Düren facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Düren
View of Burgau Castle
Flag Coat of arms
Country	Germany
State	North Rhine-Westphalia
Admin. region	Köln
District	Düren
Elevation	125 m (410 ft)
Population  (2022-12-31)
• Total	93,207
Time zone	CET/CEST (UTC+1/+2)
Postal codes	52349/52351/52353/52355
Dialling codes	02421
Vehicle registration	DN
Website	www.dueren.de

Düren is a town in Germany, located in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia. It sits between the cities of Aachen and Cologne, right by the Rur river.

History of Düren

Ancient Times: Roman Era

Long ago, the area where Düren is now was part of a region called Gallia Belgica. This land was home to a group of people known as the Eburones. The powerful Roman Republic, led by Julius Caesar, took control of this area. It then became part of the Roman province called Germania inferior.

Düren became an important place for supplying goods to the big Roman city of Cologne. Several major Roman roads also passed near Düren. By the 300s AD, a group of people called the Ripuarian Franks settled here. The name villa duria was first used in the Frankish records in the year 747.

In the 700s, the Frankish king Pippin the Short often visited Düren. He even held important meetings there. The Franks made Düren a royal palace, also known as a Pfalz. Later, Charlemagne, another famous Frankish ruler, also stayed in Düren many times. Because of his frequent visits, many markets grew in the town. These markets, like those for corn, cattle, and wood, helped Düren develop and become more important. A castle was built where the Saint Anne Church stands today.

Middle Ages: City Walls and Saint Anne

Düren officially became a city in the early 1200s. Around the year 1200, people started building a strong city wall. This wall had 12 towers and 5 gates that faced in all directions. For example, the Kölntor (Cologne gate) was in the east. You can still see parts of these old gates today.

In 1501, a craftsman named Leonhard took a small box containing a special item, a relic of Saint Anne, from a church in Mainz. He brought it to Düren. Pope Julius II decided in 1506 that Düren could keep this relic. It was placed in the Martinskirche (Saint Martin's church), which was later renamed the Annakirche (Saint Anne's church). Saint Anne became the special protector of Düren. Every year, on July 26, the town celebrates Saint Anne's day for a whole week. This celebration, called the Anna octavos and Anna parish fair, is one of the biggest folk festivals in Germany.

Later Centuries: Wars, Earthquakes, and Industry

In 1642, Düren was caught up in the Thirty Years' War. Armies fighting against each other destroyed the city. After the war ended in 1648, a terrible sickness called the Bubonic plague spread, causing many people to die. Another plague outbreak happened in 1665. The city was destroyed again in 1679 due to various attacks.

Towards the end of 1755, a series of earthquakes began in the Düren area. The strongest one hit on February 18, 1756. This earthquake was very powerful and affected many parts of Europe.

Since the 1400s, businesses in Düren focused on making cloth and working with metal. In the early 1600s, the paper industry also started here. This was because the Rur river had very soft water, which was perfect for making paper. Rütger von Scheven built the first paper mill in Düren. By 1812, there were already 17 paper factories, along with many cloth factories and ironworks.

In 1794, French soldiers took over Düren during the French Revolution. Düren was part of France until 1814. After the Congress of Vienna in 1815, Düren became part of the Kingdom of Prussia.

20th Century: Growth, War, and Rebuilding

By 1900, Düren was one of Germany's richest cities. It had 42 millionaires and 93 factories, and its population had grown to over 27,000 people. Just a century before, fewer than 5,000 people lived there.

During World War II, Düren was on the main fighting front as the Allied forces entered Germany. A long and difficult battle, the Battle of Huertgen Forest, was fought in the area around Düren in 1944 and 1945. On November 16, 1944, Düren was almost completely destroyed by air bombings from Allied planes. About 3,000 of the 22,000 people living in Düren at that time died in the bombing. Those who survived had to leave the city and move to central Germany.

By 1939, Düren's population had reached over 45,000. But after the war's destruction, it dropped to just 3,806 by June 1945. On February 25, 1945, U.S. troops crossed the Rur river at Düren. After the war ended, many people who had left came back to the destroyed city. They started rebuilding their homes, even though the American troops advised against it. By December 1945, the population had grown to 25,000. By 1958, it was back to 45,000, the same as before the war. Because of this, most of the buildings in Düren today were built in the 1950s.

Culture and Things to See

The most famous museum in Düren is the Leopold Hoesch Museum. This building, built in 1905, shows different art exhibitions. Since 1986, it has also shown artworks from an international art event called the Biennale PaperArt. The Düren Carnival Museum opened in 2006. The newest museum, the Stadtmuseum Düren, opened in 2009. It shows the history of the local area.

Theatre and Music

The old Stadttheater Düren opened in 1907 but was almost completely destroyed in the 1944 bombing. Today, cultural shows are mostly held at the Haus der Stadt. Since 2004, the Arena Kreis Düren, which has about 2000 seats, is used for big concerts. Düren also hosts an annual jazz festival called Dürener Jazztage.

Important Buildings

At the edge of the forest in the Niederau area is Burgau Castle. This water castle was home to the Counts of Heinsberg in the early 1300s. It was destroyed in 1944, but it was rebuilt between 1979 and 1998.

In Theodor Heuss Park, you can find the Bismarck Memorial. This monument was built in 1892 to honor Otto von Bismarck, a very famous person from Düren. The town hall was opened in 1959. It is now considered an important example of 1950s architecture.

Religion

• The most important church in the city is the Annakirche. This church was completely destroyed by bombs in 1944. It was rebuilt in the 1950s with the help of architect Rudolf Schwarz. There are also 15 other Catholic churches in the city.
• The main Protestant church in Düren is the Christuskirche. When it opened in 1954, its bell tower was the tallest freestanding one in Germany.
• Before it was destroyed during the Kristallnacht in 1938, the synagogue was located on Schützenstraße. Now, a special stone monument by artist Rückriem stands in its place.

Main Sights

• Burgau Castle (German: Schloss Burgau)
• Dicker Turm ("Fat Tower"), a part of the old city walls
• Annakirche (St. Anne Church)
• Marienkirche (St. Mary Magdalene Church)
• Monument to Bismarck
• Leopold Hoesch Museum

City Emblem

The emblem, or symbol, of Düren is split into different parts. At the top, it shows a red castle. Below that, there is a black eagle. In the bottom half, there is a black lion with a red tongue. The black eagle reminds us of Düren's old history as a royal city. The lion was the symbol of the dukes of Jülich, who were connected to Düren for a long time.

Twin Towns – Sister Cities

Düren has special partnerships with other towns around the world. These are called twin towns or sister cities:

Media

Düren has its own radio station called Radio Rur. You can listen to it on different frequencies. There are also two daily newspapers, the Dürener Zeitung and Dürener Nachrichten, and several weekly papers.

Notable People from Düren

Many interesting people were born or lived in Düren, including:

• Karl Benrath (1845–1924), a historian who studied churches.
• Marita Breuer (born 1953), an actress.
• Manfred Donike (1933–1995), a cyclist.
• Margot Eskens (born 1939), a pop singer.
• Jerome Felton (born 1987), an American football player.
• Hermann Heinrich Gossen (1810–1858), an economist.
• Wilfried Hannes (born 1957), a football player.
• Ute Hasse (born 1963), a swimmer who won an Olympic silver medal.
• Karl Lauterbach (born 1963), a politician.
• Peter Gustav Lejeune Dirichlet (1805–1859), a mathematician.
• Christoph Moritz (born 1990), a football player.
• Kalle Pohl (born 1951), a comedian.
• Karl-Heinz Schnellinger (1939–2024), a football player.
• Max von Schillings (1868–1933), a conductor and composer.
• Harald Schumacher (born 1954), a football player for 1. FC Köln and the German national team.
• Lars Vogt (1970–2022), a pianist.

Images for kids

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  Eulendom

See also

In Spanish: Düren para niños