Breuberg

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.

Constituent communities

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

Politics

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

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:

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.

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.

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.

Sons and daughters of the city

Personalities who lived and worked in Breuberg