Schwalmstadt

Schwalmstadt
Coat of arms
Schwalmstadt
Location of Schwalmstadt within Schwalm-Eder-Kreis district
Coordinates: 50°56′N 09°13′E / 50.933°N 9.217°E / 50.933; 9.217Coordinates: 50°56′N 09°13′E / 50.933°N 9.217°E / 50.933; 9.217
Country	Germany
State	Hesse
Admin. region	Kassel
District	Schwalm-Eder-Kreis
Government
• Mayor	Dr. Gerald Näser (CDU)
Area
• Total	84.74 km2 (32.72 sq mi)
Elevation	234 m (768 ft)
Population (2015-12-31)
• Total	17,861
• Density	210/km2 (550/sq mi)
Time zone	CET/CEST (UTC+1/+2)
Postal codes	34613
Dialling codes	06691
Vehicle registration	HR
Website	www.schwalmstadt.de

Schwalmstadt is the largest town in the Schwalm-Eder district, in northern Hesse, Germany. It was established only in 1970 with the amalgamation of the towns of Treysa and Ziegenhain together with some outlying villages to form the town of Schwalmstadt.

Schwalmstadt lies in the Schwalm region in the western Knüll, a low mountain range. Through the town flows the river Schwalm. The nearest large towns are Kassel (about 50 km to the north), Bad Hersfeld (about 35 km to the east), Marburg (about 40 km to the southwest) and Fulda (about 70 km to the southeast).

Besides the core of Treysa, Ziegenhain and Ascherode, the town consists of the centres of Allendorf an der Landsburg, Dittershausen, Florshain, Frankenhain, Michelsberg, Niedergrenzebach, Rommershausen, Rörshain, Trutzhain, Loshausen and Wiera.

In the 8th century, Treise was owned by the Abbots of Hersfeld. The Counts of Cigenhagen were named in a document for the first time in 1144. In 1186, Treysa was taken over by the Counts and fortified. Treysa's landmark, the Martinskirche (Church of St. Martin), nowadays known as the Totenkirche (Church of the Dead), was built in 1230. Treysa was granted town rights sometime between 1229 and 1270, and the same rights were bestowed upon Ziegenhain in 1274. After the last Count's death in 1450, the county passed to Hesse.

The Landgraves of Hesse had the castle in Ziegenhain remodelled into a stately home in 1470, and then between 1537 and 1548, Philip I, Landgrave of Hesse had it built into a fortification with a moat.

In August 1945, the proceedings to establish the Evangelical Church in Germany (EKD) took place in Treysa in an event known as the Church Conference of Treysa. The meeting brought about the merger of the Lutheran, Reformed and United state churches. Two further church gatherings in May 1946 and June 1947 tried to start discussion about divergent perceptions of the Eucharist, and also dealt with Denazification.