History of the city of Herford
The history of the city of Herford describes the development of the East Westphalian city of Herford .
City foundation
Located in a favorable and militarily not unimportant traffic situation, Herford was built around 789 (founding legend in Vita Waltgeri ) on the area of three older farms (Adonhusa, Herifurth and Libbere). The important Herford women's monastery was established around 800 . In 823 Emperor Ludwig the Pious took the monastery under his personal protection. Soon afterwards a merchant settlement developed. It is assumed that in 833 Ludwig the Pious granted the Herford Monastery market , coinage and customs rights for the area of the Odenhausen court (Radewig district) (confirmation 973). The Ottonians in particular were closely connected to Herford: Heinrich I's wife , Mathilde , was brought up here, Otto the Great confirmed market and customs rights in 973; With the confirmed market privilege, Herford was one of the oldest markets in Germany. In 1011 the abbess Godesdiu founded on the basis of an apparition of Mary ( Herford vision , dated around the middle of the 10th century, this vision is considered the earliest apparition of Mary north of the Alps) in front of the city gates as a training center for the daughters of the lower nobility, which also developed into a place of pilgrimage .
12th to 15th centuries
Herford was an important spiritual and spiritual center in the Middle Ages. At that time it was also one of the best fortified German cities with five city gates and 14 towers assigned to the various guilds . They were part of the 3.5 km long city fortifications with walls that were surrounded by the Werre , the Aa and the city moat. The Bowerre , which is filled in today, marks the original course of the Werre, while today's Werre was part of the city fortifications. When the city fortifications were no longer needed in 1765, the material was auctioned. Today the city wall, which is largely reserved for pedestrians and cyclists, encloses the city center.
In the Hohenstaufen era, Herford Abbey was confirmed as imperial direct (1147, Friedrich Barbarossa 1152); later emperors confirmed various rights of the monastery and the city. Around 1170, a civil parish was formed and the town charter was developed (no award document has been handed down), using the Dortmund town charter as a template. Herford received a council constitution at the beginning of the 13th century. The earliest mention of the Herford city council can be traced back to 1220. This made him one of the first in Germany. Herford was a member of the Ladbergen City Association and other city associations and was very active in the Hanseatic League ( Hanseatic city from 1342 to the 17th century). In the security of the city there were spiritual settlements of almost all of the monastic orders of that time (the city was called Sancta Herfordia ). The lively commercial activity extended to the entire Hanseatic region early on, but connections to the west (Flanders) were also significant. Cloth production (since the 13th century) and trade with it were particularly important . In the Herford legal book from around 1375 numerous guilds and guilds are mentioned.
Until 1634 the new town was independent and had its own mayor in addition to the old town . The outer borders of the medieval city of Herford remained the city limits of Herford until 1969.
→ See also: Herford Abbey , Imperial City of Herford .
Modern times
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In the early modern period, a long legal dispute began over the status of the city as an imperial city . The abbey was imperial-free, the abbess imperial duchess with quasi-bishop's rights ("Monstrum Westphaliae"), the city of Herford was imperial city law due to the so-called condominate (the joint independent government of the pen and city since the middle of the 13th century). Several lawsuits before the Reich Chamber of Commerce , which were initially brought by the Reich, which wanted to collect Reich taxes from Herford, finally led to confirmation as an imperial city in 1631 , which at that time was also in the interests of the city.
The Reformation prevailed in the city from 1530, the abbey remained Catholic until 1565. The city was besieged several times during the Thirty Years War , in 1638 large parts of the city burned down. As a result of the Jülisch-Klevischen succession disputes , Herford was occupied by Brandenburg troops in 1647 and lost its independence. The annexation by Brandenburg was finally confirmed by the Peace of Westphalia and finally in 1652. Herford was added to the County of Ravensberg and thus a dependent Brandenburg-Prussian country town . When the city wall was no longer needed in 1765 , the material was auctioned. Today the city wall , which is largely reserved for pedestrians and cyclists, encloses the city center.
The administration of the imperial abbey was now carried out by noble ladies from Brandenburg-Prussian families. The abbey remained an imperial estate until secularization in 1803.
Witch hunts were carried out by the city council from 1584 to 1654. Most of the accused were executed in at least 55 witch trials . Water samples took place in the Hexenkolk at the Radewiger Mühle , the executions in Lübberbruch . The Herford aldermen's chair was a lively legal expert for witch trials in neighboring territories (e.g. Loccum Abbey ).
In 1816 Herford became a district town within the Prussian province of Westphalia .
In 1847 Herford received a railway connection with the construction of the Cöln-Mindener Railway . The electrification of the main Cologne-Minden line was completed with the first trip on September 29, 1968. In 1880 the line to Detmold and Altenbeken (Lippische Bahn) and in 1904 the line to Bünde was built.
Favored by the railway line, the era of high industrialization began very early in Herford with the settlement of numerous factories, in which in particular textiles, underwear and outerwear were manufactured.
In August 1900 the Herford small railway to Enger was opened and in September it was extended to Spenge and Wallenbrück . In 1902 a line was added via Bad Salzuflen and Exter to Vlotho . The narrow-gauge railway (meter gauge ) was electrified in the 1930s. The operation was discontinued in 1962 on the Herford - Vlotho line, and in 1966 on the Herford - Spenge line.
In 1911 Herford became an independent city (until 1968) , but remained the seat of the district administration of the Herford district.
During the First World War , parts of the German Army were stationed in the city and several military hospitals were set up. After barracks had been built in three areas of the city in the 1930s, Herford became a garrison town from 1935 . The British forces stationed there after the Second World War were withdrawn in 2015 (see military history of the city of Herford ).
During the Second World War , the city was - by comparison - only slightly destroyed by bombing . Almost 40 percent of the houses were slightly damaged, seven percent showed moderate to severe damage and only about six percent were completely destroyed. After the war, part of the historical building fabric fell victim to a simplistic urban planning. So the whole area around the Bergertor wall gave way to a new four-lane road. Nevertheless, the medieval floor plan of the city was largely retained and remains understandable to this day despite the extensive demolition work.
As part of the municipal reorganization, the city was reintegrated into the Herford district on January 1, 1969. The eight surrounding communities Diebrock , Eickum , Elverdissen , Falkendiek , Herringhausen Ost , Laar , Schwarzenmoor and Stedefreund were incorporated, increasing the population from around 55,000 to over 67,000. The area of the urban area tripled from 25 km² to 78.95 km² .
The Westphalian Hanseatic League was founded in Herford on June 25, 1983 . In mid-2019, it included 49 former Hanseatic cities from Westphalia , the neighboring Lower Saxony and North Hesse . The international Hanseatic day took place in Herford in 2013.
In 1988 - one year before the 1200th anniversary - valuable finds were made during excavations in the remains of the abbey buildings from the Carolingian , Ottonian and Baroque periods, and the industrial use of the site from 1810 onwards was documented with archaeological finds.
Since the opening of the contemporary art museum Marta on May 7, 2005, Herford has developed into an important museum location in East Westphalia-Lippe. On September 23, 2008, the city received the title “ Place of Diversity ” awarded by the federal government .
timeline
| year | event | |
|---|---|---|
| at 789 | Foundation of a monastery for daughters of Saxon nobility by the noble Waltger (Wolderus) in Müdehorst (today Bielefeld) | |
| around 800 | Relocation of the monastery to the confluence of the Aa and Werre near the Herivurth (Oldenhervorde), Odenhausen (Adonhusa) and Libbere farms | |
| 823 | Conversion of the own monastery to an imperial monastery by Emperor Ludwig the Pious and furnishing with numerous possessions | |
| 825 | Death of St. Waltgeri (Wolderus), the founder of the oldest women's monastery in Old Saxony. | |
| 833 | Presumably the granting of market , coin and customs rights to the Herford monastery for the area of the Odenhausen court (confirmation 973, see there) | |
| 851 | Confirmation of the imperial freedom of the monastery by Emperor Ludwig the German . Slow emergence of the city of Herford | |
| 860 | Herford Monastery receives its own relics from the Soissons diocese | |
| 909 | Duke Heinrich of Saxony , the future German king, woos Mathilde in Herford | |
| 926 | Destruction of the monastery and city by Hungarian troops | |
| 927 | Confirmation of the privileges of the imperial monastery by King Heinrich I. | |
| 926-973 | Creation of the legend of a Marian vision . Pilgrimages around June 19th, from which the “ Vision ” fair develops over time. | |
| 973 | Confirmation of the monastery’s existing market, coin and customs law by Emperor Otto the Great as a prerequisite for economic advancement | |
| 1011 | Abbess Godesdiu founded the monastery on the mountain in front of Herford for daughters of the lower nobility. | |
| 1147/1152 | Imperial direct protection of the monastery by Konrad III. and Friedrich I. Barbarossa | |
| around 1155 | Declaration of the papal immediacy and ecclesiastical (quasi episcopal) independence of the monastery by Pope Hadrian | |
| around 1170 | Formation of a civil parish and granting of town charter (no award document handed down) | |
| from 1220 | Construction of the cathedral church as the first large-scale sacred hall in Westphalia instead of a previous building. Construction of three more hall churches in the following 150 years: the Jakobikirche , which also serves as a pilgrimage church , the Johanniskirche and the Marienkirche on the Stiftberg . | |
| around 1220 | Creation of a council constitution (as the second city in Westphalia and one of the first in Germany) | |
| 1224 | Founding of Herford New Town by Abbess Gertrud and the Archbishop of Cologne as patrons | |
| 1246 | Participation with Münster , Osnabrück , Minden and Coesfeld in the Ladbergener Bund , one of the first German city federations | |
| 1256 | Acquisition of the previously compartmental castle court by the city of Herford against the assurance of protection. Joint quasi-imperial city administration of the interests of the city by the monastery and the city ( condominium ). Completion of the city fortifications . | |
| from 1295 | Participation in Hanseatic activities, from 1356 at the Städtehanse | |
| 13./14. Century | Settlement of numerous monasteries and Christian associations (Sancta Herfordia) | |
| 1342 | Herford becomes a Hanseatic city | |
| 1375 | Record of the applicable law in the Herford Law Book , one of the most important medieval legal manuscripts | |
| 1377 | Emperor Karl IV visits the city and imperial abbey of Herford | |
| 1414 | Relocation of St. Dionys monastery from Enger (with Dionysius treasure and Widukind's bones) to St. John's Church in Herford | |
| from 1530 | Introduction of the Reformation in Herford . The pioneers were the Brother Lords (correspondence with Martin Luther ) and the Augustinian hermits . Closure of numerous spiritual institutes. The abbey remains Catholic until 1565. | |
| 1540 | Takeover of the Friedrichs-Gymnasium in the care of the city | |
| 1590 | The St. Jakobikirche in Radewiger , which has been closed since 1530, will reopen on the Thursday after the 1st of Advent . On this occasion, the Radewiger Kohlfest is still celebrated today. | |
| 1631 | Declaration on the imperial city by the imperial chamber court | |
| 1634 | Union of old and new town | |
| 1636 | Anton Fürstenau saves the city from being destroyed by the quarreling Swedish and imperial troops. | |
| 1638 | The great city fire destroyed a large part of the Radewig . | |
| 1647/1652 | Occupation by the Brandenburg Elector due to the Jülischen succession. Loss of independence after prolonged resistance. | |
| 1652/18. Century | Impoverishment into an agricultural town as a result of the Thirty Years War (debts) and the economic policy of Brandenburg-Prussia | |
| 1667 | Elisabeth von der Pfalz becomes abbess in Herford. William Penn and Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz visit them. | |
| around 1720 | Prussian administrative and tax reforms confirm Herford's character as a dependent Prussian country town | |
| 1765 | Auctioning of the material for the city fortifications that are no longer needed | |
| 1802 | Secularization and dissolution of the prince abbey, the monastery on the mountain and the monastery of St. Johann and Dionys | |
| 1807 | Herford belongs to the Kingdom of Westphalia (until 1813), initially as part of the Weser department , from 1811 of the Fulda department | |
| 1810 | The abbey is sold to the merchant Schrewe, who sets up a spinning mill there | |
| 1816 | Elevation to the district town and court seat within the Prussian province of Westphalia which has existed since 1813 | |
| 1833 | Foundation of a private girls' school, from which the Königin-Mathilde-Gymnasium emerges | |
| 1847 | Construction of the Cologne-Minden railway and the Herford train station . Onset of industrialization and residential and industrial settlement beyond the area of the earlier city fortifications | |
| 1852 | Inauguration of the synagogue of the Jewish community | |
| 1878 | The Old Town Hall on the Alter Markt is being demolished as it was supposedly a traffic obstruction | |
| 1883 | Opening of the Herford correctional facility | |
| 1896 | Construction of the waterworks. Erecting of the Wittekind monument as a souvenir of the start of construction. | |
| 1902 | Start of operation of the Herford small railway . Establishment of a municipal electricity company. | |
| 1909 | Foundation of the Minden-Ravensberg electricity company . Inauguration of the Linnebauer monument at the Mittelstädter Bridge | |
| 1911 | Herford is acyclic and leaves the District of Herford from | |
| 1913-1917 | Construction of the new neo-baroque town hall and the market hall on the site of the former abbey | |
| 1924 | The Eternal Peace main cemetery is inaugurated | |
| 1940-1945 | Destruction by air raids in World War II (around 5%). Deportation and murder of over 100 Jewish citizens. | |
| 1945 | Occupied by American forces on April 4th. Confiscation of the Stiftberg district and the barracks to accommodate the headquarters of the British occupying forces . | |
| 1946 | Large parts of the city center are flooded in February. On February 9, the Hansabrücke was torn away by the Werre flood, which interrupted the Herford small railway line until May 1949. | |
| 1948 | The church music school for the Evangelical Church of Westphalia starts operations | |
| 1950 | The Northwest German Philharmonic is based in Herford. Until 1957, the main office of the German Schaustellerbund is in Herford . The pediatrician Heinz Lemke from Herford develops the Humana infant formula . | |
| 1954 | The school, which dates back to an agricultural school founded in 1868, is named Ravensberger Gymnasium | |
| 1955 | Construction of the Ludwig Jahn Stadium . Combination of the restitution courts in the three western zones of occupation to form the Supreme Restitution Court based in Herford | |
| 1956 | Founding of the Geschwister-Scholl-Schule Herford in Wiesestr. 33a 32052 Herford | |
| 1961 | Opening of the new building of the city theater | |
| 1966 | The last section of the Herford small railway will be shut down. Until 1970 the Jaguar Club was one of the most famous beat clubs in the region. The indoor swimming pool is opened in April and closed again in June 1997. | |
| 1968 | Construction of the inner city bypass (Berliner Straße) and construction of pedestrian zones in the city center | |
| 1969 | Municipal reorganization . Herford loses its freedom of circle. Incorporation of Elverdissen , Stedefreund , Laar , Eickum , Diebrock , Falkendiek , Schwarzenmoor and Herringhausen-Ost . | |
| 1970 | Foundation of the Herford Music School . On November 20, the central switching center was put into operation, whereby the manual switching for long-distance calls in the Herford area came to an end. | |
| 1972 | Demolition of the classicist Friedrichs-Gymnasium on Brüderstraße with subsequent construction of the Kaufhof | |
| 1973 | The former district hospital, now the Herford Clinic, moves into its new building. The Hoekerfest takes place for the first time. | |
| 1980 | Completion of the inner city ring. Redesign of the station square with the construction of the third parking garage. Beginning of the incorporation of Radewig with the Gänsemarkt in the pedestrian zone and the redesign of the Old Market . | |
| 1983 | Establishment of the Westphalian Hanseatic League based in Herford with 45 former Hanseatic cities as members (beginning of 2011). The Herford Versorgungs- und Verkehrs-Beteiligungs-GmbH (HVV) is founded. | |
| 1988 | Valuable finds in the remains of the abbey buildings from the Carolingian , Ottonian and Baroque periods during excavations between the town hall and the minster church. The Herford train station becomes an intercity stop. At the Olympic Games in Seoul, the Herford entrepreneur Wolfgang Brinkmann on the horse "Pedro" won the gold medal in team show jumping together with Ludger Beerbaum, Franke Sloothaak, and Dirk Hafemeister . | |
| 1989 | 1200 year celebration | |
| 1990 | In October the British Forces Broadcasting Service (BFBS) will move its headquarters from Cologne to the Wentworth barracks on Vlothoer Strasse, where it will remain until July 2009 | |
| 1991 | The church music school is converted into the college for church music of the Evangelical Church of Westphalia . In April 1991, a refugee accommodation in the small field burns . A woman suffocates. The fire was not solved. | |
| 1994 | On September 28, 23-year-old Bukurjie Haliti and her 11-year-old brother Navgim burned to death in a refugee shelter at the Ludwig-Jahn Stadium. The arson attack has not been solved. However, it was found that 10 children had been molested by a volunteer teacher in the dormitory. | |
| 1996 | The Waldfrieden Sports Park opens on the former site of the Maresfield barracks | |
| 1997 | Opening of the leisure and adventure pool H2O . The new sewage treatment plant on Goebenstrasse is completed. | |
| 1999 | The international youth equestrian tournament German Friendships takes place for the first time | |
| 2005 | Opening of the Marta Herford Museum on May 7th | |
| 2008 | The city is awarded the title Place of Diversity by the federal government | |
| 2010 | Inauguration of the rebuilt synagogue in Herford | |
| 2013 | Since the middle of the year, the city has had the addition of the Hanseatic city . The 33rd Modern Hanseatic Day takes place in the city in June . | |
| 2014 | The Marta Museum is named Museum of the Year 2014 | |
| 2015 | The British armed forces leave the city after 70 years | |
| 2017 | On September 4th, the Herford Education Campus with a branch of the North Rhine-Westphalia University of Finance will open on the grounds of the Wentworth barracks | |
| 2018 | At the end of July, the Meierfeld secondary school, the last of the five Herford secondary schools, closes. |
See also
literature
- 1200 years of Herford. Traces of history (Herford research 2). Edited by Thomas Schuler and Theodor Helmert-Corvey, Maximilian Verlag, Herford 1989, ISBN 3-7869-0249-6 .
- FB Fahlbusch: Herford . In: Lexikon des Mittelalters , Vol. 4, Col. 2152f.
- Rainer Pape: Sancta Herfordia. History of Herford from the beginning to the present. Bussesche Verlagshandlung GmbH, Herford 1979, ISBN 3-87120-857-4 .
Web links
Remarks
- ↑ List of names of the victims of the Herford witch trials (PDF; 91 kB)
- ↑ a b Article Death in the Container Camp , collection of articles about emigrants and asylum seekers in Herford in the 1990s (PDF; 5.4 MB)
Coordinates: 52 ° 6 ′ 56.6 ″ N , 8 ° 40 ′ 12 ″ E