Birgel (Düren)

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Birgel
District town Düren
Birgel coat of arms
Coordinates: 50 ° 46 ′ 26 ″  N , 6 ° 26 ′ 46 ″  E
Height : 144 m above sea level NHN
Area : 4.46 km²
Residents : 1766  (Dec. 31, 2019)
Population density : 396 inhabitants / km²
Incorporation : January 1, 1972
Postal code : 52355
Area code : 02421
map
Location of Birgel in Düren

Birgel is a district and district of the city of Düren in the district of Düren in North Rhine-Westphalia .

location

Former Schnapps distillery and restaurant Gottschalk

Birgel is located about five kilometers southwest of the city center of Düren. On the western edge of Birgel, Geybach and Beybach unite to form the Birgeler Bach, which flows into the Rur in Düren . The Birgeler Bach gives its name to the Bachstraße that runs along it, one of the oldest Birgeler streets that crosses the town from west to east. In the town center, the mountain road leading to the Birgeler Knipp branches off to the south. In the past, the village consisted mainly of these two streets, and there were major expansions to the village, especially in the 1970s, with development on the north-western edge of the village.

The neighboring towns of Birgel are:

history

The origin of the place name Birgel

The origin of the place name of Birgel is - as well as the early history of the place itself - largely unclear. Various documents also give the name with Birgell , Byrgell , Pirgell or Birgeleijn . In particular, the vernacular pronunciation Bergel underlines the meaning that the name refers to a place or a settlement on or on a mountain. The ending "-el" does not mean a reduction in size, but a separation similar to z. B. at Auel or Büchel.

First documentary mentions

Birgel moated castle

In contrast to Birgel Castle and the Lords of Birgel, the place itself was rather insignificant for a long time. Entries can be found in the church civil status registers of the parish of Lendersdorf , to which Birgel belonged until 1905, for baptisms, marriages and deaths from 1656. Birgel's own civil status books were only available from 1798. Only in the 18th century did the mentions become more numerous. So in a retirement stock records of the Office Noervenich from 1753 an indication of the Honschaft Birgel to find, together with a list of names of several Birgeler residents and various field and land area names.

French occupation

Birgel acquired a certain administrative importance at the time of the French occupation. On October 1, 1799, Christian Georg Engels became "Agent de Commune" on behalf of the French Republic, to which Birgel had belonged since November 4, 1797. Engels, who lived at Gut Mozenborn at the time, later bore the title of "Maire" (German mayor). The administrative district, which in addition to Birgel also comprised the villages of Berzbuir-Kufferath , Gürzenich , Lendersdorf, Mozenborn and Rölsdorf , was named "Mairie Birgel" (German Mayor Birgel) and belonged to the " Canton Düren ", " Arrondissement Aachen " in the " Département " de la Roer ”. The "Mairie Birgel" later became the Birgel office .

The dispute over the thorn hedge

The thorn hedge was an area of ​​about 80 acres with a good mixed forest stand, which was between Birgel and Gürzenich and was claimed by both places. Even before the French occupation, there were conflicts over the area, which had been awarded to Birgel by a judgment of the Electoral Court Chamber based on the documents submitted by the Birgel representatives. However, due to the French invasion, the sentence could no longer be carried out. After indiscriminate logging during the occupation, the area was reforested, reigniting the dispute. The attempt at an agreement between Birgel and Gürzenich through the mediation of the district administrator in Düren initially ended in vain.

Birgel on a topographic map from 1897

From around 1840 - after the people of Birgel repeatedly unsuccessfully requested files in the "Dornhecke" case from the District Office - all logs made by Gürzenichers in the Dornhecke were confiscated by Birgel; the sales proceeds were paid into a blocked account. These measures, as well as administrative fines, even hit the Gürzenich community leader Weinberg once. When the construction of a church in Gürzenich began in 1856, the dispute escalated once again, as the Gürzenich fetched a large part of the timber from the thorn hedge. The Birgel municipal council then demanded a new judicial decision. With the mediation of Mayor Schillings, a settlement was reached, which gave Birgel a plot of land about eight acres. On December 2, 1865, the Birgel municipal council requested a decision on the thorn hedge from the royal district court in Aachen, as Gürzenich had questioned the measurements on which the comparison was based and only wanted to allow the Birgelers a four-acre portion. The lawsuit was dismissed in late June 1866. Birgel's answer to this defeat was to cut down a number of trees, which brought in 838 thalers. On July 1, 1869, the appellate court in Cologne, called by Gürzenich, confirmed the Gürzenich claims and sentenced Birgel to surrender the proceeds. In addition, the municipality of Birgel had to bear the court costs of 192 thalers, which the municipal council officially took note of on December 18 with grinding of teeth. However, the judgment did not ensure lasting peace. In the following years, several penalties were issued when Birgeler only looked for waste wood or leaves in the Gürzenich part of the thorn hedge. In the year 1872 a protection in the Gürzenich part was devastated by unknown persons. In order to avoid further escalation, the Birgel municipal council paid the damage from the municipal treasury. With that the dispute was - at least officially - settled.

Even today, several street names in Birgel are reminiscent of the Dornhecke , above all the Dornheckweg . The other streets in the new Birgeler development area between Fliederbusch and Münsterweg, laid out in the 1970s, are named Rotdornweg , Am Hagedorn and Schlehdornweg , see also the list of streets in Düren .

The regulation of the Birgeler Bach

The regulation of the Birgeler Bach began in 1950. This important measure for Birgel was motivated by recurring floods, especially after the snow had melted. First, the streambed was cleared from the Daubenvaldersbrücke to the city limits. Trees near the embankment were felled and the banks were fortified with wattle. In the interior of the village, the stream was bordered with concrete walls. In total, more than 2000 cubic meters of earth were moved for regulation.

Municipal reorganization

The formerly independent community of Birgel was incorporated into the city of Düren on January 1, 1972.

Population development

Mountain road with church

The following table shows the population of Birgel. The historical data are taken from the Birgel home book. The 1961 and 1970 numbers are census results.

year Residents
1802 323
1825 459
1843 600
1869 800
1875 806
1896 854
1905 859
1925 960
1939 1014
1945 820
1950 1084
1953 1197
1955 1237
1960 1309
1961 1319
1970 1412
1972 1489
2010 1855
2016 1822
2017 1803
2019 1766

Sights and monuments

Wegekreuz Bergstrasse

Wegekreuz Bergstrasse

The Bergstrasse crossroads is located at the confluence of Bergstrasse and Monschauer Landstrasse. Its origins go back to the 17th century, when the then founder had it built out of gratitude that his family was spared the plague. From the original cross, however, only two poorly patched stones remain, which are embedded in the masonry next to the new cross.

Munster Cross

The Münsterkreuz stands at the confluence of the Münsterweg and Bachstraße and was erected in this form in 1896. Before that there was a wooden cross at the same place, which, like the stone cross that can be seen today, was donated by the owners of the corner property.

Up until the 1960s, the cross was the starting point and end point of pilgrimages to Kornelimünster in honor of Saint Cornelius and was specially decorated on Cornelia’s Day. The first pilgrimages can be traced back to 1843. From 1905 the blessing was given out at the annual Corpus Christi procession at the Münsterkreuz.

Infrastructure

Public facilities

traffic

The AVV bus lines 213, 239 and 286 connect Birgel with Düren-Mitte and the neighboring towns of Gürzenich, Rölsdorf and Gey. The nearest train stations are "Düren" at the DB - Main Cologne - Aachen and "Lendersdorf" at the Rurtalbahn .

The Monschauer Landstrasse , which is classified as B 399 , runs past the village and only touches the southern edge of the village. The K 27 crossing them leads past the village to the east, so that the center of Birgel is practically free of through traffic.

The “Düren” motorway exit on the A4 is about 10 km away.

societies

Interest group Birgeler associations

The interest group (IG) Birgeler Vereine, founded on March 20, 1975, functions as an umbrella organization for the active Birgeler associations and the municipal parties represented in Birgel. On the one hand, the IG is the point of contact for the specialist committees of the city administration in matters relating to the promotion of the associations in the Birgel district, and on the other hand, the IG advises its member associations on applications for grants to the city or the district of Düren. Above all, the IG takes care of the coordination of the dates of the individual associations as well as the joint events, such as B. the meadow festival Birgel.

The first ideas to create a coordinating institution for the interests of the Birgel associations came up after the incorporation in 1972. They wanted to bundle the association's interests in the direction of the city administration, which is quite distant from Birgel's point of view. The then mayor Dieter Wunsch initiated concrete negotiations in the fall of 1974. The IG Birgeler associations were then founded by representatives of the riflemen, the carnivalists, the TuS Germania, the Arbeiterwohlfahrt, the May Society, the fire brigade, the DRK, the mother association, the parish council and the parties SPD and CDU with the agreement on a statute.

According to this, the IG Birgeler associations have as organs on the one hand the general assembly and the board of directors to be elected by it. In 2012 the following Birgel associations and local groups belong to the IG:

  • Düren volunteer fire brigade , Birgel fire fighting group
  • St. Johannes Schützenbruderschaft Düren-Birgel 1851 eV
  • Carnival Society Böse Buben Birgel 1960 eV
  • Sports club TUS Germania Birgel
  • Tambourcorps Alte Kameraden Birgel 1928 eV
  • Friends of the Birgel eV fire brigade
  • Jugendfreizeit Birgel eV
  • Fishing Club Birgeler Karpfen
  • May Society Birgel eV
  • Birgel women's and mothers' association
  • Friends of the Burg Birgel primary school
  • Friends of the Li-La-Launeburg kindergarten
  • Parish council of Sankt Martin Birgel
  • VDK Birgel
  • FC snail
  • CDU local association Düren-West
  • SPD local group Birgel
  • AWO Birgel-Rölsdorf

Others

Birgel won a gold medal at the county level in 2008 and a silver medal at the state level in 2009 in the competition Our village has a future .

literature

  • Dieter Mätschke: Heimatbuch Birgel . Düren 1981.
  • Christian Heiden: Birgel Castle and Village in the Past and Present . Düren 1965.

Web links

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

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ https://www.dueren.de/kultur-tourismus/stadtportraet/zahlen__fotos?sr=7584
  2. ↑ Dieter Mätschke: Heimatbuch Birgel . Düren 1981, p. 15 .
  3. ↑ Dieter Mätschke: Heimatbuch Birgel . Düren 1981, p. 117-119 .
  4. ↑ Dieter Mätschke: Heimatbuch Birgel . Düren 1981, p. 121 .
  5. ↑ Dieter Mätschke: Heimatbuch Birgel . Düren 1981, p. 123 .
  6. ^ Map of the German Empire, sheet 429 Düren with drawing of existing or planned routes. Retrieved August 1, 2017 .
  7. ↑ Dieter Mätschke: Heimatbuch Birgel . Düren 1981, p. 127 .
  8. ↑ Dieter Mätschke: Heimatbuch Birgel . Düren 1981, p. 129 .
  9. ↑ Dieter Mätschke: Heimatbuch Birgel . Düren 1981, p. 131 .
  10. ↑ Dieter Mätschke: Heimatbuch Birgel . Düren 1981, p. 132 .
  11. ↑ Dieter Mätschke: Heimatbuch Birgel . Düren 1981, p. 154 .
  12. ↑ a b Federal Statistical Office (ed.): Historical municipality register 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, Stuttgart / Mainz 1983, ISBN 3-17-003263-1 , p. 306 .
  13. ↑ Dieter Mätschke: Heimatbuch Birgel . Düren 1981.
  14. ↑ Dieter Mätschke: Heimatbuch Birgel . Düren 1981, p. 224 .
  15. ↑ Dieter Mätschke: Heimatbuch Birgel . Düren 1981, p. 225 .
  16. ↑ Dieter Mätschke: Heimatbuch Birgel . Düren 1981, p. 259/260 .