also the seventh-most densely populated region in France and third most densely populated region in metropolitan France, with ca. 220 inhabitants per km²...
, 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...
). In the 12th century, Saint Giles
Saint Giles
Saint Giles was a Greek Christian hermit saint from Athens, whose legend is centered in Provence and Septimania. The tomb in the abbey Giles was said to have founded, in St-Gilles-du-Gard, became a place of pilgrimage and a stop on the road that led from Arles to Santiago de Compostela, the...
’s Church (Ägidiuskirche) was built.
In 1287, Meckenheim was bought by Count Palatine Louis II, and thus it thereafter belonged to Electoral Palatinate. In 1459 or 1460, Meckenheim was burnt down by the Counts of Leiningen (Emich VII). With the introduction of 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...
into Electoral Palatinate, Meckenheim became Protestant
Protestantism
Protestantism is one of the three major groupings within Christianity. It is a movement that began in Germany in the early 16th century as a reaction against medieval Roman Catholic doctrines and practices, especially in regards to salvation, justification, and ecclesiology.The doctrines of the...
. In 1585, Saint Giles’s Church was newly built.
After widespread destruction in the Thirty Years' War
Thirty Years' War
The Thirty Years' War was fought primarily in what is now Germany, and at various points involved most countries in Europe. It was one of the most destructive conflicts in European history....
, Meckenheim’s inhabitants forsook it in 1641. The Meckenheim church passed to the Catholics in 1707; in 1747 and 1748, the Protestant church was built. During 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...
in the late 18th century, Meckenheim sustained great damage. As a result of decisions made at the Congress of Vienna
Congress of Vienna
The Congress of Vienna was a conference of ambassadors of European states chaired by Klemens Wenzel von Metternich, and held in Vienna from September, 1814 to June, 1815. The objective of the Congress was to settle the many issues arising from the French Revolutionary Wars, the Napoleonic Wars,...
, Meckenheim passed in 1816, together with the rest of the Palatinate 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 1824, the schoolhouse-municipal house (Hauptstraße 98) was built, and in 1872 the building that now serves as town hall (Hauptstraße 58). In 1894, the agricultural coöperative society and the Raiffeisen
Friedrich Wilhelm Raiffeisen
Friedrich Wilhelm Raiffeisen was a German mayor and cooperative pioneer. Several credit union systems and cooperative banks have been named after Raiffeisen, who pioneered rural credit unions.- Life :...
credit coöperative, which were merged in 1938, were founded.
In 1911, the Lokalbahn – or local railway – between Ludwigshafen and Dannstadt, which had opened in 1890, was extended to Meckenheim. Service continued until 1955, when it was replaced by buslines. In 1913, Meckenheim was connected to a public electrical grid, and in 1928 to a public water supply system. In 1922, the Meckenheim Winemakers’ Association was founded. In 1936, the fruit market hall was built.
After the Second World War, Meckenheim passed in 1946 together with the rest of the Palatinate to the newly founded state
States of Germany
Germany is made up of sixteen which are partly sovereign constituent states of the Federal Republic of Germany. Land literally translates as "country", and constitutionally speaking, they are constituent countries...
of Rhineland-Palatinate
Rhineland-Palatinate
Rhineland-Palatinate is one of the 16 states of the Federal Republic of Germany. It has an area of and about four million inhabitants. The capital is Mainz. English speakers also commonly refer to the state by its German name, Rheinland-Pfalz ....
. Between 1952 and 1955, the sporting ground with the clubhouse was laid out. In 1956, Meckenheim was connected to a public gas supply system. In 1961, a new folk high school
Folk high school
Folk high schools are institutions for adult education that generally do not grant academic degrees, though certain courses might exist leading to that goal...
opened and in 1964, it was connected to a public sewer system.
Religion
In 2007, 54.4% of the inhabitants were EvangelicalEvangelical Church in Germany
The Evangelical Church in Germany is a federation of 22 Lutheran, Unified and Reformed Protestant regional church bodies in Germany. The EKD is not a church in a theological understanding because of the denominational differences. However, the member churches share full pulpit and altar...
and 29.4% Catholic. The rest belonged to other faiths or adhered to none.
Municipal council
The municipal election held on 7 June 2009 yielded the following results:| Party | Result in % | No. of seats |
|---|---|---|
| CDU | 23.6 (+0.9) | 4 (=) |
| FWG Free Voters Free Voters is a German concept in which an association of persons participates in an election without having the status of a registered political party. Usually it is a locally organized group of voters in the form of a registered association . In most cases, Free Voters are active only at the... |
52,6 (+3,5) | 11 (+1) |
| SPD Social Democratic Party of Germany The Social Democratic Party of Germany is a social-democratic political party in Germany... |
23.7 (−4.5) | 5 (−1) |
Coat of arms
The German blazon reads: In geviertem Schild oben rechts und unten links in Schwarz ein rotbewehrter, -bezungter und -bekrönter goldener Löwe, oben links und unten rechts von Silber und Blau gerautet, in der Mitte belegt mit einem schwarzumrandeten goldenen Kreis, darin ein schwarzes M.The municipality’s arms
Coat of arms
A coat of arms is a unique heraldic design on a shield or escutcheon or on a surcoat or tabard used to cover and protect armour and to identify the wearer. Thus the term is often stated as "coat-armour", because it was anciently displayed on the front of a coat of cloth...
might in English heraldic
Heraldry
Heraldry is the profession, study, or art of creating, granting, and blazoning arms and ruling on questions of rank or protocol, as exercised by an officer of arms. Heraldry comes from Anglo-Norman herald, from the Germanic compound harja-waldaz, "army commander"...
language be described thus: Quarterly, first and fourth sable a lion rampant Or armed, langued and crowned gules, second and third bendy lozengy argent and azure, surmounting the whole at the fess point a roundel of the first, itself surmounted by a bezant charged with the letter M of the first.
The arms were approved in 1926 by the Bavarian State Ministry of the Interior and go back to a court seal from 1473. It is similar to arms borne by Electoral Palatinate. The first and fourth quarters show the Palatine Lion, and the second and third show the Bavarian “bendy lozengy” pattern (that is, diamond shapes formed by two sets of bends set at different angles overlapping). The M in the middle is an old municipal symbol used for marking the municipal area.
Town partnerships
Meckenheim fosters partnerships with the following places: LugnyLugny, Saône-et-Loire
Lugny is a commune in the Saône-et-Loire department in the region of Bourgogne in eastern France.-References:*...
, Saône-et-Loire
Saône-et-Loire
Saône-et-Loire is a French department, named after the Saône and the Loire rivers between which it lies.-History:When it was formed during the French Revolution, as of March 4, 1790 in fulfillment of the law of December 22, 1789, the new department combined parts of the provinces of southern...
, 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
Winegrowing
Meckenheim’s vineyards belong to the Palatinate wine regionPalatinate (wine region)
Palatinate is a German wine-growing region in the area of Bad Dürkheim, Neustadt an der Weinstraße, and Landau in Rhineland-Palatinate. Before 1993, it was known as Rhine Palatinate . With under cultivation in 2008, the region is the second largest wine region in Germany after Rheinhessen...
and also more locally to the Mittelhaardt-Deutsche Weinstraße growing area. Belonging to Meckenheim are two local appellations, namely Neuberg and Spielberg, themselves both within the greater appellation of Hofstück.
In Meckenheim there are 51 winegrowing businesses with planted vineyard areas of 0.3 ha or more; the average area for each business is 4.8 ha. All together, vineyards cover 258 ha within Meckenheim’s municipal area. White wines produced by Meckenheim winegrowing businesses account for 57% of the production, while the other 43% is red wines (as at 2003).
Sons and daughters of the town
- Norbert Meder, (1947– ), educator
- Ludwig Scharf, (1864-1938), lyricist and translator