Ernst, Germany
Encyclopedia
Ernst is an Ortsgemeinde – a municipality
belonging to a Verbandsgemeinde
, a kind of collective municipality – in the Cochem-Zell
district
in Rhineland-Palatinate
, Germany
. The winegrowing centre belongs to the Verbandsgemeinde of Cochem, whose seat is in the like-named town
.
, going towards Trier
. Over on the other side of the Moselle lies Valwig
. Ernst’s municipal area comprises 418 ha, of which 90 ha is vineyard
s and 227 ha is wooded. Ernst has 617 inhabitants who maintain their main residence in the municipality and another 40 who have a secondary residence there.
may well be evidence that Ernst was already settled by 250 BC, and that it is therefore of Celtic origin. Even the earliest documentary mention of Ernst as Arnesche shows the village’s Celtic beginnings. In AD 670, “Hilduin” bequeathed vineyards in Ernst to his brother-in-law. Ernst was made up of two constituent centres then, Oberernst and Niederernst, but was always a unified municipality. In the Middle Ages
, lower court jurisdiction was exercised through the Valwig-Ernst court. When Ernst passed along with the Rhineland
to Prussia
, the Prussian government decreed that Oberernst, where the parish church and the old town hall stood, and Niederernst were to grow together into one centre, a project that, as can be seen today, was at least successful on the road alongside the Moselle, if nowhere else.
The municipality as it stands today takes its shape mainly from the building of the church and the laying out of the Moselstraße – the road alongside the Moselle – in the mid 19th century. Ernst has been a winegrowing centre for 2,000 years, with 14 fulltime winemakers still at the trade today and another 10 who undertake it as a secondary occupation.
The landholder until the French Revolutionary
occupation in 1794 was the Electorate of Trier. In 1815 both centres were assigned to the Kingdom of Prussia
at the Congress of Vienna
. Not long thereafter, they were merged to form one municipality. Since 1946, it has been part of the then newly founded state
of Rhineland-Palatinate
.
at the municipal election held on 7 June 2009, and the honorary mayor as chairwoman.
The municipality’s arms
might in English heraldic
language be described thus: Per pale argent a cross gules and vert nine bezants, two, one, two, one, two and one.
Ernst belonged until the late 18th century to the Electorate of Trier, hence the Electoral-Trier cross on the dexter (armsbearer’s right, viewer’s left) side. Saint Quirinus bore nine balls (called Kugeln in the German blazon and translated “bezants” in the English blazon – the closest standard charge
in English heraldry) in his arms, and was also the patron of the church in Niederernst. His attribute now appears on the sinister (armsbearer’s left, viewer’s right) side of Ernst’s arms. The arms were designed by Decku in Sankt Wendel
(Saarland
).
’s Directory of Cultural Monuments:
The St. Salvator parish church with its twin towers, built in 1845 in Romanesque Revival
style with Rhenish slate
, is Ernst’s foremost landmark.
49 runs by the village, and Autobahn A 48 can be reached over either Landesstraße (State Road) 98 or Bundesstraße 259.
Municipalities of Germany
Municipalities are the lowest level of territorial division in Germany. This may be the fourth level of territorial division in Germany, apart from those states which include Regierungsbezirke , where municipalities then become the fifth level.-Overview:With more than 3,400,000 inhabitants, the...
belonging to a Verbandsgemeinde
Verbandsgemeinde
A Verbandsgemeinde is an administrative unit in the German Bundesländer of Rhineland-Palatinate and Saxony-Anhalt.-Rhineland-Palatinate:...
, a kind of collective municipality – in the Cochem-Zell
Cochem-Zell
Cochem-Zell is a district in the north-west of Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Neighboring districts are Mayen-Koblenz, Rhein-Hunsrück, Bernkastel-Wittlich, and Vulkaneifel.- History :...
district
Districts of Germany
The districts of Germany are known as , except in the states of North Rhine-Westphalia and Schleswig-Holstein where they are known simply as ....
in Rhineland-Palatinate
Rhineland-Palatinate
Rhineland-Palatinate is one of the 16 states of the Federal Republic of Germany. It has an area of and about four million inhabitants. The capital is Mainz. English speakers also commonly refer to the state by its German name, Rheinland-Pfalz ....
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
. The winegrowing centre belongs to the Verbandsgemeinde of Cochem, whose seat is in the like-named town
Cochem
Cochem is the seat of and the biggest place in the Cochem-Zell district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. With just under 5,000 inhabitants, Cochem falls just behind Kusel, in the like-named district, as Germany's second smallest district seat...
.
Location
The municipality lies in a bow in the river Moselle only 4 km from CochemCochem
Cochem is the seat of and the biggest place in the Cochem-Zell district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. With just under 5,000 inhabitants, Cochem falls just behind Kusel, in the like-named district, as Germany's second smallest district seat...
, going towards Trier
Trier
Trier, historically called in English Treves is a city in Germany on the banks of the Moselle. It is the oldest city in Germany, founded in or before 16 BC....
. Over on the other side of the Moselle lies Valwig
Valwig
Valwig is an Ortsgemeinde – a municipality belonging to a Verbandsgemeinde, a kind of collective municipality – in the Cochem-Zell district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It belongs to the Verbandsgemeinde of Cochem, whose seat is in the like-named town...
. Ernst’s municipal area comprises 418 ha, of which 90 ha is vineyard
Vineyard
A vineyard is a plantation of grape-bearing vines, grown mainly for winemaking, but also raisins, table grapes and non-alcoholic grape juice...
s and 227 ha is wooded. Ernst has 617 inhabitants who maintain their main residence in the municipality and another 40 who have a secondary residence there.
Geschichte
A grain grater from La Tène timesLa Tène culture
The La Tène culture was a European Iron Age culture named after the archaeological site of La Tène on the north side of Lake Neuchâtel in Switzerland, where a rich cache of artifacts was discovered by Hansli Kopp in 1857....
may well be evidence that Ernst was already settled by 250 BC, and that it is therefore of Celtic origin. Even the earliest documentary mention of Ernst as Arnesche shows the village’s Celtic beginnings. In AD 670, “Hilduin” bequeathed vineyards in Ernst to his brother-in-law. Ernst was made up of two constituent centres then, Oberernst and Niederernst, but was always a unified municipality. In the Middle Ages
Middle Ages
The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...
, lower court jurisdiction was exercised through the Valwig-Ernst court. When Ernst passed along with the Rhineland
Rhineland
Historically, the Rhinelands refers to a loosely-defined region embracing the land on either bank of the River Rhine in central Europe....
to Prussia
Prussia
Prussia was a German kingdom and historic state originating out of the Duchy of Prussia and the Margraviate of Brandenburg. For centuries, the House of Hohenzollern ruled Prussia, successfully expanding its size by way of an unusually well-organized and effective army. Prussia shaped the history...
, the Prussian government decreed that Oberernst, where the parish church and the old town hall stood, and Niederernst were to grow together into one centre, a project that, as can be seen today, was at least successful on the road alongside the Moselle, if nowhere else.
The municipality as it stands today takes its shape mainly from the building of the church and the laying out of the Moselstraße – the road alongside the Moselle – in the mid 19th century. Ernst has been a winegrowing centre for 2,000 years, with 14 fulltime winemakers still at the trade today and another 10 who undertake it as a secondary occupation.
The landholder until the French Revolutionary
French Revolutionary Wars
The French Revolutionary Wars were a series of major conflicts, from 1792 until 1802, fought between the French Revolutionary government and several European states...
occupation in 1794 was the Electorate of Trier. In 1815 both centres were assigned to the Kingdom of Prussia
Prussia
Prussia was a German kingdom and historic state originating out of the Duchy of Prussia and the Margraviate of Brandenburg. For centuries, the House of Hohenzollern ruled Prussia, successfully expanding its size by way of an unusually well-organized and effective army. Prussia shaped the history...
at the Congress of Vienna
Congress of Vienna
The Congress of Vienna was a conference of ambassadors of European states chaired by Klemens Wenzel von Metternich, and held in Vienna from September, 1814 to June, 1815. The objective of the Congress was to settle the many issues arising from the French Revolutionary Wars, the Napoleonic Wars,...
. Not long thereafter, they were merged to form one municipality. Since 1946, it has been part of the then newly founded state
States of Germany
Germany is made up of sixteen which are partly sovereign constituent states of the Federal Republic of Germany. Land literally translates as "country", and constitutionally speaking, they are constituent countries...
of Rhineland-Palatinate
Rhineland-Palatinate
Rhineland-Palatinate is one of the 16 states of the Federal Republic of Germany. It has an area of and about four million inhabitants. The capital is Mainz. English speakers also commonly refer to the state by its German name, Rheinland-Pfalz ....
.
Municipal council
The council is made up of 12 council members, who were elected by majority votePlurality voting system
The plurality voting system is a single-winner voting system often used to elect executive officers or to elect members of a legislative assembly which is based on single-member constituencies...
at the municipal election held on 7 June 2009, and the honorary mayor as chairwoman.
Coat of arms
The German blazon reads: Von Silber und Grün gespalten. In Silber ein rotes Balkenkreuz, in Grün 9 (2:1, 2:1, 2:1) goldene Kugeln.The municipality’s arms
Coat of arms
A coat of arms is a unique heraldic design on a shield or escutcheon or on a surcoat or tabard used to cover and protect armour and to identify the wearer. Thus the term is often stated as "coat-armour", because it was anciently displayed on the front of a coat of cloth...
might in English heraldic
Heraldry
Heraldry is the profession, study, or art of creating, granting, and blazoning arms and ruling on questions of rank or protocol, as exercised by an officer of arms. Heraldry comes from Anglo-Norman herald, from the Germanic compound harja-waldaz, "army commander"...
language be described thus: Per pale argent a cross gules and vert nine bezants, two, one, two, one, two and one.
Ernst belonged until the late 18th century to the Electorate of Trier, hence the Electoral-Trier cross on the dexter (armsbearer’s right, viewer’s left) side. Saint Quirinus bore nine balls (called Kugeln in the German blazon and translated “bezants” in the English blazon – the closest standard charge
Charge (heraldry)
In heraldry, a charge is any emblem or device occupying the field of an escutcheon . This may be a geometric design or a symbolic representation of a person, animal, plant, object or other device...
in English heraldry) in his arms, and was also the patron of the church in Niederernst. His attribute now appears on the sinister (armsbearer’s left, viewer’s right) side of Ernst’s arms. The arms were designed by Decku in Sankt Wendel
Sankt Wendel
St. Wendel is a municipality in northeastern Saarland. It is situated on the river Blies 36 km northeast of Saarbrücken, the capital of Saarland, and is named after Saint Wendelin of Trier.- Geography :...
(Saarland
Saarland
Saarland is one of the sixteen states of Germany. The capital is Saarbrücken. It has an area of 2570 km² and 1,045,000 inhabitants. In both area and population, it is the smallest state in Germany other than the city-states...
).
Buildings
The following are listed buildings or sites in Rhineland-PalatinateRhineland-Palatinate
Rhineland-Palatinate is one of the 16 states of the Federal Republic of Germany. It has an area of and about four million inhabitants. The capital is Mainz. English speakers also commonly refer to the state by its German name, Rheinland-Pfalz ....
’s Directory of Cultural Monuments:
- Holy Saviour’s Catholic Church (Katholische Kirche St. Salvator), Moselstraße 48 – cross-in-squareCross-in-squareThe term cross-in-square or crossed-dome denotes the dominant architectural form of middle- and late-period Byzantine churches. The first cross-in-square churches were probably built in the late 8th century, and the form has remained in use throughout the Orthodox world until the present day...
church with twin-tower façade, 1844-1848, architect Johann Claudius von Lassaulx; outside, five gravestones, 19th century; whole complex with graveyard - Auf der Winneburg 29/31 – double house; timber-frameTimber framingTimber framing , or half-timbering, also called in North America "post-and-beam" construction, is the method of creating structures using heavy squared off and carefully fitted and joined timbers with joints secured by large wooden pegs . It is commonplace in large barns...
house, partly solid, dendrochronologicallyDendrochronologyDendrochronology or tree-ring dating is the scientific method of dating based on the analysis of patterns of tree-rings. Dendrochronology can date the time at which tree rings were formed, in many types of wood, to the exact calendar year...
dated to 1503/1504; timber-frame house, partly solid, from 1578 - Before Fährstraße 2 – timber-frame house, partly solid, essentially from the 16th or 17th century, expanded in the 18th century, in two parts, back part with high ground floor, far-jutting upper floor, curved braces; front part likewise timber-frame upper floor with yoke braces, half-hipped roof; whole complex with garden with pavilion
- Fährstraße 9 – portal, from 1772
- Fährstraße 11 – timber-frame house, partly solid, mansard roofMansard roofA mansard or mansard roof is a four-sided gambrel-style hip roof characterized by two slopes on each of its sides with the lower slope at a steeper angle than the upper that is punctured by dormer windows. The roof creates an additional floor of habitable space, such as a garret...
, 16th century, roof conversion in the 18th century; towards the back quarrystone building with Late GothicGothic architectureGothic architecture is a style of architecture that flourished during the high and late medieval period. It evolved from Romanesque architecture and was succeeded by Renaissance architecture....
portal - Fährstraße 40 –
- Herrenstraße 5 – quarrystone building, plastered, late 18th century
- Herrenstraße 14 – timber-frame house, partly solid, 16th century
- Kleinstraße 3 – fountain
- Klosterstraße 5 – Baroque Revival winemaker’s house, about 1900/1910
- Klosterstraße 11 – two-winged timber-frame house, partly plastered, from 1779
- Moselstraße – Heiligenhäuschen (a small, shrinelike structure consecrated to a saint or saints), 1850; cross, from 1663; grave cross, from 1762
- Moselstraße 30 – timber-frame house, partly solid, plastered, hipped mansard roof, 18th century
- Moselstraße 38 – building with half-hipped roof, quarrystone, from 1901
- Moselstraße 46 – former schoolSchoolA school is an institution designed for the teaching of students under the direction of teachers. Most countries have systems of formal education, which is commonly compulsory. In these systems, students progress through a series of schools...
; quarrystone building, about 1845; basaltBasaltBasalt is a common extrusive volcanic rock. It is usually grey to black and fine-grained due to rapid cooling of lava at the surface of a planet. It may be porphyritic containing larger crystals in a fine matrix, or vesicular, or frothy scoria. Unweathered basalt is black or grey...
wayside cross, from 1616; new school; mansard roof, 1913; whole complex - Moselstraße/corner of Weingartenstraße – Heiligenhäuschen; relief, from 1686
- Weingartenstraße – basalt wayside cross
- Weingartenstraße 24 – basalt wayside cross, from 1777
- Weingartenstraße 24 – well with well house
- Weingartenstraße 24 – quarrystone house, mid 19th century
- Weingartenstraße 74 – well, 18th century
- Weingartenstraße 75a – solid building, essentially possibly from the 16th century
- Weingartenstraße 81 – solid building, half-hipped roof, from 1832; towards the back timber-frame house, plastered, considerably older
- Weingartenstraße/corner of Herrenstraße – late mediaevalLate Middle AgesThe Late Middle Ages was the period of European history generally comprising the 14th to the 16th century . The Late Middle Ages followed the High Middle Ages and preceded the onset of the early modern era ....
sandstoneSandstoneSandstone is a sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized minerals or rock grains.Most sandstone is composed of quartz and/or feldspar because these are the most common minerals in the Earth's crust. Like sand, sandstone may be any colour, but the most common colours are tan, brown, yellow,...
portal, from (15)48 - Weingartenstraße/corner of Fährstraße – well with well house
- Weingartenstraße/corner of Herrenstraße – Heiligenhäuschen, within, a BaroqueBaroque architectureBaroque architecture is a term used to describe the building style of the Baroque era, begun in late sixteenth century Italy, that took the Roman vocabulary of Renaissance architecture and used it in a new rhetorical and theatrical fashion, often to express the triumph of the Catholic Church and...
Madonna (copy?), 18th century - On BundesstraßeBundesstraßeBundesstraße , abbreviated B, is the denotation for German and Austrian national highways.-Germany:...
49, going towards CochemCochemCochem is the seat of and the biggest place in the Cochem-Zell district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. With just under 5,000 inhabitants, Cochem falls just behind Kusel, in the like-named district, as Germany's second smallest district seat...
– basalt wayside cross, from 1603 - On Bundesstraße 49, going towards Cochem – basalt wayside cross, from 1633
- Kreuzkapelle (“Cross ChapelChapelA chapel is a building used by Christians as a place of fellowship and worship. It may be part of a larger structure or complex, such as a church, college, hospital, palace, prison or funeral home, located on board a military or commercial ship, or it may be an entirely free-standing building,...
”) – plastered building, about 1709
The St. Salvator parish church with its twin towers, built in 1845 in Romanesque Revival
Romanesque Revival architecture
Romanesque Revival is a style of building employed beginning in the mid 19th century inspired by the 11th and 12th century Romanesque architecture...
style with Rhenish slate
Slate
Slate is a fine-grained, foliated, homogeneous metamorphic rock derived from an original shale-type sedimentary rock composed of clay or volcanic ash through low-grade regional metamorphism. The result is a foliated rock in which the foliation may not correspond to the original sedimentary layering...
, is Ernst’s foremost landmark.
Transport
BundesstraßeBundesstraße
Bundesstraße , abbreviated B, is the denotation for German and Austrian national highways.-Germany:...
49 runs by the village, and Autobahn A 48 can be reached over either Landesstraße (State Road) 98 or Bundesstraße 259.