Wiesbaum
Encyclopedia
Wiesbaum is an Ortsgemeinde – a municipality
belonging to a Verbandsgemeinde
, a kind of collective municipality – in the Vulkaneifel district
in Rhineland-Palatinate
, Germany
. It belongs to the Verbandsgemeinde of Hillesheim
, whose seat is in the like-named town
.
, a part of the Eifel
known for its volcanic history, geographical and geological features, and even ongoing activity today, including gases that sometimes well up from the earth.
and the Chapel of the Redeemer there. On 17 March 1974, Mirbach, which until then had been self-administering, was amalgamated with Wiesbaum.
in the Bitgau, some of which were his own, while others he had inherited from his mother Gomalinde. These consisted of lands, woods, fields, meadows, grazing land and standing and flowing waters. The document was drawn up by a monk named Landohic and dated 25 July “in the 30th year of our Lord and King Karl’s rule and in the 4th year of his empire”. The “Karl” named here is Charlemagne
.
The Wiesbaum church was first mentioned in a Papal confirmation bull
dated 31 March 1131 and issued by Pope Innocent II
.
Wiesbaum was no stranger to witchhunts. In the 17th century, a local pastor named Hennes was tried and found guilty of witchcraft
, whereupon he was sentenced to be burnt as a warlock
.
at the municipal election held on 7 June 2009, and the honorary mayor as chairman.
might be described thus: Per fess gules five annulets argent three and two, and argent a stag’s attires fixed to the scalp sable.
The Schultheiß
erei of Wiesbaum belonged until the end of feudal
times in 1794 to the County of Blankenheim as part of the Lordship of Jünkerath. This passed in 1469 into the ownership of the Counts of Manderscheid. The Knights of Wiesbaum bore in the black chief
of their arms five silver rings, or annulets. These have been taken up into Wiesbaum’s arms above the line of partition, although the field tincture
here is gules (red) rather than sable (black). The outlying centre of Mirbach is bound with the old noble family of the same name, who kept their seat in Mirbach. Their arms bore silver stag’s horns (“attires” in heraldry
) on a black field, and this device can now be seen below the line of partition in the original tinctures. This same device can also still be seen on the windows at the Chapel of the Redeemer (Erlöserkapelle) in Mirbach.
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 Vulkaneifel 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 Hillesheim
Hillesheim (Verbandsgemeinde)
Hillesheim is a Verbandsgemeinde in the district Vulkaneifel, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. The seat of the Verbandsgemeinde is in Hillesheim....
, whose seat is in the like-named town
Hillesheim
Hillesheim is the third largest town in the Vulkaneifel district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is the seat of the like-named Verbandsgemeinde, to which it also belongs.- Location :...
.
Location
The municipality lies in the VulkaneifelVulkan Eifel
The Vulkan Eifel is a region in the Eifel Mountains in Germany, that is defined to a large extent by its volcanic geological history. Characteristic of the Vulkan Eifel are its typical explosion crater lakes or maars, and numerous other signs of volcanic activity such as volcanic tuffs, lava...
, a part of the Eifel
Eifel
The Eifel is a low mountain range in western Germany and eastern Belgium. It occupies parts of southwestern North Rhine-Westphalia, northwestern Rhineland-Palatinate and the south of the German-speaking Community of Belgium....
known for its volcanic history, geographical and geological features, and even ongoing activity today, including gases that sometimes well up from the earth.
Constituent communities
The outlying centre of Mirbach is said to have been the seat of an old Rhenish noble family, the Lords of Mirbach, who in the early 20th century built a castle follyFolly
In architecture, a folly is a building constructed primarily for decoration, but either suggesting by its appearance some other purpose, or merely so extravagant that it transcends the normal range of garden ornaments or other class of building to which it belongs...
and the Chapel of the Redeemer there. On 17 March 1974, Mirbach, which until then had been self-administering, was amalgamated with Wiesbaum.
History
In 804, Wiesbaum had its first documentary mention in a document that dealt with a territorial swap between Abbot Tankrad and a man named Beringar. Some holdings in Wiesbaum in the Eifelgau, which had earlier been given Tankrad’s monastery along with fields, cropland, woods, meadows, grazing land and standing and flowing waters by a man named Gunthar, were now given Beringar, against which Beringar yielded up his holdings in SefferweichSefferweich
Sefferweich is a municipality in the district of Bitburg-Prüm, in Rhineland-Palatinate, western Germany....
in the Bitgau, some of which were his own, while others he had inherited from his mother Gomalinde. These consisted of lands, woods, fields, meadows, grazing land and standing and flowing waters. The document was drawn up by a monk named Landohic and dated 25 July “in the 30th year of our Lord and King Karl’s rule and in the 4th year of his empire”. The “Karl” named here is Charlemagne
Charlemagne
Charlemagne was King of the Franks from 768 and Emperor of the Romans from 800 to his death in 814. He expanded the Frankish kingdom into an empire that incorporated much of Western and Central Europe. During his reign, he conquered Italy and was crowned by Pope Leo III on 25 December 800...
.
The Wiesbaum church was first mentioned in a Papal confirmation bull
Papal bull
A Papal bull is a particular type of letters patent or charter issued by a Pope of the Catholic Church. It is named after the bulla that was appended to the end in order to authenticate it....
dated 31 March 1131 and issued by Pope Innocent II
Pope Innocent II
Pope Innocent II , born Gregorio Papareschi, was pope from 1130 to 1143, and was probably one of the clergy in personal attendance on the antipope Clement III .-Early years:...
.
Wiesbaum was no stranger to witchhunts. In the 17th century, a local pastor named Hennes was tried and found guilty of witchcraft
Witchcraft
Witchcraft, in historical, anthropological, religious, and mythological contexts, is the alleged use of supernatural or magical powers. A witch is a practitioner of witchcraft...
, whereupon he was sentenced to be burnt as a warlock
Warlock
The term warlock in origin means "traitor, oathbreaker".In early modern Scots, the word came to be used as the male equivalent of witch ....
.
Municipal council
The council is made up of 12 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: Per fess gules five annulets argent three and two, and argent a stag’s attires fixed to the scalp sable.
The Schultheiß
Schultheiß
In medieval Germany, the Schultheiß was the head of a municipality , a Vogt or an executive official of the ruler.As official it was...
erei of Wiesbaum belonged until the end of feudal
Feudalism
Feudalism was a set of legal and military customs in medieval Europe that flourished between the 9th and 15th centuries, which, broadly defined, was a system for ordering society around relationships derived from the holding of land in exchange for service or labour.Although derived from the...
times in 1794 to the County of Blankenheim as part of the Lordship of Jünkerath. This passed in 1469 into the ownership of the Counts of Manderscheid. The Knights of Wiesbaum bore in the black chief
Chief (heraldry)
In heraldic blazon, a chief is a charge on a coat of arms that takes the form of a band running horizontally across the top edge of the shield. Writers disagree in how much of the shield's surface is to be covered by the chief, ranging from one-fourth to one-third. The former is more likely if the...
of their arms five silver rings, or annulets. These have been taken up into Wiesbaum’s arms above the line of partition, although the field tincture
Tincture (heraldry)
In heraldry, tinctures are the colours used to emblazon a coat of arms. These can be divided into several categories including light tinctures called metals, dark tinctures called colours, nonstandard colours called stains, furs, and "proper". A charge tinctured proper is coloured as it would be...
here is gules (red) rather than sable (black). The outlying centre of Mirbach is bound with the old noble family of the same name, who kept their seat in Mirbach. Their arms bore silver stag’s horns (“attires” in heraldry
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"...
) on a black field, and this device can now be seen below the line of partition in the original tinctures. This same device can also still be seen on the windows at the Chapel of the Redeemer (Erlöserkapelle) in Mirbach.
Buildings
- Saint Martin’sMartin of ToursMartin of Tours was a Bishop of Tours whose shrine became a famous stopping-point for pilgrims on the road to Santiago de Compostela. Around his name much legendary material accrued, and he has become one of the most familiar and recognizable Christian saints...
Catholic Parish Church (Pfarrkirche St. Martin), Kirchstraße 8 – Baroque Revival church, 1927. - Hauptstraße/corner of Üxheimer Straße – sandstoneSandstoneSandstone is a sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized minerals or rock grains.Most sandstone is composed of quartz and/or feldspar because these are the most common minerals in the Earth's crust. Like sand, sandstone may be any colour, but the most common colours are tan, brown, yellow,...
CrucifixionCrucifixionCrucifixion is an ancient method of painful execution in which the condemned person is tied or nailed to a large wooden cross and left to hang until dead...
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,...
from 1650. - Marienstraße 7 – stately Quereinhaus (a combination residential and commercial house divided for these two purposes down the middle, perpendicularly to the street), integrated bakehouse/elderly residence, separate commercial building.
- Former Saint Martin’s Catholic Parish Church, southeast of the village – nave and quire about 1500, sacristy 18th century; shaft cross from 1687 (?), walled churchyard with old trees.
Mirbach
- Catholic Chapel of the Redeemer (Erlöserkapelle), Kapellenstraße 1 – tuffTuffTuff is a type of rock consisting of consolidated volcanic ash ejected from vents during a volcanic eruption. Tuff is sometimes called tufa, particularly when used as construction material, although tufa also refers to a quite different rock. Rock that contains greater than 50% tuff is considered...
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...
, 1902-1903; grave crosses, 17th/18th century; shaft cross from 1741. - At Schulstraße 16 – house, 19th century, linked window, 17th century (?).
- CastleCastleA 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...
ruins, south of the village in a meadow – small follyFollyIn architecture, a folly is a building constructed primarily for decoration, but either suggesting by its appearance some other purpose, or merely so extravagant that it transcends the normal range of garden ornaments or other class of building to which it belongs...
, 1902. - Wayside cross, southeast of the village in a field – shaft cross from 1739.