Kurtscheid is a municipality

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...

 in the district of Neuwied

Neuwied (district)

Neuwied is a district in the north of Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Neighboring districts are Rhein-Sieg, Altenkirchen, Westerwaldkreis, Mayen-Koblenz, Ahrweiler.-History:...

, in northern 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...

. The village is located in the natural preserve Rhein-Westerwald. Kurtscheid is 401 metres above sea level and is hence the highest municipality in the district of Neuwied.

History

In 1314, the village was officially mentioned for the first time as "Curtsheit".

During the time of the Protestant reformation, Kurtscheid was situated on the border of the County of Wied

Wied

Wied was a County of Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany, located on the river Wied where it meets the Rhine. Wied emerged as a County earlier than many other German states. From 1243–1462, Wied was united with an Isenburgian County as Isenburg-Wied. Wied was partitioned twice: between itself and...

 and the Archbishopric of Cologne

Archbishopric of Cologne

The Electorate of Cologne was an ecclesiastical principality of the Holy Roman Empire and existed from the 10th to the early 19th century. It consisted of the temporal possessions of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Cologne . It was ruled by the Archbishop in his function as prince-elector of...

. In 1546, the Count of Wied decided to select Lutheranism as general religion within his county. Thus, following the agreement of the Peace Treaty of Augsburg

Peace of Augsburg

The Peace of Augsburg, also called the Augsburg Settlement, was a treaty between Charles V and the forces of the Schmalkaldic League, an alliance of Lutheran princes, on September 25, 1555, at the imperial city of Augsburg, now in present-day Bavaria, Germany.It officially ended the religious...

, all inhabitants of his county had to convert their religion accordingly. However, the citizens of Kurtscheid did not want to convert. Therefore, they demolished 11 houses which were situated on the duke's territory and rebuilt them on the archbishop's catholic part of the village. Kurtscheid stayed catholic and for the following centuries, a confessional border divided it from its Protestant neighbours.

Politics

The parish council consists of 12 members and the honorary mayor.

Seating in the elected council:

	CDU Christian Democratic Union (Germany) The Christian Democratic Union of Germany is a Christian democratic and conservative political party in Germany. It is regarded as on the centre-right of the German political spectrum...	SPD Social Democratic Party of Germany The Social Democratic Party of Germany is a social-democratic political party in Germany...	FWG	Total
2009	9	0	7	16 seats

(Status: local elections on June 7, 2009)

Coat of arms

The crossed bars taken from the coat of arms of the County of Wied and the black cross coming from the Archbishopric of Cologne's coat remind of the century-long separation of Kurtscheid into parts belonging to the County of Wied and to Cologne, respectively. The mountain with three hills represents Kurtscheid's geographic position as highest municipality in the district of Neuwied.
The golden colour symbolises agriculture life while the green colour indicates the grand amount of forrests covering the municipality's territory. The silvern gear wheel represents both the former silver and iron ore mines and today's industry.

Economy and Infra structure

• The B 256 leading from Neuwied
  Neuwied
  Neuwied is a town in the north of the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate, capital of the District of Neuwied. Neuwied lies on the right bank of the Rhine, 12 km northwest of Koblenz, on the railway from Frankfurt am Main to Cologne...
  
   to Altenkirchen
  Altenkirchen
  Altenkirchen is a town in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany, capital of the district of Altenkirchen. It is located approx. 40 km east of Bonn and 40 km north of Koblenz. Altenkirchen is the seat of the Verbandsgemeinde Altenkirchen.-References:...
  
   passes the village in the east
• The next junction of autobahn A3 is called Neuwied
• The next high speed (ICE
  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...
  
  ) train station is in Montabaur, serving the link Cologne - Frankfurt