Worms, Germany
From Freepedia
| Worms | |||||
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| Political status | |||||
| Country: | Germany | ||||
| Federal state: | Rhineland-Palatinate | ||||
| Region: | Rhine Neckar Area | ||||
| District: | Independent municipality | ||||
| Facts | |||||
| Population: | 85,829 (December 2004) | ||||
| Area: | 108.73 km² | ||||
| Population density: | 789 residents/km² | ||||
| Elevation: | 86 – 167 m above sea level | ||||
| Latitude & longitude: | 49°36′ N 08°22′ E | ||||
| Postal codes: | 67547 – 67551 | ||||
| Country & area code: | +49 6241 | ||||
| License plate prefix: | WO | ||||
| Government | |||||
| Mayor: | Michael Kissel (SPD) | ||||
| Municipality: | Stadtverwaltung Worms Marktplatz 2, 67547 Worms stadtverwaltung@worms.de | ||||
| Tourist information: | Neumarkt 14, 67547 Worms Phone: +49 6241 25045 touristinfo@worms.de | ||||
| Official Website: | www.worms.de | ||||
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Worms (pronounced /vɔrms/) is a city in the southwest of Germany. Its name is of Celtic origin: Borbetomagus meant "settlement in a watery area". This was eventually transformed into the Latin name Wormatia that had been in use since the 6th century.
Today the city in the federal state of Rhineland-Palatinate is an industrial centre and is famed for its local wine called Liebfraumilch. Other industries include chemicals and metal goods. At the end of 2004, it had 85,829 inhabitants.
Worms is one of the major sites where the events of the ancient German Nibelungenlied took place. A multimedia Nibelungenmuseum was opened in 2001, and a yearly festival right in front of the Dom, the Cathedral of Worms, attempts to recapture the atmosphere of the piece.
History
Celts and Romans
The city has existed since before Roman times, when it was captured and fortified by the Romans under Drusus in 14 BCE. From that time, a small troop of infantry and cavalry were garrisoned in Augusta Vangionum this gave the settlement its romanized but originally Celtic name Borbetomagus. (Many fanciful variant names for Worms exist only upon the title pages of books printed when Worms was an early center of printing: William Tyndale's translation of the Bible was printed at Worms, 1525.) The garrison developed into a small town with the regularized Roman street plan, a forum, and temples for the main gods Jupiter, Juno, Minerva (upon whose temple, as is usual, was built the cathedral) and Mars.
Roman inscriptions and altars and votive offerings can be seen in the archeological museum, along with one of Europe's largest collections of Roman glass. Local potters worked in the south quarter of the town. Fragments of amphoras show that the olive oil they contained had come from Hispania Baetica, doubtless by sea and then up the Rhine. At Borbetomagus, Gunther king of the Burgundians, set himself up as puppet-emperor, the unfortunate Jovinus, during the disorders of 411 – 413. The city became the chief city of the first kingdom of the Burgundians, who left few remains, however, that a belt clasp from Worms-Abenheim is a museum treasure; they were overwhelmed in 437 by Hun mercenaries called in by the Roman general Aëtius to put an end to Burgundian raids, in an epic disaster that provided the source for the Nibelungenlied.
The Middle Ages
| Image:Nibelungenmuseum Worms.jpg |
| Image:Martinskirche Worms Portal.jpg |
| Image:Jewish.cemetary.worms.germa.jpg |
| Image:Worms Heylshofgarten 2005-05-27a.jpg |
| Image:Weinberge bei Pfeddersheim.jpg |
Worms was a Christian bishopric since 614 (but was secularized in 1801 and passed to Hesse-Darmstadt). In the Frankish Empire, the city was the location of an important palatinate of Charlemagne (Karl der Grosse), who built one of his many administrative palaces here. The bishops administered the city and its territory. The most famous of the early medieval bishops was Burchard of Worms.
The Worms cathedral is one of the finest examples of Romanesque architecture in Germany. Alongside the nearby Romanesque cathedrals of Speyer and Mainz, it is one of the so-called Kaiserdome (Imperial cathedrals). Some parts in early Romanesque style from the 10th century still exist, while most parts are from the 11th and 12th century, with some additions in gothic style. (See the external links below for pictures.)
Four other Romanesque churches as well as the Romanesque old city fortification still exist, making the city Germany's second in Romanesque architecture only to Cologne.
Blütezeit
Worms prospered especially in the High Middle Ages. Having received far-reaching privileges from King Henry IV (later Emperor Henry III) as early as 1074, the city later became an Reichsstadt, being independent of a local territory and responsible only to the Emperor himself. As a result, Worms was the site of several important events in the history of the Holy Roman Empire. In 1122 the Concordat of Worms was signed; in 1495, a Reichstag concluded here made an attempt at reforming the disintegrating Imperial Circle Estates of the Reichsreform (Imperial Reform). Most importantly, among more than a hundred Imperial Diets held at Worms, the Reichstag of 1521 (commonly known as the Diet of Worms), ended with the Edict of Worms at which Martin Luther was declared an outlaw after refusing to recant his religious beliefs.
Judaism in Worms
The city is known as a former center for Judaism. The cemetery (illustration, right) dating from the 11th century is believed to be the oldest in Europe; an ancient synagogue was built around 1034. Prominent rabbis of Worms include Elazar Rokeach and Yair Bacharach. Much of the Jewish Quarter was destroyed in the events known as Kristallnacht in 1938, and a recognizable Jewish community in Worms no longer exists. However, after renovations in the 1970s and 1980s, many of the buildings of the Quarter can be seen in a close to original state, preserved as an outdoor museum.
Destruction and Rebuilding
The city was nearly destroyed twice in its history. In 1689, French troops invaded, almost eradicating the city during the Palatine war of succession; it came under French rule again from 1789 until 1816. Again it was heavily bombed during World War II.
Town twinning
Worms is twinned with:
- Auxerre, France
- Bautzen, Germany
- Mobile, Alabama, United States
- Parma, Italy
- St Albans, England
- Tiberias, Israel
External links
- The Official website of the city of Worms (in English)
- Nibelungenmuseum website (in English)
- wormser-dom.de, website of the Worms Cathedral with pictures (in German; click on the "Bilder" link in the left pane)
- letsgo.com, a city guide including where to eat and what to see (in English)
- Wormatia, the famous football club of Worms (in German)
- Worms Tramway, a historic page with old pictures (in German)
- wormser-region.de, another website about Worms (in German)
- Let's go party in Worms! Partypictures from Worms and surroundings
| Important cities and touristic sites in Germany: Area of Heidelberg / Rhine-Neckar | ||||||||||
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| Cities and rural districts in the Federal State of Rhineland-Palatinate in Germany | ||
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Cities |
Frankenthal | Kaiserslautern | Koblenz | Landau | Ludwigshafen | Mainz | Neustadt (Weinstraße) | |
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Rural |
Ahrweiler | Altenkirchen | Alzey-Worms | Bad Dürkheim | Bad Kreuznach | Bernkastel-Wittlich | Birkenfeld | Bitburg-Prüm |
Categories: Towns in Rhineland-Palatinate | History of Germany | Reformation | Protestantism | Lutheranism | Judaism
