Ermatingen

Ermatingen is a municipality in the district of Kreuzlingen in the canton of Thurgau in Switzerland.

History

The Stone Age Westerfeld and Büge shoreline settlements were discovered in 1861 and studied extensively 1981-83, with finds from the Pfyn, Horgen and Corded Ware cultures (4000-2500 BC.) An Alamanni graveyard has also been found outside the early medieval village.

The village of Ermatingen is first mentioned in 724 as Erfmotingas. It was part of the land owned by the monastery of Reichenau, and the abbot was the landlord, judge and appointed the priest for the village. The low court in the village was administered by a monastery appointed Meier. The position of Meier and the associated bailiwick were often used as security for a loan, for example in 1446 to the Lords of Klingenberg. In the 13th century and 1518 openings are occupied[clarification needed].

In the Swabian War of 1499 the village was destroyed. By the 16th century, Ermatingen was on the way to becoming a town, with a high and low council, a court and various privileges. In 1660 the town was granted market rights. After the incorporation of the Abbey of Reichenau into the diocese of Constance in 1540, the lower court rights were held by the Bishop, until 1798.

The parish originally ran by the lake to the Seerücken mountains, and in the High Middle Ages included Mannenbach and Triboltingen. The church of Ermatingen was built in 1359 and was incorporated into the Abbey of Reichenau. In 1528 it turned to the Protestant Reformation. This meant that the Catholic Abbey (and after 1540 the Catholic Bishop of Constance) had the right to appoint the town priest in the mainly Reformed parish. This situation remained until 1804, when the town acquired the right to appoint their own priest. The town church became a shared church in 1546. In 1723/24 Wäldi separated from the Reformed parish, as did Gunterswil and Hohrain Wäldi in 1949.

In 1756 the community acquired rights to most itself, except for the mills and water rights. In 1763 the guild of master shoemakers opened in Ermatingen. By the end of the 18th century, it possessed the internal customs and navigation rights. In the 19th century fishing, cereals grains, fruit, hemp and viticulture were the basis of the villagers economy. With the expansion of the Seestrasse (Lake Road) (1823), the steamship company on the lake (since 1825) and the railway (1875), the town saw increased traffic. After 1870, tourism became a major industry in Ermatingen. At the end of the 19th century the mechanical embroidery and trans-shipping industries entered the town. In 1848 a carpentry factory moved into the town, and in 1936 it became the Jacques Goldinger AG company. In 1875 a tin can and aluminum products factory (Louis Sauter AG) opened in Ermatingen, followed by several other manufacturing companies. During the 20th century agriculture became increasingly less important. The commercial fisheries have mostly vanished, though some fish breeding and the traditional "Gropp Carnival" remain in town. The UBS Training Center at Schloss Wolfsberg (opened in 1975) and the Entrepreneurs' Forum Lilienberg (since 1989) have turned Ermatingen into a nationally known training site (in 2000 almost two thirds of jobs were in the services sector).

Geography

Ermatingen had an area, (as of the 2004/09 survey) of 10.44 km2 (4.03 sq mi). Of this area, 4.32 km2 (1.67 sq mi) or 41.4% is used for agricultural purposes, while 4.38 km2 (1.69 sq mi) or 42.0% is forested. Of the rest of the land, 1.4 km2 (0.54 sq mi) or 13.4% is settled (buildings or roads), 0.01 km2 (2.5 acres) or 0.1% is either rivers or lakes and 0.31 km2 (0.12 sq mi) or 3.0% is unproductive land.

Of the built up area, industrial buildings made up 7.1% of the total area while housing and buildings made up 1.1% and transportation infrastructure made up 0.5%. while parks, green belts and sports fields made up 3.8%. Out of the forested land, 40.5% of the total land area is heavily forested and 1.4% is covered with orchards or small clusters of trees. Of the agricultural land, 36.8% is used for growing crops, while 4.6% is used for orchards or vine crops. All the water in the municipality is flowing water.

Over the past two decades (1979/85-2004/09) the amount of land that is settled has increased by 26 ha (64 acres) and the agricultural land has decreased by 26 ha (64 acres).

The municipality is located in the Kreuzlingen district, on the Untersee section of Lake Constance across from Reichenau Island in Germany. It consists of the villages of Ermatingen and Triboltingen.

Heritage sites of national significance

The Gasthaus Adler, the Kehlhof, the Church of St Albin, and the prehistoric shoreline settlement of Westerfeld/Büge are listed as Swiss heritage sites of national significance. The villages of Ermatingen and Triboltingen as well as the Untersee region (including Ermatingen, Gottlieben, Kreuzlingen, Salenstein, Tägerwilen) are all listed as part of the Inventory of Swiss Heritage Sites.

Religion

From the 2000 census, 728 or 30.0% were Roman Catholic, while 1,311 or 54.0% belonged to the Swiss Reformed Church. Of the rest of the population, there were 2 Old Catholics (or about 0.08% of the population) who belonged to the Christian Catholic Church of Switzerland there are 22 individuals (or about 0.91% of the population) who belong to the Orthodox Church, and there are 35 individuals (or about 1.44% of the population) who belong to another Christian church. There were 55 (or about 2.27% of the population) who are Islamic. There are 7 individuals (or about 0.29% of the population) who belong to another church (not listed on the census), 214 (or about 8.82% of the population) belong to no church, are agnostic or atheist, and 53 individuals (or about 2.18% of the population) did not answer the question.