Forchheim am Kaiserstuhl

Forchheim (am Kaiserstuhl) is a village in the Upper Rhine Plain close to the northern edge of the Kaiserstuhl, a former volcanic region and one of the warmest areas of Germany. Its Mediterranean climate is reflected in the quality of the wines grown. The climate in the Kaiserstuhl area is close to a Mediterranean microclimate, and there is adequate rainfall year-round. However, more year-round rain occurs than in the Rhine plateau because of the closeness to the Black Forest.

Neighboring communities are (clockwise from the north): Kenzingen, Riegel am Kaiserstuhl, Endingen am Kaiserstuhl, Wyhl am Kaiserstuhl and Weisweil. It is 3 km to Endingen in the south, the district town of Emmendingen is 13 km southeast and the distance to Freiburg im Breisgau is about 26 km.

The first documented mention of Forchheim dates back to the year 762 a.D. when Bishop Eddo of Strasbourg bequeathed the place to the Ettenheimmünster monastery. The name Forchheim comes from the Old High German (Alemannic) forcha and means pine. The ending -heim is typical for settlements from the Franconian period. The manorial rule remained with the Ettenheimmünster monastery for several hundred years; local rule was exercised by the respective district counts in Breisgau – first by the House of Zähringen, later by the Counts of Freiburg and the Counts Palatine of Tübingen with whom sovereignty fell to Further Austria in the 15th century.

In 1803 Forchheim became part of Baden.

In 1843, 358 citizens, mostly craftsmen and their families, emigrated from the Kaiserstuhl area to Venezuela via Le Havre due to bad harvests, poverty and unemployment. They came primarily from Endingen am Kaiserstuhl, Wyhl and Oberbergen, but there were also 31 well-known people from Forchheim. After some turmoil, they found a new home in Colonia Tovar, where they were able to preserve the local culture and the Alemannic dialect to this day.

In 1952 Forchheim came to the newly formed state of Baden-Württemberg as a Baden municipality. Since Forchheim voluntarily reorganized its administration before the regional reform in Baden-Württemberg in the 1970s and merged with Endingen am Kaiserstuhl to form an administrative community, the town was able to maintain its political independence. The collaboration with Endingen am Kaiserstuhl ultimately resulted in the municipal administration association Nördlicher Kaiserstuhl, which also includes the communities of Bahlingen am Kaiserstuhl, Riegel am Kaiserstuhl, Sasbach am Kaiserstuhl and Wyhl am Kaiserstuhl.

The local council consists of the elected volunteer local councilors and the mayor as chairman. The mayor has the right to vote in the municipal council. The local elections on May 26, 2019 in Forchheim led to the following official final result.

A new mayor was elected in Forchheim am Kaiserstuhl on September 27, 2020. Christian Pickhardt (independent) was elected for his first term of eight years with a majority of 71.0 percent of the valid votes. Opposing candidate Rainer Ordegel (independent) received 28.2 percent.

Attending school is not possible in Forchheim, the children go to school in Endingen am Kaiserstuhl if they do not attend the high school in Kenzingen. However, there is a kindergarten in town.

The community of Forchheim has a large number of clubs. The largest include the music club, which celebrated its 100th anniversary in 2013, and the sports club with the football and gymnastics departments. The band Patty Moon is at home in Forchheim.

The community of Forchheim has a local history museum. Mainly exhibits from the areas of agriculture and village history can be seen.

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The “Härdepfel Village Festival” (Härdepfel/Hardepfl is Alemannic and means potato) takes place in Forchheim every year on the second weekend in August. The small community, which is known in the region as a potato stronghold, primarily presents potato specialties.

At the beginning of November, the Rural Youth Society organize a theater evening in the multi-purpose hall.

The local dialect belongs to Upper Rhine Alemannic.

Waldemar Frank (1903–1961), born in Forchheim as Waldemar Rosenbaum. He was a German playwriter and film producer.

Forchheim
Municipality
Coat of arms
Location of Forchheim within Emmendingen district
Forchheim Show map of Germany Forchheim Show map of Baden-Württemberg
Coordinates: 48°09′50″N 07°42′09″E
Country	Germany
State	Baden-Württemberg
Admin. region	Freiburg
District	Emmendingen
Government
• Mayor (2020–28)	Christian Pickhardt[1]
Area
• Total	10.78 km2 (4.16 sq mi)
Elevation	187 m (614 ft)
Population  (2021-12-31)[2]
• Total	1,442
• Density	130/km2 (350/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+01:00 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+02:00 (CEST)
Postal codes	79362
Dialling codes	07642
Vehicle registration	EM
Website	www.forchheim-am-kaiserstuhl.de