Alsfeld () is a town in the center of Hesse, in Germany.
Located about north of Frankfurt, Alsfeld is part of the densely populated Frankfurt Rhine-Main Metropolitan Region, with nearby Lauterbach (about east), one of the two centre cities of the Vogelsbergkreis district.
Alsfeld is best described as a blend of a historic bourgeois European town and its rural-agricultural environs and shaped by typical Lutheran-Pietist characteristics, such as austerity and a Protestant work ethic. It is well known for its well-preserved old town with hundreds of picturesque timber-frame houses, and part of the German Timber-Frame Road. The town is twinned with New Mills, England.
Geography Large towns nearby are Bad Hersfeld about to the east, Fulda to the southeast, Gießen to the west and Marburg an der Lahn about to the northwest. Alsfeld is located on the upper part of the Schwalm in the northern Vogelsberg and just to the south of the Knüll mountains at the western edge of the Alsfeld basin.
Neighboring municipalities Alsfeld borders on the following towns, listed here clockwise starting in the north: Willingshausen, Schrecksbach, Ottrau (all Schwalm-Eder district), Breitenbach (Hersfeld-Rotenburg district) and Grebenau, Schwalmtal, Romrod, Kirtorf and Antrifttal (all Vogelsbergkreis).
Boroughs In addition to Alsfeld (proper) the town includes the following boroughs: Altenburg, Angenrod, Berfa, Billertshausen, Eifa, Elbenrod, Eudorf, Fischbach, Hattendorf, Heidelbach, Leusel, Liederbach, Lingelbach, Münch-Leusel, Reibertenrod and Schwabenrod.
History
Alsfeld was first mentioned in an official document in 1069. Excavations in the Walpurgiskirche have discovered that a Romanesque church existed here already in the 9th and 10th centuries. It is therefore estimated that the town was founded in Carolingian times. Between 1180 and 1190 the Counts of Thuringia built a castle along the historic trading route of the Kurze Hessen. That location favored the development of Alsfeld and it was subsequently documented as a town as early as 1222.
Since 1247 Alsfeld has been part of Hesse and in 1254 the town joined the Rheinischer Städtebund. Hermann II built himself a castle here in 1395 and for a time turned the town into his official residence. The city enjoyed rising prosperity due its favourable geographical location and the policies of the Landgrave of Hesse. Trades and handcrafts flourished and Alsfeld developed into a wealthy, industrious municipality on the “Street through the short Hesse”. Evidence of this is the church, monastery, towers, town hall and water supply system. Of great importance were the guilds, which gained influence over local government through the so-called “Korebrief” (constitution). From 1567 Alsfeld belonged to Hesse-Marburg and from 1604 on to Hesse-Darmstadt.
Alsfeld's golden age Architecture was erected in the 16th century within the town, including the town hall (1512-1516), wine house (1538), and wedding house (1564-1571). Half-timbered buildings are found in the marketplace and streets around it; many of these have survived from the medieval period and early modern age.
Whereas the geographical position of Alsfeld had been to its advantage, it also led to its demise. The city was centred on important trade routes and the following 30 Years War (1618–1648) resulted in plunder (1622), starvation (1626), plague (1635), occupation (1640 and 1643–1646) and the destruction of 226 residential buildings and 80 cottages (1646). By 1648 only 1120 people were still living in the city (mainly women and children). The economic and social fall of the city created a population of struggling smallholders, active in crafts and trades and also agriculture. Many of the fine buildings fell into disrepair.
19th century During the 19th century the town had a vibrant Jewish municipality which built in 1908 a new large synagogue. A well-maintained Jewish cemetery adjacent to a Christian cemetery lies on the outskirts of the town. The pre-1908 synagogue exists as a building. It wasn't until the 19th century, in 1832, that Alsfeld was to experience a renewed rise as the district capital. Railway construction (1870) and the industrial revolution resulted in the fundamental transformation of the smallholding system.
Nazism and the World War II-period Alsfeld held a special significance for Nazi ideologists. For them, it was the epitome of the German 'Home Town', representing all that was quintessentially German. Throughout the 1930s, the Nazi organization KDF (Kraft durch Freude) "Strength through Joy" organized regular day trips to Alsfeld from all across the Reich. In 1938 Alsfeld was one of the first towns that got a connection to the Autobahn.
During the Kristallnacht on November 9, 1938, Nazis burned down the large synagogue in the city. Citizens rescued the Torah scroll, the wooden Ark in which it was stored, and a unique wooden clock recording times of Jewish prayer services, and hid them in the town museum's storage. The next day, the Nazis started the systematic deportation of Jews. In 1942, Alsfeld expelled its last Jewish citizen.
On March 29, 1945, German troops left the city. The U.S. Army entered the town on March 30, 1945. The civilian population surrendered without resistance. Alsfeld, unlike most German cities and towns, was spared from Allied bombing raids during the war. But, as Alsfeld was neither an industrial center nor a transport hub, it did not present a tactical or strategic target. Allied air raids focused extensively on the railway tracks.
History after 1945
The excellent infrastructure, including the Hamburg–Frankfurt–Basel Autobahn (motorway) brought further industrialization ensured that the location regained its previous geographic and economic importance, the Bundesgrenzschutz chose Alsfeld as a garrison base. In 1961, the town hosted the first Hessentag state festival, in 1985 the 25th.
Until 1972 it was the seat of Alsfeld district until the district was merged with neighboring Lauterbach district and the Schotten region into the present-day Vogelsberg district. As a result of the district reform that took effect on July 11, 1972, the villages of Berfa, Hattendorf, Liederbach and Lingelbach were merged into the town of Alsfeld.
European model city
Previously surrounded by an oval shaped city wall with four gates, the medieval town of Alsfeld is still characterised by half-timbered buildings alongside residential buildings and monumental civic constructions. The narrow, twisting streets and passages open out into courtyards and squares. Visitors are provided with a complete overview of the development of wood construction from the late Middle Ages to the beginning of the nineteenth century. For the past 100 years a conscious cultural conservation has been nurtured to preserve the buildings. Ever since local statutes instated in 1963, civic bodies have been obliged to care and preserve the old city landscape.
As a result of these efforts, particularly the renovation of the old city, which began in 1967, Alsfeld was selected by the European council as one of 51 exemplary cities in 17 European countries for the European Year of Building Preservation.
The Name Alsfeld
One of the many legends about how Alsfeld came to its name and location goes as follows: Around 1200 the Margrave of Hesse/Thuringia went riding his horse over the Vogelsberg. When he got to the Homberg (a hill near Alsfeld) a very strong wind was blowing. Supposedly at this point the Margrave said: "Als fällt mir der Hut vom Kopp." (trans. I keep losing my hat.) The "Als fällt" in that statement supposedly became the name "Alsfeld" – it has the same pronunciation.
Government
Town council and executive After the municipal elections of March 6, 2016 the town council was made up of 37 councillors:
Party Seats CDU 18 SPD 12 UWA (Independents) 4 ALA (Alternative List) 3
The town's executive has ten members:
Party Seats CDU 4 SPD 3 UWA 2 ALA 1
Mayors The current mayor, Stephan Paule, was elected on May 26, 2013, with a 55,8% share of the vote.
1993–1999: Herbert Diestelmann (SPD) 1999–2005: Herbert Diestelmann (SPD) 2005–2007: Herbert Diestelmann (SPD) 2007–2013: Ralf Becker (SPD)
Coat of arms
The Coat of Arms is blazoned as:"Azure a sword Argent gripped Or and a lion rampant Gules, armed and crowned Or"
The oldest seal of the town features the Count of Hesse as judge with a sword in one hand and a shield in the other. That shield depicted the lion of Hesse. The combination used today has been seen since the late 14th century; since then there have only been some minor variations in color.
Twin Towns
Alsfeld is twinned with multiple places across Europe:
New Mills, Derbyshire, United Kingdom
Spišská Nová Ves, Slovakia.
Nakskov, Zealand, Denmark.
Chaville, France.
Main sights
The town is known for its Altstadt, the historic town centre, with its uninterrupted blocks of historic buildings. The Altstadt has a typical layout for a medieval town. The town wall was built in an almost perfect circle centred on the market place (for strategic reasons). Roads lead mostly straight from the gates in the wall to the town centre. One can deduce where the town wall was from the picturesque narrow streets which remain in their original state: their bends and curves in those small streets follow the original town wall.
Buildings at the market place (Markt)
The Town Hall was constructed in medieval, Rähmbau style timber framing between 1512 and 1516. This is one of the most important German half-timbered town hall buildings. Erected over a late Gothic stone substructure, this building with its attractive woodwork, bent chevron bracing and protruding moulded beam-ends, is an outstanding example of a "Rähmbau" (frame construction). The ground storey, built of stone, was once a market hall. The "Alsfeld cubit" can still be seen on the left corner. On the first floor the offices of the Mayor and Magistrate are situated. Since 1633 the councilmen have had their coats of arms on display. On the second floor, interesting old doors lead into the meeting room and the Registry Office (formerly the Court Room). Michael Finck, the local artist and carpenter, designed and crafted the magnificent Renaissance door in 1604. Curt Oberman forged the decorative hinges. It is next to the market place in the center of the Altstadt.
Next to the Town Hall is the Weinhaus ("Wine House"). This impressive municipal stone building was constructed by Hans von Frankfurt and used to store and sell wine. Business deals, celebrations and special events were toasted and validated with wine. Wine sales generated up to 40% of the town's income. The transition between the Gothic and Renaissance architecture can be seen in the steep stepped gables and the fan rosettes facing. The original irregular, stone curtained windows were unfortunately replaced in 1840 /43 by the present rounded windows. Remains of the earlier windows are still visible. At the corner of the Weinhaus is the Pranger, a lockable iron collar into which mediaeval law-breakers were locked. They then had to suffer the verbal and physical abuse of their fellow citizens without any means of defending themselves. The Pranger is much photographed by tourists.
Leaning up against the Weinhaus is Markt 2 the oldest timber-framed house in Alsfeld, a Gothic, half-timbered house in pillar construction. It has two barrel shaped cellars dating back to the time when the city was founded. In 1394 when a large section of the Walpurgis Church Tower collapsed, the right-hand side of the house was severely damaged. It was rebuilt in 1403 and 1464–65. The uppers storeys jetty (project) above the storey below giving additional living space to each upper storey. The hall on the ground floor is now used as a bookshop. The upper floors house municipal offices.