Rhynern, also Hamm-Rhynern, is the largest town by area (59.22 km ²) and former municipality, in the district of the city of Hamm

Hamm

Hamm is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia , Germany. It is located in the northeastern part of the Ruhr area. As of December 2003 its population was 180,849. The city is situated between the A1 motorway and A2 motorway...

, Westphalia

Westphalia

Westphalia is a region in Germany, centred on the cities of Arnsberg, Bielefeld, Dortmund, Minden and Münster.Westphalia is roughly the region between the rivers Rhine and Weser, located north and south of the Ruhr River. No exact definition of borders can be given, because the name "Westphalia"...

, 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 has 18,578 inhabitants. The town is predominantly rural-agrarian and lies off the Bundesautobahn 2 on European route E34

European route E34

The European route E 34 is a road in Europe and a part of the United Nations International E-road network. It connects Zeebrugge, the major seaport of Bruges, with Bad Oeynhausen, a German spa town located beside the River Weser at the eastern edge of North Rhine-Westphalia. At Bad Oeynhausen...

, south of the town of Westtünnen. The L669 road connects it to villages Wambeln and Schneidingen in the south and the K10 road connects it to the village of Osttünnen two miles to the northeast.It lies on the Hamm-Soest

Soest

-Places:* Soest, Netherlands* Soest, Germany** Soest , a district around the location in Germany-Organizations:*SOEST, School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology at the University of Hawaii at Manoa...

 Railway.

Rhynern is located in the heart of Westphalia. Its coordinates based on the old village church are 51 ° 37 '47.8 "N, 7 ° 51' 29.2" E, it is calibrated to 92.96 m above sea level.

The oldest written reference is found in approximately the year 1000 in a manuscript, which is located in the State Archives of Münster

Münster

Münster is an independent city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located in the northern part of the state and is considered to be the cultural centre of the Westphalia region. It is also capital of the local government region Münsterland...

. In 1302 it fell into possession of the Bishops of Munster. During the French occupation in the 19th Century an the office was created in 1808 named Rhynern Mairie. After restoration of the Prussian province of Westphalia, it remained in place.

On 1 April 1939 it was largely incorporated into Hamm and on 31 December 1974 it officially became part of the municipality of Hamm. Polish journalist Ksawery Pruszyński

Ksawery Pruszyński

Franciszek Ksawery Pruszyński was a Polish journalist, publicist, writer and diplomat. He was one of the most active and operative of Polish newspaper reporters and often had radical views....

 died in a car accident in Rhynern in 1950.‎

It contains the Galerie Mensing, a small church, a library, several sports complexes and several hotels.

Towns and villages

The former municipality included the following villages:

• Rhynern
• Berge
• Westtünnen
• Caldenhof
• Osttünnen
• Süddinker
• Allen
• Unter-Allen
• Zengerott
• Wambeln
• Wambeln-Bruch
• Opsen
• Freiske
• Drechen
• Osterflierich
• Pedinghausen
• Kump