Roßdorf is a municipality in the district of Darmstadt-Dieburg, in Hesse, Germany. It has a population of 12,619 (as of 2020). It is situated 8 km east of Darmstadt.
Geographic Situation
Neighbouring Towns and Municipalities
Roßdorf borders in the north and east on the municipality of Groß-Zimmern, in the southeast on the town of Reinheim, in the south on the town of Ober-Ramstadt, and in the west on the city of Darmstadt.
Structure of the Municipality
The Municipality of Roßdorf is divided into two parts: Gundernhausen and Roßdorf.
Demographic development
Inhabitants:
1575: 500
1635: 50
1814: 200
2003: 12,114
2005: 12,434
2007: 12,169
History
The first official mention of Roßdorf is in the year 1250. At this time, Abbot Heinrich vested Counts Diether and Eberhardt I of Katzenelnbogen with the villages of Roßdorf and Gundernhausen. In 1479, the family line died out and the inheritance went to Landgrave Heinrich III of Hesse.
In 1621, Bavarian soldiers took up quarters in Roßdorf and plundered the town. In addition, witch-hunts took place, during which the inhabitants were accused of witchcraft. The worst period for Roßdorf was in the years 1634/35, during the Thirty Years' War. The forces of the Holy Roman Empire and Sweden opposed each other in the region, each in turn laying waste to and scavenging the entire countryside and heavily decimating the population. In the summer of 1635, the plague broke out, reducing the number of inhabitants to 50. In 1672, during the Franco-Dutch War, Louis XIV's troops took up quarters. In 1814, Russian soldiers passed through on their way to France.
In 1852, Roßdorf was incorporated into the district of Darmstadt. Since 1977, amalgamated with its neighbour Gundernhausen, it has belonged to the district of Darmstadt-Dieburg.
Politics
Municipal Council
This section needs to be updated. Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information.(July 2021)
The communal election of 26 March 2006 returned the following result (compared to the result from 2001):
The coat of arms consists of a shield with blue background. At the centre is a silver moon, over which a golden horseshoe hangs. Underneath these, there is a silver rose, the centre of which is blue. The remaining free space is taken up by seven golden stars (five in the upper area, two in the lower area). The coat of arms was approved by the president of the regional government in 1952.
The coat of arms is based on the seal of the combined village court of Roßdorf and Gundernhausen. An imprint of this seal can be found on the so-called "Mansfeld Catalogue of Damages" from 1625, which is kept in the National Archive in Darmstadt. This Catalogue lists the losses suffered by the subjects of the Counts of Katzenelnbogen during the Thirty Years' War. In the 1950s, a face was added to the moon on the coat of arms, a move which has been criticised by many of Roßdorf's inhabitants.
Roßdorf is connected to the Bundesstraße B 26 by three slip roads. (The B 26 has interchanges in Darmstadt with the Autobahns A 5 and A 67 and in Aschaffenburg with the A 3). Roßdorf is also the starting point of the B 38.
In addition, a number of bus routes serve Roßdorf:
The rail line between the "Darmstadt Ost" and "Bessunger Forsthaus" halts is still occasionally used for historical train rides. The rest of the line between Darmstadt and Groß Zimmern has been dismantled.
Notable people
Georg Christian Bonhard (1770 in Gundernhausen - 1836), physician
Christian Sartorius (1796 in Gundernhausen - 1872 in Mirador, Mexico), theologist, pedagogue and author, as well as sugar cane plantation owner in Mexico
Heinz Friedrich (1922–2004), journalist, publisher and author
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