Katzenelnbogen

Infobox German Location
Name = Katzenelnbogen
Art = City
image_photo = Katzenelnbogen.jpg
image_caption =
Wappen = W stadt katzenelnbogen.jpg
lat_deg = 50 | lat_min = 16 | lat_sec = 0
lon_deg = 7 | lon_min = 59 | lon_sec = 0
Lageplan =
Bundesland = Rhineland-Palatinate
Regierungsbezirk =
Landkreis = Rhein-Lahn-Kreis
Höhe = 280
Fläche = 90.20
Einwohner = 2200
Stand = 2006-12-31
pop_ref =
PLZ = 56368
Vorwahl = 06486
Kfz = EMS
Gemeindeschlüssel = 07 1 41 068
Adresse = Burgstr. 1 56368 Katzenelnbogen
Website = [http://www.vg-katzenelnbogen.de/]
Bürgermeister = Horst Klöppel
Bürgermeistertitel = Bürgermeister
Partei =

Katzenelnbogen is the name of a castle and small city in the district of Rhein-Lahn-Kreis in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Katzenelnbogen is the seat of the "Verbandsgemeinde" ("collective municipality") Katzenelnbogen.

History

Katzenelnbogen originated as a castle built on a promontory over the river Lahn around 1095. The lords of the castle became important local magnates, acquiring during the centuries some key and highly lucrative customs rights on the Rhine. The Counts of Katzenelnbogen also built Burg Neukatzenelnbogen and Burg Rheinfels on the Rhine. The German family died out in 1479, while the Austrian lineage continued, and the county became disputed between Hesse and Nassau. In 1557, the former finally won, but when Hesse was split due to the testament of Philipp the Magnanimous, Katzenelnbogen was split as well, between Hesse-Darmstadt and the small new secondary principality of Hesse-Rheinfels. When the latter line expired in 1583, its property went to Hesse-Kassel (or Hesse-Cassel), which added the inherited part of Katzenelnbogen to its side-line principality of Hesse-Rotenburg. After the Congress of Vienna, this part of Katzenelnbogen was given to Nassau in exchange for property that had been taken away from it; after the War of 1866, with all Nassau, it became part of Prussia.

In 1945, Hesse-Darmstadt was united with most of the Prussian province of Hesse-Nassau, which included the former Hesse-Kassel along with Nassau and the formerly Free City of Frankfurt, to form the federal state of Hesse. Thus, Hesse now includes the larger part of former county of Katzenelnbogen. A smaller part of Nassau, including the old castle and village bearing the name of Katzenelnbogen, ended up as part of Rhineland-Palatinate (part of the Rhein-Lahn and Westerwaldkreis districts).

Etymology

The name "Katzenelnbogen" derives from the old "Cattimelibocus". [ [http://susi.e-technik.uni-ulm.de:8080/Meyers2/seite/werk/meyers/band/9/seite/0623/meyers_b9_s0623.html Meyers Konversationslexikon 1888, Vol. 9, Page 623.] ] It is consisting of the ancient Germanic tribe of the Chatti and "Melibokus", the Roman name of any mountains like the Harz or the Teutoburg Forest. [ [http://susi.e-technik.uni-ulm.de:8080/Meyers2/seite/werk/meyers/band/11/seite/0449/meyers_b11_s0449.html Meyers Konversationslexikon 1888, Vol. 11, Page 449.] ] Over the centuries the name changed to Katzenelnbogen, in folk etymology "cat's elbow".

History of Wine

In the history of wine, Katzenelnbogen is famous for the first documentation of Riesling grapes in the world . In 1435, the storage inventory of Count John IV. of Katzenelnbogen, a member of the holy roman high nobility, lists the purchase of vines of "Rieslingen".

References

External links

* http://www.graf-von-katzenelnbogen.de/
* http://www.schloss-katzenelnbogen.de/
* http://www.ngw.nl/int/dld/k/katzenel.htm
* http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/view.jsp?artid=135&letter=K