Widensolen

Widensolen
region	Grand Est
Department	Haut-Rhin
Arrondissement	Colmar-Ribeauvillé
Canton	Ensisheim
Community association	Pays Rhin-Brisach
Coordinates	48 ° 4 ′ N , 7 ° 29 ′ E Coordinates: 48 ° 4 ′ N , 7 ° 29 ′ E
height	184-194 m
surface	10.67 km 2
Residents	1,177 (January 1, 2017)
Population density	110 inhabitants / km 2
Post Code	68320
INSEE code	68367
	; Mairie Widensolen

Widensolen ( Alsatian Widsole, IPA : [ˈʋiːtsoːlə] ; officially Widensohlen until 1999 ) is a French commune with 1,177 inhabitants (as of January 1, 2017) in the Haut-Rhin department in the Grand Est region (until 2015 Alsace ). The village in the canton of Ensisheim is a member of the Pays Rhin-Brisach municipal association .

geography

The place is six kilometers northwest of Neuf-Brisach and eight kilometers east of Colmar in the Rhine plain at the end of the Canal de Widensolen coming from Neuf-Brisach , which serves as a derivation of the Canal Vauban . The road to Urschenheim , two kilometers north, runs on an old Roman road.

history

The most important discoveries from prehistoric times in the Widensol district were copper rib bars from the Bronze Age (1800–1500 BC) in a village garden in 1909, which are unique for all of Alsace.

From the Iron Age (750–620 BC) burial mounds ( tumuli ) are known in which pottery and an urn were found. Numerous finds prove the settlement in Roman times.

The village is mentioned for the first time in a document from 768 in the course of a donation of a Wido and in 940 as Widosolica . The name probably refers to that Wido.

In the High Middle Ages, the village was part of the rule of Horburg before it came under the rule of Württemberg from 1324 to 1789 . With the introduction of the Reformation in Württemberg in 1535, Widensolen also became Protestant. In 1687, sovereignty changed from the German Empire to Catholic France, which is why Catholicism had to be allowed again on site, despite the fact that it was still part of the Protestant Württemberg until 1789. In 1871, like all of Alsace, the place fell back to Germany. In 1875 the municipality name was changed to Wiedensolen , with the return to France in 1919 to Widensolen and finally to Widensolen in 1999 .

At the beginning of the 20th century, small industries settled on the spot. In June 1940, after the German attack on France, the population was evacuated to Puymiclan in the Lot-et-Garonne department and returned three months later to Alsace, now annexed by Germany, after the German occupation of France. On the night of January 31, 1945, Widensolen was liberated from Nazi rule by American troops.

coat of arms

In 1978 the current municipal coat of arms was awarded.

Population development

year	1962	1968	1975	1982	1990	1999	2007	2014
Residents	420	431	506	624	825	1051	1238	1197

St. Nicholas Church

Inside view

literature

Le Patrimoine des Communes du Haut-Rhin. Flohic Editions, Volume 1, Paris 1998, ISBN 2-84234-036-1 , pp. 128-129.

Web links

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

Presentation about the community association Pays Rhin-Brisach