Heimbach

This article is about the town in the Eifel. For Heimbach in the district of Birkenfeld, see Heimbach, Rhineland-Palatinate. For other uses, see Heimbach (disambiguation).

Heimbach is a town in the district of Düren of the state of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located on the river Roer, in the Eifel hills, approx. 20 km south of Düren. Heimbach has the smallest population of any town in North Rhine-Westphalia.

Heimbach
Town
Flag Coat of arms
Location of Heimbach within Düren district
Heimbach Show map of Germany Heimbach Show map of North Rhine-Westphalia
Coordinates: 50°38′N 06°29′E
Country	Germany
State	North Rhine-Westphalia
Admin. region	Köln
District	Düren
Government
• Mayor (2020–25)	Jochen Weiler[1] (CDU)
Area
• Total	64.8 km2 (25.0 sq mi)
Elevation	227 m (745 ft)
Population  (2023-12-31)[2]
• Total	4,501
• Density	69/km2 (180/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+01:00 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+02:00 (CEST)
Postal codes	52396
Dialling codes	02446, 02425
Vehicle registration	DN
Website	www.heimbach-eifel.de

The town districts of Heimbach are Blens (300 residents), Düttling (85 residents), Hasenfeld (1200 residents), Hausen (270 residents), Hergarten (500 residents) and Vlatten (900 residents), which prior to 1972 were villages with their own administration. Heimbach main town has about 1100 residents.^[3] Between Hausen and Hergarten lies the hamlet of Walbig, and between Hasenfeld and Schmidt (City of Nideggen) is the hamlet of Buschfelder Hof, which formerly belonged to Blens.

History

Heimbach, castle: Burg Hengebach

Heimbach and the city's Hengebach Castle was the seat of the local noble family which inherited the County of Jülich in 1207, with Heimbach annexed to the County (later the Duchy) since 1237^[4].

After the fire of 1687 the city of Heimbach was rebuilt to house the town's population; however, the castle of Hengebach was left a ruin until 1904 when restoration work began. Now restored, the castle is owned and operated as a tourist attraction by the city of Heimbach. The castle is located on a rocky outcrop in the middle of Heimbach. Today it is used as a restaurant and a location for public events. There are also castles in the villages of Blens, Hausen and Vlatten, now part of Heimbach.

Tourism

Heimbach has been recognized as a climatic health resort (Luftkurort) since 1974^[5].

Heimbach is a popular town for tourists, particularly on day trips from the nearby cities of Cologne, Aachen and Düsseldorf but also from the Netherlands. The main attractions are the landscapes with parts of the Eifel National Park and the reservoirs on both sides of the Rur Dam, the Monastery of Mariawald and the Hengebach castle.

Heimbach and the Monastery of Mariawald are aims of the "Heimbach-Wallfahrt" (Heimbach-Pilgrimage),^[6] to visit the pietà (Mary together with the corpus of Jesus) in the parish church of Heimbach, and the historical location (until 1804), the historical Cistercian Monstery of Mariawald^[7]. Regularly in early July the "Pilgrimage Octave" is observed, oriented towards the feast day "Visitation of Mary". The Parish and pilgrimage church with the pietá and the reredos are accessible all year round.

The renowned Spannungen ^[8] chamber music concerts, founded by Lars Vogt, which take place in the Art Nouveau power station are also popular and have attracted musicians such as Sharon Cam and Sabine Meyer. The "Spannungen" take place regularly in June each year. While the year, a small museum is accessible, but only with guide^[9].

The Hengebach Castle is now place of the "Internationale Kunstakademie Heimbach" (international art academy)^[10]. Accessible are art exhibitions (of course participants, but sometimes also contemporary art), the tower and the restaurant.

Main attraction belonging to Heimbachs part of Eifel National Park is the "Barrierefreier Naturerlebnisraum Wilder Kermeter" (Accessible nature experience area).^[11]

The villages of Hausen and Blens, located in northern Heimbach, provide great views of rocky outcrops which are now part of a nature conservancy area. One of the many campgrounds around Heimbach lies in the shadow of these rocks.

Demographics

Most residents of Heimbach are Roman Catholics, attending the churches in Heimbach (St. Clemens), Hausen (St. Nikolaus), Vlatten (St. Dinysius) and Hergarten (St. Martin) and chapels in Blens (St. Georg), Hasenfeld (St. Nepomuk), Düttling (St. Apollonia) and Vlatten (St. Michael).

Politics

The Mayor of Heimbach is Jochen Weiler (CDU), elected in 2020. The Council of Heimbach contains 9 members of the Christian Democratic Union, 5 members of the SPD, one member of the Green Party, 2 members of the FDP, 2 members of the UWV and one member of the AfD.

Notable people

• Johann Peter Schroeder (1794–1876), politician

• Georg Frentzen (1854–1923), architect and university lecturer; built the Kraftwerk Heimbach (hydroelectric power plant of the Urfttalsperre) in Heimbach-Hasenfeld in 1904
• Franz Binz (1896–1965), Reichstag deputy of the NSDAP, lived in Heimbach
• Luise Kött-Gärtner (born 1953), sculptural artist
• Stephan Meyer (born 1947), director, lives from time to time in Heimbach
• Oliver Krischer (born 1969 in Zuelpich), Minister for Environment, Nature Protection, and Transport of the country of North Rhine-Westfalia, lived in Heimbach-Hergarten