Rimbach

Geography

Location

The community lies in the Odenwald some 30 km north of Heidelberg and about 35 km northeast of Mannheim. It is found on Bundesstraße 38, and through it flows the Weschnitz.

Neighbouring communities

Rimbach borders in the north on the community of Fürth, in the east on the community of Grasellenbach, in the southeast on the community of Wald-Michelbach, in the south on the community of Mörlenbach and in the west on the town of Heppenheim.

Constituent communities

Rimbach's Ortsteile are Albersbach, Lauten-Weschnitz, Mitlechtern, Münschbach, Unter-Mengelbach and Zotzenbach.

Climate

Owing to its location in Bergstraße district, a mild climate prevails in Rimbach, which often leads to what in Germany is a very early blossoming of the almond trees.

History

Pre-18th Century

Rimbach probably dates back to a Frankish settlement that emerged in the course of the Frankish land conquest from the 5th century AD. The oldest surviving documentary mention of Rimbach dates back to 795 in the Lorsch Codex, a list of possessions of Lorsch Monastery, and is connected to Charlemagne's donation of the Mark Heppenheim to the monastery. The Mark Heppenheim comprised most of today's Bergstrasse district and large parts of the Odenwald district. In connection with this donation, border disputes arose between Lorsch Abbey and the Bishopric of Worms, which led to the convening of a court of arbitration in 795 on the Kahlberg near Weschnitz, an old meeting place and court not far from today's Walburgis Chapel. As a result of this court of arbitration, a new boundary description was established, which now also named the most important places within the borders of the Mark Heppenheim, namely Furte (Fürth), Rintbach (Rimbach), Morlenbach (Mörlenbach), Birkenowa (Birkenau), Winenheim (Weinheim), Heppenheim, Besinsheim (Bensheim), Urbach (Auerbach), Lauresham (Lorsch) and Bisestat (Bürstadt).

Another early mention can be found in the Lorsch Codex, when in 877 a Liuthar von Hausen donated the villa Rinthbach to the monastery and received it back as a fief. Supported by many other donations, the monastery was one of the largest and most powerful Benedictine abbeys in Germany in the 9th-12th centuries. The heyday of Lorsch Abbey was followed by its decline in the 11th and 12th centuries. During the Investiture Controversy from 1076 (Synod of Worms) to 1122 (Concordat of Worms), many possessions had to be ceded to the nobility. In the late 12th century, attempts were made to reorganize the administration by recording the old property deeds (Lorsch Codex). Nevertheless, in 1232 Emperor Frederick II placed Lorsch Abbey under the control of the Archbishopric of Mainz and its Bishop Siegfried III von Eppstein for reform. At this time, the area of the later Amt Schönberg, to which Rimbach later belonged, was in the possession of the Counts Palatine. However, in 1409, Archbishop Johann von Mainz gave the fief to Schenk Konrad von Erbach with the house and castle barn of Rimbach. However, all other feudal deeds to the Schenken von Erbach were issued by the Counts Palatine. In 1385, Count Palatine Ruprecht I authorized the Schenk Eberhard von Erbach to pledge the villages of Rimbach and Zotzenbach to Hanemann von Sickingen, bailiff of Lindenfels and Hennel von Mosbach, bailiff of Heidelberg.

High jurisdiction over the village was exercised by the Heppenheim Center, whose supreme judge was the burgrave of Starkenburg Castle (above Heppenheim), first mentioned in 1267. Lower jurisdiction was exercised by the Vogteigericht, whose district included Rimbach as well as Lützel-Rimbach, Ober- and Unter-Mengelbach, Mossbach and Zotzenbach. The Schenken von Erbach already held the lower court as a Palatinate fief in the oldest documents. The Worms monastery bailiffs were administrators and court lords within the monastery estate. This office came into the possession of the Counts Palatine as early as 1165. Economically, the village was characterized by the three-field farming of the lords of the manor and the village cooperative until the 18th century. Rye, spelt, oats, spring barley, millet and other crops were cultivated.

19th Century to present

On August 14, 1806, Napoleon elevated the Landgraviate of Hesse-Darmstadt to a Grand Duchy. With the Rhine Confederation Act, the County of Erbach was mediatized and incorporated for the most part into the Grand Duchy of Hesse; this also included the "Amt Schönberg", which initially remained as a baronial office.

The court system in the Landgraviate of Hesse-Darmstadt had was reorganized on 9 December 1803. For the Principality of Starkenburg, the "Darmstadt Court" was established as a court of second instance. The courts of first instance were administered by the offices or lords of the manor. The court was the court of second instance for normal civil disputes and the court of first instance for family law and criminal cases. The higher court of appeal was the Court of Appeals of Darmstadt. This meant that the Zente and the associated landgerichts had finally lost their function. The provisions also applied in the Grand Duchy.

After the final defeat of Napoleon, the Congress of Vienna in 1814/15 also confirmed that the County of Erbach belonged to the "Principality of Starkenburg" of the Grand Duchy of Hesse. As a result, provinces were formed in the Grand Duchy in 1816 and the area previously known as the "Principality of Starkenburg" was renamed the "Province of Starkenburg". In 1821/22, as part of a comprehensive administrative reform, the bailiwicks in the provinces of Starkenburg and Upper Hesse of the Grand Duchy were dissolved and administrative districts were introduced, with the Schönberg office being assigned to the Lindenfels administrative district in 1822. As part of this reform, district courts were also created, which were now independent of the administration. Their court districts corresponded in size to the administrative districts. The district court of Fürth was the court of first instance for the district of Lindenfels. It was not until 1826 that all the functions of the former baronial district of Schönberg were transferred to the state. This reform also organized the administrative administration at municipal level. The mayor's office in Rimbach was also responsible for Litzelrimbach (settlement in the district of Rimbach) and Mönsbach (today, as Münschbach, a hamlet in the district of Rimbach). In accordance with the municipal ordinance of June 30, 1821, there were no longer any appointments of Schultheißen, but rather an elected local council made up of the mayor, aldermen and municipal council.

In 1832, the administrative units were further enlarged and districts were created. According to the reorganization announced on August 20, 1832, there were to be only the districts of Bensheim and Lindenfels in South Starkenburg in future; the district of Heppenheim was to fall under the district of Bensheim. However, before the ordinance came into force on October 15, 1832, it was revised to the effect that instead of the district of Lindenfels, the district of Heppenheim was formed as a second district alongside the district of Bensheim, to which Rimbach now belonged.

Politics

Community council

The local elections on March 14, 2021 delivered the following result, compared to previous local elections:

Mayor

According to the Hessian municipal constitution, the mayor is elected for a six-year term of office, since 1993 in a direct election, and is the chairman of the municipal council, which in the municipality of Rimbach includes a first alderman and eight other aldermen in addition to the mayor. Since August 1, 2012, the mayor has been Holger Schmitt, who is independent of the party. He was elected as the successor to Hans-Jürgen Pfeifer (SPD), who did not stand for re-election after three terms in office, on March 4, 2012 in the first ballot with a 57.3% turnout and 69.1% of the vote. This was followed by two re-elections, most recently, unopposed, in February 2024.

Terms of office of the mayors

2012-2030 Holger Schmitt

1994-2012 Hans-Jürgen Pfeifer (SPD)

1971-1981 Georg Adam Schmitt (SPD)

1946-1971 Adam Schmitt (SPD)

1945-1946 Ludwig Nikolaus Spilger (SPD)

Town partnerships

Colwich-Haywood, Staffordshire, England, United Kingdom since 1983

Thourotte, Oise, France since 1983

Economy and infrastructure

Transport

Rimbach lies on the Weschnitztalbahn (railway) from Weinheim to Fürth in the Odenwald.

Moreover, Bundesstraße 38 runs through Rimbach. The Saukopftunnel, dedicated in 1999, made it possible to detour around Birkenau on Bundesstraße 38a, improving Rimbach's road link with Weinheim and the Autobahn network. A new bottleneck, however, has cropped up at Mörlenbach, whose bypass is being planned.

Education

5 kindergartens

1 daycare centre

3 primary schools

1 Hauptschule and Realschule (RBS)

1 Gymnasium (Martin-Luther-Schule)

Culture and sightseeing

Theatre

K.U.S.S. - Martin-Luther-Schule students' theatre

Jugendbühne - Martin-Luther-Schule students' theatre

Center Stage - English Theater - Martin-Luther-Schule students' theatre

Grünes Theater - KSG Mitlechtern

Regular events

Rimbescher Kerwe (church consecration festival)

Rimbacher Pfingstmarkt (Whitsun market)

Rimbacher Herbst (Autumn)

Rimbacher Frühling (Spring)

Schwarzwurzelfastnacht in Rimbach ("Black Sausage Carnival")

Nikolausparty in Rimbach

Youth groups

Katholische Junge Gemeinde (KJG) St. Elisabeth Rimbach (a tent camp every year)

Christliche Pfadfinderschaft im CPD (Scouting)

Jugendfeuerwehr (youth fire brigade)

Jugendrotkreuz (Red Cross)