Gschwend

The title of this article is ambiguous. Further meanings are listed under Gschwend (definition of terms ) .

coat of arms	Germany map
	Coordinates: 48 ° 56 '  N , 9 ° 45'  E
Basic data
State :	Baden-Württemberg
Administrative region :	Stuttgart
County :	Ostalbkreis
Height :	484 m above sea level NHN
Area :	54.5 km 2
Residents:	4888 (Dec. 31, 2018)
Population density :	90 inhabitants per km 2
Postal code :	74417
Area code :	07972
License plate :	AA, GD
Community key :	08 1 36 027
Address of the municipal administration:	Gmünder Strasse 2 74417 Gschwend
Website :	www.gschwend.de
Mayor :	Christoph Hald ( CDU )
Location of the community of Gschwend in the Ostalb district

Gschwend is a municipality in Baden-Württemberg and belongs to the Ostalb district .

geography

Geographical location

Center of the main town Gschwend

Gschwend has a share in the three natural areas of the Eastern Alb foreland , Schurwald and Welzheimer Forest and Swabian-Franconian Forest Mountains , all of which are part of the Swabian Keuper-Lias-Land . The community is located between Welzheimer Wald and Frickenhofer Höhe in the Swabian-Franconian Forest Nature Park on the "Gschwender" Rot , a left tributary of the Lein .

Neighboring communities

The community borders in the north-west on Fichtenberg , in the north on the city of Gaildorf , in the east on Sulzbach-Laufen , all three in the district of Schwäbisch Hall ; in the southeast by Eschach , in the south by Ruppertshofen and Spraitbach , both Ostalbkreis; in the southwest to Alfdorf and the city of Welzheim , in the west to Kaisersbach and Murrhardt , all four of the Rems-Murr districts .

Community structure

Historic stamping plant of the oil mill in the Brandhöfer mill near Gschwend

85 villages, hamlets, farms and houses belong to the community of Gschwend with the formerly independent communities of Altersberg and Frickenhofen.

The former municipality of Altersberg includes the village of Horlachen (seat of the municipal administration of the former municipality of Altersberg), the hamlets of Altersberg , Brandhof, Eichenkirnberg, Hagkling, Hundsberg , Lämmershof, Pritschenhof, Sturmhof, Vorderes Breitenfeld and Wasserhof, the courtyards Felgenhof, Glasseshof, Haghöfle, Haghof , Hengstberg, Hinteres Breitenfeld, Hugenbeckenreute, Krämersberg, Neumühle, Pfeiferhof, Schierhof, Seehöfle and Ziegelhütte as well as the abandoned villages Alten-Gleyssern, Gauchs- or Jauchshausen, Krebenhaus (Krämershof), Talheim and Hundsberger Sägmühle.

The former municipality of Frickenhofen includes the village of Frickenhofen, the hamlets of Dietenhof, Hohenreusch, Joosenhof, Lindenreute (Lindenhöfle), Linsenhof, Metzlenshof, Mittelbronn (first mentioned in 1322), Ottenried, Rotenhar, Spittelhof, Weiler, Wildenhöfle and Wimberg, the farms of Kellershof, Schöllhof , Steinhöfle, Steinreute and the houses Brechtehalden, Bruckenhaus, Hohenohl, Joosenhofer Sägmühle, Käshöfle, Rappenbühl, Rappenhof and Wolfsmühle as well as the lost towns of Erkershofen, Kleiner Erkertshof, Gerbertshofen, Engertsweiler (?), Hagenseesägmühle, Joosenhofer Sägmühle, Käshofer Sägmühle.

The community of Gschwend before the community reform in the 1970s includes the village of Gschwend, the hamlets of Birkhof, Buchhaus, Dinglesmad, Hasenhöfle, Hetzenhof, Hirschbach, Hohenreut , Honkling (on April 1, 1972, from Gaildorf to Gschwend), Humbach, Humberg, Mühläckerle, Nardenheim, Schlechtbach (mentioned in a document in 1395), Schmidbügel, Seelach, Waldhaus and Wildgarten (changed from Gaildorf to Gschwend on April 1, 1972), the Hetschenhof, Hollenhöfle, Hollenhof, Marzellehof, Oppenland and Unterer Hugenhof and the Ernst, Gschwender Mühle farms , Haldenhäusle, Oberer Hugenhof, Reißenhöfle, Roßsumpf, Schlechtbacher Sägmühle, Steinenforst and Straßenhaus as well as the abandoned villages of »Badhaus«, Gestösseln or Stösseln, Kirchberg, Lettenhäusle, Mühlrain, Rauhengehren, Salinhütte am Badsee, Stein bei Steinenforst and Wegstetten, Tauberweiler.

Division of space

According to data from the State Statistical Office , as of 2014.

history

Until the 18th century

Frickenhofen, which was first mentioned in a document in 1293, is the oldest documented place in the municipality. However, it is assumed that the Gschwend settlement has existed since the middle of the 12th century. Not much later, the forest around Gschwend will also have been cleared. Schwenden, which gave Gschwend its name, was a special kind of clearing. The bark of the trees was peeled off, whereupon they withered and then either died or could easily be infected and made to disappear by burning . The flame in the Gschwender coat of arms indicates this burning down.

Gschwend was initially a rather insignificant settlement, but developed into one due to its convenient location at the intersection of the streets from Schwäbisch Hall via Gaildorf to Gmünd (Salzstraße from Hall to the south, today's federal highway 298 ) and from Welzheim to Aalen (Cannstatter Straße) Center of rural trade. In the 16th century the court in Seelach was moved to Gschwend. There were large cattle fairs and fairs have been held since 1760. In 1857 there was a village fire in Geschwend that destroyed dozens of buildings.

Administrative history

Since 1374 Gschwend was assigned to the office of Gaildorf der Schenken von Limpurg . In 1806 Gschwend fell to the Kingdom of Württemberg . During the implementation of the new administrative structure , today's municipality of Gschwend was assigned to the Oberamt Gaildorf . During the district reform during the Nazi era in Württemberg , Gschwend came to the Backnang district in 1938 . In 1945 the municipality became part of the American zone of occupation and thus belonged to the newly founded state of Württemberg-Baden , which was incorporated into the current state of Baden-Württemberg in 1952.

Incorporation and district reform 1971 to 1973

On August 1, 1971, the previously independent municipality of Frickenhofen was incorporated into Gschwend, followed by the incorporation of Altersberg on January 1, 1972. Honkling and Wildgarten were reassigned from Unterrot to Gschwend on April 1, 1972 . When the district of Backnang was dissolved by the district reform in 1973 , the community of Gschwend came to the Ostalb district , whereas the rest of the Limpurger Land fell to the neighboring district of Schwäbisch Hall.

Religions

Gschwend has been predominantly evangelical since the Reformation . In addition to four Protestant congregations, there is also a Roman Catholic and a New Apostolic congregation.

politics

mayor

The mayor of the community is Christoph Hald.

coat of arms

Blazon : A red flame with three tongues in gold, accompanied by a green fir tree on the top right and bottom left.

As a talking coat of arms , the coat of arms refers to the place name. "Gschwendeter" means "forest cleared by fire".

The municipality flag is red and yellow.

Around 1820 the mayor's office used a seal that showed a cancer in a high oval shield. A meaning of this seal image has not been handed down, the seal was later forgotten. In 1926, the Stuttgart archive directorate suggested a burning branch as a talking coat of arms. The mayor's office then adopted today's coat of arms.

On May 26, 1956, the Baden-Württemberg Ministry of the Interior awarded the municipality the coat of arms and flag that are valid today.

Attractions

Hagbergturm near Gschwend

Teufelskanzel on the north side of the Hohe Tannen near Rotenhar

Church in Frickenhofen

Atonement cross near Frickenhofen

• Gschwend is located on the idyllic street that leads past many sights.
• The forest adventure trail continues on the road from Rotenhar to Schönberg. It is a combination of art and reflection path with ten stations.

Museums

The local museum of local history is located in the former school and town hall of Horlachen .

Buildings

• St. Andreas Church in Schlechtbach. The Gothic church, built in 1447, is probably the oldest building in the municipality. The high altar with a statue of the Virgin Mary from 1430 is a special gem.
• Hagbergturm . The observation tower on the Hagberg , at 585.2  m the highest mountain in the Welzheimer Forest, is a landmark of Gschwend and a landmark in the wider area. It is open from the third Sunday in April to the end of October on all Sundays and public holidays.
• Ev. Parish church (formerly St. Nikolaus) in Frickenhofen. Built in 1743 in place of a previous Gothic church that burned down in 1634. At the church next to the entrance there is a memorial plaque to Pastor Wolfgang Kirschenbeisser.
• Stone Cross (Atonement Cross) in Frickenhofen. This is located at the end of Schmiedstrasse (on the Frickenhofer Höhe hiking trail). According to legend, a person was killed here in an argument. In order to avoid endless family feuds (blood feuds), a contract of atonement was concluded with the help of the authorities. The stone cross was erected as a memorial near the crime scene on a busy path. It probably dates from the 15th or 16th century and is probably the oldest cultural monument in the Frickenhofen district.

Natural monuments

• Teufelsküche in Gschwend, on the southern slope of the community mountain
• Teufelskanzel 500 m east of Rotenhar

Economy and Infrastructure

traffic

Gschwend is connected to the national road traffic by the federal highway 298 ( Gaildorf - Schwäbisch Gmünd ).

Established businesses

Pfleiderer (company) had a plant in Gschwend, which has been closed since October 2010 after having been idle for over thirteen months.

education

The Heinrich Prescher School is located in Gschwend, a primary and secondary school with a technical secondary school . In the Frickenhofen district there is another elementary school that is based on Montessori education . With CircActive , a private vocational school for artistry is based in Gschwend. There are also three communal and three church kindergartens.

Personalities

Friedrich von Schmidt

Sons and daughters of the church

• Johannes Lämmerer (1763–1831), folk poet
• Philipp Gottlieb Osiander (1803–1876), born in Frickenhofen, senior bailiff and member of the state parliament
• Friedrich von Schmidt (1825–1891), born in Frickenhofen, architect of many churches and town halls in the neo-Gothic style
• Christian Dietrich (1844–1919), Swabian veteran pietist
• Peter Jakob Schober (1897–1983), painter
• Lina Haag (1907–2012) resistance fighter
• Erich Schneider (* 1933), politician (CDU), President of the Baden-Württemberg State Parliament from 1982 to 1992

Other personalities of the place

• Heinrich Prescher (1749–1827) was pastor in Gschwend for many years. He is the namesake of the local elementary and secondary school.
• Walter Bluhm (1907–1976), actor and voice actor, lived in Schlechtbach in the 1970s
• Albert Florath (1888–1957), German actor, lived in Schlechtbach from 1938 to 1957.

regional customs

Sheaf cart

Every year at the beginning of the harvest season, usually on the first weekend in August, a decorated sheaf wagon with the first sheaves is pulled in the festive company of children and with bells ringing by horses to the church on the market square. This custom dates back to 1817. At that time, after the great famine of 1816, it was decided to solemnly escort the first harvest wagon to the church.

Gschwend is, along with Essingen , one of the few communities that has maintained this custom to this day with a large participation of the population.

Cattle market

After the great fire of 1857 the Gschwenders made a virtue out of necessity, they completely redesigned their town center. They paved a large square at the intersection of the main thoroughfares and created a new, spacious marketplace, because the state since then had not been ideal for the cattle market. The place had already received the "justice to two annual fairs" in 1760, in 1776 the third was added. After the “appointment” to the administrative center in the 16th century, this was another milestone in the development of today's central parish. The markets made Gschwend an agricultural center and promoted trade and commerce. They were well known and well attended. 500 to 1000 head of large cattle were raised at that time, in February 1887 there were even 1425 heads. Even if the Gschwender markets can no longer come up with these numbers in the course of motorization and mechanization, they are still among the most important in northern Württemberg.

Web links

Commons : Gschwend  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Wikivoyage: Gschwend  - travel guide

Wikisource: Gschwend in the description of the Oberamt Gaildorf from 1852  - sources and full texts

ditto from Altersberg, Frickenhofen

• Website of the community of Gschwend
• Teufelskanzel natural monument

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1. ↑ State Statistical Office Baden-Württemberg - Population by nationality and gender on December 31, 2018 (CSV file) ( help on this ).
2. ↑ Natural areas of Baden-Württemberg . State Institute for the Environment, Measurements and Nature Conservation Baden-Württemberg, Stuttgart 2009.
3. ↑ ^{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. 446 .
4. ^ The state of Baden-Württemberg. Official description by district and municipality. Volume IV: Stuttgart district, Franconian and East Württemberg regional associations. Kohlhammer, Stuttgart 1980, ISBN 3-17-005708-1 , pp. 718-722.
5. ↑ State Statistical Office, area since 1988 according to actual use for Gschwend.
6. ^ 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, Stuttgart / Mainz 1983, ISBN 3-17-003263-1 , p. 446 .
7. ↑ Heinz Bardua: The communal coat of arms of the Ostalb district . Ostalb-Einhorn 10 (1983), pages 75-88.
8. ↑ Heinz Bardua: District and community arms in Baden-Württemberg. Volume 1: The district and community coats of arms in the Stuttgart administrative region . Landesarchivdirektion Baden-Württemberg (ed.), Konrad Theiss Verlag Stuttgart, 1987, 158 pages, ISBN 3-8062-0801-8 .
9. ↑ weiterweg , accessed on May 25, 2008.
10. ^ Hermann Kissling : Frickenhofen and his church. In: Ostalb / Einhorn 19 (1992), Issue 75, pp. 278-283 ( Internet Archive ).
11. ↑ The information was taken from the information board on the atonement cross.
12. ^ Report in Nürnberger Nachrichten of October 11, 2010 , accessed on April 9, 2012.
13. ↑ Sunday newspaper issue 18/2007 of May 6, 2007: A story of survival. The 100-year-old concentration camp survivor Lina Haag and her book "A hand full of dust" ( memento of the original from July 18, 2011 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. .  
14. ↑ http://www.swp.de/crailsheim/lokales/region/Mehr-als-die-Stimme-von-Doof;art5533,3282071
15. ↑ Evangelical Church in Hohenlohe ( Memento from September 27, 2007 in the Internet Archive )
16. ↑ Evangelische Kirchengemeinde Essingen  ( page no longer available , search in web archives )  Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. .