Wikipedia:WikiProject Germany/Portal:Rhön
Welcome to the Rhön Portal!
The Rhön Mountains or simply the Rhön, also called the Land of Open Distances (Land der offenen Fernen), is a low mountain range of volcanic origin in Central Germany. It covers an area of about 1,500 km², straddling the states of Bavaria, Hesse and Thuringia. Its highest mountain is the Wasserkuppe, whose summit reaches 950 m above sea level (NHN). The Rhön is one of the southernmost ranges of the German Central Uplands. The Rhön's harsh climate, its geography and the fact that it found itself on the borders of different territories until the division of Germany, are factors that all leave their impression on this wild and rather remote region. Today it is increasingly becoming a tourist and holiday destination.
Article of the Quarter
The Heidelstein, between Bischofsheim an der Rhön in the Bavarian county of Rhön-Grabfeld and Wüstensachsen in the Hessian county of Fulda, is a 925.7-metre-high border mountain in the High Rhön, part of the Rhön Mountains, a range in the German Central Uplands. The Heidelstein's actual summit in Bavaria and is sometimes also called the Schwabenhimmel.
On the Heidelstein is the Heidelstein Transmitter and a commemoration site for the Rhön Club. On its northwestern slopes lies the source of the Ulster (river) and, on the western slopes, is the cross-country skiing centre of Rotes Moor.
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Geography
In the heart of the mountains is the High Rhön, a range of mountains of volcanic origin. Around it, especially to the north and west, rises the so-called Kuppen Rhön, formed predominantly of Bunter sandstone and pierced by basalt cones. Also counted as part of the Rhön, but not geologically related, are the surrounding hills made of different rocks. The orographic boundaries of the range orient themselves on the major rivers - the Fulda, Werra, Franconian Saale and Sinn. The outer belt of hills includes the South Rhön which is geologically more related to the Spessart hills.
- Natural regions
(to 35 East Hesse Highlands)
- 353 Anterior and Kuppen Rhön (with the Landrücken)
- 353.0 Landrücken
- 353.1 Western Rhön Foreland
- 353.2 (Western and Eastern) Kuppen Rhön with the Brückenau Kuppenrhön, Milseburg Kuppenrhön, Soisberg Kuppenrhön, Middle Ulster Valley, Auersberg Kuppenrhön, Middle Felda Valley, Anterior Rhön
- 353.3 Eastern Rhön Foreland
- 354 High Rhön
- 354.0 Southern High Rhön and Dammersfeldrücken, Black Mountains, Kreuzberg Group
- 354.1 Central Rhön with the Wasserkuppen Rhön, Long Rhön, Eastern Slopes of the Long Rhön, Upper Ulster Valley
- (to 355 Fulda-Haune Tableland)
- 355.3 Haune Plateaux and Rombach Plateaux, Haune valley (and Hünfeld Basin), Buchenau Plateau
- (to 357 Fulda-Werra Highland): Seulingswald
- (to 358 Salzungen Werra Highland):
- 358.0 Stadtlengsfeld Hills
(to 13 Mainfranconian Plateaux)
- (to 1381 Grabfeld)
- 1381.0 Western Grabfeld
- (to 1382 Werra Gäu Plateaux)
- 1382.0 Western Werra Gäu Plateaux with the Mellrichstadt Gäu, Bibra Saddle, St. Bernhard Plateau, Dreißigacker-Sülzfeld Rhön Scarp
(to 14 Odenwald, Spessart and South Rhön)
- (to 141 South Rhön)
- 140.0 Gemünden-Zeitlofs Forest
- (to 140.1 Hammelburg South Rhön) with the Schondra-Thulba-South Rhön, Erthal Chalk Hills
- (to 140.2 Eastern South Rhön) with the Schönau Plateau
- Mountains and hills
- Auersberg, Dammersfeldkuppe, Dreistelzberg, Eierhauckberg, Ellenbogen, Gebaberg, Große Haube, Heidelstein, Hohe Schule, Kreuzberg, Milseburg, Pleß, Soisberg, Totnansberg, Wasserkuppe
- → List of mountains and hills of the Rhön
Settlements
This is a list of the main towns in the Rhön.
- Bavaria
Bad Brückenau · Bad Kissingen · Bischofsheim an der Rhön · Fladungen · Gemünden am Main · Hammelburg · Mellrichstadt · Ostheim vor der Rhön · Rieneck
- Hesse
- Thuringia
Geisa · Kaltennordheim · Meiningen · Stadtlengsfeld · Wasungen
History
c. 5th century BC - 1st century BC |
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744 AD |
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to 10th century AD |
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1096-1583 |
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Middle Ages |
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1814/15 |
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from 1885 |
Construction of railway branch lines in the Rhön | |
1935–1944 |
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1938 |
Creation of Wildflecken Training Area | |
1949 |
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1990 |
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1991 |
Transport
The A7 motorway grazes the Rhön to the west and the A71 in the extreme east. A network of federal highways (Bundesstraßen) runs through the heart of the Rhön. There were once several branch lines in the Rhön; only the Fulda–Gersfeld railway is still working as a normal railway, whilst the Mellrichstadt–Fladungen railway is operated as a heritage line.
The following bus and rail services serve the Rhön:
- Meininger Busbetrieb (Thuringia)
- Omnibusverkehr Franken (Bavaria)
- ÜWAG Bus GmbH (Hesse)
- Rhön-Zügle
- Unterfrankenshuttle
In addition to the motorways, the following major roads cross the Rhön:
- Bundesstraße 27: Bad Hersfeld–Petersberg
- Bundesstraße 62: Bad Hersfeld–Bad Salzungen
- Bundesstraße 84: Vacha (B62)–Hünfeld (B27)
- Bundesstraße 278: Buttlar (B84)–Bischofsheim (B279)
- Bundesstraße 279: Eichenzell–Schönau
- Bundesstraße 284: Ehrenberg (B278)–Gersfeld (B279)
- Bundesstraße 285: Bad Salzungen (B62)–Mellrichstadt
- Bundesstraße 286: Bad Brückenau (B27)–Bad Kissingen
- Bundesstraße 458: Dipperz–Hilders (B278)
Structures
- Castles and palaces
- Altenbrenda Castle, Auersburg Castle, Bieberstein Palace, Hesse, Bocksberg Castle, Buchenau Palace, Ebersburg Castle, Eberstein Castle, Elisabethenburg Palace, Fischberg Castle, Fürsteneck Castle, Haselstein Castle, Henneberg Castle, Hildenburg, Hutsburg, Lengsfeld Castle, Lichtenburg Castle, Meiningen Castle, Merlinsburg, Milseburg Castle, Osterburg Castle, Ostheimer Warte, Poppenhausen Castle, Ruins of Rabenstein, Rockenstuhl Castle, Schöneburg (Oechsen), Tann Palace, Werberg Castle, Weyhers Castle
- Churches
- Kirchenburg Ostheim, Kirchenburg Walldorf, Kloster Kreuzberg, Mauerschädel, St. John's Church, Herpf, Stadtkirche, Meiningen
- Technical structures
- Landrücken Tunnel, Sinn Viaduct
People
Adalbert Endert: bishop, Andreas Fack: composer and author of the Rhönlied, Otto Feick: inventor of the Rhön wheel, Adalbert Geheeb: botanist, Moritz Goldschmidt: biologist, Franz Kaspar Lieblein: botanist, Ludwig Nüdling: local poet, Johann Heinrich Valentin Paul: Rhön Paulus, Christian Schreiber: philosopher and poet, Karl Straub: writer, Erwin Sturm: local historian, Joseph Vonderau: local historian
Culture and Leisure
In the course of the last two centuries opportunities for recreation have been developed, beginning with walking. Both sporting and cultural activities are widespread and varied. In particular, skiing has become popular in winter.
- Museums
- German Gliding Museum, Franconian Open Air Museum, Art Station, Kleinsassen, Pfundsmuseum, Point Alpha, Sieblos Museum
- Theatre
- Meiningen Theatre
- Wildlife parks
- Gersfeld Wildlife Park, Klaushof Wildlife Park
- Walking
- The Hochrhöner, Point Alpha Way
Entry
Categories
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Members
This list contains the names and interests of members or those interested in the Rhön Portal.
- Areas of interest: Creator of the portal. German geography and history.
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Links
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