Königsbronn
Encyclopedia
Königsbronn is a municipality in the district of Heidenheim
in Baden-Württemberg
in southern Germany
.
Königsbronn (Koenigsbronn) as an administrative community also includes the villages of Itzelberg, Ochenberg and Zang. It lies in the Brenz valley within the hills of the Swabian Alb
, a landscape shaped by karst
(limestone
). A spring near the town center is the source
of the Brenz, a tributary of the Danube
.
The foundations of a castle of the early Middle Ages possibly erected around 1000 AD on the site of an even earlier castle, of robber-knights, as it is being told can be found on the rock Herwartstein overlooking the valley, which was allegedly destroyed by the son of the emperor of Holy Roman Empire of mediaeval Germany.
Below, In the valley, a hamlet called "Springen" had formed.
In 1303, a monastery was founded (and allegedly erected with stones from the destroyed castle) for Cistercian monks. It was to become one of the most influential and wealthiest monasteries in Southern Germany. The place was re-named "Königsbronn" which means "Kings's Spring".
In 1552, the monastery and village that had grown next to it were destroyed and a year later the area became Protestant (Lutheran). When the village was supposed to turn catholic again in 1629, the population rebelled and stayed Protestant.
The monastery had been a centre of pre-industrial-age metallurgy and in 1366 had been granted the right to mine and process iron ore from Emperor Charles IV.
, only one year after he had given it erroneously to a local count. The monks then started what became later the industrial company with the longest historic tradition in Germany, the Schwäbische Hüttenwerke GmbH. 1651 a furnace was lit and smelting didn't stop until 1908, when it had ceased to be profitable. However, the business was successfully shifted to finished products, especially to calender
rolls for the paper industry, which made Königsbronn and SHW famous. Two out of three state of the art calender rolls in modern paper machines worldwide have been poured in the Königsbronn foundry, which today is a part of SHW Casting Technologies GmbH, a group of foundries specialized on heavy and highly precise castings.
The small but splendid rococo
-style (or late baroque
) town hall was erected in 1765 and gives a hint of the proud spirits of the town at the time.
In 1864, Koenigsbronn got railway access. The railway line has recently been refurbished to modern standards.
On 8 November 1939, a bomb placed by Georg Elser
, who had spent much of his life in Königsbronn, detonated in Munich and missed its target Hitler by only minutes.
in Heidenheim. Others moved in, e.g. Zeiss in the neighbouring town of Oberkochen
. Industry has switched from heavy to high-tech and the second sector of the economy remains by far the most important, whereas climate and soil have never made agriculture too attractive in this region.
Heidenheim (district)
Heidenheim is a district in the east of Baden-Württemberg, Germany. Neighboring districts are Ostalbkreis, Dillingen, Günzburg, Alb-Donau and Göppingen.-History:...
in Baden-Württemberg
Baden-Württemberg
Baden-Württemberg is one of the 16 states of Germany. Baden-Württemberg is in the southwestern part of the country to the east of the Upper Rhine, and is the third largest in both area and population of Germany's sixteen states, with an area of and 10.7 million inhabitants...
in southern 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...
.
Königsbronn (Koenigsbronn) as an administrative community also includes the villages of Itzelberg, Ochenberg and Zang. It lies in the Brenz valley within the hills of the Swabian Alb
Swabian Alb
The Swabian Alps or Swabian Jura is a low mountain range in Baden-Württemberg, Germany, extending 220 km from southwest to northeast and 40 to 70 km in width. It is named after the region of Swabia....
, a landscape shaped by karst
KARST
Kilometer-square Area Radio Synthesis Telescope is a Chinese telescope project to which FAST is a forerunner. KARST is a set of large spherical reflectors on karst landforms, which are bowlshaped limestone sinkholes named after the Kras region in Slovenia and Northern Italy. It will consist of...
(limestone
Limestone
Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....
). A spring near the town center is the source
Source (river or stream)
The source or headwaters of a river or stream is the place from which the water in the river or stream originates.-Definition:There is no universally agreed upon definition for determining a stream's source...
of the Brenz, a tributary of the Danube
Danube
The Danube is a river in the Central Europe and the Europe's second longest river after the Volga. It is classified as an international waterway....
.
History
There is some evidence that the area was first populated in the stone age.The foundations of a castle of the early Middle Ages possibly erected around 1000 AD on the site of an even earlier castle, of robber-knights, as it is being told can be found on the rock Herwartstein overlooking the valley, which was allegedly destroyed by the son of the emperor of Holy Roman Empire of mediaeval Germany.
Below, In the valley, a hamlet called "Springen" had formed.
In 1303, a monastery was founded (and allegedly erected with stones from the destroyed castle) for Cistercian monks. It was to become one of the most influential and wealthiest monasteries in Southern Germany. The place was re-named "Königsbronn" which means "Kings's Spring".
In 1552, the monastery and village that had grown next to it were destroyed and a year later the area became Protestant (Lutheran). When the village was supposed to turn catholic again in 1629, the population rebelled and stayed Protestant.
The monastery had been a centre of pre-industrial-age metallurgy and in 1366 had been granted the right to mine and process iron ore from Emperor Charles IV.
Charles IV, Holy Roman Emperor
Charles IV , born Wenceslaus , was the second king of Bohemia from the House of Luxembourg, and the first king of Bohemia to also become Holy Roman Emperor....
, only one year after he had given it erroneously to a local count. The monks then started what became later the industrial company with the longest historic tradition in Germany, the Schwäbische Hüttenwerke GmbH. 1651 a furnace was lit and smelting didn't stop until 1908, when it had ceased to be profitable. However, the business was successfully shifted to finished products, especially to calender
Calender
The calender is a series of hard pressure rollers used to form or smooth a sheet of material. In a principal application, the calender is located at the end of a papermaking process . Those that are used separate from the process are also called supercalenders...
rolls for the paper industry, which made Königsbronn and SHW famous. Two out of three state of the art calender rolls in modern paper machines worldwide have been poured in the Königsbronn foundry, which today is a part of SHW Casting Technologies GmbH, a group of foundries specialized on heavy and highly precise castings.
The small but splendid rococo
Rococo
Rococo , also referred to as "Late Baroque", is an 18th-century style which developed as Baroque artists gave up their symmetry and became increasingly ornate, florid, and playful...
-style (or late baroque
Baroque
The Baroque is a period and the style that used exaggerated motion and clear, easily interpreted detail to produce drama, tension, exuberance, and grandeur in sculpture, painting, literature, dance, and music...
) town hall was erected in 1765 and gives a hint of the proud spirits of the town at the time.
In 1864, Koenigsbronn got railway access. The railway line has recently been refurbished to modern standards.
On 8 November 1939, a bomb placed by Georg Elser
Georg Elser
Johann Georg Elser was a German opponent of Nazism. He is most remembered for his unsuccessful attempt to assassinate Adolf Hitler, but he also wanted to assassinate Hermann Göring and Joseph Goebbels in 1939....
, who had spent much of his life in Königsbronn, detonated in Munich and missed its target Hitler by only minutes.
Recent history and present
After the war, many some small industrial companies in the wider area had to close, but some grew to become very successful, e.g. VoithVoith
The Voith GmbH, which is headquartered in Germany, is a family-run corporation in the mechanical engineering sector with worldwide operations....
in Heidenheim. Others moved in, e.g. Zeiss in the neighbouring town of Oberkochen
Oberkochen
Oberkochen is a town in the Ostalbkreis, in Baden-Württemberg, Germany.-Economy:After WWII the allied troops moved parts of the Carl Zeiss Company in Jena to Oberkochen. Today the headquarter of the Carl Zeiss AG is located in Oberkochen...
. Industry has switched from heavy to high-tech and the second sector of the economy remains by far the most important, whereas climate and soil have never made agriculture too attractive in this region.