Beinhausen
Encyclopedia
Beinhausen is an Ortsgemeinde – a municipality
belonging to a Verbandsgemeinde
, a kind of collective municipality – in the Vulkaneifel district
in Rhineland-Palatinate
, Germany
. It belongs to the Verbandsgemeinde of Kelberg
, whose seat is in the like-named municipality
.
between Kelberg
and Daun
on the river Lieser, and more specifically in the Vulkaneifel
, a part of the Eifel known for its volcanic history, geographical and geological features, and even ongoing activity today, including gases that sometimes well up from the earth.
, Beinhausen belonged to the Amt of Daun in the Electorate of Trier. On 10 August 1290, Beinhausen had its first documentary mention as Beinchenhusen. A later source speaks of Beyirhusen, and later still, a 1504 purchase agreement names a one “Clais van Beyhusen” as well as the “Kirchenmeister (a title now no longer used, but akin to “sexton
”) from Hilgenrait”. Under Prussia
n administration, the municipality was in the Bürgermeisterei (“Mayoralty”) of Sarmersbach
.
Beinhausen is overwhelmingly Catholic and is the parochial seat of the Parish of St. Hubertus Beinhausen, to which, besides Beinhausen itself, belong the villages of Boxberg
, Neichen
, Kradenbach
, Nerdlen
, Sarmersbach and Gefell
. Until the early 20th century, Katzwinkel
also belonged to the Hilgerath parish (as it was once known). The Beinhausen parish area is also commonly called Struth.
The Hilgerath parish church, standing alone on the mountain within Neichen’s municipal limits, has been parish church since days of yore. The tower is known from its design to be from the mid 15th century; the main nave has existed in its current form since 1804. In 1950, the church was widened with two side naves.
In more recent times, the return of the Hilgerath Gnadenbild (variously translated “holy picture” or “image of grace”, among others), Beweinung Christi (“Lamentation of Christ”) from the mid 15th century might be noted in the history books. This had been stolen from the parish church in a burglary in 1975 and thereafter its whereabouts were unknown. In 1994, Bernhard Euteneuer, who from 1992 to 2000 was the Beinhausen parish priest, managed to fetch the valuable Gnadenbild back to Hilgerath from Biberach an der Riß
, where it had resurfaced. To show their thankfulness, the Struth Catholics have ever since undertaken a yearly pilgrimage in which they converge on Hilgerath, always on the Sunday after the Feast of the Cross
(14 September).
In the course of municipal restructuring in Rhineland-Palatinate
, the municipality was assigned in 1970 to the Verbandsgemeinde of Kelberg
.
at the municipal election held on 7 June 2009, and the honorary mayor as chairman.
The municipality’s arms
might in English heraldic
language be described thus: Argent in base a mount vert surmounted by a house of the field, above the mount a stag’s head caboshed sable, between his attires a Latin cross gules.
The stag’s head and the cross are references to Saint Hubert
, the parish’s patron saint. The green mount in base is meant to represent the hill of Hilgerath, upon which the parish church stands. The house surmounting the mount is meant to represent the village of Beinhausen, which lies at the foot of the hill. It also symbolizes the placename element —hausen. The municipality’s name is reckoned to be a form of bei den Häusern – “at the houses”.
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 Vulkaneifel district
Districts of Germany
The districts of Germany are known as , except in the states of North Rhine-Westphalia and Schleswig-Holstein where they are known simply as ....
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...
. It belongs to the Verbandsgemeinde of Kelberg
Kelberg (Verbandsgemeinde)
Kelberg is a Verbandsgemeinde in the district Vulkaneifel, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. The seat of the Verbandsgemeinde is in Kelberg....
, whose seat is in the like-named municipality
Kelberg
Kelberg is an Ortsgemeinde – a municipality belonging to a Verbandsgemeinde, a kind of collective municipality – in the Vulkaneifel district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It belongs to the like-named Verbandsgemeinde, and is home to its seat...
.
Location
The municipality lies in the EifelEifel
The Eifel is a low mountain range in western Germany and eastern Belgium. It occupies parts of southwestern North Rhine-Westphalia, northwestern Rhineland-Palatinate and the south of the German-speaking Community of Belgium....
between Kelberg
Kelberg
Kelberg is an Ortsgemeinde – a municipality belonging to a Verbandsgemeinde, a kind of collective municipality – in the Vulkaneifel district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It belongs to the like-named Verbandsgemeinde, and is home to its seat...
and Daun
Daun, Germany
Daun is a town in the Vulkaneifel district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is the district seat and also the seat of the Verbandsgemeinde of Daun.- Location :...
on the river Lieser, and more specifically in the Vulkaneifel
Vulkan Eifel
The Vulkan Eifel is a region in the Eifel Mountains in Germany, that is defined to a large extent by its volcanic geological history. Characteristic of the Vulkan Eifel are its typical explosion crater lakes or maars, and numerous other signs of volcanic activity such as volcanic tuffs, lava...
, a part of the Eifel known for its volcanic history, geographical and geological features, and even ongoing activity today, including gases that sometimes well up from the earth.
History
In the Middle AgesMiddle Ages
The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...
, Beinhausen belonged to the Amt of Daun in the Electorate of Trier. On 10 August 1290, Beinhausen had its first documentary mention as Beinchenhusen. A later source speaks of Beyirhusen, and later still, a 1504 purchase agreement names a one “Clais van Beyhusen” as well as the “Kirchenmeister (a title now no longer used, but akin to “sexton
Sexton (office)
A sexton is a church, congregation or synagogue officer charged with the maintenance of its buildings and/or the surrounding graveyard. In smaller places of worship, this office is often combined with that of verger...
”) from Hilgenrait”. Under Prussia
Prussia
Prussia was a German kingdom and historic state originating out of the Duchy of Prussia and the Margraviate of Brandenburg. For centuries, the House of Hohenzollern ruled Prussia, successfully expanding its size by way of an unusually well-organized and effective army. Prussia shaped the history...
n administration, the municipality was in the Bürgermeisterei (“Mayoralty”) of Sarmersbach
Sarmersbach
Sarmersbach is an Ortsgemeinde – a municipality belonging to a Verbandsgemeinde, a kind of collective municipality – in the Vulkaneifel district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany...
.
Beinhausen is overwhelmingly Catholic and is the parochial seat of the Parish of St. Hubertus Beinhausen, to which, besides Beinhausen itself, belong the villages of Boxberg
Boxberg, Rhineland-Palatinate
Boxberg is an Ortsgemeinde – a municipality belonging to a Verbandsgemeinde, a kind of collective municipality – in the Vulkaneifel district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany...
, Neichen
Neichen
Neichen is an Ortsgemeinde – a municipality belonging to a Verbandsgemeinde, a kind of collective municipality – in the Vulkaneifel district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany...
, Kradenbach
Kradenbach
Kradenbach is an Ortsgemeinde – a municipality belonging to a Verbandsgemeinde, a kind of collective municipality – in the Vulkaneifel district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany...
, Nerdlen
Nerdlen
Nerdlen is an Ortsgemeinde – a municipality belonging to a Verbandsgemeinde, a kind of collective municipality – in the Vulkaneifel district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany...
, Sarmersbach and Gefell
Gefell, Rhineland-Palatinate
Gefell is an Ortsgemeinde – a municipality belonging to a Verbandsgemeinde, a kind of collective municipality – in the Vulkaneifel district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany...
. Until the early 20th century, Katzwinkel
Katzwinkel
Katzwinkel is a municipality in the district of Altenkirchen, in Rhineland-Palatinate, in western Germany....
also belonged to the Hilgerath parish (as it was once known). The Beinhausen parish area is also commonly called Struth.
The Hilgerath parish church, standing alone on the mountain within Neichen’s municipal limits, has been parish church since days of yore. The tower is known from its design to be from the mid 15th century; the main nave has existed in its current form since 1804. In 1950, the church was widened with two side naves.
In more recent times, the return of the Hilgerath Gnadenbild (variously translated “holy picture” or “image of grace”, among others), Beweinung Christi (“Lamentation of Christ”) from the mid 15th century might be noted in the history books. This had been stolen from the parish church in a burglary in 1975 and thereafter its whereabouts were unknown. In 1994, Bernhard Euteneuer, who from 1992 to 2000 was the Beinhausen parish priest, managed to fetch the valuable Gnadenbild back to Hilgerath from Biberach an der Riß
Biberach an der Riß
Biberach is a town in the south of Germany. It is the capital of Biberach district, in the Upper Swabia region of the German state of Baden-Württemberg...
, where it had resurfaced. To show their thankfulness, the Struth Catholics have ever since undertaken a yearly pilgrimage in which they converge on Hilgerath, always on the Sunday after the Feast of the Cross
Feast of the Cross
In the Christian liturgical calendar, there are several different Feasts of the Cross, all of which commemorate the cross used in the crucifixion of Jesus....
(14 September).
In the course of municipal restructuring 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 ....
, the municipality was assigned in 1970 to the Verbandsgemeinde of Kelberg
Kelberg (Verbandsgemeinde)
Kelberg is a Verbandsgemeinde in the district Vulkaneifel, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. The seat of the Verbandsgemeinde is in Kelberg....
.
Religion
More than 90% of the inhabitants belong to the Roman Catholic Church.Municipal council
The council is made up of 6 council members, who were elected by majority votePlurality voting system
The plurality voting system is a single-winner voting system often used to elect executive officers or to elect members of a legislative assembly which is based on single-member constituencies...
at the municipal election held on 7 June 2009, and the honorary mayor as chairman.
Coat of arms
The German blazon reads: In Silber ein grüner Berg, darin ein silberenes Haus, darüber ein schwarzer, hersehender Hirschkopf mit rotem Kreuz.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: Argent in base a mount vert surmounted by a house of the field, above the mount a stag’s head caboshed sable, between his attires a Latin cross gules.
The stag’s head and the cross are references to Saint Hubert
Hubertus
Saint Hubertus or Hubert , called the "Apostle of the Ardennes" was the first Bishop of Liège...
, the parish’s patron saint. The green mount in base is meant to represent the hill of Hilgerath, upon which the parish church stands. The house surmounting the mount is meant to represent the village of Beinhausen, which lies at the foot of the hill. It also symbolizes the placename element —hausen. The municipality’s name is reckoned to be a form of bei den Häusern – “at the houses”.