Molsberg
Encyclopedia
Molsberg is an Ortsgemeinde – a community belonging to a Verbandsgemeinde
– in the Westerwaldkreis
in Rhineland-Palatinate
, Germany
.
on the boundary with the neighbouring Bundesland
of Hessen. It belongs to the Verbandsgemeinde of Wallmerod
, a kind of collective municipality. Its seat is in the like-named town
.
From 1030, the Knights of Molsberg had their seat here on the north slope of the Eichberg (405 m) at their castle. The model of the castle may still be seen today at Schloß Molsberg (residential castle).
In 1458, Count Philipp the Elder of Katzenelnbogen
released for the 12,000 gulden by which he had raised his daughter Anna’s dowry
, a parcel of land to Limburg
, Molsberg and Brechen
from Count Reinhard of Solms
and Frank of Kronberg to whom Landgrave Ludwig of Hesse had pledged it.The von Walderdorff noble family had its seat in Molsberg as of 1657.
in a municipal election on 13 June 2004.
might heraldically be described thus: Gules a lion rampant argent armed and langued Or. These arms are demonstrably akin to the 1662 court seal. The noble lords of Molsberg had a coat of arms that was first mentioned in 1347 and showed a silver lion on a red field with a golden tongue, accompanied by a blue triple-etched gorget
.
(roughly, “sheriff
”) in a more than 300-year-old timber-frame
house.
Schloss Molsberg was built in 1760 on the former castle’s site and has at its disposal a park with trees that are under monumental protection.
the traditional Pfingstkirmes (Whitsun kermis) is held. On Whit Monday
, an open-air church service is held if the weather is fair, and this is followed by a Corpus Christi procession, in turn followed by a Frühschoppen
(a morning drink or brunch) with a concert in the square in the castle laneway under the old linden
s of the Counts of Walderdorff. After prayers in the castle chapel
, the kermis youth’s parade begins. First at the Count’s, then at the mayor’s and finally in the lower village, the kermis youth dance. Here all kinds of funny anecdotes from the past year are told. The kermis festivities then move farther on to the school field.
In the summer in the Counts’ castle laneway, the Kaffeehausnachmittag (“Coffeehouse Afternoon”) is held by the Wallmerod collective municipality’s cultural promotion club. To the sound of waltz
es, coffee
and cake
are served in the shade afforded by the lindens.
As a general rule, the tradition-rich Molsberger Markt (market) is held on the second Saturday in October. In 2007, however, on organizational grounds, it was moved up to 29 September.
8, linking Limburg an der Lahn
and Hennef. The nearest Autobahn interchange
is Diez on the A 3 (Cologne
–Frankfurt), some 10 km away. The nearest InterCityExpress
stops are the railway stations at Montabaur and Limburg an der Lahn on the Cologne-Frankfurt high-speed rail line.
Verbandsgemeinde
A Verbandsgemeinde is an administrative unit in the German Bundesländer of Rhineland-Palatinate and Saxony-Anhalt.-Rhineland-Palatinate:...
– in the Westerwaldkreis
Westerwaldkreis
The Westerwaldkreis is a district in the east of Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany...
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...
.
Location
The community lies in the WesterwaldWesterwald
The Westerwald is a low mountain range on the right bank of the River Rhine in the German federal states of Rhineland-Palatinate, Hesse and North Rhine-Westphalia. It is a part of the Rhine Massif...
on the boundary with the neighbouring Bundesland
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 Hessen. It belongs to the Verbandsgemeinde of Wallmerod
Wallmerod (Verbandsgemeinde)
Wallmerod is a Verbandsgemeinde in the district Westerwaldkreis, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. The seat of the Verbandsgemeinde is in Wallmerod.- History :...
, a kind of collective municipality. Its seat is in the like-named town
Wallmerod
Wallmerod is an Ortsgemeinde – a community belonging to a Verbandsgemeinde – in the Westerwaldkreis in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany.-Location:Wallmerod lies in the Westerwald between Montabaur and Rennerod...
.
History
In 1030, Molsberg had its first documentary mention.From 1030, the Knights of Molsberg had their seat here on the north slope of the Eichberg (405 m) at their castle. The model of the castle may still be seen today at Schloß Molsberg (residential castle).
In 1458, Count Philipp the Elder of Katzenelnbogen
Katzenelnbogen
Katzenelnbogen is the name of a castle and small city in the district of Rhein-Lahn-Kreis in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Katzenelnbogen is the seat of the Verbandsgemeinde Katzenelnbogen.-History:...
released for the 12,000 gulden by which he had raised his daughter Anna’s dowry
Dowry
A dowry is the money, goods, or estate that a woman brings forth to the marriage. It contrasts with bride price, which is paid to the bride's parents, and dower, which is property settled on the bride herself by the groom at the time of marriage. The same culture may simultaneously practice both...
, a parcel of land to Limburg
Limburg an der Lahn
Limburg an der Lahn is the district seat of Limburg-Weilburg in Hesse, Germany.-Location:Limburg lies in western Hesse between the Taunus and the Westerwald on the river Lahn....
, Molsberg and Brechen
Brechen
-Location:Brechen lies in the southeastern part of the Limburg Basin between the Taunus and the Westerwald. The sparsely wooded land of loess hills is crossed here from southeast to northwest by the Emsbach, which is fed near Niederbrechen by the Wörsbach and drains the area down to the Lahn...
from Count Reinhard of Solms
Solms
Solms is a town west of Wetzlar in the Lahn-Dill-Kreis, Hesse, Germany.In the constituent community of Burgsolms once stood the ancestral castle of the Counts and Princes of Solms, whose main lines were Solms-Braunfels, with their seat in Braunfels, and Solms-Hohensolms-Lich, with their seat in...
and Frank of Kronberg to whom Landgrave Ludwig of Hesse had pledged it.The von Walderdorff noble family had its seat in Molsberg as of 1657.
Community council
The council is made up of 8 council members who were elected in a 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...
in a municipal election on 13 June 2004.
Coat of arms
The community’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 heraldically be described thus: Gules a lion rampant argent armed and langued Or. These arms are demonstrably akin to the 1662 court seal. The noble lords of Molsberg had a coat of arms that was first mentioned in 1347 and showed a silver lion on a red field with a golden tongue, accompanied by a blue triple-etched gorget
Gorget
A gorget originally was a steel or leather collar designed to protect the throat. It was a feature of older types of armour and intended to protect against swords and other non-projectile weapons...
.
Culture and sightseeing
In the middle of the village stands the renovated former village school from 1830, which today serves as the mayor’s office. Opposite stands the former seat of the SchultheißSchultheiß
In medieval Germany, the Schultheiß was the head of a municipality , a Vogt or an executive official of the ruler.As official it was...
(roughly, “sheriff
Sheriff
A sheriff is in principle a legal official with responsibility for a county. In practice, the specific combination of legal, political, and ceremonial duties of a sheriff varies greatly from country to country....
”) in a more than 300-year-old 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...
house.
Schloss Molsberg was built in 1760 on the former castle’s site and has at its disposal a park with trees that are under monumental protection.
Regular events
At WhitsunWhitsun
Whitsun is the name used in the UK for the Christian festival of Pentecost, the seventh Sunday after Easter, which commemorates the descent of the Holy Spirit upon Christ's disciples...
the traditional Pfingstkirmes (Whitsun kermis) is held. On Whit Monday
Whit Monday
Whit Monday or Pentecost Monday is the holiday celebrated the day after Pentecost, a movable feast in the Christian calendar. It is movable because it is determined by the date of Easter....
, an open-air church service is held if the weather is fair, and this is followed by a Corpus Christi procession, in turn followed by a Frühschoppen
Frühschoppen
Frühschoppen is a traditional, German equivalent of brunch, i.e. a combined breakfast and lunch normally eaten in the mid- to late morning. The actual fare varies from region to region....
(a morning drink or brunch) with a concert in the square in the castle laneway under the old linden
Tilia
Tilia is a genus of about 30 species of trees native throughout most of the temperate Northern Hemisphere. The greatest species diversity is found in Asia, and the genus also occurs in Europe and eastern North America, but not western North America...
s of the Counts of Walderdorff. After prayers in the castle chapel
Chapel
A chapel is a building used by Christians as a place of fellowship and worship. It may be part of a larger structure or complex, such as a church, college, hospital, palace, prison or funeral home, located on board a military or commercial ship, or it may be an entirely free-standing building,...
, the kermis youth’s parade begins. First at the Count’s, then at the mayor’s and finally in the lower village, the kermis youth dance. Here all kinds of funny anecdotes from the past year are told. The kermis festivities then move farther on to the school field.
In the summer in the Counts’ castle laneway, the Kaffeehausnachmittag (“Coffeehouse Afternoon”) is held by the Wallmerod collective municipality’s cultural promotion club. To the sound of waltz
Waltz
The waltz is a ballroom and folk dance in time, performed primarily in closed position.- History :There are several references to a sliding or gliding dance,- a waltz, from the 16th century including the representations of the printer H.S. Beheim...
es, coffee
Coffee
Coffee is a brewed beverage with a dark,init brooo acidic flavor prepared from the roasted seeds of the coffee plant, colloquially called coffee beans. The beans are found in coffee cherries, which grow on trees cultivated in over 70 countries, primarily in equatorial Latin America, Southeast Asia,...
and cake
Cake
Cake is a form of bread or bread-like food. In its modern forms, it is typically a sweet and enriched baked dessert. In its oldest forms, cakes were normally fried breads or cheesecakes, and normally had a disk shape...
are served in the shade afforded by the lindens.
As a general rule, the tradition-rich Molsberger Markt (market) is held on the second Saturday in October. In 2007, however, on organizational grounds, it was moved up to 29 September.
Transport
Just west of the community runs BundesstraßeBundesstraße
Bundesstraße , abbreviated B, is the denotation for German and Austrian national highways.-Germany:...
8, linking Limburg an der Lahn
Limburg an der Lahn
Limburg an der Lahn is the district seat of Limburg-Weilburg in Hesse, Germany.-Location:Limburg lies in western Hesse between the Taunus and the Westerwald on the river Lahn....
and Hennef. The nearest Autobahn interchange
Interchange (road)
In the field of road transport, an interchange is a road junction that typically uses grade separation, and one or more ramps, to permit traffic on at least one highway to pass through the junction without directly crossing any other traffic stream. It differs from a standard intersection, at which...
is Diez on the A 3 (Cologne
Cologne
Cologne is Germany's fourth-largest city , and is the largest city both in the Germany Federal State of North Rhine-Westphalia and within the Rhine-Ruhr Metropolitan Area, one of the major European metropolitan areas with more than ten million inhabitants.Cologne is located on both sides of the...
–Frankfurt), some 10 km away. The nearest InterCityExpress
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...
stops are the railway stations at Montabaur and Limburg an der Lahn on the Cologne-Frankfurt high-speed rail line.
Sons and daughters of the town
- Johann Philipp von WalderdorfJohann Philipp von WalderdorfJohann Philipp von Walderdorf was the Archbishop-Elector of Trier from 1756 until 1768, and the Prince-Bishop of Worms from 1763 until 1768.-Biography:...
f (born 1701 at Schloss Molsberg; died 1768) was as Johann IX from 1756 to 1768 Archbishop and Elector of Trier. - Kaspar Kögler (born 12 February 1838 in Molsberg; died 1 April 1923 in WiesbadenWiesbadenWiesbaden is a city in southwest Germany and the capital of the federal state of Hesse. It has about 275,400 inhabitants, plus approximately 10,000 United States citizens...
) was a German painterPaintingPainting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a surface . The application of the medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush but other objects can be used. In art, the term painting describes both the act and the result of the action. However, painting is...
(portraitPortraitthumb|250px|right|Portrait of [[Thomas Jefferson]] by [[Rembrandt Peale]], 1805. [[New-York Historical Society]].A portrait is a painting, photograph, sculpture, or other artistic representation of a person, in which the face and its expression is predominant. The intent is to display the likeness,...
s, landscapesLandscape artLandscape art is a term that covers the depiction of natural scenery such as mountains, valleys, trees, rivers, and forests, and especially art where the main subject is a wide view, with its elements arranged into a coherent composition. In other works landscape backgrounds for figures can still...
, genre painting, still lifeStill lifeA still life is a work of art depicting mostly inanimate subject matter, typically commonplace objects which may be either natural or man-made...
s, drawingDrawingDrawing is a form of visual art that makes use of any number of drawing instruments to mark a two-dimensional medium. Common instruments include graphite pencils, pen and ink, inked brushes, wax color pencils, crayons, charcoal, chalk, pastels, markers, styluses, and various metals .An artist who...
s, illustrations) and writer.