Villingen-Schwenningen
Town
View of Villingen
View of Villingen
Coat of arms of Villingen-Schwenningen
Coat of arms
Location of Villingen-Schwenningen within Schwarzwald-Baar-Kreis district
Villingen-Schwenningen is located in Germany
Villingen-Schwenningen
Villingen-Schwenningen
Villingen-Schwenningen is located in Baden-Württemberg
Villingen-Schwenningen
Villingen-Schwenningen
Coordinates: 48°03′37″N 08°27′31″E / 48.06028°N 8.45861°E / 48.06028; 8.45861
CountryGermany
StateBaden-Württemberg
Admin. regionFreiburg
DistrictSchwarzwald-Baar-Kreis
Subdivisions2 Stadtbezirke
Government
 • Mayor (2018–26) Jürgen Roth[1] (CDU)
Area
 • Total165.47 km2 (63.89 sq mi)
Elevation
704 m (2,310 ft)
Population
 (2021-12-31)[2]
 • Total86,475
 • Density520/km2 (1,400/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+01:00 (CET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+02:00 (CEST)
Postal codes
78001–78056
Dialling codes07721, 07720, 07425, 07705
Vehicle registrationVS
Websitewww.villingen-schwenningen.de

Villingen-Schwenningen (German pronunciation: [ˈfɪlɪŋən ˈʃvɛnɪŋən] ⓘ; Low Alemannic: Villinge-Schwenninge) is a city in the Schwarzwald-Baar district in southern Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It has 89,126 inhabitants (as of September 2023).[3]

History

Villingen

In the Middle Ages, Villingen was a town under Austrian lordship. During the Protestant Reformation it remained Catholic. Villingen came to international attention when it was besieged by Marshal of France Camille d'Hostun, duc de Tallard on 17 July 1704. Colonel Von Wilstorff put up a stout defence of the outdated fortifications, and after six days the siege failed.

Schwenningen remained a village until the 19th century. In 1858, the first watch factory was established, and watchmaking and precision mechanics have been important industries ever since. The town styled itself "the greatest watch city in the world"[4] at one time, and the Kienzle Uhren watchmaking company was founded there in 1822 and remained until moving to Hamburg in 2002. The Museum of Clockmaking celebrates the town's clock and watchmaking history.

As part of the Baden-Württemberg territorial reform of 1972, Villingen and Schwenningen were merged with a number of surrounding villages to form the city of Villingen-Schwenningen. Nevertheless, the two halves of the city are separated by a plateau and remain distinct. Villingen is a former part of Baden, while Schwenningen is a former part of Württemberg.

Villingen is a major center of German carnival celebrations. The traditional Narros represent the old citizens of Villingen: Alt Villingere, Morbili, Narro, Suribbel.

Schwenningen – Janusz Korczak School
Villingen Romäus tower
Münster Villingen West side
Villingen-Schwenningen Watch factory Bürk Museum of watch industry

Geography

Villingen-Schwenningen lies on the eastern edge of the Black Forest about 700 m (2,300 ft) above sea level. The source of the River Neckar is in Schwenningen (Schwenninger Moos) whereas Villingen is traversed by the river Brigach which is the shorter one of the two headstreams of the Danube.

Boroughs

Mayors and Lord mayors

Villingen

  • 1912–1930: Guido Lehmann
  • 1931–1933: Adolf Gremmelspacher
  • 1933: Gutmann, temporary
  • 1933–1937: Hermann Schneider
  • 1937–1940: Karl Berckmüller
  • 1940–1945: Hermann Riedel
  • 1945–1946: Walter Bräunlich
  • 1946: Edwin Hartmann
  • 1946–1950: Edwin Nägele
  • 1950–1972: Severin Kern

Schwenningen

  • 1797–1816: Erhard Bürk
  • 1816–1819: (Vogt)
  • 1819–1821: Thomas Wegler
  • 1821–1825: ?
  • 1825–1835: Matthias Rapp
  • 1835–1841: Johann Georg Koch
  • 1841–1852: Andreas Bürk
  • 1852–1857: Christian Strohm
  • 1857–1887: Erhard Müller
  • 1887–1912: David Würth
  • 1912–1925: Emil Braunagel
  • 1925–1930: Ingo Lang von Langen
  • 1930–1948: Otto Gönnenwein
  • 1949–1962: Hans Kohler
  • 1962–1972: Gerhard Gebauer

Villingen-Schwenningen

  • 1972–1994: Gerhard Gebauer (SPD)
  • 1994–2002: Manfred Matusza (CDU)
  • 2002–2019: Rupert Kubon (SPD)
  • since 2019: Jürgen Roth (CDU)

Population

Number of inhabitants

Date Inhabitants
31 December 197278,436
31 December 198078,904
31 December 199078,218
31 December 199580,734
31 December 200581,778
31 December 201584,674
31 December 201784,818
31 December 201885,181
31 December 201985,922
31 December 202085,866
31 December 202186,619

Source: State Statistical Office of Baden-Württemberg

Largest communities of foreigners

 Italy
 Turkey
 Croatia
 Romania
 Syria
 Serbia
 Greece
 Poland
 Kosovo
 Bosnia

Business and education

Precision Motors Deutsche Minebea GmbH is a subsidiary of Minebea corporation and developing electric DC motors in Villingen-Schwenningen. Villingen-Schwenningen is the European HQ for the Japanese corporation.[5]

Villingen-Schwenningen is the home of State University for Applied Science for policing (Hochschule für Polizei Baden-Württemberg) of Baden-Württemberg Police. The University was established in 1979 and has a capacity of 1.300 students.[6]

Sights

Minster of Our Lady

Sports

Since 1904, Villingen-Schwenningen has also been home to the ice hockey team the Schwenninger Wild Wings, which competes in the Deutsche Eishockey Liga.

The town's football club is FC 08 Villingen, who in the 2021/22 season are competing in the Oberliga Baden-Württemberg[7] at the fifth tier of the German league system.

Twin towns – sister cities

Villingen-Schwenningen is twinned with:[8]

Notable people

In 2004 the former Bosnian boxer Armin „Boki“ Ćulum founded the motorcycle-like gang United Tribuns in Villingen-Schwenningen. The gang owned two bordellos and had a great influence on the prostitution scene in Villingen-Schwenningen. The gang called itself a group of bodybuilders, martial art athletes and bouncers. The United Tribuns grew fast and led to rivalry with the Hells Angels and Bandidos. United Tribuns had chapters in München, Augsburg, Nürnberg and Ingolstadt, and from 2014 also in the north in Hannover and later in Osnabrück. In Austria there was a chapter in Linz, Klagenfurt and Vienna. In September 2022 the Federal Minister for the Interior (BMI) prohibited the gang; and their money was confiscated.[9]

References

  1. ↑ Aktuelle Wahlergebnisse, Staatsanzeiger, accessed 14 September 2021.
  2. ↑ "Bevölkerung nach Nationalität und Geschlecht am 31. Dezember 2021" [Population by nationality and sex as of December 31, 2021] (CSV) (in German). Statistisches Landesamt Baden-Württemberg. June 2022.
  3. ↑ Villingen-Schwenningen, Stadt. "Zahlen, Daten, Fakten - Villingen-Schwenningen". www.villingen-schwenningen.de (in German). Retrieved 2022-04-08.
  4. ↑ "Villingen-Schwenningen - Watch Wiki: The Best Watches and Watch Brands". www.watch-wiki.net. Retrieved 14 April 2018.
  5. ↑ "Precision Motors Deutsche Minebea GmbH". TechnologyMountains (in German). Retrieved 2023-10-02.
  6. ↑ "Studienorte < Studieren in der Regio Bodensee". www.hochschulfuehrer.net. Retrieved 2023-10-02.
  7. ↑ "Oberliga Baden-Württemberg 2021/2022 - 1. Spieltag".
  8. ↑ "Partnerschaften". villingen-schwenningen.de (in German). Villingen-Schwenningen. Retrieved 2021-02-22.
  9. ↑ mdr.de. "Organisierte Kriminalität: Rockergruppe "United Tribuns" verboten | MDR.DE". www.mdr.de (in German). Retrieved 2022-09-14.
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