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Neuwied was founded in 1653 by Count Frederick III ofWied, initially as a fortress on the site of the village of Langendorf, which had been destroyed in theThirty Years' War (1618–1648).[3] It was to serve as the new residence of the lower county, secure its only access to the Rhine and enable the small state, impoverished in the war, to participate in Rhine trade. However, since the place hardly attracted any settlers due to its unfavourable location in a frequently flooded area, the counts of the House of Wied, especially Frederick III, Frederick William andJohn Frederick Alexander pursued a policy of self-administration and extensive religious tolerance in the town unlike in the rest of their territory. These liberties led to the immigration of numerous religious refugees from other German territories, but also from France and Switzerland, and to a rapid increase in the population. From the middle of the 18th century, members of seven religious communities lived in Neuwied:Calvinists, to which the count's house also belonged,Lutherans,Catholics,Mennonites,Inspirationalists,Moravian Brethren andJews.
The refugees and their descendants contributed significantly to the economic upswing of the town in the 18th and 19th century. Handicraft products by the cabinetmakersAbraham andDavid Roentgen, who belonged to the Moravian Brethren, or the Mennonite clockmakerPeter Kinzing were found at almost all important courts of Europe betweenVersailles andSt. Petersburg. Thanks to the foundation of the Rasselstein iron rolling mill by Count John Frederick Alexander, Neuwied was one of the first industrial locations in Germany.
Neuwied is the native town of paternal ancestors ofJohn D. Rockefeller, traced to the 16th century and possible FrenchHuguenot refugees. His father's line emigrated to the North American colonies, arriving in New York in 1710, the year of a massive immigration of nearly 2800Palatine German refugees, whose transportation costs from London were covered byQueen Anne's British government. Neuwied was also the birthplace ofWilliam of Wied, who briefly held the title ofKing of Albania in 1914.
The core of Neuwied and the former village of Heddesdorf, which belonged to the municipality before these districts were added, are not listed as districts themselves.
The place of the abandoned former village ofRockenfeld, which is considered to be the origin and namesake of the famousRockefeller family, also belongs to today's municipal territory of Neuwied.[5]
Since the inner city of Neuwied is situated on a former bed of the river Rhine, it is at great risk of flooding. It is one of very few towns in the region protected by flood-preventionlevees, a source of friction with communities downstream.
The 2019 municipal council elections led to the following distribution of seats:CDU (15),SPD (12),Greens (7),AfD (5),FWG (3),FDP (2),The Left (2), Ich tu's (2).
Originally there were only a few thousand people living in Neuwied, with the number not growing significantly because of wars and famines. With the industrialization in the 19th century the number of inhabitants increased from 5,600 in 1831 to 18,000 in 1905.
By 1970 the figure had grown to 31,400 and following a major realignment incorporating several communities within the town, it jumped to 63,000.
As of 30 June 2005 there were officially 66,455 people living in Neuwied.
Neuwied is connected to the German network ofBundesstraßen (national routes) (here: B9, B42 and B256). TheAutobahnen (motorways) A3, A48 and A61 are quickly reachable from Neuwied.
Within the bounds of Neuwied are two railway stations,Neuwied andEngers on theRight Rhine line, and a third station is under consideration by the state agency for northern commuter railway services (SPNV Nord), which is responsible for the service on the railway lines connecting toKoblenz Hauptbahnhof in the south andKöln Hauptbahnhof in the north. Via either of those stations, theGerman high-speed rail network and the InterCity network are accessible. Daytime service include the following:
and a Deutsche Bahn hourly all-stops service (Regionalbahn) Koblenz-Neuwied-Cologne-Stommeln(-Mönchengladbach) and back, which is also available in the evening hours.
It takes about 15 to 20 minutes to travel to Koblenz while Cologne is about 70 to 80 minutes away,Mainz 90 to 120 minutes, direct connection to Frankfurt is around 150 minutes, sometimes faster when changing to the IC/ICE network.
Public transport within Neuwied relies on a bus network, offering (depending on line) 20, 30 or 60-minute schedules, the majority of lines are served byTransdev.
All public transport (road and rail) is integrated into theVerkehrsverbund Rhein-Mosel public transport association. Tickets are valid for all service, restricted by time and fare zones. For more information on timetables, see[1]Archived 17 July 2011 at theWayback Machine.
