History

Historical Information about Deidesheim

The first documentary evidence of Deidesheim is found in a document for the monasteries Lorsch and Fulda dating from 770 (699) (codex of the monastery of Weissenburg). As a ‘daughter’ town of Niederkirchen, Deidesheim was founded around the 10th century on a former Roman mountain road. In order to distinguish both places, the names Niederdeidesheim (Lower Deidesheim) and Oberdeidesheim (Upper Deidesheim) were introduced in the 13th century. In the course of the Late Middle Ages, these names were then replaced by “Niederkirchen” and “Deidesheim”. Until the beginning of the 19th century, both places formed one community. Due to a donation from Bishop John I., the last count of the Kraichgau, the four settlements (Deidesheim, Niederkirchen, Ruppertsberg, Forst) went into the possession of the diocese of Speyer. This affiliation lasted until 1801. In 1360, Deidesheim was granted the right of fortification and, in 1395, King Wenzel of Bohemia granted the town its charter. The ideas of the reformation did not gain acceptance in Deidesheim. The town was destroyed in 1689 during the War of the Palatinate Succession and also in 1792-1796. After being under French rule from 1801 to 1814, these places became part of the Rheinkreis, which was governed by Bavaria. The Rheinkreis has only been called “Palatinate” since 1838, and the term “Palatinate Wine” did not exist before this date. In the course of the 19th century, the population was growing continuously and a railway connection from Deidesheim to the Ludwigshafen area was set up in 1865. Deidesheim has been the seat of a municipality with more than 11,000 residents since 1st January 1973. The municipality comprises Deidesheim, Forst, Meckenheim, Niederkirchen and Ruppertsberg.