Mürschnitz

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Mürschnitz
City of Sonneberg
Coordinates: 50 ° 22 ′ 13 ″  N , 11 ° 8 ′ 48 ″  E
Height : 375 m
Incorporation : July 1, 1950
Postal code : 96515
Area code : 03675
Old school in Mürschnitz
Old school in Mürschnitz

Mürschnitz is a district of the southern Thuringian town of Sonneberg in Thuringia.

location

Mürschnitz is located north of the Sonneberg district of Bettelhecken at the foot of the southern roofing of the Thuringian Forest in the hilly rural area. It is not far to the federal highway 89, which passes south . The core city is easily accessible. The state border with Bavaria is nearby.

The Mürschnitzer pond is very popular with anglers in the entire district and the neighboring districts of Coburg and Kronach , as it is very rich in fish. In the summer months there is the Baxenteich leisure pool. In the village there is a striking structure, a viaduct with a length of 171 m and a height of 23 m, over which the Eisfeld – Sonneberg railway runs.

history

middle Ages

The village at that time was first mentioned in a document in 1149. <The residents of the village were initially liable to the aristocratic Sonneberg family. The right to collect this tax on the income from agriculture then passed to the Langheim monastery. In 1453 this sold the claim to the church in Neustadt. The clergy there received the tithe income as a benefice.

Early modern times and modern times

Sources for the history of the place during this time are primarily various contemporary descriptions of the economy, geography and demography of the Sonneberg office, which later belonged to the Duchy of Saxony-Meiningen, and the localities in it. In a representation from 1781, a village chronicle, which has been kept since the 16th century, is mentioned, on which some authors may be based. The chronicle is said to have traditionally been kept by the owner of a certain farm. In 1781 the Oberender family is named as the owner of this farm and thus responsible for the continuation of the chronicle.

The various sources presented below give a picture of a town that is rapidly recovering economically and demographically after the devastation of the Thirty Years War, which must be considered particularly prosperous in comparison with other communities in the Sonneberg Office. The residents have benefited in particular from the lucrative forestry.

The Thirty Years' War as a serious turning point

In 1624, a part of the village is said to have burned down due to an accidental fire. The Thirty Years' War probably brought with it great human losses and considerable material losses. The latter seems likely, since the municipality of Mürschnitz was largely in arrears with the payment of sovereign taxes until 1652. Large parts of the arable land and meadows could not previously be cultivated due to the lack of workers. Many areas were again overgrown by scrub and forest. The location of the place on the border between Protestant and Catholic rulers as well as the proximity to the important marching routes, also used by the armies, meant that the region was badly affected several times. In the years from 1632 onwards, both imperial and Swedish troops plundered and plundered the Coburg area several times. The population, weakened by lack of food, was also decimated by a plague epidemic that was rampant at the time. Further losses resulted from residents being killed, enlisted for military service, or fled to larger, fortified cities or other less endangered regions. This was particularly true of the population of small and medium-sized towns. For the years 1636–1639 Günther assumed that only about 5% of the usable area had been processed in the Coburg Care Department. Of 10,658 cattle in 1632, only 693 were left in 1639. In 1640 a total of almost 100,000 imperial and Swedish soldiers faced each other in Saalfeld for several weeks. Fourage commands from both warring parties appeared in search of food in the already exhausted care Coburg, which was hit hard again. It can therefore be assumed that the community of Mürschnitz lost a large part of its inhabitants during the war. The losses will probably have been at least in the range of the assumed average loss of 70% for Thuringia.

Post-war economic and demographic recovery

In a description of the economic and demographic characteristics of the region published in 1781, Mürschnitz was mentioned as a village that was economically better off in local comparison. Agriculture is not very profitable here because of the poor arable soils and acidic meadows. Additional income could, however, be generated from the use of the surrounding forests. The sale of wood, but not wood processing e.g. B. on toys, was highlighted. As early as 1735, Heinrich August Sonnhoff had characterized Mürschnitz as a place where no intensive production took place. Several ponds had been created by the 17th century at the latest. According to Brückner, around 1660 there were nine artificial bodies of water in which fish was farmed. Fish was therefore another source of income and food. At that time there were nine privately owned Fronhöfe in the village, a Sölde and a manorial estate, the income of which was available to the forest officials as remuneration. 75 adults and 30 children lived in a total of 19 houses. The resident forester was responsible for hunting and timber management in the entire extensive forest area of ​​the Sonneberg office. More than a century earlier, the ducal forest official in Mürschnitz owned an estate for management. Hanns Augustin Kohlhaas, then incumbent, had acquired the summit of the Sonneberg Castle Hill in 1662 with the ruins of the burned down castle and the surrounding areas for 400 Franconian guilders.

Since the 1870s, the covering shop of the Sonneberg Office was also located in Mürschnitz.

19th century

According to a representation from 1811, the place consisted of 20 houses at that time, which were inhabited by 103 people. It is not entirely clear whether only the adult residents were counted here or whether the number of children living in the area was also included in the calculation. The inhabitants lived from agriculture. The economic importance of forestry as well as fish farming in several ponds built on site was emphasized again. 13 people were registered as farmers. There were also three weavers, a wood turner, a blacksmith and a forester. Here, too, the predominance of agriculture was evident, only a few people were employed in the village handicrafts. Wood products, utensils such as toys, were primarily made by turners at the beginning of the 19th century. Accordingly, in the centers of production, such as Judenbach, there were already a large number of such craftsmen in the 18th century. This professional group was underrepresented in Mürschnitz. It seems likely that a large part of the population was looking for work as day laborers in agriculture and forestry. Outside of the seasonal peaks in employment - for example during sowing and harvesting - these people are likely to have been without employment or income. In Thuringia, west of the Schwarza, the inheritance law of real division predominantly applied, i.e. the holdings were divided equally among the beneficiaries. A numerical increase in the village population therefore always had to lead to a reduction in the size of agricultural holdings and thus to a reduction in the economic resources of the individual families. In contrast to the surrounding settlements, poor or even landless inhabitants had an important source of income in the timber industry. The upheaval in sovereign forest management caused by the increased demand for wood in the 19th century must have led to a considerable need for workers. Farmers who had their own forest areas benefited directly from the steep rise in wood prices during this period. It seems that homeworking toys have been of minor importance.

Residents of the place were also part of the troop contingents set up by the Duchy of Saxony-Meiningen as a member of the Rhine Confederation for Napoleon. In December 1818, the government issued a public announcement requesting all residents who took part in the Spanish or Russian campaigns in the years 1810–1812 and who had not yet officially reported back to report to the ducal military command by March 1819. Anyone who did not should be pronounced dead. 21 people from the Sonneberg office were named, among them Carl Müller from Mürschnitz.

For the year 1843 the secretary of the ducal administration in Sonneberg stated a total of 162 inhabitants. At the same time the number of houses in the town had risen to 22. The mayor of the place was Georg Nikol Schindhelm. According to the local official, the economic situation and health of the residents in the entire Sonneberg district were often precarious. The harsh living conditions were reflected, among other things, in the low life expectancy, which the author attributed primarily to the hard work and inadequate nutrition, especially of the lower classes. Only a few from this social group lived to be 40 years old. If you look at the relationship between residents and houses, it becomes clear that the number of villagers per house has increased significantly since 1781. Apparently, the division of property among the descendants did in fact lead to a reduction in the material base per family. In addition to agriculture, the constantly growing population must have had another way of securing subsistence. The timber industry was likely to have been a lucrative source of income in Mürschnitz at this time as well.

Just before the middle of the 19th century, the number of inhabitants was given in an official publication as 167. In 1852, according to a list of the ducal administration, 187 belonged to 31 different families. At that time, too, the predominantly rural population of the place was considered to be above average wealthy. The main sources of income were cattle breeding and the timber industry. The local farmers owned a total of 151 sheep, 141 cattle, 32 pigs and 13 goats. The high number of sheep is striking. Since the middle of the 19th century, wool production in Thuringia experienced a rapid decline. Wool imported from overseas was significantly cheaper than domestic goods. At least this source of income must have dried up in the second half of the 19th century.

At the beginning of the 1860s the population had grown to 191 people. 27 houses were counted on site. The town's mayor at that time was Johannes Schmidt. Apparently, the economic setback that resulted from the decline in wool production was manageable. Despite the large number of sheep in 1853, the production and processing of wool could not have been a central source of income. Once again the importance of the timber industry becomes clear.

In 1870 at least one resident of the town took part in the Franco-German war. On September 21, 1870, the list of losses was published in the "Government Gazette for the Hertzogthum Coburg", which the 6th Thuringian Infantry Regiment No. 95, set up in the South Thuringia region, suffered on September 1 in the decisive battle of Sedan. The unit, part of the Prussian XI. Corps, was involved in the capture and subsequently the defense of the city of Floing. Musketeer Nikol Schott from Mürschnitz was slightly injured by a shot in the left shoulder.

Contemporary history

Tourism and industrial work were added later. The Mürschnitz volunteer fire brigade can look back on over a hundred years of history.

The former municipality of Mürschnitz was finally incorporated into the city of Sonneberg on July 1, 1950. The place had previously become part of the Sonneberg community in 1922. It regained its independence in 1924.

Individual evidence

  1. ^ A b Johann G. Brückner, Landeskunde des Herzogthums Meiningen, Volume 2. The topography of the country, Meiningen 1853, p. 445
  2. ↑ a b c Christian Friedrich Keßler von Sprengseysen, topography of the ducal-saxony-koburg-meiningischen part of the duchy of Koburg, Sonneberg 1781, p. 140
  3. ^ A b Johann G. Brückner, Landeskunde des Herzogthums Meiningen, Volume 2. The topography of the country, Meiningen 1853, p. 446
  4. ^ Franz Günther, The Thirty Years War and the German People. Studies on population and agricultural history, 4th edition, Stuttgart and New York 1979, p. 39
  5. ^ Franz Günther, The Thirty Years War and the German People. Studies on population and agricultural history, 4th edition, Stuttgart and New York 1979, pp. 36, 39
  6. ↑ Gundula Gahlen, Thirty Years War and Urban Population Development in Brandenburg, in: Matthias Asche, War, Military and Migration in the Early Modern Age, Münster 2008, p. 143
  7. ↑ a b Renate and Otto Hahn, From turning to plastic injection molding machine - development and forms of toy production in Judenbach and the surrounding area, in: Dies. (Ed.), Sonneberger Toys- Made in Judenbach. 300 years of toy manufacturing on the old trade route, Münster 2010, p. 45
  8. ↑ Christian Friedrich Keßler von Sprengenseysen, Topography of the ducal-saxony-koburg-meiningischen part of the duchy of Koburg, Sonneberg 1781, p. 51
  9. ↑ Christian Friedrich Keßler von Sprengenseysen, topography of the ducal-saxony-koburg-meiningischen part of the duchy of Koburg, Sonneberg 1781, p. 66
  10. ↑ Christian Friedrich Keßler von Sprengenseysen, topography of the ducal-saxony-koburg-meiningischen part of the duchy of Koburg, Sonneberg 1781, p. 72
  11. ↑ a b Ernst Julius Walch, description of the royal and ducal Saxon houses and lands in general and the Saxon-Coburg-Meiningische house and its lands in particular, Nuremberg 1811, p. 394
  12. ↑ Lienhardt Rösler, The Agrarian Reforms of the 19th Century in Thuringia, Erfurt 1996, p. 2
  13. ↑ a b c research project, historically shaped cultural landscapes and specific landscape images in East Thuringia, December 31, 2004, http://www.kulturlandschaft.fh-erfurt.de/kula_ostth/textteil.html , p. 15 f.
  14. ↑ Allgemeine Anzeiger der Deutschen , Gotha, number 334, December 17, 1818, p. 3723 f.
  15. ↑ a b Heinrich Christoph Hensold, description of the city of Sonneberg in the Duchy of Saxony Meiningen, famous for its world trade, Nuremberg 1845, p. 131
  16. ↑ Heinrich Christoph Hensold, description of the town famous for its World Trade Sonneberg in the Duchy of Saxe-Meiningen, Nuremberg 1845, p 247
  17. ↑ Heinrich Christoph Hensold, description of the town famous for its World Trade Sonneberg in the Duchy of Saxe-Meiningen, Nuremberg 1845, p 244
  18. ^ Collection of the sovereign ordinances in the Hertzogthume Sachsen-Meiningen, Volume 9. 1848/49, Hildburghausen without year, p. XV
  19. ^ A b c d Johann G. Brückner, Landeskunde des Herzogthums Meiningen, Volume 2. The topography of the country, Meiningen 1853, p. 426
  20. ↑ Ducal Saxony-Meiningen 'court and state manual. 1867, Meiningen 1867, p. 98
  21. ^ Government Gazette for the Duchy of Coburg, No. 73, September 21, 1870, p. 483
  22. ↑ http://www.insuedthueringen.de/lokal/sonneberg_neuhaus/sonneberg/Seit-1880-im-Kampf-gegen-das-Feuer;art83453,1574652
  23. ↑ Municipalities 1994 and their changes since January 1, 1948 in the new federal states , Metzler-Poeschel publishing house, Stuttgart, 1995, ISBN 3-8246-0321-7 , publisher: Federal Statistical Office
  24. ↑ Between Rennsteig and Sonneberg (= values ​​of our homeland . Volume 39). 1st edition. Akademie Verlag, Berlin 1986, p. 152.

Web links

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