Simon August, Count of Lippe-Detmold

History

Iron Age

About 5 kilometres (3 mi) to the southwest of Detmold is the Grotenburg (de) hill with a prehistoric circular rampart and the Hermann monument (German: Hermannsdenkmal). The monument commemorates the so-called Battle of the Teutoburg Forest, a battle in 9 AD which may or may not have been fought close to the present location of Detmold. In this encounter, Germanic tribes led by Hermann (Latin: Arminius) defeated Roman legions under the command of Publius Quinctilius Varus.

Middle Ages

Detmold was first mentioned as Theotmalli in 783, the year of a battle between the Saxons and Charlemagne's forces nearby. This was an event in the Saxon Wars. In 1005 a Tietmelli or Theotmalli region (Gau) is referred to in documents.

In 1263, Bernard III of Lippe fortified the settlement at the crossing of the trade route from Paderborn to Lemgo over the Werre River with stone walls and granted it a municipal charter. Its population was reported in 1305 as 305. Market rights granted in 1265 led to rapid economic development. Its defenses were greatly strengthened after severe damage had been inflicted on the town during the conflict with Soest in 1447. A major fire in 1547 destroyed more than 70 houses.

In 1550, Detmold became the permanent residence of Count Simon III of Lippe. The counts were elevated to princes in 1789, and Detmold remained the capital of the small Principality of Lippe until the end of the World War I in 1918, when all princely states in Germany were abolished. Today, Armin, Prince of Lippe is the owner of Detmold Castle.

Modern era

Street lighting was introduced in 1809, with oil-fired lanterns. By 1835, the town had become the most populous in Lippe, with over 4,000 residents. It grew to 12,000 in 1900 and over 30,000 in 1950.

From 1919 to 1947, Detmold was the capital of the Free State of Lippe. When Lippe was incorporated into the new German state of North Rhine-Westphalia, the town became the seat of the Lippe district, and since 1972 it has been the seat of the district administration of Lippe. With the administrative reform of 1970, 25 nearby villages were incorporated into the city.

Mayors

• Robert Wittje: 1903-1919 (1852–1921)
• Emil Peters: 1920-1933 (1882–1934)
• Hans Keller (NSDAP): 1933-1945 (1903–1956)
• Alex Hofmann (CDU): 1945-1945 (1879–1959)
• Richard Moes (CDU): 1945-1946 (1887–1968)
• Wilhelm Sünkel (SPD): 1946-1946 (1894–1977)
• Fritz Priester (CDU): 1946-1948 (1891–1957)
• Helmut Starck (CDU): 1948-1949 (1905–1961)
• Richard Moes (CDU): 1949-1952 (1887–1968)
• Bruno Kirchhof (FDP): 1952-1964 (1890–1976)
• Walter Bröker (SPD): 1964-1972 (1906–1977)
• Friedrich Vogt (SPD): 1972-1989 (1921–2009)
• Friedrich Brakemeier (SPD): 1989-2004 (born 1943)
• Rainer Heller (SPD): since 2004 (born 1961)

Main sights

• Adlerwarte Berlebeck (Falconry)
• Donoper Teich (pond)
• Externsteine
• Fürstliches Residenzschloß, a Renaissance castle in the center of the town park.
• Hasselbachteich (pond)
• Hermannsdenkmal (Arminius Monument)
• Hochschule für Musik Detmold (Music Academy of Detmold)
• Hochschule Ostwestfalen-Lippe (Ostwestfalen-Lippe University of Applied Sciences)
• Landestheater Detmold (Theater)
• Lippisches Landesmuseum (Museum)
• LWL-Freilichtmuseum Detmold (Detmold Open-air Museum)
• Martin Luther Church (Detmold) (de)
• Vogelpark Heiligenkirchen (bird sanctuary)

Culture

The town supports the Nordwestdeutsche Philharmonie for regular symphony concerts.

Twin towns — sister cities

Detmold is twinned with:

• Hasselt, Belgium
• Saint-Omer, France
• Savonlinna, Finland
• Zeitz, Germany
• Kalithea, Greece

Notable people

Notable people born in Detmold include:

• Friedrich Adolf Lampe (1683–1729), theologian
• Simon August, Count of Lippe-Detmold (1727–1782), Count of Lippe
• Leopold I, Prince of Lippe (1767–1802), Prince of Lippe
• Leopold Zunz (1794-1886), scientist, founder of Reform Judaism
• Leopold II, Prince of Lippe (1796–1851), Prince of Lippe
• Christian Dietrich Grabbe (1801–1836), alongside Georg Büchner the most important innovator of German-language drama in his time
• Ferdinand Freiligrath (1810–1876), poet and author
• Leopold III, Prince of Lippe (1821–1875), Prince of Lippe
• Georg Weerth (1822–1856)
• Gustav Wallis (1830-1878), botanist and South American traveler
• Joseph Plaut (de) (1879–1966), actor, spieler, elocutionist, singer and regional poet
• Jürgen Stroop (1895–1952), German Nazi general of the SS, war criminal
• Werner Buchholz (born 1922), engineer, creator of the art word byte
• Manfred Fuhrmann (1925–2005), old philologist
• Hans-Ulrich Schmincke (born 1937), volcanologist
• Heinz Burt (1942–2000), British musician and member of The Tornados
• Hans Ottomeyer (de) (born 1946), art historian, for 11 years curator of the German Historical Museum in Berlin
• Iris Berben (born 1950), actress
• Peter Lampe (born 1954), German theologian
• Detlef Grumbach (born 1955), journalist, journalist, author and publisher
• Frank-Walter Steinmeier (born 1956), foreign minister and President-elect of Germany
• Manfred Ostermann (born 1958), German local politician (independent) and former Landrat of Soltau-Fallingbostel
• Andreas Voßkuhle (born 1963), jurist, president of the Bundesverfassungsgericht
• Ludger Beerbaum (born 1963), jumping rider
• Sebastian Faust (born 1965), actor
• Wotan Wilke Möhring (born 1967), actor
• Matthias Opdenhövel (born 1970), German television presenter and journalist
• Sven Montgomery (born 1976), Swiss-American cyclist
• Vera Ludwig (born 1978), German poet
• Stefan Langemann (born 1990), footballer

Long-time residents of Detmold include:

• Albert Lortzing (1801–1851), composer
• Johannes Brahms (1833–1897), composer
• Heinrich Drake (1881–1970), politician
• Felix Fechenbach (1894–1933), journalist
• Thomas Quasthoff (born 1959), bass-baritone

Others:

• Detmold child, a child mummy who got its name from this city.

Amongst the honorary citizens of Detmold, besides politicians are scientists and artists who have served in Detmold. The best-known are the builder of the Hermannsdenkmal, Ernst von Bandel (1871), Reich Chancellor, Otto von Bismarck (1895), and Reich President, Paul von Hindenburg (1917).