Telgte

Telgte
Old Town and River Ems
Coat of arms
Telgte Location of Telgte within Warendorf district
Coordinates: 51°58′55″N 7°47′08″E / 51.98194°N 7.78556°E / 51.98194; 7.78556Coordinates: 51°58′55″N 7°47′08″E / 51.98194°N 7.78556°E / 51.98194; 7.78556
Country	Germany
State	North Rhine-Westphalia
Admin. region	Münster
District	Warendorf
Government
• Mayor	Wolfgang Pieper (BUENDNIS 90/DIE GRUENEN)
Area
• Total	90.6 km2 (35.0 sq mi)
Elevation	54 m (177 ft)
Population (2016-12-31)[1]
• Total	19,697
• Density	220/km2 (560/sq mi)
Time zone	CET/CEST (UTC+1/+2)
Postal codes	48291
Dialling codes	02504
Vehicle registration	WAF
Website	www.telgte.de

Telgte is a town in the Warendorf district, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is situated on the river Ems, 10 km east of Münster, and 15 km west of Warendorf.

History

Telgte received town privileges in 1238. It developed at a fork of larger trade routes to the North Sea and Baltic Sea, at a ford across the river Ems. 1469 Telgte is mentioned as member of the Hanseatic League.

Prince-Bishop Franz von Waldeck of Münster was granted asylum in Telgte during the Münster Rebellion of the Anabaptists in the 1530s.

Culture

Telgte is famous for the annual Telgte Pilgrimage, the second largest pilgrimage in Germany. Dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary and beginning in Osnabrück, the summertime pilgrimage regularly consists of 8,000 pilgrims. Approximately 150,000 pilgrims visit Telgte annually. Telgte is also known for its Nativity Museum (Krippenmuseum) and its fair (Mariä-Geburts-Markt).

Nobel-winner Günter Grass's novel The Meeting at Telgte (Das Treffen in Telgte) is set in Telgte during the negotiations of the Peace of Westphalia which ended the Thirty Years' War.

Politics

The city of Telgte consists of three quarters: Telgte, Westbevern and Westbevern Vadrup. Until the 1970s Westbevern was an independently administered village which consisted of Vadrup and Brock (Brock was incorporated into Ostbevern in a communal reform). Through Westbevern flows the river Bever, a tributary of the Ems. An attractive tourist destination is Haus Langen, with a former double mill at the Bever.

Sons and daughters of the town

• Salomon Lefmann (1831-1912), philologist
• Alfons Lütke-Westhues (1930-2004), jumping rider, winner of the Olympic Team Gold Medal 1956
• Harald Norpoth (born 1942), long distance runner and Olympic Silver Medal Winner (1964)
• Nadine Ernsting-Krienke (born 1974), hockey player
• Malte Spitz (born 1984), politician (Alliance '90/The Greens)

References

External links

• (in German) Municipal website