Amorbach

Amorbach

Coat of arms
Amorbach

Coordinates: 49°38′N 9°13′E / 49.633°N 9.217°E / 49.633; 9.217Coordinates: 49°38′N 9°13′E / 49.633°N 9.217°E / 49.633; 9.217
Country Germany
State Bavaria
Admin. region Unterfranken
District Miltenberg
Government
 • Mayor Peter Schmitt (CSU)
Area
 • Total 50.92 km2 (19.66 sq mi)
Elevation 165 m (541 ft)
Population (2013-12-31)[1]
 • Total 4,004
 • Density 79/km2 (200/sq mi)
Time zone CET/CEST (UTC+1/+2)
Postal codes 63916
Dialling codes 09373
Vehicle registration MIL
Website amorbach.de

Amorbach is a town in the Miltenberg district in the Regierungsbezirk of Lower Franconia (Unterfranken) in Bavaria, Germany, with some 4,000 inhabitants. It is situated on the small river Mud, in the northeastern part of the Odenwald.

History

Principality of Leiningen

The town began as a Benedictine monastery, (Amorbach Abbey, or Kloster Amorbach), which bit by bit grew into a settlement until in 1253 it was raised to the status of a town. Over the years, the town changed hands several times. It was part of the Bishopric of Würzburg until 1656, when it became part of the Archbishopric of Mainz. As a result of the 1803 German Mediatisation the Archbishopric of Mainz was secularized, and Amorbach became the residence town of the short-lived Principality of Leiningen. Only in 1816 did it become part of the Kingdom of Bavaria. In 1965, Amorbach attained the status of climatic spa (Luftkurort).

Amalgamations

The following settlements have been amalgamated with the town:

Economy

Today Amorbach relies on the tourist business with its state recognition as an climatic spa (Luftkurort) and its many Baroque buildings.

Amorbach is the family seat of the princely Haus zu Leiningen. In 1992, the town was awarded the Europa Nostra Medal.

Arts and culture

Amorbach 1735
St. Gangolf’s Parish Church in Amorbach
Abbey church

Abbey church and organ

The Benedictine abbey, formerly owned by the princely Haus zu Leiningen with its library, and the princely abbey church with its Stumm organ draw thousands of visitors each year. In 1782, after eight years of work by Johann Philipp Stumm (1705–1776) and Johann Heinrich Stumm (1715–1788) of the organ-building Stumm family, the organ was ready. In their work at Amorbach, this style and Klangideal ("sound-ideal"), a synthesis of Southern German and French organ building, could be thoroughly realized. The work's original sound-producing hardware remained unchanged for more than two centuries. In the final years of the 19th century and on into the early 20th century, a number of further organ stops were added according to the preferences of the time.

Behind the organ's 16-field façade with its 124 sounding and up to seven-metre-tall organ pipes are found several ranks of pipes in their original configuration and piping on the slider chest, reconstructed in 1982. All 14 pedal ranks are freestanding behind it. Furthermore, also standing there, in three levels, is the swell box, added in 1982, along with its attendant works. It contains an assembly of ranks added after 1868, with one dedicated to the sound of French Romantic organ music. The organ has 5,116 pipes and 30 percussion devices shared across 66 stops, and is played from four manuals and one pedalboard.

Berger Collection with teapot museum

Museums

The Sammlung Berger mit Teekannenmuseum is a museum of art and teapots. Besides impressive exhibits of modern art by Arman, Michael Buthe, Chagall, Christo, Keith Haring, Otto Reichart, Rebecca Horn, Yves Klein, Roy Lichtenstein, Nam June Paik, Niki de Saint-Phalle, H. A. Schult, Daniel Spoerri, Ben Vautier, Dick Higgins and others, the museum also shows a teapot collection of 2,467 teapots from throughout the world and roughly 500 miniature teapots.

Tithe barn

The tithe barn in Amorbach, built in 1488, has for five hundred years played a central role in the town. Originally built to store tithes in the form of produce for the prince, it was – after extensive remodelling in the 1960s – run as a cinema.

The Kulturkreis Zehntscheuer Amorbach e.V. (“Amorbach Tithe Barn Cultural Circle”), which outfitted the building in 1991 as a cabaret theatre maintains and renovates the building, which stands in the historical town centre. In 2001, this club bought the tithe barn.

Regular events

The yearly Mother’s Day Gangolfsritt

Infrastructure

Transport

In Amorbach, Bundesstraße 469 meets Bundesstraße 47. The railway station lies on the Seckach−Miltenberg railway line (KBS 709), also known as the Madonnenlandbahn.

Education

Notable people

Sons and daughters of the town

Died in Amorbach

Further reading

References

  1. ↑ "Fortschreibung des Bevölkerungsstandes". Bayerisches Landesamt für Statistik und Datenverarbeitung (in German). 31 December 2013.

External links

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