Breuberg

Breuberg
Coat of arms of Breuberg Coat of arms
Breuberg
Location of Breuberg within Odenwaldkreis district
Coordinates:
Country	Germany
State	Hesse
Admin. region	Darmstadt
District	Odenwaldkreis
Government
• Mayor	Frank Matiaske (SPD)
Area
• Total	30.76 km2 (11.88 sq mi)
Population (2013-12-31)
• Total	7,386
• Density	240/km2 (620/sq mi)
Time zone	CET/CEST (UTC+1/+2)
Postal codes	64747
Dialling codes	06163 (Sandbach), 06165
Vehicle registration	ERB
Website	www.breuberg.de

Breuberg is a town in the Odenwaldkreis (district) in Hesse, Germany, 28 km east of Darmstadt, and 20 km southwest of Aschaffenburg.

Geography

Location

Breuberg lies in the northern Odenwald.

Neighbouring communities

Breuberg borders in the north on the town of Groß-Umstadt (Darmstadt-Dieburg) and the community of Mömlingen, in the east on the town of Obernburg am Main (both in Miltenberg district in Bavaria), in the south on the community of Lützelbach and in the west on the community of Höchst.

Burg Breuberg in the summer of 2006

Constituent communities

The town is made up of the centres of Hainstadt, Neustadt, Rai-Breitenbach, Sandbach (the town’s administrative seat), Rosenbach and Wald-Amorbach.

Politics

The municipal election held on 26 March 2006 yielded the following results:

Parties and voter communities		% 2006	Seats 2006	% 2001	Seats 2001
SPD	Social Democratic Party of Germany	67.7	21	63.5	20
BWG	Breuberger Wähler Gemeinschaft	32.3	10	36.5	11
Total		100.0	31	100.0	31
Voter turnout in %		50.0		58.1

Town council

The chief councillor (Stadtverordnetenvorsteherin) is Cornelia Fürpahs-Zipp (SPD).

The town council consists of nine members: the mayor Frank Matiaske (SPD) and eight town councillors (5 SPD and 3 BWG).

The council has formed four boards and one commission:

• Main and Financial Board (8 members – 5 SPD and 3 BWG)
• Building and Transport Board (8 members – 5 SPD and 3 BWG)
• Environment and Agriculture Board (8 members – 5 SPD and 3 BWG)
• Board for Social Matters and Clubs (8 members – 5 SPD and 3 BWG)
• Culture Commission (put together from factional representatives, town council, citizens and the administration)

At the Bundestag elections in 2005, Breuberg had the strongest showing for the SPD in constituency 188 (Odenwald).

Coat of arms

The escutcheon is parted by an upright silver sword with a golden grip. On the dexter side (armsbearer’s right, viewer’s left) in blue is a silver heraldic rose with a golden centre, and on the sinister side (armsbearer’s left, viewer’s right) in red is a silver six-pointed star.

On 2 July 1975, with permission from the Hessian Minister of the Interior, approval was given for the town of Breuberg in the Odenwaldkreis and the Regierungsbezirk of Darmstadt to bear the above-described arms, which had been borne by the former town of Neustadt before it merged with the communities of Hainstadt, Sandbach and Wald-Amorbach on 1 October 1971.

It can further be said that the sword stands for the market court’s jurisdiction or the holding of market rights in the former town of Neustadt. The rose is taken from the arms borne by the House of Wertheim, and the star from those borne by the House of Erbach. Neustadt’s arms bore a rose with a red centre.

Flag

The flag is a red-white-blue tricolour with the town’s arms overlaid in the upper half.

Sightseeing

Breuberg castle, keep (Bergfried) and main gate.

Climbing path in a quarry in Breuberg-Hainstadt

Breuberg Castle

The Breuberg Castle Burg Breuberg is among Germany’s best preserved castles. The so-called Kernburg (“core castle”) arose at the beginning of the 13th century and was founded by the imperial abbey of Fulda in order to protect its Odenwald estates. Around 1200 the bailiwick was taken over by the Lords of Lützelbach, who thereupon called themselves Lords (Herren von) of Breuberg. In 1323 already, the male family line of the house of Breuberg died out with Eberhard III. of Breuberg. From the 14th century, the castle was expanded many times, making it today a journey through the building styles of the last 850 years. In 1446, Count Wilhelm of Wertheim sold Count Philipp the Elder of Katzenelnbogen his share of the castle for 2400 Gulden. The castle may have been damaged but was never destroyed, and was always used, thus explaining its good condition. Today the building belongs to the State of Hesse and serves as a youth hostel and a museum.

Quarry with climbing path

In the outlying centre of Hainstadt in the Mümling valley is a quarry which has been turned into a climbing facility by the Odenwälder Kletterfreunde (“Odenwald Climbing Friends”). There is also a climbing path secured by wire cables. The Odenwald Climbing Friends take care of the paths. The quarry also lies in the DAV’s (Deutsche Alpenverein e. V. – a mountain climbing club) Darmstadt Section feeder area.

Art

Sculpture park

Sandstone sculptures by sculptors Peter Hörr, Sabine Wagner, Isolde Stapp, Karin Ebert, Marianne Wagner, Paul August Wagner and Heinz Mack can be seen on the Mümling riverside flats.

• STONE AND WOOD (so called even in German) – Each year, sculptors work for one week for the Breuberg sculpture park. The civic foundation arranges for a broad cultural programme.

Further reading

• Winfried Wackerfuß (publisher and editor): Das Zinsbuch der Herrschaft Breuberg von 1426. Breuberg-Bund, Breuberg-Neustadt 2004. ISBN 3-922903-08-8
• Winfried Wackerfuß: Kultur-, Wirtschafts- und Sozialgeschichte des Odenwaldes im 15. Jahrhundert. Die ältesten Rechnungen für die Grafen von Wertheim in der Herrschaft Breuberg (1409 - 1484). Breuberg-Bund, Breuberg-Neustadt 1991. ISBN 3-922903-04-5
• Winfried Wackerfuß (publisher): Burg Breuberg im Odenwald. Breuberg-Bund, Breuberg-Neustadt 1979.
• Wolfram Becher und Alfred F. Wolfert: Die Stuckdecke im Rittersaal des Johann Casimir-Baus auf Burg Breuberg. Breuberg-Bund, Neustadt im Odenwald 1979.

External links

• Breuberg at DMOZ (German)
• Breuberg’s official website (German)
• Opening times and information about the Breuberg-Museum and tours (German)