Volkach

The title of this article is ambiguous. Further meanings are listed under Volkach (disambiguation) .

coat of arms	Germany map
	Coordinates: 49 ° 52 '  N , 10 ° 14'  E
Basic data
State :	Bavaria
Administrative region :	Lower Franconia
County :	Kitzingen
Management Community :	Volkach
Height :	203 m above sea level NHN
Area :	60.19 km 2
Residents:	8852 (Dec. 31, 2019)
Population density :	147 inhabitants per km 2
Postal code :	97332
Area code :	09381
License plate :	KT
Community key :	09 6 75 174
City structure:	19 districts
City administration address :	Marktplatz 1 97332 Volkach
Website :	www.volkach.de
Mayor :	Heiko Bäuerlein ( CSU )
Location of the city of Volkach in the Kitzingen district

Volkach is a town in Bavaria in the Lower Franconian district of Kitzingen and the seat of the Volkach administrative community . The small, historic town on the Main is an important wine and tourist destination in the Franconian wine-growing region . In the spatial planning of the Free State of Bavaria, Volkach is assigned to the regional center of Würzburg as an intermediate center .

geography

The districts of the community Volkach

Geographical location

Volkach is located in the north of the Kitzingen district in south-eastern Lower Franconia . The city forms the northern end of the district and borders (clockwise) on the district of Schweinfurt in the north, the city ​​of Prichsenstadt in the east, the market town of Wiesentheid in the south-east, the community of Schwarzach am Main in the south and the two villages of the administrative community Volkach, Sommerach and Nordheim . In the west, the district of Würzburg connects to the city.

Volkach is 14 km from the district town of Kitzingen , 20 km from Schweinfurt and 22 km from Würzburg .

With an area of ​​60.19 km², the city of Volkach is the third largest municipality in the district and, with around 9,000 inhabitants, has a population density of 150 inhabitants per km². The urban area is thus slightly below the Bavarian average of 176 inhabitants per km². In terms of population, however, Volkach is the second largest municipality in the district.

In its regional plan of February 2018, the Free State of Bavaria counts Volkach as a medium-sized center among the central locations.

Geology, hydrology, soils

In terms of nature, the municipality is made up of several sub-units of the Main Franconian plates . The main town and the western districts are in the area of ​​the Volkacher Mainschleife, which is counted as a sub-unit of the Middle Main Valley . The east between Obervolkach and Eichfeld, on the other hand, is included in the Steigerwald foreland of Neuses within the Kitzinger Mainebene in the Iphofen-Gerolzhofener Steigerwald forland. This also includes the Gaibacher loess plateau in the northern part of the municipality. Around Dimbach and the Hallburg lies the Dimbach drifting sand area as part of the Kitzinger Mainebene in the Steigerwald foreland.

Volkach itself is located on the Main Loop , the largest meandering river landscape in Bavaria. The region is characterized by steep impact slopes and flat sliding slopes , which can be used particularly well for viticulture. This human use has greatly changed the landscape. Nevertheless, the geological past is still clearly visible. The deepening of the Main into its current bed took place mainly in the Pleistocene , the river meanders deepened and gave rise to the two types of slopes. This process continues through erosion . As a result, the rivers cut deeper and deeper into the mountain of the Vogelsburg, so that a breakthrough mountain or circular mountain will arise in the distant future.

Volkach benefits hydrologically primarily from the clayey and loamy soil admixtures. Their high water absorption capacity enables the plants to absorb moisture, as there is also a very high groundwater level. Through these admixtures, the winter moisture can be maintained into summer and enables the flora to survive even in dry years.

The geology and soil conditions around the city are diverse. Upper Muschelkalk , Lettenkeuper , loess loam , sand , heavy clay soils and boggy soils exist. In the west, the limestone surfaces predominate, while loess and loess loam predominate in the area of ​​the Main. To the east of the river there are mainly heavy to clayey loams and sands. The soils in the Main Valley are the most diverse: sand, gravel, rubble , loamy and clayey sands as well as boggy alluvial soils can be found there. A rough breakdown can be made with the fertile loess strip around Gaibach and the large drifting sand area with dune formation around Volkach.

climate

Volkach is located in the Maingau climate zone, which is one of the driest and warmest zones in Germany. This is also the main reason for growing grapes in the region. Climate surveys for Volkach are carried out in the weather station in Würzburg.

The climate classification of Köppen assigns the city to the Cfb category. (Climate zone C : warm-temperate climate, climate type: f : humid-temperate climate, sub-type b : warm summer ).

Climate table for Volkach Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Max. Temperature ( ° C ) 2 4th 9 14th 20th 22nd 24 23 20th 14th 7th 3 O 13.5 Min. Temperature (° C) −4 −3 0 3 7th 11 12 12 8th 5 2 −2 O 4.3 Hours of sunshine ( h / d ) 2 3 5 6th 6th 7th 8th 7th 6th 5 2 1 O 4.8 Rainy days ( d ) 10 9 9 10 11 11 10 9 8th 7th 10 10 Σ 114 Source:

Land use

Land use 2010

use	Hectares
Building and open space	348
Operating area	24
Recreation area	31
traffic area	403
Agricultural area	3933
Forest area	973
Water surface	271
Areas of other use	36
total area	6019

The Volkachs land use table shows a very large preponderance of agriculturally used land. The share of the community area is 65.3 percent. Forest areas follow with 16.2 percent. In the sixth place in the table are the water areas. In addition to the Main and various quarry ponds , the Volkach , Weidach, Sommerach, Schwarzach and Gaibach creeks should be mentioned here. There is also a small number of recreational areas, which make up around 0.5 percent of the urban area.

Built-up area takes up 13.3 percent of the municipality. The city of Volkach predominates here by a large margin. The districts have only a small amount of built-up areas. Traffic areas such as streets, paths and squares make up around half of this (6.7 percent).

Protected areas

With the Volkacher Mainschleife , the city has a valuable geotope. The Federal Agency for Nature Conservation also designates the entire Main Loop as a landscape protection area . Some areas that are registered as nature reserves enjoy special protection : The Dürringswasen in Astheim due to the endangered plant Jurinea cyanoides and the biotope Sandgrasheide, as well as the Sandgrasheiden at Elgersheimer Hof .

The Main also enjoys nature protection in some areas, for example the Altmain around Volkach or the Main meadows near Sommerach . The Mainhang nature reserve on the Vogelsburg protects the northern impact slope of the Mainschleife. There are other sand corridors between Volkach, Schwarzach am Main and Sommerach . The forest on the Hallburg is also registered as a nature reserve.

There are also some natural monuments in the municipality. The so-called pheasant garden in the Gaibach castle park and the park itself have been preserved to this day. In addition, the old Allmende area around the Halbmeilensee is classified as a natural monument. The only registered geotope is the quarry in Weinbergsleitengraben near Krautheim, the old wild fruit tree located here is again classified as a natural monument. In contrast, the Baderswasen natural monument, which no longer exists today, was located in the Brand Forest Department.

See also : List of nature reserves in the district of Kitzingen  and List of geotopes in the district of Kitzingen

City structure

Volkach is divided into 19 districts. The center of the community is the town of Volkach with around 5000 inhabitants. To the west, on the other side of the Main, is Astheim, the largest of the Volkach districts (approx. 800 inhabitants). Along the Main, westwards, you come across Escherndorf (approx. 300 inhabitants) and Köhler, which is the smallest of the districts with only 40 inhabitants. Clockwise then follow Fahr (approx. 650 inhabitants) in the northwest, Gaibach (approx. 500 inhabitants) in the north, Obervolkach (approx. 700 inhabitants) and Krautheim (approx. 200 inhabitants) in the northeast, Rimbach (approx. 300 inhabitants) in the East, Eichfeld (approx. 450 inhabitants) in the southeast and Dimbach (approx. 150 inhabitants) in the south.

There are still disused mills and emigrant farms around Volkach . The castles Hallburg and Vogelsburg are also noted as districts.

District	Tgk. (Sub-municipality code)	Settlement type	District	Area (in km² )	Residents (as of May 25, 1987)	Incorporation	coordinate
Astheim	002	Parish village	Astheim	3.32	673	January 1, 1972	( Location )
Dimbach	003	Church Village	Dimbach	5.01	131	1st October 1977	( Location )
Eichfeld	004	Parish village	Eichfeld	6.53	411	July 1, 1972	( Location )
Elgersheim	005	Wasteland	Drive	without	10	May 1, 1978	( Location )
Escherndorf	006	Parish village	Escherndorf	1.81	375	January 1, 1972	( Location )
Drive	007	Parish village	Drive	2.5	529	October 1, 1978	( Location )
Gaibach	008	Parish village	Gaibach	7.91	565	October 1, 1978	( Location )
Hallburg	009	lock	Volkach	without	19th	20th September 1955	( Location )
Charcoal burner	010	Church Village	Charcoal burner	0.73	73	July 1, 1972	( Location )
Krautheim	011	Parish village	Krautheim	2.84	185	January 1, 1977	( Location )
Obervolkach	012	Parish village	Obervolkach	6.22	591	January 1, 1978	( Location )
Öttershausen	013	hamlet	Gaibach	without	15th	May 1, 1978	( Location )
Rimbach	014	Parish village	Rimbach	5.96	231	July 1, 1977	( Location )
Stettenmühle	015	Wasteland	Obervolkach	without	1	January 1, 1978	( Location )
Strehlhof	016	Wasteland	Rimbach	without	6th	July 1, 1977	( Location )
Vogelsburg	017	Wasteland	Escherndorf	without	13	January 1, 1972	( Location )
Volkach	001	main place	Volkach	15.64	4336	not incorporated	( Location )
Wenceslas Mill	018	Wasteland	Krautheim	without	10	January 1, 1977	( Location )
Brick hut	019	Wasteland	Krautheim	without	5	January 1, 1977	( Location )

history

→ Main article : History of the city of Volkach

From the settlement to the city of Volkach (until 1258)

Celtic burial mound on the outskirts of Volkach

The fertile region around Volkach was settled extremely early. Finds classified as soil monuments such as graves, open-air stations or settlements are documented for many prehistoric and early historical cultures. Both Linear Linear Pottery as well as members of the Urnfield culture , the Hallstatt culture and the Celts lived on and around the main loop.

The cultural landscape development of the Main Loop did not start until much later. Franconian farmers, already converted to Christianity, started growing wine on the Main in the 8th century. The religious center of these first Christian settlers was the church on today's mountain of the Vogelsburg. The Mainschleife was administered from Prosselsheim , where a Franconian royal court stood. This already included the settlements Ostheim (Astheim), Nordheim and Sommerach as well as several other places. The influence of the royal court was already reduced in the year 889, because the area was split up through several partitions and the Main became the border of the "Volkfeld". In 903 the Vogelsburg came to the Fulda monastery . In 906 King Ludwig IV gave Fulda the remaining settlements on the Main. The monastery distributed the property it had received to various landlords , thereby promoting the different development of the settlement cells.

The "lower" (lat. Inferior) Volkach was now separated from the "upper" (lat. Superior) Volkach and dropped its name affix. In the mentions of Volkach so far only "Volkaha" (1190), "villa" (1230) and generally of "in Volkach" (1254) were mentioned. The city name was missing. This only changed in a document from 1258 with “civitate nostra Volka” (our town of Volkach). In the meantime Volkach had passed from the Fulda monastery to the Counts of Castell . This aristocratic family recognized the value of the location on the Main and built the settlement into a cornerstone of their dominion. Between 1254 and 1258 the king granted city rights.

Volkach under the Counts of Castell (1258–1520)

For the new rulers, Volkach was the most important settlement within their sphere of influence and so a town elevation was forced. The upgrading of the Mainsiedlung seemed necessary because the castell possessions were surrounded by areas of the Würzburg bishopric . The city was administered by a city bailiff (Ostergerus advocatus). Meanwhile, the Würzburg bishop tried more and more for the settlements on the Mainschleife. In 1230 the Hallburg had to be ceded to the bishop. In the following years Volkach fell into different hands. Heinrich II. And Hermann zu Castell each owned half of the city. Heinrich divided his half between his sons Rupert and Hermann, who each received a quarter of the city. Rupert pledged his share to the Würzburg monastery. Hermann also sold the other quarter to Würzburg in 1328. The other half, in the hands of Mr. von Hohenlohe , was divided into three in 1447.

The first part went to the Limpurg tavern for 2998 guilders , who passed it on to Bishop Rudolf von Scherenberg in 1479 . The second part was handed over to the Lords of Weinsberg , who also sold it to the Würzburg bishop in 1479. Volkach came completely under the rule of the Würzburg bishopric in 1520, when the Counts of Castell waived their right of repurchase, which they had been granted for the last part in 1509.

The frequent changes of rule did not hinder Volkach's economic progress. On the contrary, the number of privileges granted to the city rose considerably during this period. The citizens received a fortification right , in 1398 the right to mint and in 1406 and 1451 market privileges . Since 1432 Volkach was a separate high court district and exercised the blood judiciary . The town clerk Niklas Brobst von Effelt wrote the Volkacher Salbuch in 1504 , a collection of numerous privileges, regulations, regulations and legal customs with numerous illustrations.

Volkach as the prince-bishop's official city (1520-1814)

The coat of arms of Prince-Bishop Julius Echters von Mespelbrunn at the Sommeracher Tor

The end of the Middle Ages heralded a new era for the city on the Main. The entire city was under the rule of the Würzburg bishop. This tightened the ordinances and taxes and brought the Volkach farmers against them. In 1525, during the German Peasants' War , Volkach farmers under their captain Johann Buthner plundered the Astheim Charterhouse and the Vogelsburg. After the uprisings were put down, Volkach ringleaders were beheaded several times. The citizens had to swear an oath of loyalty to Bishop Konrad von Thüngen .

After a short recovery phase, during which the new town hall (construction started in 1544) was completed, the Thirty Years War began in 1618 . In 1631, Volkach was occupied by Swedish troops and 17 years later by Königsmarck troops. The city was sacked. At that time, Volkach was the seat of the Volkach Office, which emerged from the Hallburg Office. At first only Obervolkach belonged to this, later the places Sommerach, Untereisenheim , Nordheim and Köhler were added. The office was administered from an office building in the city.

Due to the many uprisings and wars, the city temporarily suffered an economic decline. Thus vineyards and fields were deserted during the Thirty Years War. Nevertheless, Volkach was able to recover again and again. This is shown by the new construction of the city wall around 1540–1600 and the foundation of a lake house in 1785. The establishment of fruit and grain, cattle and fan markets in the 18th century certainly contributed to the economic upturn . The Schelfhaus, built in 1719 by the Volkach Senator Georg Adam Schelf, is a sign of the growing self-confidence of the Volkach citizens.

In Bavaria (1814–1945)

With the mediatization by Napoleon from 1803 a changeful time began for Volkach. The city became part of the Electorate of Bavaria for a short time before it became Würzburg again in 1806. The year 1814 ended this turmoil; From then on, Volkach was a city in the Kingdom of Bavaria . It was still an official city and after 1811 received its own deanery district . In 1872 the Volkach district was dissolved and added to the Gerolzhofen office . The loss of administrative positions continued after the First World War . By 1939 the court, the tax office and the calibration office disappeared from the city.

For Volkach, however, the changes also had positive sides. In 1840 the city received a post office. In the years 1825, 1844 and 1893 several banks settled in the city. A tremendous relief for traffic was the completion of the Volkach Main Bridge in 1892 after two years of construction, which put an end to ferry traffic between the city and Astheim. Volkach was connected to the railway network in 1909 with the Main Loop Railway of the Royal Bavarian State Railways.

Economically, the time was marked by a major upheaval: Wine growing, for centuries the economic backbone of the Mainschleife, was disturbed by the appearance of phylloxera and the city got into debt. The promotion of fruit growing could provide a remedy. Apple trees now also belonged to the Volkach region. Before the end of the Second World War , industry in Volkach played a subordinate role. Only the gasworks built in 1903 and the printing works opened in 1918 stood out from the purely agricultural environment.

Volkach escaped major damage in the Second World War, only the Main Bridge was blown up in the senseless retreat of the Wehrmacht on April 7, 1945. Previously, on February 6, the city was bombed and four people were killed. Volkach remained under American occupation until December 1946.

After the Second World War (since 1945)

Volkach. Steel engraving based on a preliminary drawing by Fritz Bamberger in 1847.

The destruction of the Main Bridge determined the politics of the immediate post-war period in Volkach. The foundation stone for a new bridge was laid as early as 1947, after the Bavarian Prime Minister Hans Ehard had inspected the situation. Another problem for the city was the supply of the numerous refugees and evacuees. New settlements emerged to provide housing for the new residents.

The Madonna in the Rosary by Tilman Riemenschneider in the pilgrimage church Maria im Weingarten on the Volkacher Kirchberg was stolen in 1962, but could be returned in 1963. After a restoration, the Madonna is now back in the church above Volkach. The so-called Madonna robbery is one of the most spectacular art thefts of the German post-war period.

Another political fresh start was necessary due to the Bavarian regional reform . From 1972 ten localities were incorporated into Volkach. In addition, the centuries-old connection with Gerolzhofen was destroyed by the dissolution of the district . Volkach was added to the district of Kitzingen. The city has been a Bundeswehr base since 1986 , when the now disbanded Pioneer Battalion 12 moved into the Mainfranken barracks; today the 467 logistics battalion is located there.

Volkach continued to develop economically in the post-war period. The canalization of the Main in 1958 and the construction of a harbor contributed to this, as did the establishment of a ball bearing factory . At the same time, the city took on efforts to promote tourism . Today tourism is one of the economic pillars of Volkach and the Mainschleife. With the construction of the Mainfranken barracks , Volkach became a military base.

Desolations and incorporations

The village of Ulberg was the first to come to the up-and-coming town of Volkach. It became part of the city as early as the 16th century, but in the 17th century the residents left the settlement and moved behind the city walls, the desert is still in the Volkach municipality today. Likewise, the settlements Sahermor and Gieshügel , both near Gaibach, were abandoned in the 15th century. Here the plague was to blame for the abandonment of the places. It is unclear when the village of Lindhof was abandoned on the Dimbacher district. The lower suburb was given up in the Thirty Years War.

In the 19th century, the city of Volkach consisted of four districts. In addition to the city itself, there were the suburbs Schaubmühle , Herrenmühle and Kirchberg . All three were dissolved after 1888 and were henceforth part of the city. The Escherndorf district of Ziegelhütte was also mentioned for the last time in 1888.

Several manors, mills and resettlers' farms were assigned to the later Volkach districts through the reorganization of the Bavarian administration in the 19th century. Elgersheim came to Fahr, Hallburg and Öttershausen came to Gaibach. Obervolkach received the Stettenmühle, Rimbach the Strehlhof. The Wenceslas mill and the brickworks came to Krautheim. In 1955 the Hallburg was incorporated into Volkach.

As part of the regional reform in Bavaria in the 1970s, the city received several neighboring villages, which from then on became districts. On January 1, 1972, the previously independent communities Astheim and Escherndorf were incorporated into the city of Volkach. On July 1 of the same year Eichfeld and Koehler joined them.

Krautheim followed on January 1, 1977. Rimbach was incorporated on July 1, 1977. Dimbach became part of the city of Volkach on October 1, 1977. The series of incorporations was completed with the incorporation of Obervolkach on January 1, 1978 and Fahr and Gaibach on May 1, 1978.

Population development

The population of medieval Volkach has remained relatively constant over the centuries. Since the nearby river Main prevented further expansion of the city and the economic situation did not allow city expansion, around 1000 people always lived in the city at that time. The oldest record of the inhabitants of Volkach is the statistics from the year 1698. According to this, around 1200 inhabitants lived in the four districts, who belonged to 267 to 274 households.

In the 19th century, too, the urban population rose only very slowly. For example, Pastor Georg Scheurich recorded a total of 1967 residents in the city in his Volkach Chronicle of 1864. The increase can be explained by the residential buildings on the arteries that were built in the 19th century. Around 1900 there were already around 5000 people living in the area that today forms the community of Volkach. The increase of almost 2,000 inhabitants until 1950 is mainly due to refugees from the Second World War.

This situation prompted the city administration in the post-war period to plan a belt of settlements around the old city, which is now framed by the ring of state roads 2260 and 2274. Together with the districts that also opened up new settlements after the war, the population of the community rose to just under 10,000 by 2005. The demographic change and the rural exodus of the new millennium led to an emigration that continues today.

Religions

Christianity

In the city of Volkach there is a Protestant and a Catholic parish. The Catholic one belongs to the deanery district of Kitzingen. It forms the parish community of St. Urban an der Mainschleife with the parishes of St. Bartholomäus in Volkach, St. Johannes Evangelist in Astheim, St. John the Baptist in Escherndorf and in Fahr. The Protestant congregation is located in the Castell dean's office . The distribution of denominations was last asked in 1987. There is an overwhelming majority of Catholics who make up about 80 percent of the population. Evangelical Lutheran and free church groups account for only 17.4 percent.

Judaism

→ Main articles : Jewish community Öttershausen  and Jewish community Rimbach

In two districts of the city of Volkach there were Jewish religious communities until the end of the 19th century . Both were part of the Niederwerrn District Rabbinate , which was later converted into the Schweinfurt District Rabbinate . In Öttershausen, the community maintained a synagogue, and an employed teacher was also the prayer leader. The community dissolved by 1880 because all Jews had moved to larger towns.

There was a larger community in Rimbach, but it did not have its own synagogue . It established itself in the first half of the 19th century and dissolved again in the same century.

politics

City council and elections

The city council has 20 members. Since the local elections on March 15, 2020, it has been composed as follows:

Local election 2020

Turnout: 71.7%

 %

40

30th

20th

10

0

30.8%

26.1%

16.4%

11.8%

14.6%

CSU

FWG

Green

SPD

Otherwise.

Party / list	Seats
CSU	6th
FWG	6th
Alliance 90 / The Greens	3
SPD	2
Citizen List Volkach	2
FDP	1

In the 2014 local elections , the SPD lost two seats. The Free Voters and the Citizens' List each lost one seat. The Greens, on the other hand, moved into the city council for the first time, as did the FDP.

In addition to the city councils, there are three local spokesmen who represent Dimbach, Köhler and Gaibach.

A decrease in voter turnout can be observed in state and federal elections in Volkach. Since reunification, the smaller and regional parties in particular have benefited from this. The Greens received 10.8 percent of the vote in the 2009 Bundestag election, the FDP 14.3 percent and the Left 7.2 percent. The SPD received 14.8 percent, the CSU 44.8 percent.

In the 2013 federal election , the CSU was able to increase its result to 54.8 percent. The SPD also improved to 16.8 percent of the vote. The losers in the Bundestag election were the small parties in Volkach: The Greens only achieved 8.4 percent, the Left Party lost 3.1 percent and 4.1 percent of the vote. The FDP only reached 4.3 percent. The 2017 federal election brought the following result: The CSU received 52.1 percent of the first votes and 45.8 percent of the second votes. The SPD lost votes and came up with a result of 13.1 percent of the first and 15.2 percent of the second votes, while the FDP gained some votes and doubled its election result to 9.8 percent of the first and 9.4 percent of the Second votes. The Greens were also able to gain slightly, with 9.0 first and 8.8 second votes. AfD and Left both received 6.8 percent of the first votes.

mayor

From mayor to first mayor

A mayor for Volkach is first recorded in 1395. The official name at that time was: " Schultheiß , Mayor, Council and Citizen of the City of Volkach and Vorstädte". Most of the city leaders came from the wealthy families of the city, made up of castellian, Ebrachian and Würzburg feudal people. Since the early modern period , more and more members of the wine merchant families came to the highest city office. In particular, the Balbus and Schwan families often provided the mayor.

While the mayors only ruled for one year until the 19th century, with confirmations often being given over the course of years, longer terms of office prevailed with the acquisition by the Kingdom of Bavaria. During the Nazi era , the National Socialist government appointed the mayor; he was deposed by the Americans on April 15, 1945. For the time afterwards, long terms of office for city leaders are the rule.

The full-time first mayor of the city is currently Heiko Bäuerlein, a member of the Christian Social Union in Bavaria (CSU). From 2002 to 2020, Peter Kornell was a member of the FWG. He has been in office since May 1, 2002. In 2014, he prevailed in a runoff election against the candidate of the Volkach citizens' list, Fred Mahler. The city council appoints the city's second and third mayors.

Mayor of Volkach since 1900

→ Main article : List of mayors of Volkach

The mayor's oath, miniature from the Volkacher Salbuch

mayor	Term of office	Remarks
Johann Baptist Schmitt	1900-1905
Josef Guardian	1906-1935	"Honorary Mayor" and honorary citizen of the city of Volkach
Josef Dittmann	1935-1945	Installed by the National Socialist government
Georg Berz	1945	1st term, appointed by the American military government
Josef M. Erb	1945-1948
Georg Berz	1948-1970	2. Term of office
Friedrich Russ	1970-1990	Also a member of the district council of the Kitzingen district, honorary citizen of the city of Volkach
Karl Andreas Schlier	1990-2002
Peter Kornell	2002-2020	Also member of the district council of the Kitzingen district
Heiko Farmer	since 2020

Municipal finance

The community of Volkach had a debt of almost 9 million euros in 2010. This is offset by gross expenditure of 14 million and tax income of 5 million. On the expenditure side, personnel expenses predominate at 3.5 million, while capital investments account for the smallest part of expenditure. In 2012 the municipal debt amounted to 8.285 million euros. In 2016 the debt fell to just under 5 million euros, which means a per capita debt of 575 euros.

coat of arms

→ Main article : Coat of arms of the city of Volkach

Blazon : “Split; in front three silver tips in red, behind in gold a blue diagonal wave bar. "

Justification for the coat of arms: The coat of arms was split in the oldest seal from the 14th century. Instead of the inclined wave bar, which is supposed to represent the Volkachbach, the coat of arms of the Counts of Castell was found. In 1544 the Würzburg prince-bishop gave the city its current coat of arms. Only between 1819 and 1952 did the colors of the coat of arms change: the rake was now colored blue and white.

• 

  Astheim coat of arms

• 

  Dimbach coat of arms

• 

  Fahr coat of arms

• 

  Eichfeld coat of arms

• 

  Coat of arms of Escherndorf

• 

  Gaibach coat of arms

• 

  Coat of arms of Koehler

• 

  Coat of arms of Krautheim

• 

  Coat of arms of Obervolkach

• 

  Rimbach coat of arms

Culture and sights

Buildings

See also : List of architectural monuments in Volkach

Sites and ensembles

The Volkach old town with the upper gate

The riders flower road towards the Main

The Volkach municipal area is characterized by the many smaller villages around the city itself, some of which are still very different in appearance today. Three town centers are protected as ensembles by the Bavarian Monument Preservation Office because of their special features . These are the Volkach old town with the moat gardens, the town center of Escherndorf and the central flower street in Fahr. All three places are typical representatives of the villages and towns at the Main Triangle , Escherndorf and Fahr, both places with an orientation towards a Main ferry .

Volkach was created in its current form during the rise of the city in the 12th and 13th centuries. Educated, it presented itself as a two-gate city, facing south (Kitzingen) or north-west (Schweinfurt) on a flood-free terrace. The two suburbs in front of the gates were responsible for the distribution of routes, although they are not part of the ensemble today. The administrative center of the city soon became the market square with the town hall , ecclesiastically the center was a little further south-west, where the parish church and the actual original center of the city were to be found. The city is still characterized by the town houses of different eras, the wealth of which is mainly due to the viticulture. The compact city slowly dissolved in the 19th century when breaches were made in the wall in the west (Weihertor), northeast (Zeilitzheimer Tor) and east (Spitalstrasse). At the same time, the typical moat gardens were created by the residents themselves. → see also: Altstadt (Volkach) , Obere Vorstadt (Volkach) and Untere Vorstadt (Volkach)

The Escherndorf town center, on the other hand, is much less representative. The village developed along the main street parallel to the Main into a typical Häckerdorf. The parish church with the real helmet forms the center of the village. At the same time, Escherndorf forms an urban unit with Nordheim am Main on the other side of the Main. In Fahr, the blossom road forms the center of the village, here the mostly two-story gable and eaves side houses of the winemakers line up in the direction of the Main ferry.

Köhler's only row of houses

The center of Köhler is not an ensemble of buildings. Due to the topography between the Main and the steep Fürstenberg, people here were only able to build their houses on one side of the street below the mountain. This is how the unique, single-row Häckerstraßendorf came into being, in which, according to the vernacular, “ pancakes are only baked on one side”. Astheim's extension, on the other hand, does not depend so much on the topographical features of the area, so that the village presents itself as a cluster of settlements . One of the focal points is still the monastery complex with its almost closed ring of houses. Many houses of the former charterhouse have been renewed, but the closed character of the monastery complex and the settlement of the Astheimers in front of it is still clearly visible in the townscape.

The town center of Obervolkach is another special feature. It is divided in two by the Volkachbach . The older cemetery is on one side and the younger parish church on the other. Both parts are connected by an old arch bridge . On the other hand, the village of Gaibach in the north of the municipality is evidence of a more recent transformation. With the support of the Counts of Schönborn, a typical baroque ensemble was built with an extensive palace complex and a magnificent parish church. The village has lost the compact character of the surrounding places and is instead interspersed with green spaces.

Sacred buildings

→ Main article : Sacred buildings in Volkach

Maria in the vineyard

Neumanns Dreifaltigkeitskirche in Gaibach

Churches and chapels from almost every century since the Middle Ages have been preserved in the Volkach municipality . For a long time the most important church was the predecessor of the pilgrimage church Maria im Weingarten above the Volkach town center. The original parish for the places Volkach, Obervolkach, Eichfeld, Astheim, Gaibach, Krautheim, Gieshügel as well as Stammheim and Fahr was located here. Gradually, however, the parish was relocated to the up-and-coming city itself, and the branches mostly gained their independence in the Middle Ages.

Maria in the vineyard remained important because a pilgrimage was made here, which was looked after by the beguines now living on the mountain . At this point in time, the church received the pieces of equipment from the late Middle Ages that still exist today. Particularly noteworthy is the Rosary Madonna by Tilman Riemenschneider from around 1524. Maria im Weingarten was also the seat of several religious brotherhoods . The church hit the headlines during the so-called Madonna robbery in 1962.

With the descent of the Kirchberg Church , the parish church , consecrated to Saints George and Bartholomew, rose. Its high tower with the characteristic, octagonal tower still characterizes the town of Volkach today. The Bartholomäuskirche is shaped inside by the foundations of the citizens, which are immortalized in the altars. The appearance goes back mainly to the 18th century. Well-known artists such as Johann Georg Neßtfell or Johann Michael Wolcker created the works of art in the church.

The districts can often have similarly richly equipped churches. They received their support mostly from the respective village lords. On the Vogelsburg and in Astheim there were even monasteries , which also provided for the furnishing of the places of worship. The history of the church on the Vogelsburg is particularly long. An early medieval predecessor of the parish church on the Mainschleife was possibly to be found here. Today the small church with the roof turret towers over the Escherndorfer Berg and the entire municipality.

The Astheim monastery church, on the other hand, was profaned; its rich furnishings from the 15th and 16th centuries were one of the foundations for the conversion of the church into a museum for the diocese of Würzburg . The mighty high altar and the choir stalls with its 32 stalls still characterize the monk's church of the dissolved Carthusian monastery in the middle of the village. The monks were separated from the former lay church (the furnishings of which were presented more simply) by a rood screen.

Crucifixion relief in Dimbach

Riemenschneider's Madonna in the Rosary

The situation in Dimbach was very different. The Maria de Rosario church is extraordinarily large for a small village church and, with its three-aisled basilica long house, cites the Gothic of the 13th century. The Benedictines of the Münsterschwarzach monastery temporarily set up a provost's office here . A local pilgrimage tradition to a miraculous image of grace brought many parts of the furnishings here. One of the oldest Franconian stone sculptures , the so-called crucifixion relief, is also kept in Dimbach .

The churches of Fahr , Escherndorf and Obervolkach bear witness to the time of the Counter Reformation under Prince-Bishop Julius Echter von Mespelbrunn . They were furnished in the style of the real Gothic of the late 16th and 17th centuries. The most visible signs of this are the so-called real towers with their octagonal floor plan and pointed helmet. The villages of Eichfeld and Krautheim, which have now become Protestant, copied the style without further ado, so that the two churches, which are still Protestant today, also have pointed helmets.

With the support of the village of Gaibach by the von Schönborn family in the 18th century, this village also received a powerful church. Count Friedrich Karl was able to win the Würzburg engineer Balthasar Neumann as master builder . Between 1743 and 1745 he built the Trinity Church as the patronage church of the House of Schönborn. Renowned artists such as Antonio Giuseppe Bossi and Gottfried Bernhard Göz were also able to work on the interior .

Castles, palaces and mansions

Hallburg Castle

Gaibach Castle

In the past there were a total of eight castles and palaces in the municipality of Volkach, all of which served as mansions for the regional nobility. Today they are preserved in very different conditions and are used as residential buildings, wineries and school buildings.

The oldest of the castle complexes is the so-called Burgstall Vogelsburg. The mountain was already settled during the Paleolithic , the section ramparts were not built until 1500 BC. In the Bronze Age . With the advance of the Franks into the region, the mountain was turned into a fortress in the 5th century to protect the colonizers. In the 8th century it became Gauburg des Volkfeldes, but the fortifications fell into disrepair. Finally, the Counts of Castell converted the Vogelsburg into a monastery in 1282. The section walls can only be seen around the monastery today. → see also: Burgstall Vogelsburg

A manor house was first mentioned in Rimbach in 1134. At that time, the gentlemen from Rimpach (or Rimbach) were sitting in the facility. From 1355, the Zollner came from the Hallburg to the complex. The Zollner named their own line after the place with the castle. In 1663 the Counts of Schönborn acquired the manor. Since the family no longer lived in the house, the castle was replaced by a simpler building for the local hunter. → see also: Burgstall Rimbach

The Stettenburg was first mentioned in a document in 1225 as "castrum". By this time the castle had largely fallen into disrepair, an attempt at reconstruction by the Counts of Castell failed around 1339. The first half of the 13th century also marked the first appearance of Hallburg Castle. In the course of its history it had different residents, which underlines its important position above the Main . The Counts of Schönborn have owned the castle since 1806, which has now been converted into a winery with a restaurant. The keep and parts of the curtain wall have been preserved. → see also: Burgstall Stettenburg and Burg Hallburg

Stettenburg ruins

The castle complex in Fahr is only documented by archival sources in which a local nobility ("Hermannus de Vare") was mentioned around 1340. The street name "Schloßberg" refers to the residence. In Öttershausen there are no remains of the castle, which was inhabited by an Albrecht Schrimpf at the end of the 15th century. Maybe it was south of the manor. In Krautheim, on the other hand, the small baroque palace has been almost completely preserved. It developed from an estate as the seat of the Lords of Buttlar. → see also: Krautheim Castle

The largest castle complex in the Volkach municipality is Gaibach Castle. Already in the Middle Ages there was a seat of the Zollner von der Hallburg in the village. It was looted and destroyed in the German Peasants' War in 1525. Between 1590 and 1608 the Volkach bailiff Valentin Echter von Mespelbrunn built a renaissance castle . At the end of the 18th century, the complex came to the Counts of Schönborn and was expanded by them into a neighboring residence. In the 19th century, the counts redesigned their castle in the classicist style . Today the boarding school of the Steigerwald-Landschulheim is housed here. → see also: Gaibach Castle

Zehnthöfe, townhouses and courtyards

The marketplace

town hall

Volkach has a closed old town with two city gates. The upper and lower gates date back to the 13th century; both towers were expanded under Julius Echter von Mespelbrunn in the 16th century. The upper gate is also called Sommeracher Tor (thief tower), the lower one is also called Gaibacher gate (octopus tower). The following buildings are remarkable within the city walls:

• The Volkacher Renaissance - Town Hall is a building dating back to 1544; A characteristic of the Franconian style is a double external staircase that led to the council chamber above the basement, where the traders sold their goods. In Volkach it flows into a half-timbered oriel , similar to the town hall in the not far away town of Dettelbach . The architecture is related to other Franconian town halls, for example in Ochsenfurt and Karlstadt .
• The market square is marked by a fountain with a Maria Immaculata from 1480 next to the town hall . A remarkable half-timbered house on the corner of Hauptstrasse, now a family-run hotel, has been a craftsman's house, blacksmith's and dye works since the 16th century.
• The Echterhof , named after Prince-Bishop Julius Echter von Mespelbrunn , in the main street was the prince-bishop's office and was built in 1605. When this branch of the Echter family died out, it became a hospital in 1698, as indicated by the name Spitalgasse on the side street. In the 19th century it became a royal Bavarian district court. It is now an upscale hotel.
• The former Zehnthof with its typical gable was originally owned by the Würzburg cathedral chapter, in the 19th century it was the royal Bavarian rent office.
• The old official cellar in Hauptstrasse is a late Baroque building and was used by the Royal Bavarian Post in the 19th century.
• The Schelfenhaus (today the city library) in a side street of the main street is a baroque city palace of the merchant and councilor Johann Georg Adam Schelf from 1719/20 with a richly decorated street front and several halls with splendid ceiling stucco and ceiling paintings.
• A number of timber-framed farm buildings with backyards have been preserved. Today there are wineries and dining facilities. There are bar yards that are already mentioned in the Volkacher Salbuch and that still have restaurants.
• The municipal museum is located in a barn from the 18th century that was converted in 2003 (so-called baroque barn ). The city archive houses the Volkacher Salbuch as its greatest treasure. A facsimile is available and an online version is also available.
• The two suburbs are also architecturally interesting. The 18th century Gasthof Zum Lamm is located on the Upper Market . A mighty crucifixion shrine from around 1460 still forms the center of the Lower Suburb .

Theaters and museums

The city of Volkach itself does not have its own theater. The so-called culture barn existed in the Eichfeld district until 2010 and gave theater performances with a changing ensemble. The history of the city on the Mainschleife can be explored in the Museum Barockscheune Volkach . There has been a permanent exhibition there since 2003. On the other side of the Main, in the Astheim district, is the Kartause Museum , which is dedicated to the history of Christian image worship.

Regular events

Due to the tourist attraction of the city, there are many festivals and events in Volkach. Every quarter, the city of Volkach organizes a market, which takes place along the main street and in the city park. Regional products are offered, but also junk . Concerts by the Volkach town band take place regularly on the market square. Another festive institution is the Volkacher Wine Festival , which has been held in August since 1949. The districts of Volkach also celebrate wine festivals in summer, so that at least one festival can be attended every weekend. In addition to the wine festival, the Volkach way of life has been established in Volkach for several years. Wineries open their doors and bands play all over the city center.

See also : Franconian Wine Festival Volkach

Say

In most of the Volkach districts, legends and oral narratives have been handed down to the present day , most of which were first recorded in writing in the 19th and 20th centuries. The oldest refer to the past of the castles Hallburg and Stettenburg, both of which were legendarily transfigured in the early modern period . The stories often give clues to the previous owners of the fortifications and their (in) deeds. They should also have an educational role. The Hallburg legend about the rider without a head can be considered characteristic.

Dimbach is a specialty with its tradition of pilgrimage to the church of St. Maria de Rosario. There, the goal of the pilgrimage, the late Gothic Pietà , is the focus of all stories. She is said to have worked miracles, which ultimately led to the increase in the number of pilgrims. The so-called wolf miracle , which is considered the origin of the pilgrimage, is particularly well known . Such Marian sagas also exist for the pilgrimage to the Volkacher Kirchberg.

With the Thirty Years War , people's lives changed fundamentally, which is why many legends and sagas refer to the supposed events during the war. Above all, the monasteries in Astheim and on the Vogelsburg experienced a decline as a result of the conflict, because their existence was threatened by the Protestant opponents. The legends also paint a cruel picture of Protestant Swedes. In the Volkach town center, the origin of the pilgrimage to Burgwindheim and the rescue from the plague were influenced by the Thirty Years' War.

In the districts of Eichfeld and Krautheim, which have finally become Protestant after the long war, there are few or no legends because the village lords forbade such supposedly superstitious stories. The largest legendary figure in the area around Volkach, on the other hand, appears more popular . In Gaibach, Obervolkach, Rimbach and Volkach, stories are told about the Hoi man who, as an enchanted estate manager or bailiff in the Hart Forest, makes the horses shy with his "Hoi, Hoi" calls.

language

Volkach is located in the Main Franconian dialect area . Lower Franconian is spoken , which is to be assigned to the southern Würzburg area. In everyday life, especially by older residents, the dialect is still used frequently, even if Standard German is becoming more and more prevalent.

Sports

There are sports clubs in almost all parts of the municipality, the largest being VfL-Volkach, which unites the city's soccer teams under one roof. In addition to soccer, a volleyball team also trains here, and gymnastics lessons are also offered. There is also a handball and tennis club in Volkach. A diving club offers insights into the water world of the Mainschleife. The oldest sports club, however, is the Royal Privileged Shooting Society 1443 Volkach .

The clubs maintain several sports fields for the large number of sporting events. In addition to some grass courts in the north of the city, there are tennis and football courts that are provided by the city itself. The largest hall is the Mainschleifenhalle, in which not only sporting events but also trade fairs are held. There is also an indoor and an outdoor pool in the city , which are located in two different places in the city. The temporary closure of the outdoor pool in May 2019 led to major protests by the population.

Economy and Infrastructure

Volkach belongs to the historical nucleus of the Franconian wine-growing region in the Maindreieck , where, according to a document from the Grafschaft Castell, the region's first Silvaner was planted in the 17th century . Silvaner still dominates in the vineyards around Volkach, which also lives from wine, hiking and cultural tourism (Riemenschneider Madonna). In addition, the city is the seat of the Raiffeisenbank Volkacher Mainschleife - Wiesentheid . There are also branches of Castellbank and Sparkasse Mainfranken Würzburg .

tourism

Typical display board for tourists in Volkach

Today tourism is one of the most important economic factors in Volkach and the Main Loop that surrounds it. The main attraction is the old cultural landscape of the vineyards, which is now supplemented by fruit growing. In addition, Volkach is visited because of the many historical cultural monuments. Already in the late Middle Ages , strangers from the Würzburg monastery were regular guests in the city. The reason was the markets and church consecrations, as well as the frequent processions and pilgrimages to the church of Maria im Weingarten.

Planned tourism first appeared on the Mainschleife in the 19th century. The bourgeoisie's enthusiasm for nature drew more and more hikers to Volkach. Above all, the viewpoints of the Vogelsburg and the Nordheimer Kreuzberg were the focal points of this early tourism. The result of this development was the founding of the Volkach Beautification Association, which was founded on January 18, 1893, as one of the first of its kind in Northern Bavaria . Volkach's first postcards also appeared in the 19th century.

Evidence of the increasing tourism are also the issuing of liquor licenses and the increasing number of overnight stays. In 1890 a total of 1309 guests stayed, for 1932 1570 overnight stays were registered. In the interwar period, Hallburg Castle was able to establish itself as an artists' colony , with pianist Elly Ney paying a visit to the ruins. In 1925, the so-called "flower trains" from Nuremberg , Ansbach and Bamberg began to bring day-trippers to the Mainschleife with its flowering orchards.

This was preceded by a promotion of tourism by the mayor Josef Wächter. The decline of viticulture due to the appearance of phylloxera and the dismantling of administrative offices in the city made the establishment of new branches of industry necessary for the population. Day tourism from nearby Würzburg in particular increased rapidly. During the Second World War the number of visitors fell for a few years, only to increase again after the war.

With the 1st Franconian Wine Festival held from August 27th to 29th, 1949 in the Hindenburgpark in Volkach, wine tourism was established, which is still characteristic of the region today. In 1975, 66,000 guests attended the festival. In 1971, the Bavarian state designated Volkach as a state-approved resort . With the municipal area reform of 1972, the Mainschleife tourism region was created.

In 1977 tourism was given its own department in the Volkach city council, the tourist office. In particular, senior tourism and day-trippers shape tourism today. In addition, hiking and cycling tourism are increasing more and more. A campsite offers parking spaces for caravans. Volkach is organized as part of the Franconian Wine Country Tourism Association.

In 2012, a total of 71,766 guests came to the city's hotels and inns. The city's accommodation providers offered 504 beds for overnight stays. The guests mostly stayed in the city for about two days, so these are mostly weekend vacationers. The Volkachs beds offered were occupied at an average of 34 percent in 2012, but full occupancy can be observed in some cases, especially in summer.

traffic

The Mainschleifenbahn

The municipality of Volkach is criss-crossed by a dense network of district and state roads. Volkach itself is the end point of the district roads KT 10, 34 and 36. In the city area there are also the state roads St 2260, 2271 and 2274. The individual districts also have several national roads. However, there are neither federal highways nor motorways in the area of ​​the municipality . The next federal road is the B 286 , which leads through Gerolzhofen. The B 22 is in the area of ​​the municipality of Schwarzach am Main and can be reached via the St 2271. This state road also leads to the nearest motorway A3 . Exit 74 (Kitzingen / Schwarzach) is closest to Volkach.

Volkach is located on the Main and has moorings for passenger and cargo ships. In the summer season - from the last weekend in March to the first weekend in November - passenger shipping runs regular tours over the Volkacher Mainschleife; the ferry was christened Undine . There are two Main ferries in the city: the Main ferry Fahr connects the district with the municipality of Eisenheim in the district of Würzburg, while the Main ferry Nordheim am Main docks in Escherndorf. Until 1892 there was also the Astheim Main Ferry .

After Seligenstadt (- Würzburg ) and less frequently after Kitzingen buses of OVF . In addition, the so-called Mainschleifenshuttle exists for the Volkacher Mainschleife. In the summer it serves the wine festivals in the area and sometimes drives until late at night.

The temporarily shut down Mainschleifenbahn has been put back into operation for tourist rail traffic. It commutes between Seligenstadt and Volkach-Astheim on Sundays (September / October also on Saturdays). A restart of the railway line for regular traffic is currently being discussed.

There is a regionally signposted network of cycle paths. The districts are easily accessible from each other via cycle paths. The most important of these cycle paths is the Main cycle path , which also crosses Volkach when coming from Kahl am Main. The Franconian Marienweg leads through the urban area of ​​Volkach . In the Volkach district itself, cycling is possible without any problems due to the relatively flat topography and the low traffic volume . The compact settlement area of ​​Volkach and the short distances associated with it favor the use of bicycles as an everyday means of transport.

Agriculture

Volkach is now one of the centers of the Franconian wine-growing region. In addition, at the beginning of the 20th century, fruit growing was established on the Mainschleife, the occurrence of which was triggered by phylloxera. Overall, the region and town of Volkach is still largely characterized by agriculture, only cattle breeding is hardly to be found.

Viticulture

The vineyards in the Volkach municipality

When Volkach was first mentioned in 906, the document named vineyards that were laid out in the vicinity of the settlement. Likewise, the promotion of the city elevation of Volkach, which also took place in the 13th century, can be traced back to wine, among other things: the farmers in the area needed a sales market for their wine, and the city wall offered them security to advertise their products. In the 16th century, Volkach's position as a wine trading center was expanded when the city was given its own standard .

The 17th and 18th centuries were associated with the rise of some wine merchant families who were also able to sell their products outside of Franconia. At the beginning of the 19th century the debt of the Volkach winegrowers increased more and more. The reason for this was the real division, which over the centuries resulted in smaller and smaller cultivated areas. Plans arose to save the wine industry through modernization.

These far-reaching plans were quickly destroyed at the turn of the 20th century with the appearance of phylloxera . The earnings of the Volkach winegrowers decreased year after year. In 1921, the Volkach winegrowers were able to organize a regional organization in the Volkach winegrowers' cooperative , although the full-time winemaker was increasingly a thing of the past.

It was only in the post-war period that the decline of Volkach viticulture could be stopped. Above all, improved chemical control options for wine pests and the land consolidation of the 1960s and 1970s contributed to this. Today the winemakers concentrate on typical Franconian grape varieties such as Silvaner or Müller-Thurgau. Volkach promotes qualitative viticulture, its winemakers, together with those of the districts, are organized in the Mainschleife winegrowers 'cooperative, which is part of the Franconian regional winegrowers' cooperative.

List of vineyards in the Volkach community

The Volkacher Ratsherr vineyard at the Maria im Weingarten church

Vineyard	District	Main grape varieties	Compass direction	Great location
mountain	Escherndorf	Müller-Thurgau	south	Volkacher Kirchberg
Furstenberg	Escherndorf	Müller-Thurgau, Silvaner	East, southeast	Volkacher Kirchberg
Kapellenberg	Gaibach	Müller-Thurgau, Silvaner, Riesling	South East	Volkacher Kirchberg
Karthauser	Astheim	Müller-Thurgau, Silvaner	south	Volkacher Kirchberg
Landsknecht	Obervolkach	Müller-Thurgau, Silvaner	southwest	Volkacher Kirchberg
Rascal	Escherndorf	Silvaner, Müller-Thurgau, Riesling	south	Volkacher Kirchberg
Gate	Vogelsburg	Silvaner, Traminer	South East	large-scale free
Councilor	Volkach	Müller-Thurgau, Silvaner, Kerner, Bacchus	South, southwest	Volkacher Kirchberg
Schlossberg	Hallburg	Müller-Thurgau, Silvaner	south	large-scale free
Castle Park	Gaibach	Silvaner, Traminer	south	large-scale free
Sonnenleit	Krautheim	Müller-Thurgau, Silvaner	south	Volkacher Kirchberg

health

Volkach is one of the health care centers in the Kitzingen district. The largest provider is the Helios Klinik Volkach , which, as a private clinic with a total of 40 beds, provides basic medical care for the population. An attending doctor and several employed doctors provide this care. A specialist medical center (MVZ) was also housed in the building. The clinic went from the former district hospital out Volkach, which had been disbanded in the 1993rd

Medical care is supplemented by several private medical practices, which are spread across the entire city of Volkach. In addition to general practitioners, there are also gynecological practices and psychotherapists in the city. The range of doctors is supplemented by several veterinarians. Medicines are provided by the city's pharmacies . There are also two private nursing homes in the city.

education

During the Middle Ages and the early modern period, there was a so-called Latin school in Volkach in addition to the general German school in the town hall . It enabled the male population to begin studying after four years of training . The school was initially closely connected to the parish church, the building was located directly next to the church. It was later continued as a communal institution before the Latin school was given up in 1847.

There is a primary school in the city for basic education , which, together with the middle school , has been combined to form the Volkach primary school . The middle school opens the qualifying secondary school diploma to its students . The secondary school leaving certificate can also be acquired via the so-called M-branch. The districts are also summarized in the Volkach school district. Until 2019, only Dimbach belonged to the Sommerach elementary school.

In the Volkach old town there is also the girls' secondary school of the Dillinger Franciscan Sisters in the monastery of St. Maria . The facility has existed since 1860 and was originally founded as a home economics training center for girls. Today, the students choose between three areas of training, the economic, linguistic or social focus, in order to get to the secondary school leaving certificate. In addition, the school offers open all-day care and a day care center.

Volkach does not have a grammar school, but the Franken-Landschulheim Schloss Gaibach was built in the Gaibach district . It was founded as a country school home after the war to counteract the school hardship caused by the destroyed cities. Today the school is owned by the local authority and offers a secondary school with a day care center and boarding school in addition to the grammar school. There is also a branch of the school in Gerolzhofen .

The city ​​library opens extracurricular education . It was housed in a side wing of the historic Schelfenhaus in the middle of Volkach's old town. The city's public education center also offers other adult education options. The Volkacher Mainschleife music school , housed in the old station building, is home to the Symphonic Wind Orchestra. There is also an offer for early musical education and basic training in various instruments.

media

In the area of ​​the city of Volkach, the Main-Post from Würzburg appears as a regional daily newspaper . It is supplemented by the Kitzinger local section and the market magazine. In addition, “Die Kitzinger” appears as a newspaper for the district. In addition, the Mainschleifenkurier appears once a month, which, in addition to advertisements, also contains public notifications and articles by the Volkacher Mainschleife home club .

Public facilities

The Volkach town hall is the seat of the Volkach city administration. In addition to a citizens' office, a tax, cemetery and social welfare office, there is also the registry office for the community's marriages. The Volkach administrative community is also housed in the town hall and consists of the communities of Sommerach, Nordheim am Main and the city of Volkach itself. The youth center at the old train station is also in the hands of the city. In addition, the municipality in the Astheim district maintains a city ​​archive , the city library in the Schelfenhaus, and an indoor and outdoor pool. The municipal building yard also serves as a recycling yard.

Volkach is the seat of the German Academy for Children's and Youth Literature e. V. Every year in November this literary society awards a Grand Prize and a Volkacher Taler as well as the book of the month of three new publications each from the areas of picture, children's and youth books.

Personalities

→ Main article : List of personalities of the city of Volkach

Sons and daughters of the place

The town clerk Niklas Brobst (right)

The oldest surviving personality of the city of Volkach is the auxiliary bishop in Regensburg and titular bishop of Megara, Heinrich von Volkach (* 1310; † 1359). In the 15th century, the town clerk Niklas Brobst von Effelt (* after 1450; † around 1506) comes down to us, who came from today's district of Eichfeld and wrote the Volkacher Salbuch together with his son Sebastian. Other people from the Middle Ages came from the noble family of Zollner von Halberg . They had their headquarters in Hallburg, which today belongs to Volkach. So comes Abbot Konrad III. († 1342) von Münsterschwarzach probably from this family. Another prelate of the Middle Ages who came from Volkach was Abbot Heinrich III. Heppe († 1426) from Ebrach. He was probably also distantly related to Prior Johannes Nibling (* around 1463; † 1526), who was also active in Ebrach .

After the end of the Middle Ages, middle-class families who had made some wealth through the wine trade were able to stand out in the city. Above all, the shelf and balbus are to be emphasized here. Members of their families quickly took on important public and church offices. It all started with the translator and poet Andreas Presson (* 1637, † 1701). This was followed by the abbots Robert Metzel († 1689) from Bildhausen, Lorenz Hetzer (* around 1619, † 1692) from Oberzell and Gregor I. Gans († 1701) from Theres. Christophorus Balbus (* 1702, † 1766) became abbot of the Benedictine Abbey of Münsterschwarzach, while his younger brother Ambrosius Balbus (* 1704, † 1794) was head of the Cistercian monastery in Bronnbach. The later Jesuit Joseph Pfriemb (* 1711; † after 1771) was born in Gaibach . He was a professor of theology at the universities of Mainz, Bamberg and Fulda. Thaddäus Anton Dereser (* 1757; † 1827) from the district of Fahr, excelled as a theologian. Bernhard Breunig (* 1724, † 1797) was the penultimate abbot of the convent in Theres. Benedict II Mahlmeister (* 1748, † 1821) was the last abbot of Theres Monastery. He donated the Elgersheimer Hof to the city.

In the 19th and 20th centuries the city produced some academics who worked far beyond its borders. The mayor of Würzburg Sebastian Benkert (* unknown; † unknown), the genre painter Peter Geist (* 1816; † 1867), his brother the watchmaker Sebastian Geist (* 1817; † 1908), as well as the ophthalmologist and professor August von Rothmund ( * 1831; † 1906) and the administrative lawyer Philipp Brunner (* 1844; † 1919) born in Volkach. Ernst Rösser (* 1903; † 1989), professor and member of the Bavarian Senate, worked primarily at the University of Würzburg. In the inter-war period, the media entrepreneur Leo Kirch (* 1926; † 2011) was born in the Fahr district , who would later head one of the largest German media groups, the Kirch Group.

Some politicians are also from the city. Franz Vogt (* 1935) was the district president of Lower Franconia from 1984 to 2000. Due to its location in the Franconian wine region, the place produced several German wine queens. Renate Schäfer (* 1968) was born in the Astheim district and represented German wine in 1989/1990, followed by Marlies Dumbsky (* 1985) in 2008/2009.

Connected to Volkach

Important figures in public life in the late Middle Ages and the early modern period were the bailiffs who headed the Hochstiftisches Amt Volkach. One of the most influential of these officials was the brother of the Würzburg bishop Julius Echter, Valentin Echter von Mespelbrunn (* 1550 in Mespelbrunn; † 1624 in Öttershausen). He died in the 17th century on his estate, which is also a part of Volkach today. The sculptor Reiner Wirl († 1763 in Kitzingen) created many works for churches that are now on the territory of the municipality. His main work were the altarpieces in the parish church of Volkach.

The member of the Bundestag and farmer Friedrich Funk (* 1900 in Neuses am Sand, † 1963 in Volkach) lived in the village until his death. Reinhart Hoffmeister (* 1923 in Magdeburg; † 2016 in Bremen) received the Golden City Plaque in 1963. Like Henri Nannen, he had made a contribution to the recovery of the stolen Madonna. Born in Würzburg Marita peasant (* 1944 in Würzburg) grew up on Good Strehlhof, which is a part of the city Volkach today. She was later the German Wine Queen and politician of the CSU.

The SPD politician Frank Hofmann (* 1949 in Schweinfurt) lived in the city for many years and also had his constituency office here. TV chef Stefan Marquard (* 1964 in Schweinfurt) grew up in the Astheim district. With the sport shooter Philipp Grimm (* 1992 in Würzburg) a later European champion was trained with the Volkacher Schützen.

Honorary citizen

First honorary citizen: Wilhelm Joseph Behr. Image on the Hambach cloth

Over the years, several personalities who had made a special contribution to the city were honored with Volkach's honorary citizenship. Mainly mayors and city pastors received this honor. The mayor of the city of Würzburg, Wilhelm Joseph Behr , became the first honorary citizen in 1819 . The pastor Eugen Schön followed, whose historical work on the city was honored with the award.

In 1873, the city council awarded Franz Christoph von Rothmund an honorary citizen. As a Volkach court doctor, he saved the city during the cholera epidemic of 1835/1836. This was followed in 1888 by the city pastor Georg Josef Scheurich and the city clerk Kaspar Mainzinger. In 1890 the clergyman Johann Georg Friedrich was honored for his 50th anniversary as a priest. In 1892 the doctor Gregor Schmitt was made an honorary citizen.

A year later, in 1893, the District President Friedrich von Luxburg was honored for his twenty-five year service anniversary. He was followed in 1894 by Bamberg high school professor Anton Jäcklein, to whom the city also dedicated a street, Professor-Jäcklein-Strasse. In 1925, Peter Braun, a city pastor, was again given honorary citizenship. The senior teacher Franz Klühspies was also honored at the same council meeting.

Karl Friedrich Lippert was honored in 1928. With Josef Wächter, a street was also named after him, another mayor followed in 1933, who even received the title of “honorary mayor”. Also in 1933 Paul von Hindenburg was given honorary citizenship of the city of Volkach. In addition, the Ringpark was named after the Reich President. After the Second World War, Johann Erbig, owner of the Schelfenhaus, opened the honorary citizen nominations.

In 1958 the parish priest and clergyman, Simon Himmel, was honored. In the same year the mayor Georg Berz was made an honorary citizen. A street was also named after him. In the course of the robbery of the Madonna in 1962, the journalist Henri Nannen was made an honorary citizen of Volkach. He had campaigned for the stolen sculpture to be recovered. In 1990 a mayor, Friedrich Russ, was honored again. The districts also have their own honorary citizens.

literature

• Bavarian State Chancellery, State Center for Political Education (Ed.): Our district of Gerolzhofen. In: Series of publications "Our district". Munich 1970.
• Ernst Friedrich Johann Dronke (Ed.): Codex Diplomaticus Fuldensis. Kassel 1850.
• Gerhard Egert: City and Parish Volkach am Main (A contribution to the city's history). Part I. The urban territory from the beginning to the end of the Old Kingdom in 1803. Würzburg and Volkach 1964.
• Gerhard Egert: The Rape of the Rosary Madonna by Tilman Riemenschneider from the pilgrimage church Maria im Weingarten on the Kirchberg near Volkach 1962. Volkach 2004.
• Ute Feuerbach (Ed.): Volkach. 906-2006. 1100 years of documented history. In: Volkacher Hefte No. 12. Volkach 2006.
• Ute Feuerbach (Ed.): Our Main Loop. 1978-1992. Volkach 2008.
• Ute Feuerbach (Ed.): Our Main Loop. 1993-2007. Volkach 2008.
• Ute Feuerbach, Christa Volk: Volkach and its districts. In: The archive pictures series. Erfurt 2011.
• Johann Ludwig Klarmann, Karl Spiegel: Legends and sketches from the Steigerwald. Reprint of the 1912 edition . Neustadt an der Aisch 1982.
• Karl-Sigismund Kramer: Franconian everyday life around 1500. Oath of the market and customs in the Volkacher Salbuch. Wuerzburg 1985.
• Wolfgang Schild: The neck court order of the city of Volkach from 1504. In: Series of publications of the Medieval Crime Museum Rothenburg od T. No. 2. Rothenburg ob der Tauber 1997.
• Eugen Schön: Historical news about Volkach, especially its ecclesiastical situation. Wuerzburg 1833.
• City of Volkach am Main: Volkach am Main. 1258-1958. Volkach 1958.
• Karl Treutwein : From Abtswind to Zeilitzheim. History, sights, traditions. Volkach 1987.

Web links

Commons : Volkach  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Wikisource: Volkach  - Sources and full texts

Wikivoyage: Volkach  - travel guide

• City of Volkach with districts
• Entry on the Volkach coat of arms  in the database of the House of Bavarian History

• Volkach . In: Meyers Konversations-Lexikon . 4th edition. Volume 16, Verlag des Bibliographisches Institut, Leipzig / Vienna 1885–1892, p. 259.
• Volkach: Official statistics of the LfStat

Individual evidence

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4. ↑ State Development Bavaria: LEP partial update February 2018 , accessed on August 17, 2018.
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9. ^ Page of the University of Vienna: Climate classification according to Köppen-Geiger , accessed on February 1, 2013.
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15. ^ Bavarian State Library: Volkach districts , accessed on June 20, 2014.
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20. ^ Gerhard Egert: 700 years of the city of Volkach 1258–1958. In: Volkach am Main. P. 16.
21. ↑ Dronke, Ernst Friedrich Johann (Ed.): CDF. P. 300 f. No. 652.
22. ↑ MGH DD / LK 46.
23. ^ Gerhard Egert: City and parish Volkach am Main. P. 22.
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27. ↑ Schild, Wolfgang: neck court order. P. 6.
28. ^ Kramer: Franconian everyday life
29. ^ Gerhard Egert: 700 years of the city of Volkach am Main 1258–1958. In: Volkach am Main. P. 22.
30. ^ Gerhard Egert: City and parish Volkach am Main. P. 44.
31. ^ Gerhard Egert: City and parish Volkach am Main. P. 150.
32. ↑ Ute Feuerbach; Volk, Christa: Volkach and its districts. In: The archive pictures series. P. 12.
33. ↑ Buschmann, Hermann: Economic life in Volkach. In: Volkach am Main. P. 92.
34. ^ Karl Treutwein: From Abtswind to Zeilitzheim. P. 259.
35. ↑ Ute Feuerbach: Volkach. 906-2006. P. 321.
36. ↑ See: Gerhard Egert: The Rape of the Rosary Madonna by Tilman Riemenschneider from the pilgrimage church Maria im Weingarten on the Kirchberg near Volkach 1962 .
37. ↑ Ute Feuerbach: Volkach. 906-2006. P. 322.
38. ^ Wilhelm Volkert (ed.): Handbook of Bavarian offices, communities and courts 1799–1980 . CH Beck, Munich 1983, ISBN 3-406-09669-7 , p. 472 .
39. ^ Federal Statistical Office (ed.): Historical municipality directory for the Federal Republic of Germany. Name, border and key number changes in municipalities, counties and administrative districts from May 27, 1970 to December 31, 1982 . W. Kohlhammer GmbH, Stuttgart and Mainz 1983, ISBN 3-17-003263-1 , p. 747 .
40. ^ Gerhard Egert: On the statistics of the city of Volkach in 1698. P. 298.
41. ^ Gerhard Egert: City and parish Volkach am Main. P. 75.
42. ↑ Diocese of Würzburg: Parishes in the deanery district of Kitzingen ( Memento of the original from September 28, 2006 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , accessed February 17, 2013. 
43. ^ Deanery Castell: Parish Volkach , accessed on February 17, 2013.
44. ↑ State Office for Statistics: Distribution of Religions in Volkach (PDF), p. 6, accessed on February 17, 2013.
45. ↑ Local elections: Bavarian council elections 22 Municipality of Volkach , accessed on March 16, 2020.
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47. ↑ City of Volkach: City Councilors of Volkach ( Memento of the original from May 2, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , accessed June 17, 2014. 
48. ↑ Bavarian State Office for Statistics and Data Processing: Election results Volkach (PDF), p. 8 f., Accessed on February 21, 2013.
49. ↑ Bavarian State Office for Statistics and Data Processing: Federal Parliament election 2013 in Bavaria , accessed on June 17, 2014.
50. ↑ Bavarian State Office for Statistics and Data Processing: Federal Parliament election 2017 in Bavaria , accessed on January 15, 2018.
51. ^ Gerhard Egert: The mayors of the city of Volkach 1400–1720. In: Ute Feuerbach (Ed.): Volkach. 906-2006. P. 119.
52. ↑ City of Volkach: The City Council ( Memento of the original from May 2, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , accessed June 21, 2014. 
53. ^ Gerhard Egert: The Mayors of the City of Volkach 1720–1990 (2005). In: Ute Feuerbach (Ed.): Volkach. 906-2006. P. 123 f.
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55. ^ Bavarian State Office for Statistics and Data Processing: Volkach debt , accessed on June 17, 2014
56. ↑ Main-Post: Almost five million debts , accessed on July 10, 2016
57. ↑ Entry on the coat of arms of the city ​​of Volkach  in the database of the House of Bavarian History , accessed on August 29, 2017 .
58. ↑ Chevalley, Denis André: Lower Franconia . Pp. 152-154.
59. ^ Lindemann, Hans-Eckhard: Historic town centers in Mainfranken . P. 40.
60. ^ Muth, Hanswernfried: pilgrimage church of St. Maria in the vineyard, parish church of St. Bartholomew Volkach . Pp. 9-16.
61. ^ Muth, Hanswernfried: pilgrimage church of St. Maria in the vineyard, parish church of St. Bartholomew Volkach . Pp. 20-26.
62. ↑ Julier, Jürgen: Former provost and pilgrimage church of S. Maria de Rosario Dimbach . Pp. 2-6.
63. ^ Biedermann, Hermenegild Maria (among others): Vogelsburg, Escherndorf, Köhler . Pp. 7-12.
64. ^ Schneider, Erich: The churches in Gaibach . Pp. 2-15.
65. ↑ Dorsch, Mario: Disappeared medieval settlements . P. 134.
66. ↑ See: Krauss, Rudi: The castles and palaces landscape . P. 198 (map).
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68. ^ German theater directory: Kulturscheune Eichfeld , accessed on February 24, 2013.
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70. ↑ Mainzeit: Events Volkach ( Memento of the original from January 22, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , accessed February 24, 2013. 
71. ↑ Klarmann, Johann Ludwig (among others): Legends and sketches from the Steigerwald . Pp. 198-202.
72. ↑ Unterfränkisches Dialektinstitut: Model of the language areas in Lower Franconia (PDF), accessed on February 24, 2013.
73. ↑ Mainschleifentaucher: Homepage , accessed on June 20, 2014.
74. ↑ Swimming pool: homepage , accessed on June 20, 2014.
75. ↑ BR 24: Protests against the closure of the Volkach outdoor pool , accessed on May 21, 2019.
76. ^ Egert Gerhard: From the history of the Volkacher tourism. In: Ute Feuerbach (Ed.): Our Main Loop. 1993-2007. P. 27.
77. ^ Herbert Meyer: Music on the Hallburg. In: Ute Feuerbach (Ed.): Our Main Loop. 1993-2007. P. 18.
78. ^ Gerhard Egert: From the history of Volkacher tourism. In: Ute Feuerbach (Ed.): Our Main Loop. 1993-2007. P. 35.
79. ↑ Franconian Wine Country: Places , accessed on June 22, 2014.
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81. ^ Bayern Atlas: Volkach Verkehr , accessed on March 4, 2013.
82. ^ City of Volkach: Undine , accessed on March 16, 2013.
83. ↑ City of Volkach: Mainschleifenshuttle ( Memento of the original from January 22, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , accessed March 16, 2013. 
84. ^ Stadt Volkach: Mainschleifenbahn , accessed on March 16, 2013.
85. ↑ Volkach-Bahn: Homepage , accessed on August 18, 2018.
86. ^ Supreme building authority in the Bavarian State Ministry of the Interior: Radwege Bayern , accessed on March 16, 2013.
87. ↑ Ute Feuerbach: The wine. In: Ute Feuerbach (Ed.): Volkach. 906-2006. P. 288.
88. ↑ GWF-Frankenwein: Overview , accessed on June 23, 2014.
89. ^ Hans Bauer: District of Kitzingen. P. 190 f.
90. ↑ Helios Kliniken: Volkach , accessed on June 22, 2014.
91. ^ Volkach elementary school: Home page , accessed on June 20, 2014.
92. ↑ Mädchenrealschule Dillinger Franciscan Volkach: Home MRSVO , accessed June 20, 2014.
93. ↑ City of Volkach: Volkacher Mainschleife music school ( memento of the original from November 5, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , accessed June 20, 2014. 
94. ↑ Main-Post Media Group: Print Media , accessed on June 20, 2014.
95. ↑ City of Volkach: Addresses and opening times ( Memento of the original from June 24, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , accessed June 22, 2014. 
96. ↑ German Academy for Children's and Youth Literature: Homepage , accessed on June 22, 2014.
97. ^ Gerhard Egert: The honorary citizens of the city of Volkach. In: Ute Feuerbach: Our Main Loop. 1993-2007. Pp. 52-55.