Ediger-Eller

Ediger-Eller

Coat of arms

Coordinates: 50°5′53″N 7°9′3″E / 50.09806°N 7.15083°E / 50.09806; 7.15083Coordinates: 50°5′53″N 7°9′3″E / 50.09806°N 7.15083°E / 50.09806; 7.15083
Country Germany
State Rhineland-Palatinate
District Cochem-Zell
Municipal assoc. Cochem
Government
  Mayor Heidi Hennen-Servaty
Area
  Total 19.13 km2 (7.39 sq mi)
Elevation 99 m (325 ft)
Population (2015-12-31)[1]
  Total 1,086
  Density 57/km2 (150/sq mi)
Time zone CET/CEST (UTC+1/+2)
Postal codes 56814
Dialling codes 02675
Vehicle registration COC
Website www.ediger-eller.de
Ediger

Ediger-Eller is an Ortsgemeinde – a municipality belonging to a Verbandsgemeinde, a kind of collective municipality – in the Cochem-Zell district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It belongs to the Verbandsgemeinde of Cochem, whose seat is in the like-named town.

Geography

Location

Ediger-Eller lies on the river Moselle. The constituent community of Eller is found at the foot of the Calmont.

History

The two constituent communities have a history that, according to a documentary mention, stretches at least as far back as the year 639. Potsherds that have been found, which came from a Roman factory near Trier suggest that the municipality may have existed as early as the 2nd or 3rd century AD.

Even older traces of settlement – remnants of a stone wall of a flight castle from Celtic times – can be found on the Hochkessel, the mountain on the other side of the Moselle. On the side of the Moselle facing towards the Hunsrück is a Roman-Gaulish burying ground near Saint Peter’s Chapel (Peters-Kapelle) in Neef.

The sparse remnants of a Roman legion’s garrison outpost can be found in the heights of the Calmont.

The constituent community of Eller was as early as the 5th century, in Merovingian times, the seat of a monastery consecrated to Saint Fridolin. Built onto the Late Romanesque tower is a Baroque nave with fine furnishings, among them a Stumm organ. In Saint Arnulf’s Chapel across the street hangs the picture Verspottung Christi (“Mocking of Christ”) from the 15th century, after a drawing by Martin Schongauer. The Pyrmont and Electoral-Trier manor houses from the 16th century, today the ancestral seat of the Barons of Landenberg-Trimborn, underscore Eller’s former importance.

Behind the railway bridge, with a slope of 65%, rises the Calmont, whose south side is the world’s steepest vineyard, reaching a height of 378 m. A hike up the via ferrata to the mountain ridge is among the most impressive experiences on the Moselle. On the other side, on the former Insula Sankt Nicolai, stands the ruin of a convent church that once belonged to the Stuben Augustinian convent, founded in 1137. From 1208 to 1788, it housed the famous Limburger Staurothek, a reliquary that is important to art history, allegedly containing bits of the Cross on which Jesus was crucified. Today, it is part of the Limburg cathedral treasury.

Beginning in 1794, Ediger and Eller lay under French rule and were merged to form a single municipality. In 1815 they were assigned to the Kingdom of Prussia at the Congress of Vienna, and once again became two separate municipalities. Since 1877, Eller has lain near the end of the Kaiser-Wilhelm-Tunnel, which begins in Cochem and is named after Emperor Wilhelm I (not his more infamous grandson, Wilhelm II). From the time of its completion until 1987, it was Germany’s longest railway tunnel at 4 205 m. The tunnel is part of the Moselstrecke (Moselle line). Not far from the tunnel portal, and before the Moselle bridge, stands Ediger-Eller railway station.

Beginning in 1946, the two municipalities were part of the then newly founded state of Rhineland-Palatinate. On 7 June 1969, in the course of administrative restructuring in Rhineland-Palatinate, Ediger and Eller were once again merged to form a single municipality.

Politics

Municipal council

The council is made up of 16 council members, who were elected by proportional representation at the municipal election held on 7 June 2009, and the honorary mayor as chairwoman.

The municipal election held on 7 June 2009 yielded the following results:[2]

  CDU FWG Total
2009 9 7 16 seats
2004 5 11 16 seats
Saint Martin’s Church in Ediger

Mayor

Ediger-Eller’s mayor is Heidi Hennen-Servaty.[3]

Coat of arms

The municipality’s arms might be described thus: Per pale vert a vine palewise embowed to dexter in chief leafed of three and fructed of one, all Or, and argent a cross enhanced gules.

Culture and sightseeing

Buildings

The following are listed buildings or sites in Rhineland-Palatinate’s Directory of Cultural Monuments:

Ediger

Eller

Economy and infrastructure

The most important branches of the economy are winegrowing and tourism. Raised in the vineyards is mainly Riesling. One of the local winemaking locations is Ediger Osterlämmchen.

Famous people

Panoramic view of Ediger

Sons and daughters of the town

Further reading

References

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