Taunusstein

Taunusstein is the biggest town in the Rheingau Taunus Kreis in the Regierungsbezirk of Darmstadt in Hessen, Germany. It has 30,068 inhabitants (2020).

Taunusstein lies roughly 10 km northwest of Wiesbaden and about 10 km west of Idstein and the Autobahn A 3. It is part of the Untertaunus (lower Taunus) range. Taunusstein itself is a rural area and is about 30 km from the river Rhine. The lowest point in Taunusstein is 310 m above sea level, and the highest 613.9 m.

Taunusstein borders in the north on the communities of Hohenstein and Hünstetten and the town of Idstein, in the east on the community of Niedernhausen, in the south on the district free city of Wiesbaden and in the west on the community of Schlangenbad and the town of Bad Schwalbach.

The town of Taunusstein came into being on 1 October 1971 through the merger of the formerly self governing communities of Bleidenstadt, Hahn, Neuhof, Seitzenhahn, Watzhahn and Wehen, whereupon Taunusstein was also given town rights. On 1 July 1972, the communities of Hambach, Niederlibbach, Orlen and Wingsbach were amalgamated into the town of Taunusstein. In 1991, Dr. Peter Nikolaus Platz, a square in the constituent community of Hahn, was dedicated and named after the longtime mayor of Taunusstein. Fronting onto it are the "Taunus" community centre, the Catholic church centre of St. Johannes Nepomuk and the New Town Hall, whose functions together make the square into the new town centre. The "Taunus" community centre was opened in 1989, the church centre in 1991, both designed by the Hamburg architect Bernhard Hirche, from whom also sprang the whole concept of planning the new town centre. It was not until 1998, on the other hand, that the Town Hall, designed by another architect, could be dedicated.

Mayor Sandro Zehner (CDU), running unopposed, was elected to a second term on 26 May 2019 on the first vote with 79.1% of the vote. Voter turnout was 58.8%.

The Aar (Lahn) has its source in the stadtteil Orlen 500 meters from the ruins of Roman Castle Zugmantel and the Bundesstraße 417 in the Orlen part of Taunusstein.

The north of Taunusstein is crossed by the Upper Germanic Limes, a line of frontier forts begun in AD 86 by the Romans which stretched from near Bonn on the Rhine to near Regensburg on the Danube. It divided the Roman Empire from the unconquered Germanic tribes. Close to Orlen and the Bundesstraße 417 is a replica of a Limes watchtower, right beside the remains of the castrum Zugmantel. The Upper Germanic Rhaetian Limes (the Limes Germanicus) is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The town's arms might be described thus: Azure a lion rampant Or armed and langued gules, in his forepaws an escutcheon, argent a cross gules. The golden lion recalls the centuries long overlordship of the Counts and Princes of Nassau, and at the same time draws on the old arms borne by the Nassau Amt seat of Wehen and the communities of Hahn and Seitzenhahn, all of which were charged with a lion or a lion's head. The cross is an attribute of Saint Ferrutius, the Bleidenstadt Monastery's patron saint. This monastery was founded as early as the 8th century and earned much credit for bringing Christianity and culture into the region on the upper Aar. The former community of Bleidenstadt bore this cross in its former coat of arms. The official blazon reads: In blau ein rotbewehrter goldener Löwe, in seinen Pranken ein silberner Schild mit durchgehendem roten Kreuz.

There are two railway stations (in Hahn and Bleidenstadt) which lie on the stretch of the Aartalbahn running through Taunusstein, however since 1983 the line was only used for steam tourist trips run by the Nassauische Touristik Bahn (NTB). But since a truck damaged a bridge on the line in Wiesbaden Dotzheim on 20 November 2009 then the line had to be closed completely. Despite promises from the city council of Wiesbaden money to replace the bridge has not been forthcoming, and the NTB are themselves facing financial problems due to not being able to run any trains on the line. In 1998 it was proposed that the line be reopened to form part of a new light rail line into Wiesbaden Stadtbahn, this was however dropped in 2001. Although some plans for such a line have been revived since the 2011 election, these do not currently involve this section of the line. The town is also linked to Wiesbaden over Bundesstraßen 417 (Neuhof/Wehen) and 54 (Hahn). The nearest Autobahn interchange is on the A 3 (Cologne–Frankfurt) in Idstein. The nearest international airport is Frankfurt Airport, about 25 miles away. The smaller Mainz Finthen Airport, a regional public airfield, is about 15 miles away.

In 1995, the Museum of the Town of Taunusstein, with permanent rooms at the Wehen Castle, was established. Since then, there has been a thematic emphasis on more recent regional history as seen in a permanent exhibit featuring this, which lately has also presented information about Taunusstein's condition in, before and after the World War II. This it does mainly by exhibiting everyday culture in the first half of the 20th century. A second and equally valid pillar is the displays in the series Kunst im Schloss ("Art at the Palace") through which contemporary art – not only from the local region – is offered a forum in Taunusstein.

The Jewish graveyard in the constituent community of Wehen on the Halberg is roughly as old as the community itself. In 1329, Count Gerlach of Nassau Weilburg mandated the settlement of Jews. The gravestones from that time no longer exist. The oldest one still standing is from 1694. Today, 55 graves are still to be seen in the graveyard. Until 1749, Jews from Wiesbaden were also buried here. In 1726, the Jews applied for leave to build a wall around the graveyard; however, they were forbidden to do so, as it would not have done for the Jewish cemetery to look nicer than the Christian one. So, they simply dug a ditch. After 1933, when the Nazis had come to power, the graveyard was still used for burials; however, it was forbidden to put gravestones on these newer graves.

One of the local football clubs, located in Wehen, is called SV Wehen and in April 2007 they won promotion into the 2nd tier of the German Football League (Second Bundesliga). As such the local facilities that they had been using were no longer sufficient for professional football, prompting relocation to Wiesbaden, where they became known as SV Wehen Wiesbaden. As of 2020–21 season, they however play in the 3rd tier. The team is sponsored by one of the major companies of the area, Brita, with the founder of Brita, Heinz Hankammer, being a former chairman of the football club. During his time he made funds available which allowed the team it to outdo most teams at this level for many years, and gain promotion into the professional leagues.