# Remscheid

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**Remscheid** (ˈʁɛmʃaɪt) is a [city](/source/List_of_cities_and_towns_in_Germany) in [North Rhine-Westphalia](/source/North_Rhine-Westphalia), [Germany](/source/Germany). It is, after [Wuppertal](/source/Wuppertal) and [Solingen](/source/Solingen), the third-largest municipality in [Bergisches Land](/source/Bergisches_Land), being located on the northern edge of the region, on the south side of the [Ruhr](/source/Ruhr) area.

Remscheid had around 109,000 inhabitants in 2015. At the end of 2019 it had 113,703 inhabitants. A variety of the Limburgish language, known locally as Remscheder Platt is spoken in the city through all generations.

## Geography

Remscheid comprises four boroughs, *Alt-Remscheid*, *Remscheid-Süd*, *Lennep*, and [Lüttringhausen](/source/L%C3%BCttringhausen).

Its highest point is the [Brodtberg](/source/Brodtberg) (378 m).

## History

Remscheid was founded in the 12th century, but remained a small village until the 19th century. Early spellings for the city included *Remissgeid* (1217), *Rymscheyd* (1351), *Reymscheyd* (1487) and *Rembscheid* (1639). The economic growth of the entire Rhine-Ruhr region led to an increase of the population of Remscheid. Mechanical engineering and toolmaking were the main industries practised within the town. This is carried on today with the [Hazet](/source/Hazet) tool company which has three factories in Remscheid. Remscheid was part of the [Prussian](/source/Prussia) [Rhine Province](/source/Rhine_Province) from 1822 to 1945.

On 31 July 1943, during [World War II](/source/World_War_II), Remscheid was almost completely destroyed during a British [bombing raid](/source/Area_bombing) which caused a [firestorm](/source/Firestorm). This bombing raid was the final operation of [RAF's](/source/RAF) [Battle of the Ruhr](/source/Battle_of_the_Ruhr) involving 273 aircraft. Today around one third of the city consists of buildings from before World War II.[1] During 14 and 15 April 1945, Remscheid was captured by the [78th Infantry Division (United States)](/source/78th_Infantry_Division_(United_States)).[2][3]

An [A-10 Thunderbolt II](/source/A-10_Thunderbolt_II) [crashed in the city on 8 December 1988](/source/1988_Remscheid_A-10_crash). Six people died.

## Demographics

As of 31 December 2019, the city's population was 113,703, of which 92,726 (81.6%) were German citizens and 20,977 (18.4%) were non-Germans (*Ausländer*); of the non-German population, the top 10 nationalities represented were as follows:[4]

Rank Nationality Population (31.12.2019) 1 5,749 2 3,158 3 1,264 4 1,187 5 1,039 6 866 7 748 8 646 9 583 10 493

## Politics

### Mayor

The current mayor of Remscheid is [Sven Wolf](/source/Sven_Wolf) of the [Social Democratic Party](/source/Social_Democratic_Party_of_Germany) (SPD), elected in 2025.

The previous mayoral election was held on 13 September 2020, and the results were as follows:

! colspan=2| Candidate ! Party ! Votes ! % |- | bgcolor=| | align=left| Burkhard Mast-Weisz | align=left| [Social Democratic Party](/source/Social_Democratic_Party_of_Germany) | 22,431 | 60.6 |- | bgcolor=| | align=left| Heidemarie Alexa Bell | align=left| [Christian Democratic Union](/source/Christian_Democratic_Union_of_Germany) | 9,710 | 26.2 |- | | align=left| Peter Keck | align=left| Pro Remscheid | 1,908 | 5.2 |- | bgcolor=| | align=left| Fritz Beinersdorf | align=left| [The Left](/source/The_Left_(Germany)) | 1,309 | 3.5 |- | | align=left| Roland Kirchner | align=left| W.i.R. Remscheid | 877 | 2.4 |- | | align=left| Bettina Stamm | align=left| Real Remscheid | 775 | 2.1 |- ! colspan=3| Valid votes ! 37,010 ! 98.5 |- ! colspan=3| Invalid votes ! 548 ! 1.5 |- ! colspan=3| Total ! 37,558 ! 100.0 |- ! colspan=3| Electorate/voter turnout ! 85,783 ! 43.8 |- | colspan=5| Source: [State Returning Officer](https://www.wahlergebnisse.nrw/kommunalwahlen/2020/aktuell/b120000kw2000.shtml) |}

### City council

The Remscheid city council governs the city alongside the mayor. The most recent city council election was held on 13 September 2020, and the results were as follows:

! colspan=2| Party ! Votes ! % ! +/− ! Seats ! +/− |- | bgcolor=| | align=left| [Social Democratic Party](/source/Social_Democratic_Party_of_Germany) (SPD) | 12,718 | 34.5 | 0.3 | 20 | 1 |- | bgcolor=| | align=left| [Christian Democratic Union](/source/Christian_Democratic_Union_of_Germany) (CDU) | 11,036 | 29.9 | 7.3 | 17 | 3 |- | bgcolor=| | align=left| [Alliance 90/The Greens](/source/Alliance_90/The_Greens) (Grüne) | 5,409 | 14.7 | 6.3 | 9 | 5 |- | bgcolor=| | align=left| [Free Democratic Party](/source/Free_Democratic_Party_(Germany)) (FDP) | 1,945 | 5.3 | 0.6 | 3 | 1 |- | | align=left| Pro Remscheid (PRO) | 1,870 | 5.1 | 0.7 | 3 | 1 |- | bgcolor=| | align=left| [The Left](/source/The_Left_(Germany)) (Die Linke) | 1,700 | 4.6 | 1.4 | 3 | ±0 |- | | align=left| W.i.R. Remscheid (WIR) | 1,092 | 3.0 | 1.5 | 2 | ±0 |- | | align=left| Real Remscheid (Echt) | 788 | 2.1 | New | 1 | New |- | colspan=7 bgcolor=lightgrey| |- | bgcolor=| | align=left| [Alternative for Germany](/source/Alternative_for_Germany) (AfD) | 358 | 1.0 | New | 0 | New |- ! colspan=2| Valid votes ! 36,916 ! 98.4 ! ! ! |- ! colspan=2| Invalid votes ! 592 ! 1.6 ! ! ! |- ! colspan=2| Total ! 37,508 ! 100.0 ! ! 58 ! 6 |- ! colspan=2| Electorate/voter turnout ! 85,783 ! 43.7 ! 0.7 ! ! |- | colspan=7| Source: [State Returning Officer](https://www.wahlergebnisse.nrw/kommunalwahlen/2020/aktuell/a120000kw2000.shtml) |}

## Main sights

- The *[Müngstener Brücke](/source/M%C3%BCngsten_Bridge)* is a railway bridge crossing a valley and connecting Remscheid with the neighbouring town of [Solingen](/source/Solingen). It is 107 m above the ground, making it the highest railway bridge in Germany. It was constructed in 1897 and originally named the *Kaiser-Wilhelm-Brücke* after [Wilhelm I](/source/Wilhelm_I_of_Germany) (whose 100th birthday would have been in 1897).
- The *[Eschbachtalsperre](/source/Eschbachtalsperre)*, the first dam built in Germany for the supply of drinking water is located here. It was built in 1891.
- The old city of the borough Lennep consists of 116 houses from 1756.

## Twin towns – sister cities

See also: [List of twin towns and sister cities in Germany](/source/List_of_twin_towns_and_sister_cities_in_Germany)

Remscheid is [twinned](/source/Sister_city) with:[5]

- [Ashington](/source/Ashington), England, United Kingdom
- [Kırşehir](/source/K%C4%B1r%C5%9Fehir), Turkey
- [Newbiggin by the Sea](/source/Newbiggin-by-the-Sea), England, United Kingdom
- [Pirna](/source/Pirna), Germany
- [Prešov](/source/Pre%C5%A1ov), Slovakia
- [Quimper](/source/Quimper), France

Remscheid also cooperates with [Mrągowo County](/source/Mr%C4%85gowo_County), Poland and [Schmalkalden](/source/Schmalkalden), Germany.[5]

## Notable people

- [Caspar Georg Carl Reinwardt](/source/Caspar_Georg_Carl_Reinwardt) (1773–1854), scientist
- [Gottfried Duden](/source/Gottfried_Duden) (1789–1856), writer
- [Ewald Over](/source/Ewald_Over) (1835-1912), entrepreneur and veteran
- [Oscar Schlitter](/source/Oscar_Schlitter) (1838–1939), banker
- [Johannes Fastenrath](/source/Johannes_Fastenrath) (1839–1908), lawyer, writer and translator
- [August Gissler](/source/August_Gissler) (1857–1935), adventurer and treasure hunter
- [Wilhelm Röntgen](/source/Wilhelm_R%C3%B6ntgen) (1845–1923), discoverer of [x-rays](/source/X-ray)
- [Walter Freitag](/source/Walter_Freitag_(politician)) (1889–1958), trade union leader and politician
- [Otto Jungtow](/source/Otto_Jungtow) (1892–1959), footballer
- [Otto Kuhler](/source/Otto_Kuhler) (1894–1977), American designer of locomotives
- [Hans Stammreich](/source/Hans_Stammreich) (1902–1969), German-Brazilian chemist
- [Teo Otto](/source/Teo_Otto) (1904–1968), stage designer
- [Wolfgang von der Nahmer](/source/Wolfgang_von_der_Nahmer) (1906–1988), conductor
- [Gustav Adolf Theill](/source/Gustav_Adolf_Theill) (1924–1997), composer and musicologist
- [Karl Michael Vogler](/source/Karl_Michael_Vogler) (1928–2009), actor
- [Wolfgang Seiler](/source/Wolfgang_Seiler) (born 1940), biogeochemist and climatologist
- [Peter Brötzmann](/source/Peter_Br%C3%B6tzmann) (1941–2023), [free jazz](/source/Free_jazz) saxophonist
- [Christel Frese](/source/Christel_Frese) (born 1944), athlete
- [Michael Bacht](/source/Michael_Bacht) (born 1947), artist
- [Frank Plasberg](/source/Frank_Plasberg) (born 1957), journalist
- [Lutz Huelle](/source/Lutz_Huelle) (born 1966), fashion designer
- [Wolfgang Tillmans](/source/Wolfgang_Tillmans) (born 1968), photographer
- [Georg Wurth](/source/Georg_Wurth) (born 1972), lobbyist and activist
- [Christiane Soeder](/source/Christiane_Soeder) (born 1975), German-Austrian cyclist
- [Robert A. Küfner](/source/Robert_A._K%C3%BCfner) (born 1988), entrepreneur, raised here
- [The Rotation](/source/The_Rotation) (born 1996), professional wrestler

## References

1. ["Zensus 2011 - Gebäude- und Wohnungsbestand in Deutschland"](https://zensus2011.de/SharedDocs/Downloads/DE/Publikationen/Aufsaetze_Archiv/2015_12_NI_GWZ_endgueltig.pdf?__blob=publicationFile&v=4) [2011 Census - Building and housing stock in Germany] (in German). [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20240329165923/https://zensus2011.de/SharedDocs/Downloads/DE/Publikationen/Aufsaetze_Archiv/2015_12_NI_GWZ_endgueltig.pdf?__blob=publicationFile&v=4) 29 March 2024 at the Wayback Machine.

1. ["US Army SS 01 Chronology 1941–1945: 1945"](http://tothosewhoserved.org/usa/ss/usass01/chapter5.html). [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20170814220458/http://tothosewhoserved.org/usa/ss/usass01/chapter5.html) 14 August 2017 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 14 August 2017.

1. ["Lightning, the History of the 78th Infantry Division"](https://archive.org/details/Lightning78thInfantry). Washington, Infantry journal press. 1947.

1. ["Informationen der Statistikstelle: Remscheider Einwohnerinnen und Einwohner am 31. Dezember 2019"](https://web.archive.org/web/20200222204558/https://remscheid.de/arbeiten-und-wirtschaft/medienpool/dokumente030/3.32_Remscheider_EinwohnerInnen_am_31.12.2019.pdf). Stadt Remscheid. pp. 6, 12. Archived from [the original](https://remscheid.de/arbeiten-und-wirtschaft/medienpool/dokumente030/3.32_Remscheider_EinwohnerInnen_am_31.12.2019.pdf) on 22 February 2020. Retrieved 9 May 2020. Available on Stadt Remscheid website under "[Bevölkerung und Bevölkerungsentwicklung](https://remscheid.de/arbeiten-und-wirtschaft/standort-remscheid/daten-und-fakten/146380100000085023.php) [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20210616235128/https://remscheid.de/arbeiten-und-wirtschaft/standort-remscheid/daten-und-fakten/146380100000085023.php) 16 June 2021 at the Wayback Machine".

1. ["Städtepartnerschaften"](https://www.remscheid.de/vv/produkte/0.02/staedtepartnerschaften.php) (in German). Remscheid. Retrieved 2024-01-25.

- Flohr, Gustav (2020). *Noch ein Partisan* (in German). Verlag J.H.W. Dietz Nachf. Bonn. pp. 161–191, 482–483. ISBN 978-3-8012-0546-1.

## External links

- [Official website](https://www.remscheid.de)
- Vol. 16. p. 419.
- [German Roentgen-Museum](http://www.roentgen-museum.de/) (in German)

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Remscheid](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Remscheid) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Remscheid?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.