Welschbillig

Basic data
State :	Rhineland-Palatinate
County :	Trier-Saarburg
Association municipality :	Trier country
Height :	285 m above sea level NHN
Area :	37.08 km 2
Residents:	2610 (Dec. 31, 2019)
Population density :	70 inhabitants per km 2
Postal code :	54298
Area code :	06506
License plate :	TR, SAB
Community key :	07 2 35 501
LOCODE :	DE WBI
Community structure:	5 districts
Association administration address:	Gartenfeldstrasse 12 ; 54295 Trier
Website :	www.welschbillig.de
Local Mayor :	Dieter Bretz (Free Voters)
Location of the local community Welschbillig in the district of Trier-Saarburg

Gate of the castle and parish church of St. Peter

Welschbillig is a municipality in the Trier-Saarburg district in Rhineland-Palatinate . It belongs to the Trier-Land community .

geography

Community structure

The local community of Welschbillig on the stream of the same name consists of the districts Welschbillig (1,810 inhabitants), Hofweiler (128), Ittel (295), Möhn (197) and Träger (139).

The district Welschbillig also includes the residential areas Burgmühle, Helenenberg , Helenenbergermühle, In der Au, Kalkofen, Kostermühle, Kunkelborn, Pelsermühle, Schilzenburg, Schwarzkreuz, Sturmsmühle and windmill; The district of Ittel includes Auwerbrück, Kyll and Wellkyll; The Möhn district includes the Hoxberg, Thussengshof and Heinzhof residential areas.

Neighboring communities

Neighboring communities are Dahlem , Auw an der Kyll , Hosten , Zemmer , Kordel , Newel , Ralingen , Eisenach , Gilzem , Idesheim , Idenheim and Trimport .

history

Roman epoch

From the middle of the 2nd century there is evidence of a Roman villa rustica in the area of the neo-Gothic parish church of St. Peter in the center of Welschbillig. A significantly larger manorial property was built in its place in the late 3rd century, but was rebuilt again in the 4th century. This villa was connected in a U-shape to a 58.3 by 17.8 meter large magnificent pool, which was probably surrounded by 112 herms . 70 herms were preserved during the excavation and probably come from the 4th century, another, found in 1958, could not be assigned with certainty. A large part of the heads of these herms found, today in the Trier State Museum , show clearly different peoples, z. B. Romans , Greeks , Celts and Germans , as well as recognize gods. It is believed that this unique water basin belonged to a palace of the emperor residing in Trier ( Augusta Treverorum ) or at least one of the administrators of the 220 square kilometer long walled district in whose south-western area the villa was located. It was only when the neo-Gothic parish church was built that almost the entire complex, which took up a good part of the site, was exposed and documented.

Whether there was continuity of settlement into the early Middle Ages after the collapse of Roman rule has not yet been determined. The addition “Welsch” could, however, indicate that there may have been a Romanized population here long after the collapse of the Western Roman Empire.

Pre-Carolingian and early medieval times

In 634, Welschbillig and the towns of Newel , Sülm and Röhl with their churches and affiliations were given by King Dagobert I (Trier stay: 624 to 625) to the Church of St. Paulinus ( Paulinstift Trier ). At that time Modoald was Bishop of Trier . In 981 this donation is mentioned in a document from Archbishop Egbert von Trier . Welschbillig is mentioned for the first time under the name Billike in the document mentioned .

middle Ages

Around the middle of the 13th century, the Trier electors built a fortification from the 12th century, which stood in the area of the former magnificent Roman villa, into a moated castle with four corner towers. It can be seen as the nucleus for further local expansion.

1291 gave King Rudolf von Habsburg (1218-1291) Welschbillig with Bernkastel , Mayen , Montabaur , Saarburg and Wittlich the town charter . On this occasion, the existing moated castle was expanded into a state fortress in the Electorate of Trier. Even today, the towering ruins of the gate building at the time, along with parts of the moat that has been preserved with inner and outer enclosing walls and a three-quarter tower at the northwest corner, determine the appearance of the town center. From the former 1.5 km long city wall; which was built shortly after the city charter was granted, remains are also preserved, as well as two city gates.

Welschbillig was the seat of the Electoral Trier office of Welschbillig until the end of the 18th century .

Early modern times

On December 28, 1601, the Duke of Luxembourg conquered the cities of Welschbillig and Ehrang by surprise in the course of a feud between the Elector of Trier and the Imperial Abbey of St. Maximin, as an ally of the abbot, and sacked their residents. In the so-called Dutch War , the Welschbilliger Landesburg was destroyed in 1673/74 by the troops of the French Sun King Louis XIV .

At the beginning of the 18th century, the electoral office was built on the grounds of the castle house, presumably in the former north wing of the fortress. It is considered an early example of baroque electoral agriculture and is now used as a rectory. The coat of arms of Archbishop Karl Josef von Lothringen can still be seen above the entrance . The rectory was extensively restored at the same time as the parish church of St. Peter in the 1970s.

Another important feature is the red sandstone fountain in the courtyard, also built in the 18th century.

Modern times

At the beginning of the 19th century, Welschbillig became the seat of the Prussian mayorship of Welschbillig in the Trier district .

The Catholic parish church of St. Peter, built between 1888 and 1890 by cathedral builder Reinhold Wirtz from Trier , stands on the southern wing of the former state fortress, right next to the ruins of the associated gate . The yellow sandstone basilica is an excellent example of neo-Gothic architecture. The historical furnishings, which form a unit with the architecture, have largely been preserved. Only the high-quality, colorful window glasses are more recent. After the war they were u. a. Donated by the former mayor of the (German) office of Welschbillig . The whole building was restored in 1976.

On December 31, 1975, the previously independent municipalities of Hofweiler, Ittel and Möhn were incorporated.

Population development

The development of the population of Welschbillig in relation to today's municipality, the values from 1871 to 1987 are based on censuses:

year	Residents
1815	1,062
1835	1,590
1871	1,839
1905	2.132
1939	2,413
1950	2,404
1961	2,373

year	Residents
1970	2,490
1987	2,285
1997	2,539
2005	2,538
2015	2,575
2016	2,653
2017	2,621

Population development of Welschbillig from 1815 to 2017

politics

Municipal council

3

11

6th

3 11 6th

A total of 20 seats

SPD : 3
FWG : 11
CDU : 6

The local council in Welschbillig consists of 20 council members, who were elected in a personalized proportional representation in the local elections on May 26, 2019 , and the honorary local mayor as chairman.

The distribution of seats in the local council:

choice	SPD	CDU	FW	FBL	total
2019	3	6th	11	-	20 seats
2014	4th	10	4th	2	20 seats
2009	4th	11	4th	1	20 seats
2004	4th	9	3	-	16 seats
1999	4th	10	2	-	16 seats

FW = Free Voters Welschbillig & Ortsteile e. V.
FBL = Free Citizens List Municipality Welschbillig e. V.

mayor

1763 00000- Mayor Mathias Roth
1772 00000- Mayor Wilhelm Backendorf / Bickendorf
1785 00000- Mayor Theodor Roth
1800 00000- Mayor Johann Peter Limbourg
0000–1900 - Mayor Nikolaus Ritzler
1949–1967 - Mayor Bernhard Müller (CDU)
1945–1960 - Mayor Matthias Wagner
1960–1969 - Mayor Theodor Metzdorf
1969–1984 - Mayor Karl Buschmann (CDU)
1984–1996 - Mayor Artur Olk (CDU)
1996-2009 - Mayor Helmut Becker (CDU)
2009–2019 - Mayor Werner Olk (CDU)
2019– 0000- Mayor Dieter Bretz (Free Voters)

societies

SV Welschbillig is a popular sports club with departments for football, tennis, running, gymnastics and other sports.
The music association Lyra Welschbillig e. V. celebrated its centenary in 2006.
Heimatfreunde Welschbillig e. V., founded in 2011
The SSG Welschbillig 1978 e. V., the sport shooting club with a shooting range in Kordel
Badminton Club Welschbillig e. V., founded in 1974.
Order of Knights Welschpilliche e. V., Medieval Association
The fishing club Welschbillig 1975 e. V.
Heimatverein Träger 1975 e. V., home association of the district Träger
Kultur- und Heimatverein Möhn (KuHM), founded in 2014

Attractions

The ruins of the Welschbillig moated castle in the center of the town are worth seeing, see Welschbillig Castle
The electoral office building and today's rectory was built at the beginning of the 18th century on the north side of the castle courtyard.
The Hermenbrunnen as a memorial for the former magnificent Roman villa and the origin of the place was inaugurated in 1994 and shows some selected copies of the late antique Hermen heads found here.
The neo-Gothic church of St. Peter was built in 1888–1890 by master builder Reinhold Wirtz , Trier. It stands on the site of the former castle and was restored in 1976.
The Geider Cross from 1904 and the Way of the Cross from 1984 with modern bronze reliefs by Father Rudolf Fritz, SMM.
The church on the Helenenberg with a baroque nave and late Gothic church was rebuilt and expanded several times in the 19th and 20th centuries.

Buildings in Welschbillig
Castle gate and St. Peter's Church
Parish Church of St. Peter
Parish Church of St. Peter, interior view
Baroque office building, today a rectory
Hermenbrunnen

Personalities

Born in Welschbillig

Johann Peter Limbourg (1832-1891), member of the Reichstag from Helenenberg
Hans-Georg Bürger (1952–1980), automobile racing driver

Associated with Welschbillig

Bernhard Lemling (1904–1961), poet and choirmaster in Welschbillig

Henning Wrede (* 1939), archaeologist, wrote the book The late antique Hermengalerie von Welschbillig in 1972

literature

Nikolaus Ritzler: Chronicle of the municipality of the district. (unprinted, around 1900)
Georg Dehio : Handbook of the German art monuments: Rhineland-Palatinate. Saarland. German art publisher, 1984.
Eduard Lichter: Welschbillig and the surrounding area - history of the place, the parish and the office of Welschbillig. Trier 1977.