Kempten
Kempten | |
|---|---|
 ChurchSt. Lorenz Basilica | |
 Flag  Coat of arms | |
Location of Kempten  | |
  Kempten  Kempten | |
| Coordinates:47°44′N10°19′E/ 47.733°N 10.317°E | |
| Country | Germany |
| State | Bavaria |
| Admin. region | Swabia |
| District | Urban district |
| Government | |
| •Lord mayor(2020–26) | Thomas Kiechle[1](CSU) |
| Area | |
| • Total | 63.29 km2(24.44 sq mi) |
| Elevation | 674 m (2,211 ft) |
| Population (2023-12-31)[2] | |
| • Total | 70,713 |
| • Density | 1,100/km2(2,900/sq mi) |
| Time zone | UTC+01:00(CET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+02:00(CEST) |
| Postal codes | 87401–87439 |
| Dialling codes | 0831 |
| Vehicle registration | KE |
| Website | kempten.de |
Kempten(German:[ˈkɛmptn̩],(Swabian German:)) is the largesttownofAllgäu,inSwabia,Bavaria,Germany.The population was about 68,000 in 2016. The area was possibly settled originally byCelts,but was later taken over by theRomans,who called the townCambodunum.Kempten is the oldest urban settlement (town) in Germany.[3]
History
[edit]Pre-Roman
[edit]The Greek geographerStrabomentions in 50 BC a town of the Celtic Estiones namedKambodunon.This is considered the oldest written reference of any German city. So far no archaeological evidence could be found that this Celtic settlement really existed.
Roman era
[edit]In 15 BC Roman troops led byNero Claudius Drususand his brotherTiberiusconquered and destroyed an existing Celtic settlement. Later the settlement was namedCambodunum. In the following years the city was rebuilt on a classical Roman city plan with baths, forum and temples. Initially in wood, the city was later rebuilt in stone after a devastating fire that destroyed almost the entire city in the year 69 AD. The city possibly served as provincial capital ofRaetiaduring the first century beforeAugsburgtook over this role. Extensive archaeological excavations at the end of the 19th century and again during the 1950s at what were then the outskirts of Kempten unearthed the extensive structural foundations.
The city was again destroyed in 233 AD by theAlemanni,aSuebictribe. The original site of Cambodunum was then abandoned and the settlement moved to a strategically safer location on the Burghalde hill overlooking the riverIller.
In the middle of the 5th century the last Roman troops had left the area and the city was entirely taken over by the Alemanni.
Middle Ages
[edit]After the Romans abandoned the settlement, it was moved from the hill down to the plains located next to the river Iller. In written sources, the town appears asCambidano.Being still predominantly Alemannic, the town once more was destroyed by theFranksin 683 as a consequence of the city's support of an uprising against the Frankish kingdom.
Around 700 a monastery —Kempten Abbey— was built, the first in the Allgäu region, founded by two Benedictine monks from theAbbey of Saint Gall,Magnus von Füssen and Theodor.[4]This new monastery's first abbot was one Audogar. Through the financial and lobbyist support ofCharlemagne’s wifeHildegard,an Allemannic princess, the monastery came to be one of the most privileged of theFrankish Empire.
After the abbey had several times been ravaged by theMagyars,the Prince-Bishop ofAugsburg,Ulrich of Augsburg,who was also Abbot ofKempten,began the rebuilding of both the monastery and the city in 941.
In 1213, theHoly Roman EmperorFrederick IIdeclared the abbots members of theReichstagand granted the Abbot of Kempten the right to bear the title of Duke. However in 1289, KingRudolf IofGermanyalso granted special privileges to the urban settlement in the river valley, making it theFree Imperial City of Kempten.In 1525 the last property rights held by the abbots in the Imperial City were sold in the so-called "Great Purchase", marking the start of the co-existence of two independent cities next to each other, each bearing the same name. More conflict arose in 1527 after the Imperial City converted toProtestantismin direct opposition to theCatholicmonastery (andFreeCity).
Renaissance and Baroque to Modern Age
[edit]During the turmoil of theThirty Years' War(1632–33), both cities were destroyed by the imperial forces and the Swedish troops respectively.
In 1652[5]Roman Giel of Gielsberg, theAbbot of Kempten,commissioned the architectsMichael BeerandJohann SerrofromGraubündento buildSt. Lorenz Basilicaas a new church to serve the parish and monastery, including a representative residence for the Duke-Abbots. This is acknowledged as the first large church built inGermanyafter the end of theThirty Years' War.
During theNapoleonic Warsthe Dukedom-Abbey and Imperial City came under Bavarian rule (1802–03). Finally, in 1819, the two rival cities were united into a single communal entity.
The city was the location of two subcamps of theDachau concentration campduringWorld War II,each with about 700 inmates.[6][7]
Claude (Claudius) Honoré Desiré Dornierborn in Kempten im Allgäu (May 14, 1884 - December 5, 1969) was a German aircraft engineer and founder of Dornier GmbH. His legacy remains in the few aircraft named after him, including the Dornier Do 18 and the 12-engineDornier Do Xflying boat, for decades the world's largest and most powerful airplane.
Climate
[edit]| Climate data for Kempten (1991–2020 normals) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 3.5 (38.3) |
4.9 (40.8) |
9.2 (48.6) |
13.7 (56.7) |
17.9 (64.2) |
21.5 (70.7) |
23.2 (73.8) |
23.1 (73.6) |
18.4 (65.1) |
14.0 (57.2) |
8.0 (46.4) |
4.2 (39.6) |
13.5 (56.3) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | −0.8 (30.6) |
−0.1 (31.8) |
3.7 (38.7) |
7.7 (45.9) |
12.1 (53.8) |
15.8 (60.4) |
17.3 (63.1) |
17.0 (62.6) |
12.7 (54.9) |
8.6 (47.5) |
3.3 (37.9) |
0.1 (32.2) |
8.2 (46.8) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | −4.6 (23.7) |
−4.5 (23.9) |
−1.0 (30.2) |
2.0 (35.6) |
6.4 (43.5) |
10.3 (50.5) |
12.0 (53.6) |
11.7 (53.1) |
8.0 (46.4) |
4.3 (39.7) |
−0.5 (31.1) |
−3.6 (25.5) |
3.4 (38.1) |
| Averageprecipitationmm (inches) | 80.7 (3.18) |
73.0 (2.87) |
86.3 (3.40) |
74.3 (2.93) |
124.1 (4.89) |
143.1 (5.63) |
141.5 (5.57) |
147.3 (5.80) |
100.4 (3.95) |
81.3 (3.20) |
82.0 (3.23) |
90.0 (3.54) |
1,222.8 (48.14) |
| Average precipitation days(≥ 1.0 mm) | 15.7 | 14.7 | 16.0 | 14.8 | 17.2 | 17.7 | 16.6 | 15.7 | 14.9 | 14.4 | 14.8 | 17.1 | 189.1 |
| Average snowy days(≥ 1.0 cm) | 17.8 | 17.6 | 9.5 | 2.4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 | 0.6 | 6.4 | 14.4 | 68.8 |
| Averagerelative humidity(%) | 83.2 | 80.0 | 76.3 | 73.2 | 74.5 | 74.3 | 74.5 | 77.1 | 82.1 | 84.2 | 86.1 | 85.1 | 79.2 |
| Mean monthlysunshine hours | 84.2 | 102.4 | 145.7 | 173.5 | 189.0 | 204.0 | 225.0 | 215.5 | 162.6 | 123.5 | 85.0 | 75.7 | 1,802.4 |
| Source:World Meteorological Organization[8] | |||||||||||||
Main sights
[edit]
- TheSt. Lorenz Basilica(Basilica minor)
- The St. Mang Church
- The Burghalde, a ruin
- The Duke-Abbots' Residence
- The Archaeological Park Cambodunum
- The City Hall and Square
- The Erasmuskapelle (an underground chapel)
Transport
[edit]Kempten is well connected with the region through theA 7autobahn(Würzburg–Ulm–Füssen).BundesstraßenB 12(partly asA 980autobahn),B 19andB 309also intersect in Kempten.
The city is on theBuchloe–Lindau railway,opened as part of theLudwig South-North Railwayin 1852, andKempten stationcurrently boasts goodInterCityandEuroCityrail connections.
The city bus system is operated by Kemptener Verkehrsbetriebe,[9]which operates over 20 lines.
Education
[edit]TheKempten University of Applied Sciencesstarted in the winter semester of 1978–79 with 89 students and since then expanded and now accommodates more than 2800 students in eight degree courses:
- Business Administration
- Computer Science
- Electrical Engineering
- Industrial Engineering – Electronic and Information Technology
- Industrial Engineering – Mechanical Engineering with Distribution Management or Information Technology
- Mechanical Engineering
- Social Management
- Tourism and Hospitality Management
There are also three college preparatory schools, called Gymnasium, (Allgäu-Gymnasium, Hildegardis-Gymnasium, Carl-von-Linde-Gymnasium) offering secondary education to the entire region of the Allgäu.
Sport and leisure
[edit]Theassociation footballteamFC Kemptenplay at theIllerstadion,which is also used for athletics. It is located on Illerdamm 10.[10]The stadium used to have amotorcycle speedwaytrack and hosted the final of the1965 Speedway World Team Cup.[11]An American football team called theAllgäu Cometsalso use the stadium.[12]
Motor racing teamAbt Sportslineis based in Kempten.[13]
Notable people
[edit]
- Carl von Linde(1842–1934), scientist and inventor in cooling technology
- Claude Dornier(1884–1969), aircraft designer
- Ernst Mayr(1904–2005), German-American biologist
- Ignaz Kiechle(1930–2003), politician (CSU), member of Bundestag 1969–1994, Minister for Food, Agriculture and Forestry 1983–1993
- Heide Schmidt(born 1948), Austrian politician
- Günther Dollinger(born 1960), physicist and professor
- Franz Engstler(born 1961), racing driver
- Dieter Lohr (born 1965), writer and audiobook publisher
- Christian Abt(born 1967), racing driver
- İlhan Mansız(born 1975), Turkish footballer
- Peter Terting(born 1984), racing driver
- Lisa Brennauer(born 1988), world champion cyclist
- Daniel Abt(born 1992), racing driver
- Friedrich Ferdinand Schnitzer,prominent United States architect.
Twin towns – sister cities
[edit]
Bad Dürkheim,Germany (2001)
Quiberon,France (1971)
Sligo,Ireland (1990)
Sopron,Hungary (1987)
Trento,Italy (1987)
References
[edit]- ^Liste der Oberbürgermeister in den kreisfreien Städten,Bayerisches Landesamt für Statistik,accessed 19 July 2021.
- ^Genesis Online-Datenbank des Bayerischen Landesamtes für Statistik Tabelle 12411-003r Fortschreibung des Bevölkerungsstandes: Gemeinden, Stichtag(Einwohnerzahlen auf Grundlage des Zensus 2011).
- ^History of Kempten
- ^Saint Gall (Princely Abbey)inGerman,FrenchandItalianin the onlineHistorical Dictionary of Switzerland.
- ^1652 – St Lorenz Basilika, Kempten, Bavaria,archiseek
- ^Zegenhagen, Evelyn (2009).Encyclopedia of camps and ghettos, 1933 - 1945 / 1,A: Early camps, youth camps, and concentration camps and subcamps under the SS-Business Administration Main Office (WVHA), pages 490–492 ( "Kempten" ), 494–496 ( "Kottern-Weidach", now Kempten too).Bloomington: Indiana Univ. Press.ISBN978-0-253-35328-3.
- ^List of subcamps of Dachau,Glosk
- ^"World Meteorological Organization Climate Normals for 1991–2020".World Meteorological Organization Climatological Standard Normals (1991–2020).National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Archived fromthe originalon 12 October 2023.Retrieved12 October2023.
- ^Zum-kempten.de
- ^"FC Kempten".BFV.Retrieved10 December2023.
- ^Oakes, Peter (1981).1981 Speedway Yearbook.Studio Publications (Ipswich) Ltd.ISBN0-86215-017-5.
- ^"Kempten Illerstadion is being renovated for almost three million euros".Allgaeuer Zeitung.Retrieved10 December2023.
- ^"Abt Sportsline – History".Abt Sportsline.Retrieved8 June2024.
- ^"Kempten und seine Partnerstädte".kempten.de(in German). Kempten.Retrieved2021-02-16.
External links
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| International | |
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| National | |
| Geographic | |
| Other | |
