Mastershausen
Encyclopedia
History
Finds of coins and vessels bear witness to Celtic settlement on the Burgkopf, a nearby mountain spur, as do remnants of a RomanAncient Rome
Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....
temple and two grave complexes that have been unearthed. In 1056, Mastershausen had its first documentary mention as Malestreshusen; the church was first mentioned in 1220. Beginning in 1316, Mastershausen, together with 15 neighbouring places, belonged to the Amt of Balduinseck in the Electorate of Trier. In 1325, Castle Balduinseck (Burg Balduinseck) was built as the Amt seat. Its ruin is still among the municipality’s points of interest. Some timber-frame
Timber framing
Timber framing , or half-timbering, also called in North America "post-and-beam" construction, is the method of creating structures using heavy squared off and carefully fitted and joined timbers with joints secured by large wooden pegs . It is commonplace in large barns...
buildings, too, have been preserved. Beginning in 1794, Mastershausen lay under French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
rule. In 1814 it was assigned to the Kingdom of 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...
at the Congress of Vienna
Congress of Vienna
The Congress of Vienna was a conference of ambassadors of European states chaired by Klemens Wenzel von Metternich, and held in Vienna from September, 1814 to June, 1815. The objective of the Congress was to settle the many issues arising from the French Revolutionary Wars, the Napoleonic Wars,...
. Since 1946, it has been part of the then newly founded state
States of Germany
Germany is made up of sixteen which are partly sovereign constituent states of the Federal Republic of Germany. Land literally translates as "country", and constitutionally speaking, they are constituent countries...
of 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 ....
. Until 1970, the municipality belonged to the Amt of Blankenrath, but under the Eighth Verwaltungsvereinfachungsgesetz (“Administration Simplification Law”) of 18 July 1970, with effect from 7 November 1970, the municipality was grouped into the Rhein-Hunsrück-Kreis, and has ever since belonged to the Verbandsgemeinde of Kastellaun
Kastellaun (Verbandsgemeinde)
Kastellaun is a Verbandsgemeinde in the Rhein-Hunsrück district, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Its seat is in Kastellaun....
. The town of Kastellaun is also where the municipal administration is located.
Municipal council
The council is made up of 16 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 municipality’s armsCoat 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 be described thus: Tierced in mantle reversed, dexter argent a cross gules and sinister argent a cross sable, between which sable a crown Or.
The red cross is the arms formerly borne by the Electorate of Trier, to which Mastershausen belonged for more than 400 years. The black cross is the arms borne by the Cologne Cathedral Foundation, which until 1794 held collation rights (that is, the right to nominate candidates to fill vacant ecclesiastical posts) in Mastershausen. The golden crown on the black field recalls Queen Richeza of Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
, who donated holdings at Malestreshusen to the Brauweiler Monastery.
Culture and sightseeing
Buildings
The following are listed buildings or sites in Rhineland-PalatinateRhineland-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 ....
’s Directory of Cultural Monuments:
- Saint LucySaint LucySaint Lucy , also known as Saint Lucia, was a wealthy young Christian martyr who is venerated as a saint by Roman Catholic, Anglican, Lutheran, and Orthodox Christians. Her feast day in the West is 13 December; with a name derived from lux, lucis "light", she is the patron saint of those who are...
’s Catholic Parish Church (Pfarrkirche St. Lucia), Kirchstraße 5 – RomanesqueRomanesque architectureRomanesque architecture is an architectural style of Medieval Europe characterised by semi-circular arches. There is no consensus for the beginning date of the Romanesque architecture, with proposals ranging from the 6th to the 10th century. It developed in the 12th century into the Gothic style,...
(?) west tower, tower cupola, 1928; new building, 1965; outside, a basaltBasaltBasalt is a common extrusive volcanic rock. It is usually grey to black and fine-grained due to rapid cooling of lava at the surface of a planet. It may be porphyritic containing larger crystals in a fine matrix, or vesicular, or frothy scoria. Unweathered basalt is black or grey...
grave cross, marked 1801 - Friedhof – cast-ironCast ironCast iron is derived from pig iron, and while it usually refers to gray iron, it also identifies a large group of ferrous alloys which solidify with a eutectic. The color of a fractured surface can be used to identify an alloy. White cast iron is named after its white surface when fractured, due...
grave cross, RheinböllenRheinböllenRheinböllen is a town in the Rhein-Hunsrück-Kreis in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is the seat of the like-named Verbandsgemeinde, and also belongs to it.-Location:...
Ironworks, latter half of the 19th century - At Johann-Steffen-Straße 23 – MadonnaMadonna (art)Images of the Madonna and the Madonna and Child or Virgin and Child are pictorial or sculptured representations of Mary, Mother of Jesus, either alone, or more frequently, with the infant Jesus. These images are central icons of Roman Catholicism and Eastern Orthodox Christianity where Mary remains...
sculpture under wooden baldachinBaldachinA baldachin, or baldaquin , is a canopy of state over an altar or throne. It had its beginnings as a cloth canopy, but in other cases it is a sturdy, permanent architectural feature, particularly over high altars in cathedrals, where such a structure is more correctly called a ciborium when it is...
, 19th century - Johann-Steffen-Straße 28 – L-shaped estate, whole complex of buildings; timber-frameTimber framingTimber framing , or half-timbering, also called in North America "post-and-beam" construction, is the method of creating structures using heavy squared off and carefully fitted and joined timbers with joints secured by large wooden pegs . It is commonplace in large barns...
house, partly solid or slated, half-hipped roof, bakehouse, 18th century, barn, stable - At Johann-Steffen-Straße 29 – JosephSaint JosephSaint Joseph is a figure in the Gospels, the husband of the Virgin Mary and the earthly father of Jesus Christ ....
sculpture under wooden baldachin, 19th century - Kirchstraße 8 – former rectory; solid building, marked 1903, essentially possibly from the latter half of the 19th century, timber-frame barn, partly solid; whole complex of buildings
- Near Kirchstraße 9 – former schoolSchoolA school is an institution designed for the teaching of students under the direction of teachers. Most countries have systems of formal education, which is commonly compulsory. In these systems, students progress through a series of schools...
; plastered timber-frame house, 19th century; basalt grave cross, marked 1748 - Zum Mautzbach 1 – Quereinhaus (a combination residential and commercial house divided for these two purposes down the middle, perpendicularly to the street), partly slated, marked 1902
- Boundary stones, on Landesstraße (State Road) 203 on the village’s outskirts – three boundary stones, two marked 1776
- Kaspersmühle (mill), north of the village – one-floor timber-frame building, waterwheel, 19th century
- Wayside cross, east of the village – cast-iron grave cross