Schmitten

Geschichte

Schmitten is a climatic spa and municipality in the Hochtaunuskreis in Hesse, Germany.GeographySchmitten is the highest community in the Taunus some 24 km north of Frankfurt am Main within whose limits is the Großer Feldberg (881 m).Neighbouring communitiesSchmitten borders in the north on the community of Weilrod and the town of Usingen, in the east on the towns of Neu-Anspach and Bad Homburg, in the south on the towns of Oberursel and Königstein, and in the west on the communities of Glashütten and Waldems (Rheingau-Taunus-Kreis).Constituent communitiesThe greater community has nine centres named Arnoldshain, Brombach, Dorfweil, Hunoldstal, Niederreifenberg, Oberreifenberg, Schmitten, Seelenberg and Treisberg.HistorySchmitten had its first documentary mention in 1399 as Waldschmidt. The name comes from a nail-making smithy in the woods (Wald is German for "forest"; Schmidt has the same root as Schmiede – smithy) which were attached to Hattstein Castle (mentioned in 1215). The Hattstein Knights ("Hazechenstein") were akin to the Reifenbergers ("Riffinberg"), possibly even the same. These families' origins were either in the Westerwald area north of the Lahn or the Limburg area. In the Walsdorfer Gründungsurkunde ("Walsdorf Founding Document") of 1156, a "Guntramus de Hazechenstein" is named.