Battenberg, Hesse

Infobox Ort in Deutschland
Name = Battenberg
Art = Stadt
Wappen = Wappen Battenberg Eder.svg
lat_deg = 51 |lat_min = 01
lon_deg = 08 |lon_min = 39
Lageplan =
Bundesland = Hessen
Regierungsbezirk = Kassel
Landkreis = Waldeck-Frankenberg
Höhe = 340
Fläche = 64.73
Einwohner = 5622
Stand = 2006-12-31
PLZ = 35088
Vorwahl = 06452
Kfz = KB
Gemeindeschlüssel = 06 6 35 004
Gliederung = 4 Ortsteile
Adresse = Hauptstr. 58
35088 Battenberg
Website = [http://www.battenberg-eder.de/ www.battenberg-eder.de]
Bürgermeister = Heinfried Horsel
Partei = parteilos

Battenberg is a small town in Waldeck-Frankenberg district in Hesse, Germany.

Geography

Location

The middle centre (in terms of Walter Christaller's Central Place Theory) of Battenberg lies in the "Ederbergland", or Eder Highland, to which the Burgwald abutting the town to the east also belongs, on the southern edge of the Sauerland and the Rothaargebirge. Lying between 320 and 650 m above sea level, the town is also crossed by the river Eder.

Neighbouring communities

Battenberg borders in the north on the community of Bromskirchen, in the northeast on the community of Allendorf, in the southeast on the community of Burgwald (all three in Waldeck-Frankenberg), in the south on the community of Münchhausen am Christenberg (Marburg-Biedenkopf), and in the west on the towns of Hatzfeld (Waldeck-Frankenberg) and Bad Berleburg (Siegen-Wittgenstein in North Rhine-Westphalia).

Constituent communities

Battenberg includes the following centres:
*Berghofen
*Dodenau
*Frohnhausen
*Laisa

History

In 778 there was fighting near Laisa and Battenfeld as part of Charlemagne's Saxon Wars. A branch of the Wittgenstein noble family began calling themselves the "Counts of Battenberg" in 1214. In 1232, Battenberg had its first documentary mention, and two years later it was granted town rights. The early-Gothic church dates from 1249. In 1297, the town's ownership was transferred to the Archbishops of Mainz. In 1464, the "Amt" of Battenberg passed to Hesse. In 1932, Battenberg became part of the Frankenberg/Eder district. As part of municipal reform in 1974, the districts of Frankenberg (containing Battenberg) and Waldeck were united to form the district of Waldeck-Frankenberg.

The dynasty of the counts of Battenberg ceased to exist in 1314, their castle was demolished throughout the following centuries. When Prince Alexander von Hessen-Darmstadt, the brother of the grand duke of Hesse, married Julia von Hauke, the orphaned daughter of the former Polish ministry of war, their liaison was not considered befitting his rank. Therefore her brother-in-law promoted her to countess of Battenberg in 1851 and later on to duchess of Battenberg in 1858. With her husband, who agreed to carry the same title and name, she lived near Seeheim-Jugenheim at "Schloss Heiligenberg" , a remodelled manor. Her sons Ludwig Alexander and Heinrich Moritz both served the British empire, their families anglicized their name to Mountbatten ("Berg" means "mountain" in German) in 1917.

Population development

Politics

Town council

The town council's 31 seats are apportioned thus, in accordance with municipal elections held on 26 March 2006:Note: "Bürgerlisten" are "citizens' lists", not actual political parties.

Coat of arms

Battenberg's civic coat of arms might heraldically be described thus: Party per pale sable and argent.

The colours are taken from the arms borne by the town's old overlords, the Counts of Battenberg, who were a branch of the Counts of Wittgenstein. Battenberg's arms have their roots in the 13th century, putting them among Hesse's oldest municipal coats of arms.

Various other charges have appeared in the arms over the centuries, however. Sometimes it was a tower, the Count of Battenberg and the Archbishop of Mainz, the Archbishop by himself, or the wheel of Mainz. One version even showed the same simple composition seen here, but with red instead of black. This would have made the arms identical to those currently borne by Buchloe in Bavaria. [http://www.ngw.nl/int/dld/b/battenbe.htm]

Town partnerships

* Senonches, France
* Romsey, United Kingdom
* Litvínov, Czech Republic
* Horní Jiřetín, Czech Republic
* Loon op Zand, Netherlands

Adoption

* In 1954, Battenberg "adopted" Sudeten Germans who had been driven out of the community of Obergeorgenthal (Horní Jiřetín) in the Brüx district.

References

External links

* [http://www.battenberg-eder.de/ Battenberg]
* [http://www.laisa.org/ Laisa]
*dmoz|World/Deutsch/Regional/Europa/Deutschland/Hessen/Landkreise/Waldeck-Frankenberg/Städte_und_Gemeinden/Battenberg,_Eder|Battenberg