Morshausen
Encyclopedia
Morshausen is an Ortsgemeinde – a municipality
belonging to a Verbandsgemeinde
, a kind of collective municipality – in the Rhein-Hunsrück-Kreis (district
) in Rhineland-Palatinate
, Germany
. It belongs to the Verbandsgemeinde of Emmelshausen
, whose seat is in the like-named town
.
, 6 km from the Moselle and 10 km from Emmelshausen, at an elevation of 334 m above sea level
.
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 a well boom with pail to sinister sable, on a base vert a Stutzweck Or.
The well, which stands as the main charge
, was endowed in the 15th century by a Hungarian
countess who was married at the Ehrenburg (castle
). In remembrance of her homeland, the well was built in the style of those typically seen in the Puszta
region. The woodwork has been renewed at regular intervals by the municipality ever since, and the well may still be seen on Brunnenstraße (“Well Street”). The Stutzweck is a traditional baked article, and in Morshausen, it stems from a citizen’s bequest in 1782. He bequeathed his belongings to the municipality on the proviso that a good field be acquired, and that the rent drawn therefrom be used to bake Stutzwecken during Holy Week
and to buy wine
. On Maundy Thursday
, all the village’s poor, wretched and children were to come together in the church to pray for his poor soul and to eat the Stutzwecken dipped in the wine in observance of the Lord’s Supper. The Stutzweck is still shared out to the churchgoers each year on Good Friday
after midday devotions.
’s Directory of Cultural Monuments:
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 Rhein-Hunsrück-Kreis (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 Emmelshausen
Emmelshausen (Verbandsgemeinde)
Emmelshausen is a Verbandsgemeinde in the Rhein-Hunsrück district, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Its seat is in Emmelshausen....
, whose seat is in the like-named town
Emmelshausen
Emmelshausen is a town in the Rhein-Hunsrück-Kreis in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is the seat of the like-named Verbandsgemeinde, to which it also belongs...
.
Location
The municipality lies in the HunsrückHunsrück
The Hunsrück is a low mountain range in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is bounded by the river valleys of the Moselle , the Nahe , and the Rhine . The Hunsrück is continued by the Taunus mountains on the eastern side of the Rhine. In the north behind the Moselle it is continued by the Eifel...
, 6 km from the Moselle and 10 km from Emmelshausen, at an elevation of 334 m above sea level
Sea level
Mean sea level is a measure of the average height of the ocean's surface ; used as a standard in reckoning land elevation...
.
Municipal council
The council is made up of 8 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: Über einem Schildfuß, darin ein goldener Stutzwecken, in silbernem Feld ein schwarzer, linksgewendeter Schwengelbrunnen.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 a well boom with pail to sinister sable, on a base vert a Stutzweck Or.
The well, which stands as the main charge
Charge (heraldry)
In heraldry, a charge is any emblem or device occupying the field of an escutcheon . This may be a geometric design or a symbolic representation of a person, animal, plant, object or other device...
, was endowed in the 15th century by a Hungarian
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
countess who was married at the Ehrenburg (castle
Castle
A castle is a type of fortified structure built in Europe and the Middle East during the Middle Ages by European nobility. Scholars debate the scope of the word castle, but usually consider it to be the private fortified residence of a lord or noble...
). In remembrance of her homeland, the well was built in the style of those typically seen in the Puszta
Puszta
Puszta is a steppe biome on the Great Hungarian Plain around the River Tisza in the eastern part of Hungary as well as on the western part of Hungary and in the Austrian Burgenland. The Hungarian puszta is an enclave of the Eurasian Steppe....
region. The woodwork has been renewed at regular intervals by the municipality ever since, and the well may still be seen on Brunnenstraße (“Well Street”). The Stutzweck is a traditional baked article, and in Morshausen, it stems from a citizen’s bequest in 1782. He bequeathed his belongings to the municipality on the proviso that a good field be acquired, and that the rent drawn therefrom be used to bake Stutzwecken during Holy Week
Holy Week
Holy Week in Christianity is the last week of Lent and the week before Easter...
and to buy wine
Wine
Wine is an alcoholic beverage, made of fermented fruit juice, usually from grapes. The natural chemical balance of grapes lets them ferment without the addition of sugars, acids, enzymes, or other nutrients. Grape wine is produced by fermenting crushed grapes using various types of yeast. Yeast...
. On Maundy Thursday
Maundy Thursday
Maundy Thursday, also known as Holy Thursday, Covenant Thursday, Great & Holy Thursday, and Thursday of Mysteries, is the Christian feast or holy day falling on the Thursday before Easter that commemorates the Last Supper of Jesus Christ with the Apostles as described in the Canonical gospels...
, all the village’s poor, wretched and children were to come together in the church to pray for his poor soul and to eat the Stutzwecken dipped in the wine in observance of the Lord’s Supper. The Stutzweck is still shared out to the churchgoers each year on Good Friday
Good Friday
Good Friday , is a religious holiday observed primarily by Christians commemorating the crucifixion of Jesus Christ and his death at Calvary. The holiday is observed during Holy Week as part of the Paschal Triduum on the Friday preceding Easter Sunday, and may coincide with the Jewish observance of...
after midday devotions.
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 Lambert’s Catholic Church (branch church; Filialkirche St. Lambert), Kirchstraße 1 – aisleless churchAisleless churchAn Aisleless church is a single-nave church building that consists of a single hall-like room. While similar to the hall church, the aisleless church lacks aisles or passageways either side of the nave separated from the nave by colonnades or arcades, a row of pillars or columns...
, 1739/1740, architect possibly J. Neurohr, Romanesque RevivalRomanesque Revival architectureRomanesque Revival is a style of building employed beginning in the mid 19th century inspired by the 11th and 12th century Romanesque architecture...
quarrystone tower, 1848; whole complex of buildings with graveyard - Brunnenstraße – well, timber construction, originally from the 17th century, renovated
- Kirchstraße 8 – estate complex, 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, 18th or 19th century - Kornstraße 6 – former town hall and bakehouse; representative timber-frame building, partly solid, half-hipped roof, 18th century
- BildstockBildstockA wayside shrine, is a religious image, usually in some sort of small shelter, placed by a road or pathway, sometimes in a settlement or at a crossroads, but often in the middle of an empty stretch of country road, or at the top of a hill or mountain. They have been a feature of many cultures,...
, on Landesstraße (State Road) 206 going towards BeulichBeulichBeulich is an Ortsgemeinde – a municipality belonging to a Verbandsgemeinde, a kind of collective municipality – in the Rhein-Hunsrück-Kreis in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany...
– 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...
relief, marked 1741