Location & Business Development

The present-day district of Waldeck-Frankenberg was formed by the merger of the two formerly independent districts of Frankenberg and Waldeck.

Altkreis Waldeck

The history of Waldeck begins in 1180 with the seizure of Waldeck Castle by the Counts of Schwalenberg, who later called themselves the Counts of Waldeck. In the following period, the Counts of Waldeck extended their rule over the Korbach and Wildung area. After the turmoil of the Thirty Years' War, Waldeck's independence was manifested in the Peace of Westphalia of 1648. Under Count George Frederick, the land received a streamlined and just reorganization of administration and legislation towards the end of the 17th century, which continued to have an effect into the 19th century. In 1711 Waldeck became a principality. Since 1719, the seat of the princely house and the administration was Arolsen. In 1878, the principality subordinated most of its administration to Prussia, but without giving up its independence. After World War I, Waldeck became a free state until April 1, 1929, when it was annexed to Prussia and assigned to the administrative district of Kassel. On February 1, 1942, the district of Waldeck was created by combining the districts of the Eisenberg (seat Korbach), the Eder (seat Bad Wildungen) and the Twiste (seat Arolsen).

Old district Frankenberg

The Frankenberg area was the object of constant feuds between the Landgraves of Hesse-Thuringia and the Archbishopric of Mainz since the 12th century. In the 13th century, Battenberg became a regional center under Mainz feudal sovereignty, and in 1327 the castle and town of Rosenthal were established. In 1240, the Hessian landgrave founded Frankenberg, which quickly developed into a flourishing town due to its geographical location on the trade routes Frankfurt-Bremen and Cologne-Leipzig. During the Thirty Years' War, French and Swedish troops in particular ravaged the country; population losses were considerable. New settlements were established when Huguenots and Waldensians expelled from France settled there. On June 29, 1821, the district of Frankenberg was formed from the offices of Frankenberg, Rosenthal, Haina, Hessenstein and the court of Viermünden. In 1867, the Vöhl office was incorporated, and in 1932 the Battenberg office was added.

The district of Waldeck-Frankenberg received its current territorial layout within the framework of the territorial reorganization at the district level, which led to a reorganization of the original 39 districts into the now existing 21 districts in the state of Hesse between 1972 and 1977.

The district of Waldeck-Frankenberg is divided into 21 cities and municipalities:

Optimally networked: Wirtschaftsförderung und Regionalmanagement Waldeck-Frankenberg GmbH acts as a service provider for companies and municipalities in the district. As a link between business and public administration, it bundles information, promotes entrepreneurial commitment, advises on in-service training opportunities and supports companies in their search for locations and funding. It also implements numerous projects to raise the profile of the region.

The current population figures for the Waldeck-Frankenberg district are available here .