Oberweiler im Tal
Oberweiler im Tal | |
|---|---|
 Coat of arms | |
Location of Oberweiler im Tal within Kusel district  | |
| Country | Germany |
| State | Rhineland-Palatinate |
| District | Kusel |
| Municipal assoc. | Wolfstein |
| Government | |
| • Mayor | Manfred Braun |
| Area | |
• Total | 4.71 km2 (1.82 sq mi) |
| Elevation | 220 m (720 ft) |
| Population (2022-12-31)[1] | |
• Total | 163 |
| • Density | 35/km2 (90/sq mi) |
| Time zone | UTC+01:00 (CET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+02:00 (CEST) |
| Postal codes | 67756 |
| Dialling codes | 06304 |
| Vehicle registration | KUS |
Oberweiler im Tal is an Ortsgemeinde – a municipality belonging to a Verbandsgemeinde, a kind of collective municipality – in the Kusel district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It belongs to the Verbandsgemeinde of Wolfstein, whose seat is in the like-named town.
In the south at the municipal limit with Eßweiler stands a castle ruin, the Sprengelburg, which was built about 1300.
Geography
Location
The municipality lies in the Talbach valley between the Königsberg to the east, the Bornberg to the southwest and the Herrmannsberg to the west in the North Palatine Uplands.
Neighbouring municipalities
Oberweiler im Tal borders in the north on the municipality of Hinzweiler, in the east on the municipality of Aschbach, in the south on the municipality of Eßweiler and in the west on the municipality of Horschbach.
History
In 1290, Oberweiler had its first documentary mention. The village belonged to an administrative grouping called the Eßweiler Tal. About 1300, on a foothill of the Königsberg, the Sprengelburg, a castle, was built. The castle lords were the Knights of Mülenstein, who had been enfeoffed with it by the Waldgraves.[2]
The Knights of Mülenstein also owned the estate of Neideck, which had its first documentary mention about 1400 as hof zu Nydeckin (“estate at Nydeckin”). This supposedly lay on the Bornberg between Graulsdell and Zährenberg. By 1595, though, according to Johannes Hofmann, the estate was no longer being worked and had fallen into disrepair. On an 1843 map, Neideck was marked as Kratzerhof (perhaps after the Counts Kratz von Scharfenstein, successors to the Mülensteins’ lordship over the Eßweiler Tal), north of which lay a field named Hofstatt. The estate might have been fortified rather like a castle[3]
In 1595, Oberweiler passed together with the whole Eßweiler Tal to the Duchy of Palatinate-Zweibrücken. In 1755, it passed to the Waldgraves.[4]
Between 1700 and 1789, mercury was mined within Oberweiler’s limits.
After Napoleon had conquered the area, Oberweiler belonged, beginning in 1797, to France, and was grouped into the Department of Mont-Tonnerre (or Donnersberg in German). After the Congress of Vienna, the village passed in 1816 to the Kingdom of Bavaria, which after the First World War became the Free State of Bavaria. Since 1946, Oberweiler has been part of the then newly founded state of Rhineland-Palatinate. With the formation of the Verbandsgemeinde of Wolfstein on 1 January 1972, the Bürgermeisterei (“Mayoralty”) of Eßweiler, which had been responsible for Oberweiler, was dissolved.
Population development
| Year | 1609 | 1802 | 1867 | 1997 | 2006 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Inhabitants | 135[4] | 229[4] | 375[4] | 187[4] | 159 |
Politics
Municipal council
The council is made up of 6 council members, who were elected by majority vote at the municipal election held on 7 June 2009, and the honorary mayor as chairman.[5]
Mayor
Oberweiler’s mayor is Manfred Braun, and his deputies are Uwe Theobaldt and Heiko Fehrentz.[6]
Coat of arms
The German blazon reads: Unter gold-rotem Zickzackschildhaupt in Gold, über einer roten Zinnenburg mit rotem Zinnenturm im Schildfuß, eine rote Geißel.
The municipality’s arms might in English heraldic language be described thus: Below a chief indented of three Or and gules Or issuant from base a castle embattled with a tower likewise, above which a scourge, all of the second.[7]
Culture and sightseeing
Buildings
The following are listed buildings or sites in Rhineland-Palatinate’s Directory of Cultural Monuments:[8]
- Sprengelburg (monumental zone) – 13th and 14th centuries, destroyed in the im 14th century, 1978/1979 modern reconstruction on old foundations, defensive wall on square footprint, round tower
- At Hauptstraße 12 – elaborately shaped portal with skylight, about 1800
- Hauptstraße 17 – former school; plastered building, Rundbogenstil, about 1860, architect possibly Johann Schmeisser, Kusel, conversion in 1934; characterizes street’s appearance
Economy and infrastructure
Transport
Running through the village is Landesstraße (State Road) 372. To the east runs Bundesstraße 270. At the Reckweilerhof, an outlying centre of Wolfstein, is the nearest railway station, which lies on the Lautertalbahn.
References
- ^ "Bevölkerungsstand 2022, Kreise, Gemeinden, Verbandsgemeinden" (PDF) (in German). Statistisches Landesamt Rheinland-Pfalz. 2023.
- ^ Daniel Hinkelmann: Die Ritter Mülenstein von Grumbach (1318-1451) und ihr Schloß Springeburg (nach Erkenntnissen bis April 1978). Westrich Kalender 1979
- ^ Keddigkeit/Burkhart/Übel: Pfälzisches Burgenlexikon Teil 3, ISBN 3-927754-51-X, Herausgeber: Institut für pfälzische Geschichte und Volkskunde, Kaiserslautern
- ^ a b c d e Kulturdenkmäler in Rheinland-Pfalz Band 16: Kreis Kusel. Herausgegeben im Auftrag des Ministeriums für Kultur, Jugend, Familie und Frauen vom Landesamt für Denkmalpflege, ISBN 3-88462-163-7, Wernersche Verlagsgesellschaft, Worms 1999
- ^ Kommunalwahl Rheinland-Pfalz 2009, Gemeinderat
- ^ Oberweiler’s executive
- ^ Description and explanation of Oberweiler’s arms
- ^ Directory of Cultural Monuments in Kusel district
External links
