Memmingen
Memmingen | |
---|---|
Urban district | |
Government | |
• Lord mayor (2017–23) | Manfred Schilder[1] (CSU) |
Area | |
• Total | 70.17 km2 (27.09 sq mi) |
Elevation | 601 m (1,972 ft) |
Population (2022-12-31)[2] | |
• Total | 45,857 |
• Density | 650/km2 (1,700/sq mi) |
Time zone | UTC+01:00 (CET) |
• Summer (DST) | UTC+02:00 (CEST) |
Postal codes | 87700 |
Dialling codes | 08331 |
Vehicle registration | MM |
Website | Memmingen.de |
Memmingen (German: [ˈmɛmɪŋən] ⓘ; Swabian: Memmenge) is a town in Swabia, Bavaria, Germany. It is the economic, educational and administrative centre of the Danube-Iller region. To the west the town is flanked by the Iller, the river that marks the Baden-Württemberg border. To the north, east and south the town is surrounded by the district of Unterallgäu (Lower Allgäu).
With about 42,000 inhabitants, Memmingen is the 5th biggest town in the administrative region of Swabia. The origins of the town go back to the Roman Empire. The old town, with its many courtyards, castles and patricians' houses, palaces and fortifications is one of the best preserved in southern Germany. With good transport links by road, rail and air, it is the transport hub for Upper Swabia and Central Swabia, and the Allgäu.
Due to its proximity to the
History
It is believed that on the site of present-day Memmingen in
Memmingen was linked to
The Twelve Articles: The Just and Fundamental Articles of All the Peasantry and Tenants of Spiritual and Temporal Powers by Whom They Think Themselves Oppressed was written (probably by Schappeler and Sebastian Lotzer) in early 1525. This was a religious petition borrowing from Luther's ideas to appeal for peasant rights. Within two months of its publication in Memmingen, 25,000 copies of the tract were in circulation around Europe. These are the first known set of human rights documents in the world (if one ignores Magna Carta in England in 1215).
In the 1630s Memmingen was at centre stage during the
Following the reorganization of Germany in 1802, Memmingen became part of Bavaria. The 19th century saw the slow economic deterioration of the town, which was halted only with the building of a railway following the course of the River Iller.
Since World War II Memmingen has been a developing town, with a rate of economic growth above the average for Bavaria.
Geography
Memmingen is located at the western border of Bavaria at the river Iller, 50 km south of
Transport
Memmingen is reached by the A7 and the A96 motorways and Memmingen station is on railways connecting Munich and Lindau and the Ulm–Oberstdorf railway.
It has the public and international Memmingen Airport nearby.
Economy
Most companies are
- Alpine Hydraulik GmbH[4]
- Berger Holding
- Dachser Logistics
- Gebrüder Weiss
- Gefro Reformversand Frommlet[5]
- Hans Kolb Wellpappe
- Goldhofer
- Magnet-Schultz
- Memminger Brauerei
- Metzeler Schaum GmbH[6]
- Pfeifer Holding
- Rohde & Schwarz
Politics
Although the Lord Mayor has been from the
The town politics is mostly dominated by a coalition of bigger parties ("coalition of the reasoned") from CSU, SPD, Christlicher Rathausblock Memmingen (Christian Town Hall Party Memmingen) and the
There was a hefty dispute between the parties in 2005, concerning financial participation in the Memmingen Airport. The Ecological Democratic Party and the Greens initiated a referendum to inhibit financial support for the airport, but this vote met with no success.
At the top of the town government is the Lord Mayor, who is elected directly by the people. He is the representative of the town and the leader of municipality. As second representatives, the majors are elected from the members of the town council. Historically the CSU, as biggest party, appoints the second major. The third major is appointed by the third biggest party. The second biggest party, the SPD, traditionally declines to appoint the third major, because they already appoint the Lord Mayor.
Memmingen is building, alongside the double centre Ulm/Neu-Ulm, the second economical centre in Upper Swabia. It thus leads the central supply function for the adjoining cities and districts.
Town council
The last local elections were on March 2, 2008, with following results:[7]
CSU |
SPD | CRB ¹ | FV | Greens |
ödp | FDP | Sum | |
Seats | 13 | 9 | 4 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 2 | 40 |
Percent | 32,2% | 22,0% | 10,8% | 11,8% | 6,7% | 10,5% | 5,9% |
¹ Christlicher Rathausblock Memmingen ("Christian Townhall-Party")
Lord Mayors
- 1884–1909: Karl Scherer
- 1910–1931: Fritz Braun
- 1932–1945: Heinrich Berndl, NSDAP
- 1945–1948: Georg Fey, CSU
- 1948–1952: Lorenz Riedmiller, SPD
- 1952–1966: Heinrich Berndl, without party
- 1966–1968: Rudolf Machnig, SPD
- 1968–1980: Johannes Bauer, SPD
- 1980–2016: Ivo Holzinger, SPD
- 2016: Markus Kennerknecht, SPD
- 2017–today: Manfred Schilder, CSU
Town finances
With €512 per capita, Memmingen is one of the cities in Germany with the lowest level of debt[8] (The German average is more than €1,300). The town had 2007 a management budget (Verwaltungshaushalt) of €94,925,160 and an asset budget (Vermögenshaushalt) of €19,490,860. The income from trade taxes amounted to about €40 million, the income tax assignment to about €20 million. The local rates were last changed in 2003. The town has many charitable foundations, with roots partly going back to the Middle Ages (such as the Unterhospitalstiftung).
Coat of arms and flag
Blazon: Split from gold and silver, in front a half, reinforced in red, black eagle. Backward a red pawcross
The town's colours, handed down since 1488, are Black, Red, White. The flag is a banner flag with cross bar.
Amendingen and Eisenburg have their own historical coats of arms.
Culture and main attractions
Historic festivals
Every year Memmingen celebrates the Fischertag (Fisherman's day), recreating medieval traditions. The town brook is fished out to be completely drained and cleaned, and at the same time a "Fisherman's King" (the one that caught the heaviest trout) is appointed among almost 1,200 fishermen. Every year up to 40,000 people come to this festival as participants or spectators.
Every four years Memmingen re-enacts the events around the visit of Wallenstein in the year 1630 with Europe's biggest historic festival: the Wallensteinfestspiele (Memmingen) .
Theatre
The theatre has a long tradition in Memmingen. By the Middle Ages some chroniclers were already recording different theatre performances. In 1937 the Landestheater Schwaben (State Theatre of Swabia) or LTS was founded in the town. In 1945, after World War II, the LTS was one of the first theatres in West Germany to begin putting on performances again. The performances take place in the Rooms of the Town Theatre, the theatre at the Schweizerberg (cabaret stage), in the Kaminwerk cultural centre or in rooms at the boroughs of Memmingen. The Schweizerberg Theatre will be closed at the end of 2010. It will move to new premises in the Elsbethen area, behind the Town Theatre, where a new cabaret stage, rehearsing rooms, workshops, depots, management rooms, the foyer and some guest rooms will be built.[9] Another theatre was founded by Helmut Wolfseher and members of the Alternative Kleinkunst e.V. (Alternative Cabaret Society), Parterretheater im Künerhaus (PIK). This theatre is specifically for amateur actors and young talented musicians. The Kaminwerk also puts on major plays by amateur actors. The municipal hall is for Volksschauspieler or other artists.
The following works featuring Memmingen have been produced:
- Stage play Memmingen from Bettina Fless (1989)
- Book Mohr of Memmingen from Utz Benkel
- Song Memmingen by Blackmore’s Night, see also Shadow of the Moon
Stage plays and operas that have had world premières in Memmingen are:
- 1995: The Jewbank
- Metal-Operas by David DeFeis:
- 2005: Mohr of Memmingen
- 2007: Green Organes
- 2008: Katharina and Till (10 January 2009)
Museums
The biggest museum in Memmingen is the Town Museum at the Hermannsbau.
Music
The organ concerts in the churches of St. Martins and St. Josef are famous in the region. Chamber music would be performed in the former Kreuzherren monastery and also in some other buildings in Memmingen.
There are several pubs, restaurants, wine taverns and cafés and also some discothèques in and around the town. The cultural centre Kaminwerk (Chimney factory) is for concerts, theatre, program cinema, readings and special parties.
Buildings
Memmingen has considerable tourist interest, mainly because large areas of the medieval old town survived World War II. There are ten town gates and towers and about two kilometres of the town wall. The old town contains many interesting houses of patricians, some in the
Parks
Green areas were created all along the town wall. The old ditches where filled up and replaced with green areas or parks with partially over 150-year-old trees. The name of the parks are (starting clockwise at the Ulmer Gate): Hubergarten, Zollergarten, Ratzengraben/Zollergraben, Kohlschanze, Reichshain, Kaisergraben, Hohe Wacht, Westertorplatz, Grimmelschanze. Nearby every residential area has its own smaller parks. There is also the town park in the New World, the old
Cemeteries
There were four cemeteries in Memmingen in the Middle Ages. They were around the St. Martin's Church and the Church of Our Lady, also at the Kreuzherren monastery and the Scottish monastery.[15] They were abandoned in 1530. The replacement was the Old cemetery at the former Scottish monastery. This cemetery was abandoned in 1930. The closing of the Old Cemetery has involved a new Cemetery. It was founded in the east of Memmingen as a Forest Cemetery. More cemeteries are in the districts Amendingen, Steinheim, Buxach, Volkratshofen, Ferthofen and Dickenreishausen. In the east of the town is also a Jewish cemetery.
Twin towns – sister cities
Memmingen is twinned with:[16]
- Glendale, United States (1976)
- Province of Teramo, Italy (1981)
- Teramo, Italy (1986)
- Auch, France (1990)
- Eisleben, Germany (1990)
- Kiryat Shmona, Israel (2009)
- Karataş, Turkey (2009)
- Litzelsdorf, Austria (2009)
- Chernihiv, Ukraine (2009)
Friendly cities
Memmingen also has friendly relations with:[16]
- Colmar, France (1965)
Notable people
- Bernhard Walther (1430–1504), merchant, humanist and astronomer
- Bernhard Strigel (1461–1528), portrait and historical painter
- Johann Heiss (1640–1704), painter
- Gertrud Otto (1895–1970), art historian
- Franz Roth (born 1946), footballer
- Heinrich Bedford-Strohm (born 1960), Lutheran bishop
- Holger Badstuber (born 1989), footballer
- Timo Gebhart (born 1989), footballer
- Sergejs Boldaveško (born 1970), hockey player
- Mario Götze (born 1992), footballer
References
- Bayerisches Landesamt für Statistik, accessed 19 July 2021.
- ^ Genesis Online-Datenbank des Bayerischen Landesamtes für Statistik Tabelle 12411-003r Fortschreibung des Bevölkerungsstandes: Gemeinden, Stichtag (Einwohnerzahlen auf Grundlage des Zensus 2011) (Hilfe dazu).
- ^ Helfferich, Tryntje, The Thirty Years War: A Documentary History (Cambridge, 2009), pp. 300-1.
- ^ wolf-werbegrafik. "Willkommen bei Alpine-Hydraulik".
- ^ "Suppen, Soßen und Würzen".
- ^ "Willkommen bei Metzeler Schaum GMBH". Archived from the original on 2007-12-13. Retrieved 2007-12-20.
- ^ Election Result
- ^ Memminger Zeitung, 2008-03-12, Page 27
- ^ "New Buildings at the Elsbethen area". Archived from the original on 2009-09-18. Retrieved 2009-04-23.
- ^ Haugg, Michael. "Stadt Memmingen: Stadtmuseum".
- ^ "official museums website". Archived from the original on 2009-03-09. Retrieved 2009-04-23.
- ^ "MEWO Kunsthalle Memmingen".
- ^ Haugg, Michael. "Stadt Memmingen: Kreuzherrnsaal".
- ^ Haugg, Michael. "Stadt Memmingen: Stadion / Arena".
- ISBN 3-8062-1315-1, Page:98
- ^ a b "Memmingens Städtepartnerschaften, Freundschaften und Patenschaften". memmingen.de (in German). Memmingen. Retrieved 2021-02-24.
External links
Media related to Memmingen at Wikimedia Commons
- Memmingen travel guide from Wikivoyage
- Official website (in German)
- Memmingen Online (in German)