Rüthen | |
|---|---|
 Aerial photograph of Rüthen | |
 Flag  Coat of arms | |
Location of Rüthen within Soest district  | |
  Rüthen  Rüthen | |
| Coordinates:51°29′36″N8°29′0″E / 51.49333°N 8.48333°E /51.49333; 8.48333 | |
| Country | Germany |
| State | North Rhine-Westphalia |
| Admin. region | Arnsberg |
| District | Soest |
| Subdivisions | 15 |
| Government | |
| • Mayor(2020–25) | Peter Weiken[1] |
| Area | |
• Total | 158.09 km2 (61.04 sq mi) |
| Highest elevation | 440 m (1,440 ft) |
| Lowest elevation | 280 m (920 ft) |
| Population (2023-12-31)[2] | |
• Total | 11,049 |
| • Density | 70/km2 (180/sq mi) |
| Time zone | UTC+01:00 (CET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+02:00 (CEST) |
| Postal codes | 59602 |
| Dialling codes | 02952 |
| Vehicle registration | SO |
| Website | www.ruethen.de |
Rüthen (German pronunciation:[ˈʁyːtn̩]) is a town in thedistrict of Soest, inNorth Rhine-Westphalia,Germany.
Rüthen is situated at the northeastern border of the natural preserveArnsberger Wald between theHaarstrang and the valley of the riverMöhne, approx. 20 km south ofLippstadt and 35 kilometres (22 mi) south-west ofPaderborn. The highest point is the Wehberg with a height of 528.9 metres (1,735 ft), the lowest point the valley of the river Pöppelsche at 130 metres (430 ft). With an area of more than 310 square kilometres (120 sq mi) it is the largest town within the district of Soest.
Today Rüthen is the commune largest in area in the district ofSoest with an area of 158 square kilometres (61 sq mi). After the local government reforms of 1975 Rüthen consists of the following 15 districts:
Rüthen istwinned with:
Dereham (United Kingdom) – since 1983
Egeln (Saxony-Anhalt,Germany) – since 1991
The city of Rüthen was first mentioned in a document of the Kloster Grafschaft (abbey earldom) in 1072. The area around Rüthen already belonged to the Erzbistum Köln (archbishopric Cologne) in the High Middle Ages. On 29 September 1200 Rüthen was given town law by the sovereign, the archbishop of CologneAdolf I. von Altena. Starting in 1375 Rüthen belonged to theHanse, an economic alliance of trading cities and their guilds that dominated trade along the coast of Northern Europe in the later Middle Ages. The merchants of the city had far reaching business connections and because of that were able to ensure wealth. In the following centuries, however, the importance of Rüthen decreased massively.
Like many other cities in the duchy ofWestfalen, Rüthen held witch trials. From 1573 to 1660, 104 people were tried as witches and wizards, at least 79 being sentenced to death. Freunnd Happen, who had been accused of being a sorcerer, was discharged after two months of torture on 23 September 1660.
|
|
|
In the village ofKallenhardt you can findSchloss Körtlinghausen (1714), a small castle surrounded by water, a catholic church from 1722 and an old cityhall from the 14th or 15th century.
TheHohler Stein in Kallenhardt is a big cave in which archaeological findings from theStone Age andBronze Age were made.
Towns and municipalities inSoest (district) | ||
|---|---|---|
 | ||
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
