Niedererbach
Encyclopedia
Niedererbach is an Ortsgemeinde – a community belonging to a Verbandsgemeinde
– in the Westerwaldkreis
in Rhineland-Palatinate
, Germany
.
between Koblenz
and Limburg an der Lahn
on the edge of the Nassau Nature Park on the boundary with Hesse
. It belongs to the Verbandsgemeinde of Montabaur
, a kind of collective municipality. Its seat is in the like-named town
.
, Dreikirchen
, Nentershausen
, Görgeshausen
and Elz, Hesse
.
In 1291, Niedererbach had its first documentary mention as Erlebach. The document is dated 12 May 1291. In the document a pastor named Friedrich and the parish of Erlebach are mentioned which document a legal transaction with the commander and the Teutonic Knights
in Koblenz
. The original is kept at the Central Archive of the Teutonic Knights in Vienna
. Since 2006, the community of Niedererbach has been in possession of a copy of the document.
In 2006 the community celebrated one of the biggest festivals since its beginnings, the one hundredth Kirmes. This most important of village festivals is held each year on the last weekend in August and recalls the consecration of the parish church of St. Katharina in 1906. One part of the tower is considerably older and may come from the time about AD 1200. Before today’s church stood here, there was on the same spot a Baroque
church built in 1725, about the size of the side nave today. This old church was torn down in 1904, although the tower was left standing. Only the uppermost third was torn down and renewed. In September 1904, excavation work began for the new parish church. On 14 May 1905, the first stone was laid and on 10 August 1905, the topping-out ceremony was held. The framework was completed in December 1905. In May 1906 began the plastering, the window fitting and the interior decoration. On 19 August 1906, the new church building was ceremonially blessed by Bishop Dominikus Willi
Since Niedererbachers were once known for making little whistles from willow twigs, they are sometimes still known as Erwocher Peifscher today.
in the community’s arms
are symbols of the parish church’s patronage, namely Saint Catherine
(the wheel is also known as a Catherine wheel). The alder
sprig refers to the community’s name (Erbach = Erlenbach). The wavy parting per pale stands for the community’s charming rural location in the Erbach valley. As a token of the former allegiance to the Electorate of Trier, that territory’s tincture
s have been incorporated into the civic arms.
is Diez - Nentershausen
on the A 3 (Cologne
–Frankfurt), some 3 km away. The nearest InterCityExpress
stops are the railway stations at Limburg Süd and Montabaur on the Cologne-Frankfurt high-speed rail line, each 13 km away, as well as Koblenz on the Rechte Rheinstrecke. Niedererbach itself has a halt on the Limburg/Lahn - Siershahn railway line (Unterwesterwaldbahn). This local transport line links the region to the InterCityExpress station in Montabaur and is run by the private transport company Vectus. The Unterwesterwaldbahn was fully modernized technically in early 2007 to a state-of-the-art level, thus ensuring continued running for years.
Verbandsgemeinde
A Verbandsgemeinde is an administrative unit in the German Bundesländer of Rhineland-Palatinate and Saxony-Anhalt.-Rhineland-Palatinate:...
– in the Westerwaldkreis
Westerwaldkreis
The Westerwaldkreis is a district in the east of Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany...
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 community lies in the WesterwaldWesterwald
The Westerwald is a low mountain range on the right bank of the River Rhine in the German federal states of Rhineland-Palatinate, Hesse and North Rhine-Westphalia. It is a part of the Rhine Massif...
between Koblenz
Koblenz
Koblenz is a German city situated on both banks of the Rhine at its confluence with the Moselle, where the Deutsches Eck and its monument are situated.As Koblenz was one of the military posts established by Drusus about 8 BC, the...
and Limburg an der Lahn
Limburg an der Lahn
Limburg an der Lahn is the district seat of Limburg-Weilburg in Hesse, Germany.-Location:Limburg lies in western Hesse between the Taunus and the Westerwald on the river Lahn....
on the edge of the Nassau Nature Park on the boundary with 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...
. It belongs to the Verbandsgemeinde of Montabaur
Montabaur (Verbandsgemeinde)
Montabaur is a Verbandsgemeinde in the district Westerwaldkreis, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. The seat of the Verbandsgemeinde is in Montabaur....
, a kind of collective municipality. Its seat is in the like-named town
Montabaur
Montabaur is a town and the district seat of the Westerwaldkreis in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. At the same time, it is also the administrative centre of the Verbandsgemeinde of Montabaur – a kind of collective municipality – to which 24 other communities belong...
.
Neighbouring communities
Niedererbach’s neighbours are Obererbach, WesterwaldkreisObererbach, Westerwaldkreis
Obererbach is an Ortsgemeinde – a community belonging to a Verbandsgemeinde – in the Westerwaldkreis in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany.-Location:...
, Dreikirchen
Dreikirchen
Dreikirchen is an Ortsgemeinde – a community belonging to a Verbandsgemeinde – in the Westerwaldkreis in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany.-Location:...
, Nentershausen
Nentershausen
Nentershausen is a community in Hersfeld-Rotenburg district in northeastern Hesse, Germany.- Location :The community lies in the mountains in eastern Hesse, where it finds itself in the centre of the Richelsdorfer Gebirge between the Fulda to the west and the Werra to the east...
, Görgeshausen
Görgeshausen
Görgeshausen is an Ortsgemeinde – a community belonging to a Verbandsgemeinde – in the Westerwaldkreis in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany.-Location:...
and Elz, Hesse
Elz, Hesse
Elz is a community in Limburg-Weilburg district in western Hesse, Germany, on the boundary with Rhineland-Palatinate.- Location :Elz lies at an elevation of 110 to 291 m north of the Lahn in the Limburg Basin with the municipal area reaching into the heights on its western edge and thereby...
.
History
Teutonic Knights
The Order of Brothers of the German House of Saint Mary in Jerusalem , commonly the Teutonic Order , is a German medieval military order, in modern times a purely religious Catholic order...
in Koblenz
Koblenz
Koblenz is a German city situated on both banks of the Rhine at its confluence with the Moselle, where the Deutsches Eck and its monument are situated.As Koblenz was one of the military posts established by Drusus about 8 BC, the...
. The original is kept at the Central Archive of the Teutonic Knights in Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
. Since 2006, the community of Niedererbach has been in possession of a copy of the document.
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...
church built in 1725, about the size of the side nave today. This old church was torn down in 1904, although the tower was left standing. Only the uppermost third was torn down and renewed. In September 1904, excavation work began for the new parish church. On 14 May 1905, the first stone was laid and on 10 August 1905, the topping-out ceremony was held. The framework was completed in December 1905. In May 1906 began the plastering, the window fitting and the interior decoration. On 19 August 1906, the new church building was ceremonially blessed by Bishop Dominikus Willi
Since Niedererbachers were once known for making little whistles from willow twigs, they are sometimes still known as Erwocher Peifscher today.
Community council
The council is made up of 16 council members who were elected in a municipal election on 13 June 2004. In the last direct vote for mayor (Ortsbürgermeister), held on the same day, Berthold Ortseifen was elected to office as the only candidate for a further five years.Coat of arms
The sword and breaking wheelBreaking wheel
The breaking wheel, also known as the Catherine wheel or simply the wheel, was a torture device used for capital punishment in the Middle Ages and early modern times for public execution by bludgeoning to death...
in the community’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...
are symbols of the parish church’s patronage, namely Saint Catherine
Catherine of Alexandria
Saint Catherine of Alexandria, also known as Saint Catherine of the Wheel and The Great Martyr Saint Catherine is, according to tradition, a Christian saint and virgin, who was martyred in the early 4th century at the hands of the pagan emperor Maxentius...
(the wheel is also known as a Catherine wheel). The alder
Alder
Alder is the common name of a genus of flowering plants belonging to the birch family . The genus comprises about 30 species of monoecious trees and shrubs, few reaching large size, distributed throughout the North Temperate Zone and in the Americas along the Andes southwards to...
sprig refers to the community’s name (Erbach = Erlenbach). The wavy parting per pale stands for the community’s charming rural location in the Erbach valley. As a token of the former allegiance to the Electorate of Trier, that territory’s tincture
Tincture (heraldry)
In heraldry, tinctures are the colours used to emblazon a coat of arms. These can be divided into several categories including light tinctures called metals, dark tinctures called colours, nonstandard colours called stains, furs, and "proper". A charge tinctured proper is coloured as it would be...
s have been incorporated into the civic arms.
Music
- CHORamel (formerly Junger Chor) Niedererbach (choir)
- Chorgemeinschaft “Cäcilia-St.Katharina” (choir association)
Sport
- Sportverein Niedererbach 1920 e.V. (sport club)
- Schützenverein Niedererbach 1978 e. V. (shooting club; disciplines: air rifle, air pistol, sport bow)
- Trimm-Treff Niedererbach (fitness)
Heimatpflege
These are clubs that make it their business to improve or promote the community:- Verschönerungsverein Niedererbach 1936 e.V. (beautification)
- Förderverein "Unser Dorf hat Zukunft" 2006 e.V. (promotion)
Buildings
- St.Katharina parish church
- Railway viaduct
- Historic slate gallery
- “Alter Sportplatz” open-air stage
Regular events
- Kermis (last weekend in August whose Sunday is also in August)
- Ostereierschießen, shooting club (“Easter Egg Shoot”, Sunday before Easter)
- Maiwanderung, beautification club (1 May)
- Dorfpokalschießen, shooting club (“Cup Shoot”, 3 October)
Transport
The nearest Autobahn interchangeInterchange (road)
In the field of road transport, an interchange is a road junction that typically uses grade separation, and one or more ramps, to permit traffic on at least one highway to pass through the junction without directly crossing any other traffic stream. It differs from a standard intersection, at which...
is Diez - Nentershausen
Nentershausen
Nentershausen is a community in Hersfeld-Rotenburg district in northeastern Hesse, Germany.- Location :The community lies in the mountains in eastern Hesse, where it finds itself in the centre of the Richelsdorfer Gebirge between the Fulda to the west and the Werra to the east...
on the A 3 (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...
–Frankfurt), some 3 km away. The nearest InterCityExpress
InterCityExpress
The Intercity-Express or ICE is a system of high-speed trains predominantly running in Germany and neighbouring countries. It is the highest service category offered by DB Fernverkehr and is the flagship of Deutsche Bahn...
stops are the railway stations at Limburg Süd and Montabaur on the Cologne-Frankfurt high-speed rail line, each 13 km away, as well as Koblenz on the Rechte Rheinstrecke. Niedererbach itself has a halt on the Limburg/Lahn - Siershahn railway line (Unterwesterwaldbahn). This local transport line links the region to the InterCityExpress station in Montabaur and is run by the private transport company Vectus. The Unterwesterwaldbahn was fully modernized technically in early 2007 to a state-of-the-art level, thus ensuring continued running for years.
Public institutions
- Kindergarten
- Dorfgemeinschaftshalle "Haus Erlenbach" (community centre)
- Jugendraum ("Youth Room")
- Barbecue place with pavilion