| Art | Stadt |
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| Image photo | PS-Altes Rathaus edit.JPG |
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| Wappen | Wappen Pirmasens.svg |
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| Lat deg | 49 |lat_min = 12 |lat_sec = 0 |
|---|
| Lon deg | 7 |lon_min = 36 |lon_sec = 0 |
|---|
| Bundesland | Rheinland-Pfalz |
|---|
| Landkreis | Kreisfreie Stadt |
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| Höhe | 380 |
|---|
| Fläche | 61.37 |
|---|
| Einwohner | 42427 |
|---|
| Stand | 2006-12-31 |
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| Gemeindeschlüssel | 07317000 |
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| Plz | 66953–66955 |
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| Vorwahl | 06331 |
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| Kfz | PS |
|---|
| Website | www.pirmasens.de |
|---|
| Bürgermeister | Bernhard Matheis |
|---|
| Bürgermeistertitel | Oberbürgermeister |
|---|
| Partei | CDU |
|---|
Pirmasens is a district-free city in
Rhineland-Palatinate,
Germany, near the border with
France. It is famous for the manufacture of shoes. The surrounding rural district was called Pirmasens from 1818 until 1997, when it was renamed
Südwestpfalz.
History
The first mention of "Pirminiseusna", a colony of
Hornbach Abbey, dates from 860. The name derives from
St. Pirminius, the founder of the cloister.
In 1763 Pirmasens is chartered by landgrave Ludwig IX (Hesse-Darmstadt).
In 1793 it was the location of a battle between Prussia and Braunschweig against the french Moselle Army: the French lost the battle, but their opponents' divisions nevertheless enabled them to return and occupy Pirmasens by the end of the year: between 1798 and 1814, the town was included in the French département of Mont-Tonnerre ("Donnersberg-Département" in German}.
* 1923/24 tests of palatinate separatists to settle down in Pirmasens failed on 12 February 1924: occupation of the district town hall, home of the separatistic administration; many deaths on both sides
9 November 1938 destruction of the synagogue during the so called Kristallnacht.
On 15 March 1945 Pirmasens was captured by US troops, and the following year it became part of the newly founded
Bundesland Rhineland-Palatinate. During the occupation on Sept. 19 the Museum of Pirmasens announced that about 50 paintings which had been stored in the air-raid shelter at Husterhoh School during the war have been plundered during the arrival of the American troops.
In 1989 the FH Kaiserslautern was founded. After the fall of communism, and the reunification of East and West Germany, Pirmasens saw an influx of Russian immigrants (mainly from White Russia) claiming to be descendants of German soldiers caught behind the iron curtain after the second World War. Russian immigrants claiming German descendency were given permanent resident status. As typically occurs in human populations, tensions began to build between these immigrants and local residents, who were already at odds with the increasing Turkish and former Yugoslavian populations.
Main sights
Dynamikum, a science museum
Collected works of Hugo Ball
Picture gallery of the painter Heinrich Bürkel
Museum of shoes
Silhouettes from Elisabeth Emmler
Westwallmuseum
Incorporations
1969: Erlenbrunn, Fehrbach, Hengsberg, Niedersimten, Winzeln
1972: Gersbach, Windsberg
Evolution of population (since December 2000):
{| border="1" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="0"
| valign="top" width="25%" |
1875 - 10.136
1890 - 21.041
1925 - 42.996
1933 - 47.221
| valign="top" width="25%" |
1939 - 50.560
1950 - 49.676
1970 - 57.773
1987 - 47.997
| valign="top" width="25%" |
2000 - 45.212
2001 - 44.822
2002 - 44.367
2003 - 43.971
2004 - 43.637
2005 - 44.137
2006 - 43.456
2007 - 41.875
2008 - 41.358
|}
Politics
Town council election 13 June 2004:
CDU 46,0% (-1,8) - 21 seats (-1)
SPD 23,8% (-11,4) - 11 seats (-5)
WGR 10,8% +3,7) - 5 seats (+3)
REP 10,2% (+7,3) - 5 seats (+5)
The Greens 4,3% (+0,3) - 2 seats (=)
Other 5,1% (+2,0) - 0 Sitze (-1)
Twin towns
Poissy, France
Culture
Events
the "Landgrafen-Tage" (days of the landgraves) - every second weekend in April
Open-Air Highlights at the parade-ground (e.g. musicals, opera)
"Schlabbeflicker-Fest", a parade of uniformed musicians - every first weekend in August
Parade-ground festival - every second weekend in September
Euroclassic festival (Festival of the cities: Pirmasens, Bitche, Zweibrücken, Blieskastel and of the Verbandsgemeinde Zweibrücken-Land)
"Grenadiermarkt" (infantryman market) - in Autumn
"Novembermarkt" - last weekend of October or first weekend of November
Christmas market in the Advent
Music
Choir of oratory Pirmasens
Chantor's house of Pirmasens
Theater
Performances at the festival hall
Sport
{|
|width="180" valign="top"|
FK Pirmasens
TV 1863 Pirmasens
VFB Pirmasens
GW Pirmasens
SG Pirmasens
|width="180" valign="top"|
Rot-Weiß Pirmasens
Blau-Weiß Pirmasens
ASV Pirmasens
TTC Pirmasens
TUS/DJK Pirmasens
|valign="top"|
SV 1907 Ruhbank
RC Pirmasens
1. Boule Verein Pirmasens
MTV 1873 Pirmasens
|}
Companies
Ergo-Fit - manufacturer of cardiology equipment
Kennel&Schmenger; Schuhfabrik - manufacturer of shoes
Koch Maschinenbau GmbH - engineering
Peter Kaiser GmbH - Germany's oldest shoe-factory
Park&Bellheimer; AG - brewery
Profine GmbH, Kömmerling - manufacturer of synthetic material; major company
psb GmbH
SympaTel Telemarketing GmbH
WAFO GmbH - specialist in the abrasion technique
WAWI Euro GmbH - chocolate factory
"Pirmasenser Zeitung" local newspaper
"Die Rheinpfalz" local newspaper
KD Schaltanlagenbau
Education
Fachhochschule Kaiserslautern, Campus Pirmasens located in Pirmasens
Deutsche Schuhfachschule
See also
Husterhoeh Kaserne
References
J.B.Lehnung, Geliebtes Pirmasens, 12 Bände, Pirmasens (Komet), 1978 ff. [with a lot of photos]
Gräber/Spindler, Die Pfalzbefreier, Ludwigshafen/Rhein, 2005 [discussed separatism]
References
External links
Official website
Westwallmuseum
Radio Pirmasens
Museum Dynamikum
![Schlittenfahrt in Pirmasens [kein Schnee]](http://web.archive.org./web/20110111040458im_/http://i.ytimg.com/vi/WrzNq6RR-M8/2.jpg "Schlittenfahrt in Pirmasens [kein Schnee]")
![Cyteria on Tour to Pirmasens [NEW!!!]](http://web.archive.org./web/20110111040458im_/http://i.ytimg.com/vi/Hv1Yml807zg/2.jpg "Cyteria on Tour to Pirmasens [NEW!!!]")
