Wermelskirchen (; Ripuarian: Wärmelßkirrshe) is a town in the Rheinisch-Bergischer Kreis, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, southeast of Remscheid. It is home to one of Europe's biggest live Christmas trees (measuring 26m).
Geography The distance to Cologne is about 35 kilometers, to Düsseldorf about 45 kilometers. The neighboring municipalities are Remscheid, Hückeswagen, Wipperfürth, Kürten, Odenthal, Burscheid and Solingen. The townscape is characterized by Altberg slate and half-timbered houses.
The city area of Wermelskirchen (area: 74,74 km²) composed out of three district's: the initial Wermelskirchen and the incorporated, previously independent municipalities, Dhünn and Dabringhausen.
Coat of arms
The coat-of-arms of the city of Wermelskirchen is a silver shield split into thirds. In the left field is an oak tree. In the right field there is a Swan and pictured in the middle field there is a church.
History From 1822 to 1945, Wermelskirchen was part of the Prussian Rhine Province.
Population
Education Wermelskirchen has an Evangelical, a Roman Catholic church and a Latin school.
Economy The city has the head office of OBI"Impressum." OBI. Retrieved on 2 February 2011. "Komplementär OBI Heimwerkermarkt Systemzentrale GmbH, Albert-Einstein-Straße 7-9, 42929 Wermelskirchen, Amtsgericht Köln HR B 36389." and the origin of the caster manufacturer TENTE.
Twin towns – sister cities
Wermelskirchen is twinned with: Forst, Germany since 1990 Loches, France since 1974
Notable people Carl Leverkus (1804–1889), founder of a German chemical and pharmaceutical company and the namesake of the city of Leverkusen Uwe Boll (born 1965), film director and writer, restaurateur and founder of Bauhaus Restaurant chains in Canada Tim Schrick (born 1976), racecar driver, and television presenter Thomas Kleine (born 1977), footballer Christian Lindner (born 1979), politician and Federal Minister of Finance (2021–present) Marike Steinacker (born 1992), athlete, who competed in the women's discus throw event at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and the 2024 Paris Olympics, in which she placed 6th and 4th respectively
Honorary citizens 1876: Ludwig von Bohlen 1889: Carl Leverkus 1895: Otto von Bismarck 1933: Paul von Hindenburg
References
External links
Official website Website of the borough Dabringhausen