Bochum

Bochum (German pronunciation: [ˈboːxʊm]) is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, western Germany. It is located in the Ruhr area and is surrounded by the cities of Essen, Gelsenkirchen, Herne, Castrop-Rauxel, Dortmund, Witten and Hattingen.

History

Bochum dates from the 9th century, when Charlemagne set up a royal court at the junction of two important trade routes. It was first officially mentioned in 1041 as Cofbuokheim in a document of the archbishops of Cologne. Originally, it may have meant "Brookhome" or "Bacheim" and later seems to have gained the notorious reputation of "Bookhorn" or "Horn Book". In 1321, Count Engelbert II von der Marck granted Bochum a town charter, but the town remained insignificant until the 19th century, when the coal mining and steel industries emerged in the Ruhr area, leading to the growth of the entire region. The population of Bochum increased from about 4,500 in 1850 to 100,000 in 1904. Bochum acquired city status, incorporating neighbouring towns and villages. Additional population gains came from immigration, primarily from Poland.

After the war, the new state of North Rhine-Westphalia was established, consisting of the Rhineland and Westphalia. Bochum is located in that state.

In the postwar period, Bochum began developing as a cultural centre of the Ruhr area. Between 1960 and 1980, the coal mines all closed. Other industries, such as automotive, compensated for the loss of jobs. The Opel Astra is assembled at the Opel Bochum plant; however, by 2009, the factory was in serious financial difficulties.^[2] In 1965, the Ruhr University was opened, the first university in the Ruhr area and the first to be founded in Germany since World War II. Since the seventies, Bochum's industry has moved from heavy industry to the service sector.

In the course of a comprehensive community reform in 1975, Wattenscheid, a formerly independent city, was integrated into the city of Bochum. A local referendum against the integration failed. In 2007, the new synagogue of the Jewish community of Bochum, Herne und Hattingen was opened. In 2008, Nokia closed down its production plant, causing the loss of thousands of jobs, both at the plant and at local suppliers. 20,000 people showed up to protest against the closing.^[3][4] Within months, the Canadian high-tech company, Research in Motion, announced plans to open a research facility, its first outside Canada, adding several hundred jobs.^[5][6][7]

The Nazi era and World War II

On November 9, 1938, Kristallnacht, the Jewish citizens of Bochum were attacked. The synagogue was set on fire and there was rioting against Jewish citizens. The first Jews from Bochum were deported to Nazi concentration camps and many Jewish institutions and homes were destroyed. Some 500 Jewish citizens are known by name to have been killed in the Holocaust, including 19 who were younger than 16 years old. Joseph Klirsfeld was Bochum's rabbi at this time. He and his wife fled to Palestine. In December 1938, the Jewish elementary school teacher Else Hirsch began organizing groups of children and adolescents to be sent to the Netherlands and England, sending ten groups in all. Many Jewish children and those from other persecuted groups were taken in by Dutch families and thereby saved from abduction or deportation and death.^[8]

Because the Ruhr region was an area of high residential density and a centre for the manufacture of weapons, it was a major target in the war. Women with young children, school children and the homeless fled or were evacuated to safer areas, leaving cities largely deserted to the arms industry, coal mines and steel plants and those unable to leave.

Bochum was first bombed heavily in May and June 1943.^[9] On May 13, 1943, the city hall was hit, destroying the top floor, and leaving the next two floors in flames. On November 4, 1944, in an attack involving 700 British bombers, the steel plant, Bochumer Verein, was hit. One of the largest steel plants in Germany,^[10] more than 10,000 high-explosive and 130,000 incendiary bombs were stored there, setting off a conflagration that destroyed the surrounding neighbourhoods.^[11][12] An aerial photo shows the devastation.^[13]

The town centre of Bochum was a strategic target during the Oil Campaign. In 150 air raids on Bochum, over 1,300 bombs were dropped on Bochum and Gelsenkirchen. By the end of the war, 38% of Bochum had been decimated. 70,000 citizens were homeless and at least 4,095 dead.^[12][14] Of Bochum's more than 90,000 homes, only 25,000 remained for the 170,000 citizens who survived the war, many by fleeing to other areas. Most of the remaining buildings were damaged, many with only one usable room. Only 1,000 houses in Bochum remained undamaged after the war. Only two of 122 schools remained unscathed; others were totally destroyed. Hunger was rampant. A resident of neighbouring Essen was quoted on April 23, 1945 as saying, "Today, I used up my last potato... it will be a difficult time till the new [autumn] potatoes are ready to be picked – if they're not stolen."^[15][16]

The Allied ground advance into Germany reached Bochum in April 1945. Encountering desultory resistance, the US 79th Infantry Division captured the city on 10 April 1945.^[17]

After the war, Bochum was occupied by the British, who established two camps to house people displaced by the war. The majority of them were former Polish Zwangsarbeiter, forced labourers, many of them from the Bochumer Verein.^[18]

More than sixty years after the war, bombs continue to be found in the region, usually by construction workers. One found in October 2008 in Bochum town centre led to the evacuation of 400 and involved hundreds of emergency workers.^[19] A month earlier, a buried bomb exploded in neighbouring Hattingen, injuring 17 people.^[20]

Places of interest

Architecture

• Bochum City Hall was built from 1927–1931 and was designed by architect Karl Roth as a modern office building, but in the Renaissance style, reflecting the industrial era's middle class, inventions and discoveries. There were statues of bronze and stone, and in the city council chambers, a bell tower. The ornate décor gave the Nazis an excuse to hound the then-mayor, who was of Jewish descent, driving him to suicide in 1933. Most of the bronze statues were melted down for the war effort and the stone carvings were damaged by the war, save for some small lion's heads over the entrance. Also left undamaged are two themed courtyard fountains made by August Vogel, the "Fountain of Beauty" and the "Fountain of Happiness", as well as Augusto Vasaris' florentine main entrance, which displays the motto, In Labore Honos (In labour lies honour). In 1951, a set of 28 chimes was installed, manufactured in Bochum. Known for their clarity of tone, they are the first cast steel chimes in the world.^[21] In front of the city hall is a large bell that was made by the Bochum "Verein für Bergbau und Gusstahlfabrikation AG", (Association for Mining and Cast Steel Manufacturing). Displayed at the 1867 Paris World's Fair, it has a diameter of 3.13 metres (10.27 ft) and weighs 15,000 kg (16.53 US tons). It was damaged during World War II and can no longer be rung.

• Altes Brauhaus Rietkötter, the Old Rietkötter Brewing House is one of the oldest houses in Bochum, dating from 1630. Originally a private home, it became a brewery in 1777. After nearly being torn down after the war, it now has preservation status and today houses a restaurant, where they still brew their own beer.^[22]
• The Kaufhaus Kortum department store dates from 1913 and was built as one of the nearly 20 regional stores owned by Alsberg Bros. (Gebr. Alsberg, AG) of Cologne. During the Nazi era, these stores were taken away from their Jewish owners and put into non-Jewish hands. Today, the "Kaufhaus Kortum" building has preservation status and houses an electronics store.
• The Friedrich Lueg Haus was built in 1924-1925 as the first high-rise building in Bochum. Contracted by the Lueg Company, the seven-story building was designed by the architect Emil Pohle. It suffered a fire during a bombing raid in 1944 and was renovated after the war. Today, the upper floors are small offices and internet companies. The seven-theater Bochum Union Cinema rents the ground floor, showing a variety of domestic and international films.^[23]
• Mutter Wittig is a baroque-style building in the town centre, originally opened as a bakery and inn in 1870. Damaged in World War II, its façade is protected by preservation status. It houses a restaurant and its windows are decorated with displays of old Bochum.^[24]
• Sparkasse Bochum (Bochum Savings Bank) is a town landmark designed by the architect Wilhelm Kreis. It opened in 1928 and was emblematic of the modern era. It was heavily damaged during the war, but was afterwards restored to its former appearance.
• The Schlegel Tower is the only remaining structure of the once-important Schlegel brewery, which closed in 1980.
• The Jahrhunderthalle (Hall of the Century), is the former gas and power station of a steel mill built at the turn of the 20th century. With the closing of the mill, the plant was renovated and turned into a three-hall concert and event site with an industrial ambiance.^[25][26]
• Dahlhauser Heide is an example of social welfare provided by wealthy German industrialists for their workers. Built in the early 1900s by the Krupp family for their coal mine workers, the modest and tastefully designed two-family houses were to enable self-sufficiency by providing gardens and a stall for a cow. The estate, which has the appearance of a small, rural town, gained preservation status in the 1970s.^[27][28]
• Blankenstein Castle was built in the 13th century by Count Adolf I of the Mark. Though located in Hattingen, it is owned by Bochum and has a significant history. On June 8, 1321, Count Engelbert II of the Mark granted Bochum its town charter there. Today, only the gate and one tower remain.^[29]
• Haus Kemnade is a moated castle with centuries of history. Though missing documents mean its earliest dates of construction are unknown, it is first referred to in 1393. Other parts of the castle were built during the Renaissance and baroque periods. The castle's location on the bank of the Ruhr river changed when the flood of 1486 receded and left it on the opposite side, cutting it off from the neighbouring village. The castle remained in private hands till 1921, when it was deeded to the city of Bochum. In 1961, a museum of local history was installed, including a large collection of 16th to 20th century musical instruments. A collection of East Asian objects is also now located there, as well as a satellite of the Bochum Museum and an art exhibition space. There is also a restaurant on site. Behind the castle is a timber-framed farmhouse from 1800, now a museum exhibiting farm life from the past.^[30]

Religious architecture

• Propsteikirche St. Peter und Paul, is the oldest church in Bochum, built between 785-800 by Charlemagne. It was rebuilt in the 11th century, but was severely damaged by fire in 1517. In 1547, it was again rebuilt, this time in the late Gothic style. The 68-metre (223 ft) high bell tower is one of the landmarks of Bochum. The interior includes a baptismal font from 1175, the reliquary shrine of St. Perpetua and her slave Felicitas, and a high altar with a crucifix from 1352.
• Pauluskirche, is the main Protestant church of the city. After the Reformation, both Catholics and Lutherans shared the Propsteikirche, often contentiously. In 1655, the Lutherans began to build their own church with the help of donations from Holland, Sweden, Courland and Denmark. The church was heavily damaged in a bombing raid on June 12, 1943 and was later rebuilt after the war. Next to the church is a monument to peace. A statue of an old woman searching for a loved one, it is also a memorial to the November 4, 1944 bombing raid on Bochum. Hans Ehrenberg served as minister here, until he was arrested and sent to Sachsenhausen by the Nazis.^[31]
• The Christuskirche, built in the neo-Gothic style, opened in 1879 and was among the most beautiful churches in Europe. In 1931, the room in the steeple was extended to a cenotaph for those killed in World War I. During an air raid in 1943, the church was destroyed, except for the steeple. After the war, the ruins were integrated into a new, modern structure and the steeple became a memorial dedicated to peace and understanding among nations.

• The neo-Gothic Marienkirche, built between 1868–1872, was heavily damaged in World War II (see photo above), but was rebuilt after the war. It is now closed and scheduled for demolition. The stained glass windows have been removed and it has fallen victim to vandalism.
• Stiepeler Dorfkirche is over 1000 years old and was commemorated by a stamp in 2008. A small church consisting of one room was built by Countess Imma von Stiepel. Between 1130 and 1170, the old church was replaced by a Romanesque basilica. Today, the steeple and transept remain. Between 1150 and 1200, the interior walls and ceiling were decorated with a number of Romanesque paintings.
• The new synagoge, which opened in 2007, consists of a white cube and stands in contrast to the round shape of the planetarium next door. The façade shows overall a variation on the Solomon's Seal achieved by relocated brickstones. The interior is graced with a gold-coloured canopy.

Parks and Gardens

Bochum has a municipal zoo, a large municipal park and a number of other gardens and parks. The Ruhr University Botanical Gardens has thousands of plants from all over the world.^[32] Among others there is a tropical garden, a cactus garden, and a Chinese garden designed in the southern Chinese style, the only one of its kind in Germany.

The Geological Garden was the first of its kind in Germany. The nearly 4-acre (16,000 m²) park is the site of an old coal mine, the Zeche Friederika, which operated from 1750 to 1907. In 1962, the property came under environmental protection and a decade later was turned into a geological garden.^[33]

Other scenic areas include the West Park, Lake Kemnade, Lake Ümmingen and the municipal forest, Weitmarer Holz.^[34]

Society and Culture

Leisure and Entertainment

Bochum is a cultural centre of the Ruhr region. There is a municipal theatre, the Schauspielhaus Bochum, and about 20 smaller theatres and stages. The musical Starlight Express, which opened in 1988, is the longest-running musical in Germany.^[35]

Annual Events

• Jumble Sale – on the third Saturday of the month, in front of city hall
• April/May: Maiabendfest – local festival, hundreds of years old
• May: Steam Festival (every other year)
• June events:

Rubissimo, Ruhr University's summer festival

Kemnade International

Extraschicht - Night of Industrial Heritage (many locations oll over the Ruhr area)

• June/July: VfL for Fun – summer festival for Bochum's football (soccer) team, VfL Bochum 1848
• July: Bochum Total (Rock Music Festival) - starts on the first weekend after school lets out
• July or August: Bochum kulinarisch – culinary treats from various cuisines, held the last weekend of summer vacation
• August: Bochumer Musiksommer, Bochum's Summer of Music
• September: Open Flair - international cabaret and street theater
• October: Oktobermarkt – October Market
• October/November: Bochumer Bachtage - music of composer Johann Sebastian Bach
• October/November: Ruhrgebiets-Antiquariatstag - used and antique book sale
• November: Children's and Teenagers' Theatre
• December: Weihnachtsmarkt – Christmas Market - month-long open air market spread over the heart of downtown Bochum, includes performance stages

Museums

• The Bergbaumuseum is a museum about mining technology, complete with pithead tower.
• Railway Museum and Station Dahlhausen in the borough of Dahlhausen. Dr.-C.-Otto-Straße 191
• Zeiss Planetarium
• At the city's border with Herne-(Röhlinghausen), is the former mine Zeche Hannover with the Malakow Tower and engine hall. There is a steam-powered winding engine, which is operated at events.
• Zeche Knirps ("Small Boy Mine") located on the ground of Mine Hannover. It gives children the opportunity to experience the processes in a mine.
• Museum of local history Helf's Farm, Address: In den Höfen 37
• Farmhouse Museum located on the grounds of moated Kemnade Castle
• Museum of historic medical tools in the Malokos-Tower of former Mine Julius-Philipp from 1875. Address: Malakowturm, Markstraße 258a, 44799 Bochum
• School Museum, Cruismannstraße 2, 44807 Bochum
• Telefonmuseum, Karl-Lange-Str. 17

Art Galleries

• Museum of Art The collection's focus is central and eastearn European avant garde art, German expressionism, surrealism and outsider art. Kortumstraße 147, Bochum
• Ruhr University art collection Modern art meets the classical. Marble and bronze portraits of Greek and Roman emperors, collection of antique Greek vases from the 9th to 4th century, B.C. Universitätsstraße 150, Bochum
• Schlieker House In the former apartment and studio of German painter Hans-Jürgen Schlieker (1924–2004); changing exhibitions. Hours: Wed. & Sun. 3:00 - 6:00 pm. Paracelsusweg 16, 44801 Bochum
• Situation Kunst (Situation Art) Located at "Haus Weitmar" park. Indoor permanent exhibition with works by Gianni Colombo, Dan Flavin, Gotthard Graupner, Norbert Kricke, Lee Ufan, François Morellet, Maria Nordman, David Rabinowitch, Arnulf Rainer, Dirk Reinartz, Ad Reinhardt, Robert Ryman, Richard Serra, Jan J. Schoonhoven; also the Africa and Asia Room. Hours: Wed 2:00-6:00 pm, Fri 2:00-6:00 pm, Sat 12:00-6:00 pm, Sun 12:00-6:00 pm. Nevelstraße 29c, 44795 Bochum. Tel.: +49 (0)234-298-8901, Fax: +49 (0)234-298-8902
• Musical Instrument Collection, Hans and Hede Grumbt. Large collection of musical instruments, also the clarinet collection of Johan van Kalker. An der Kemnade 10, 45527 Hattingen, Tel.: +49 (0)2324-302-68
• Ostasiatika Collection Ehrich. Kurt Ehrich's east Asian collection of Japanese netsuke, belt buckles, a display of the seven "lucky gods" and other additional objects. An der Kemnade 10, 45527 Hattingen, Tel: (0)2324-302-68

Art in public spaces

• Richard Serra's sculpture, "Terminal" is located in the town centre, near the central station. It consists of four 12-meter (over 39 feet) tall steel plates.
• Ulrich Rückriem's sculpture, "Ohne Titel" (titled "Untitled"), is at the intersection of Kortumstrasse and Huestrasse. (It is currently in storage because of construction.)
• Memorial of the herdsman at Massenberg-Boulevard: shown is the historical person "Fritz Kortebusch", the last herdsman of the town. In 1870 he guided the cattle of the citizens for the last time to the "Vöde", a grassland outside the town limits, which is today the municipal park.
• Engelbert fountain at Kortumstrasse, in memory of Earl Engelbert II, who granted a town charter to Bochum in 1321-1324.
• Jobsiade-fountain at Husemann-Square. Shown is a scene of the examination of Hieronymus Jobs, the main character of the "Jobsiade", a comical poem of the poet Carl Armold Kortum.
• "The envolvement of the City", sculpture of Professor Karl Henning Seemann at Schützenbahn street.
• Collection of sculptures inside the municipal park.
• The bell in front of the city hall serves as a reminder of the improvement of steel-casting in Bochum. The bell was built in 1867 for the Paris World's Fair.

• Stolpersteine, (literally, "stumbling stones") are small, cobblestone-sized, brass commemorative plaques which are set in sidewalks all over Europe, marking the homes or work places of Jews and others who were arrested and murdered during the Nazi era. There are 38 stolpersteine in Bochum.^[36]
• Cenotaph for the victims of the mine disaster at "Vereinigte Präsident" in 1936. The sculpture was created by Wilhelm Wulff. Strict guidelines for artwork were in effect during the Nazi dictatorship, yet the sculpture follows only a few of them. The inscription also avoids typical Nazi phraseology.

Sports

• The soccer club VfL Bochum plays in the second Division (2. Bundesliga) in the 2010-2011 season.
• Sparkassen Giro - annual Cycle Racing.

Economy

• Opel Car Production Plant
• Bochum has its own brewery, Moritz Fiege, which produces pilsner, a low-alcohol pilsner, light-colored beers, and dark-colored beer.
• RIM, manufacturer of the BlackBerry, has a research and development site in Bochum.^[6]
• GLS bank

Transport

Roads

Bochum is connected to the Autobahn network by the A 40, A 43 and A 44 autobahns. In addition, Bochum has a ring road, built to expressway standards, consisting of four segments; the Donezk, Oviedo, Nordhausen and Sheffield-Ring roads. It serves as a three-quarter loop around central Bochum and begins and ends at Autobahn A40. Ruhr University Bochum is also served by an expressway running from the Nordhausen-Ring to Autobahn A43. Until 2012, a new interchange (Dreieck Bochum-West) between the Donezk-Ring and Autobahn A40 is being constructed within tight parameters due to the existence of a nearby factory.

Apart from the autobahns and expressways, there is also a small ring road around the center of Bochum, where most roads radiating out of Bochum begin. Most main roads in Bochum are multi-lane roads with traffic lights. Bochum is also served by the Bundesstraße 51 and Bundesstraße 226. B51 runs to Herne and Hattingen, and B226 runs to Gelsenkirchen and Witten.

Railways

Bochum has a central station situated on the line from Duisburg to Dortmund, connecting the city to the long-distance network of Deutsche Bahn as well as to the S-Bahn network of Rhine-Ruhr.

Bus, Tram, Underground

Local service is supplied by BOGESTRA, a joint venture handling transportation between the cities of Bochum and Gelsenkirchen. There is a single underground Stadtbahn line connecting the University of Bochum to Herne, and several lines, partially underground, connecting to Gelsenkirchen and Witten. Public transport in the city is priced according to the fare system of the VRR transport association.

Air

Bochum is served by Düsseldorf International Airport.

Education

Higher education

• Ruhr University founded 1965
• Hochschule Bochum - Bochum University of Applied Sciences (formerly Fachhochschule Bochum)
• TFH Georg Agricola
• Evangelische FH Rheinland-Westfalen-Lippe
• Schauspielschule Bochum
• Fachhochschule des Bundes der Sozialversicherung, Abteilung Knappschaft-Bahn-See

Elementary and secondary schools

There are 61 primary schools, 9 Hauptschulen ("general schools") and 14 special schools.

In addition, there are 11 preparatory (British: grammar) schools ("Gymnasien"), 5 comprehensive schools ("Gesamtschulen"), 8 Realschulen and 2 private Waldorf schools.

"Gymnasien" – preparatory schools (British: grammar school):

• Goethe-Schule Bochum
• Graf-Engelbert-Schule
• Heinrich-von-Kleist-Schule
• Hellweg-Schule
• Hildegardis-Schule
• Lessing-Schule
• Märkische Schule
• Neues Gymnasium Bochum (temporary name of new school formed by merging the former Albert-Einstein-Schule and Gymnasium am Ostring)
• Schiller-Schule
• Theodor-Körner-Schule

"Gesamtschulen" – comprehensive schools:

• Erich Kästner-Gesamtschule Schule
• Heinrich-Böll-Gesamtschule
• Maria Sibylla Merian-Gesamtschule
• Willy-Brandt-Gesamtschule
• Matthias-Claudius-Schulen

Realschulen – high schools:

• Anne-Frank-Schule
• Annette-von-Droste-Hülshoff-Schule
• Franz-Dinnendahl-Schule
• Hans-Böckler-Schule
• Helene-Lange-Schule
• Hugo-Schultz-Schule
• Pestalozzi-Schule
• Realschule Höntrop
• Freie-Schule Bochum (with elementary school)

Waldorf schools:

• Rudolf Steiner Schule Bochum
• Widar Schule Wattenscheid

Twin towns (sister cities)

Bochum's twin towns are:

• Sheffield, United Kingdom, since 1950
• Oviedo, Spain, since 1980
• Donetsk, Ukraine, since 1987
• Nordhausen, Germany, since 1990
• Xuzhou, People's Republic of China, since 1994

Notable residents

• Konrad Raiser (b.1938), former General Secetary of the World Council of Churches, taught theology in Bochum
• Wolfgang Clement (b. 1940), former Minister of Economy and Labor
• Hans Ehrenberg (1883–1958), theologian, Nazi critic, and co-founder of the Confessing Church
• Manfred Eigen (b. 1927), 1967 Nobel Prize winner in chemistry
• Tommy Finke (b. 1981), songwriter and composer
• Frank Goosen (b. 1966), cabaret artist and author, wrote Learning to Lie
• Herbert Grönemeyer (b. 1956), actor, singer, songwriter, who became famous with the song "Bochum"
• Else Hirsch (1889–1943), Jewish teacher who organized 10 Kindertransports to England and Holland
• Alfred Keller (1882–1974), general in the Luftwaffe during the Second World War
• Norbert Lammert (b. 1948), president (Speaker) of the Bundestag (German parliament)
• Andrei Osterman (1686–1747), Bochum-born Russian statesman
• Otto Schily (b. 1932), former Minister of the Interior
• Hans-Jürgen Schlieker (1924–2004), painter
• André Tanneberger (b. 1973), also known as "ATB", electronic music producer, began his career in Wattenscheid
• Mark Warnecke (b. 1970), breaststroke swimmer, won the world title at the age of 35
• Thomas Köner (b. 1965), multimedia artist

See also

• Bochum-Hamme
• Bermudadreieck
• Hafkenscheid
• Harpen-Rosenberg
• Hordel
• International Cycling Video Festival
• Starlight Express

References

External links

• Official City of Bochum website
• Memorials to Nazi victims, sites-of-memory.de
• Heraldry of Bochum
•  "Bochum". Encyclopedia Americana. 1920. 
•  "Bochum". Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). 1911.