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Ettelbruck | |
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 EttelbruckGrand-Rue in November 2013 | |
 Coat of arms | |
 Map of Luxembourg with Ettelbruck highlighted in orange, and the canton in dark red | |
| Coordinates:49°50′47″N6°05′57″E / 49.8464°N 6.0992°E /49.8464; 6.0992 | |
| Country |  Luxembourg |
| Canton | Diekirch |
| Government | |
| • Mayor | Bob Steichen |
| Area | |
• Total | 15.18 km2 (5.86 sq mi) |
| • Rank | 77th of 100 |
| Highest elevation | 382 m (1,253 ft) |
| • Rank | 68th of 100 |
| Lowest elevation | 192 m (630 ft) |
| • Rank | 23rd of 100 |
| Population | |
• Total | 9,965 |
| • Rank | 14th of 100 |
| • Density | 656.5/km2 (1,700/sq mi) |
| • Rank | 13th of 100 |
| Time zone | UTC+1 (CET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+2 (CEST) |
| LAU 2 | LU0000605 |
| Website | ettelbruck.lu |
Ettelbruck (Luxembourgish:Ettelbréckpronounced[ˈætəlbʀek]ⓘ,German:Ettelbrück[ˈɛtl̩bʁʏk]) is acommune withtown status in centralLuxembourg, with a population of9,965 inhabitants.
Until 1850, bothErpeldange andSchieren were part of the Ettelbruck commune as well, but both towns were detached from Ettelbruck by law on 1 July 1850.
Nazi Germany occupied Ettelbruck on 10 May 1940. The town was first liberated by US forces on 11 September 1944, however it was recaptured by Germany on 16 December during theBattle of the Bulge. Ettelbruck was finally liberated nine days later onChristmas Day, 25 December 1944 by US troops, led by GeneralGeorge S. Patton. One of Ettelbruck's main squares is namedPatton Square, and is located at the spot where the German offensive into Luxembourg'sAlzette Valley was stopped, ending its attempt to reoccupy the country as a whole. From 1954 to 2004, the town held aRemembrance Day celebration each July honoring General Patton and the US, British, French, Belgian and Luxembourgish troops who fought with him there.[1]
Ettelbruck is one of the 12communes of thecanton of Diekirch, which is part of thedistrict of Diekirch. Governmentally, the Ettelbruck communal council (French:Conseil communal de Ettelbruck) serves as the commune'slocal council. The council consists of thirteen members, elected every six years.
Ettelbruck lies where three rivers meet: theSauer, theWark and theAlzette. This location has historically made Ettelbruck a major transportation hub for the country second only to thecity of Luxembourg.
Ettelbruck serves as ajunction, where the line toDiekirch branches off the main lineLuxembourg –Liège. Thestation is onLine 10, which connectsLuxembourg City to central and northern Luxembourg towardsGouvy andWiltz, with abranch line connecting to Diekirch.
TheA7 motorway, known as the Motorway of the North, is connected to Ettelbruck via the trunk road B7 which runs along the east of Ettelbruck. The B7 junction is borderingSchieren. The other main access routes are the national roads N15Rue de Bastogne, and the N7 that crosses Ettelbruck north to south.
The GeneralGeorge S. Patton Memorial Museum in Ettelbruck, opened in July 1995, honours the general who liberated the town. The museum exhibits photographs, documents and memorabilia relating to the German occupation of Luxembourg (May 1940 to September 1944). It also displays a cast of thePatton statue at West Point. The museum was renovated in 2014. In September 2024, the Luxembourg government recognised Ettelbruck as a major site of World War II memory and supported the commemoration of the “Route of Liberation of Europe”, including enhanced visitor facilities around the museum and Patton Square.[3]
The Ettelbruck parish church—D' Kierch Ettelbréck—is a decagonal structure. Restored in 1849, the church contains tombstones dating as far back as the 15th century. The town’s Festivities Department, based at Place de l’Église, organises annual cultural events in the church square, underscoring its role as a community landmark.[4]
Ettelbruck since 1917 has been the home of thefootball teamFC Etzella Ettelbruck. The team plays in Ettelbruck's football stadiumStade Am Deich which has a capacity of about 2,000.
Ettelbruck is a medical centre for northern Luxembourg, as it is home to the Central Hospice (founded in 1855) which is now the location of the Ettelbruck Neuro-Psychiatric Hospital (in French, CHNP =Centre Hospitalier Neuro-Psychiatrique) with approximately 500 beds.Lucien Wercollier's marble sculptureLa Vague ("The Wave") is located in Ettelbruck on the grounds of the CHNP.
TheCentre Hospital du Nord (CHdN) Ettelbruck was renovated and reopened as a state of the art medical facility in 2003 on the site of the earlier Charles Marx Clinic and Saint Louis Clinic. The original clinic was founded byCharles Marx in 1936. The Saint Louis Clinic became a point of resistance preceding the Nazi occupation, when its founder Charles Marx treated downed French airmen (including the future generalMarcel-Pierre Faure) in April, 1940. Following the occupation of Luxembourg, Marx fled toFrance. Following the Nazi occupation, Marx was arrested and jailed for treating the airmen. In 1946, following liberation and Marx's accidental death in that year, the clinic was renamed as the Charles Marx Clinic to honor him. In 1963, the clinic was renamed the New Saint Louis Clinic when it was revamped and modernised, becoming the New Saint Louis Hospital (French:Nouvel Hôpital St Louis) in 2003. In 2010 the formerHôpital Saint-Louis merged with theClinique Saint-Joseph in Wiltz to form theCentre Hospital du Nord.[5]
Ettelbruck is an educational centre for the north of the country. It is home to the St. Anne Girls' Boarding School, founded in 1852 and located betweenRue du Canal andGrand-Rue. Parts of the State Agricultural School (LTA), founded in 1883, are still in theAvenue Lucien Salentiny leading toWarken. The main structures moved in 2021 to a newly build campus inGilsdorf, above theDiekirch sports centre. TheAvenue Lucien Salentiny is also home to theLycée Technique d'Ettelbruck (LTEtt) which was founded as a vocational school in 1969.
Ons Heemecht ("Our Homeland"), the national anthem of Luxembourg, was first sung publicly in Ettelbruck on 5 June 1864. Both theAlzette andSauer rivers are named in the song, and since Ettelbruck is located at the point where they both meet, the location was appropriate for its public introduction.
Places adjacent to Ettelbruck | |
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