Friedrichsdorf

Infobox Ort in Deutschland
Art = Stadt
Wappen = Wappen Friedrichsdorf Taunus.svg
lat_deg = 50 | lat_min = 15 | lat_sec = 20
lon_deg = 8 | lon_min = 38 | lon_sec = 23
Lageplan =
Bundesland = Hessen
Landkreis = Hochtaunuskreis
Höhe = 200
Fläche = 30.12
Einwohner = 24483
Stand = 2006-12-31
PLZ = 61381
Vorwahl = 06172 (Friedrichsdorf, Dillingen, Seulberg), 06175 (Köppern) und 06007 (Burgholzhausen)
Kfz = HG
Gemeindeschlüssel = 06 4 34 002
LOCODE = DE FRF
Gliederung = 4 Stadtteile
Adresse = Hugenottenstraße 55
61381 Friedrichsdorf
Website = [http://www.friedrichsdorf.de/ www.friedrichsdorf.de]
Bürgermeister = Horst Burghardt
Partei = Bündnis 90/Die Grünen

Friedrichsdorf is a town in the Hochtaunuskreis, some 20 km north of Frankfurt am Main in Hesse, Germany.

Geography

Location

. From the Taunus's heights flows the Erlenbach on down and through the town.

Neighbouring communities

Friedrichsdorf borders in the north and east on the town of Rosbach (Wetteraukreis), in the south on the town of Bad Homburg, and in the west on the community of Wehrheim.

History

The town's founding in 1687 goes back to the persecution of the Huguenots in France. Millions of them fled France. One part of this exodus was granted asylum by Landgrave Friedrich II with the words "Lieber will ich mein Silbergerät verkaufen, als diesen armen Leuten die Aufnahme versagen" ("I would rather sell my silverware than fail to receive these poor people."). They founded Friedrichsdorf, naming it in thanks after the Landgrave.They brought flannel and stockings with them from France, which spread quickly.

Later, zwieback was produced in Friedrichsdorf, which is why Friedrichsdorf is known as the "Town of Zwieback". Out of the zwieback maker "Emil Louis Pauly" grew Milupa, still in business now as a baby food maker, and still headquartered in Friedrichsdorf, although it is now owned by Numico, a Dutch company, and the factory has been moved abroad.

The town's most famous son was Philipp Reis, a teacher at the Institut Garnier and inventor of the electric transmission of speech, better known as the telephone, to whom a museum in Friedrichsdorf is dedicated, and after whom Friedrichsdorf's comprehensive school is named ("Philipp-Reis-Schule").

In 1916, Dillingen, which had been founded only in 1804, was amalgamated with Friedrichsdorf. Dillingen took its name from a village which had been forsaken in the Thirty Years' War, and on whose rural area Friedrichsdorf's Huguenots later settled.

Constituent communities

In July 1972 the communities of Friedrichsdorf, Seulberg, Köppern and Burgholzhausen merged to form the town of Friedrichsdorf/Taunus.

Köppern

Köppern had its first documentary mention in 1269. At this time, Buchard von Printsac was given in fief a watermill at "coppern" by Count Gerhard von Eppstein. Linen weaving and brickmaking were for a long time, next to farming, the most important economic activities. Later came hatmaking and tanning. In 1901, the "Waldkrankenhaus" ("Forest Hospital"), which still stands today (as the "Fachklinik für Psychiatrie und Psychotherapie", or Specialized Clinic for Psychiatry and Psychotherapy) was founded by Dr. Emil Sioli from Frankfurt.

Köppern has a street hockey team, trained by, among others, professional hockey player Ingo Schwarz, who plays for "Rote Teufel Bad Nauheim".

Burgholzhausen

In 1221, Burgholzhausen was being mentioned as Holzhausen in documents. The most important economic activity next to farming and linen weaving was said to be tilemaking, whose raw materials were dug from nearby clay pits. In the late 17th century, through the Ingelheimer family's lordly leadership, fruit growing was brought to Burgholzhausen

Seulberg

Seulberg was first mentioned in the Lorsch codex in 767. It is said to be one of the oldest settled places in the Hochtaunuskreis. Besides farming and linen weaving, pottery has long been an important activity here. With the Hugenots in Friedrichsdorf there was brisk trade. In a somewhat less cheerful chapter in Seulberg's history, there were witch trials in the 17th century which resulted in 31 women being put to death.

Coat of arms

Friedrichsdorf was given its first civic coat of arms in 1821 in remembrance of Russian Princess Alexandra's – and her eight guests' – visit to Count Friedrich in Bad Homburg: In azure a ring of nine roses argent ("ie" a blue shield with a ring of nine silver roses).

After amalgamation, a new coat of arms was created in 1975, taking the newly amalgamated parts of town into account. It might heraldically be described thus: Party per saltire, above, in azure a rose argent, dexter in argent a four-spoked wheel gules, sinister in argent a horseshoe gules, below, in gules a tower Or. The silver rose charge has been kept, although now there is only one instead of a ring of nine. The red stylized wheel stands for Köppern and the red horseshoe for Seulberg. The tower comes from Burgholzhausen's old arms.

Economy and infrastructure

Transport

Through Friedrichsdorf's outlying rural areas runs Autobahn A5, an important traffic artery that also has an interchange at the northern edge of the municipal area (16, "Friedberg / Friedrichsdorf"). Furthermore, Federal Highway ("Bundesstraße") B 455 also runs through the town.

The town is also well supplied when it comes to rail transport. There are four stations: one in every constituent community. Friedrichsdorf station is the end of Rhein-Main S-Bahn line 5. Also, railcars from the Frankfurt-Königstein Railway, which run on the "Taunusbahn" stop here. The cross-country connection to the Main-Weser Railway to Friedberg is provided by the Butzbach-Lich Railway.

Frankfurt International Airport can easily be reached by road. Also, the "Firma Rotorflug" can also be found in Friedrichsdorf, offering helicopter flights.

Population

(in each case on 31 December)

Schools

* Philipp-Reis-Schule
* Rhein-Main International Montessori School

Famous persons

* Abraham Louis Wallon (1807-1889), Methodist preacher in Germany and the United States
* Pierre Jean Édouard Desor (1811-1882), scientist
* Marie Blanc (1833-1881), cofounder of the casino in Monte Carlo
* Johann Philipp Reis (1834-1874), teacher and inventor (telephone)
* Karl-Herbert Scheer (1928-1991), Perry Rhodan's father
* Martin Schneider (1964), comedian, actor

Sundry

In Friedrichsdorf stands one of the two Temples of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Germany, called the Frankfurt Temple (the other one is in Freiberg, Saxony).

References

External links

* [http://www.friedrichsdorf.de/ Friedrichsdorf am Taunus]
* [http://www.philipp-reis-schule.de/ Philipp-Reis-Schule (PRS)]
* [http://www.rims-web.de/ Rhein-Main International Montessori School (RIMS)]
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