Richwiller

Richwiller is a common French located in the western suburbs of Mulhouse. It belongs to the department Haut-Rhin and area Alsace. It is a small commune of the Haut-Rhin of 3.500 inhabitants, where was discovered the Potasse in 1904.

Its inhabitants is called Richwillerois and Richwilleroises.

Geography

Richwiller is a suburban commune of rural origin. It is in the North-West of Mulhouse, with the entry of the Potassic Basin between Pfastatt and Wittelsheim. The characteristic of Richwiller lies in its longitudinal configuration " is-ouest". Its round of applause of 555 hectares extends on 4 kilometers length for 1,5 km broad. It is divided perpendicularly by the Strasbourg-Mulhouse railway (North-South).

History

Origins of the village

Its past grows blurred in the mists of time. Archaeological discoveries prove that Richwiller is a place of very old habitat. In the septentrional part (northern) of the village on the place known as `Neumatt is a necropolis made up of twelve tumuli of the Hallstattienne time. In 1865 and 1917, one discovers there tombs containing of the bracelets of the Torque S (collars), of the Fibule S (kind of safety pins) out of bronze and a engraved dish going back to this time. These objects are exposed, currently, with the Musée of the National antiquities of Saint-Germain-in-Bush hammer.

Animated history of the lords of Richwiller

It is in XIVe century which the parts of file mention for the first time the name of “Reichweiler” the documents teach us that the convent of Lucelle acquires in 1301 and in 1304 the goods which the abbey of Murbach has there. At that time Reichweiler belongs to Habsbourg. In 1326 those yield the village and its dependences in stronghold to the lords of Reichweiler. The latter preserve it until 1539, date on which Hans Friedrich vom Haus dies without leaving of male heir. The stronghold falls then has his/her son-in-law Wolf Dietrich von Brunighoffen, the husband of its Ursula daughter, who makes renovate the castle before dying prematurely. These grounds still changing hands go to the second husband of Ursula Theobald Waldner von Freundstein. The son of this last deceased in 1599 without heir. The stronghold turns over to the House of Austria. It is in the close entourage of the emperor that are selected its new recipients, Johann Pistonus and Hieronymus von Manicor. They are not long in entering in conflict with the middle-class men of Mulhouse who have, without authorization, makes proceed to wood-cuttings in the forest. Soon a lawsuit opposes them about a vault! Manicor, which settled in Reichweiller made leave the pasture of the cows intentionally belonging to the inhabitants of Cernay. Those S arm and invest the castle. The worst is avoided thanks to the intervention of the woman of the lord. Manicor leave Reichweiler during the Guerre Thirty Year old (1618 1648). The peace of Munster and D `Osnabrück puts an end to this fatal war which made suffer the village and its inhabitants.

The Kingdom of France recovers Richwiller with the other Austrian possessions. Only the castle or what still remains about it, remains the property of Pistorius after a long lawsuit which proceeds with Ensisheim. In 1662 Pistorius strong quarreller seems it, dies assassinated by one of his servants His goods turn over to the Crown of France. After the Treated of Westphalia, Louis XIV entrusts the stronghold to Charles Colbert de Croissy, nephew of the Intendant of Alsace. Nicolas de Diesbach, of Swiss descent, succeeds to him in 1665. He settles with the castle with dead of the widow of Pistorius. As it is Protestant, it cannot be maintained and must yield its place to the marshal Nicolas Hubert de Reinach Montreux. This last is illustrated with the Bataille of Gérone or it finds death in 1696.

The stronghold passes then to the Marquis of Corn of Huxelles which controls Alsace until its death in 1730. The king Louis XV transmits the field then has Joseph Balthazar de Bergeret, captain with the regiment D Enghien. The stronghold includes/understands also Reiningue, the three quarters of Morschwiller, Ensisheim, Rumersheim. The captain also perceives incomes coming from Rantzwiller. The Revolution puts an end to the seigneuriaux rights. The brothers of Bergeret (the canon Prosper de Lautenbach and Henri captain in a Swedish royal regiment) emigrate. Their goods are sold has Colmar. Certain Brustlein acting for the account of Pierre Thierry of Mulhouse buys them for 66.778 books. Wittelsheim acquires part of the drills. Both “Bergeret” which remained with the service of the Republic (general Gilbert of brigade and Antoine Prosper, colonel) preserve their shares of heritage. They are not long in being parcelled out. The castle was shaven about 1810; there remains the mill seigneurial about it.

The village was bombarded in 1914 and 1944. It is integrated little by little into the Mulhousian suburbs.

The era of potash

The opening of the Mines of Potash is determining for the economic advancement of the commune of Richwiller.

The Mine max extends on a surface from 1800 hectares. Its head-frame was beside the station of Richwille, close to the railway line Mulhouse-Basle. The sinking of the puit of extraction max begins on November 10th, 1910. The potash sub-base is reached on July 5th, 1912 with 514 meters of depth. Exploited summer 1912 since, the puit communicates underground with the puit Amélie II. During its first year of production, the mine max extracts 7.893 tons from ore at the end of 26 days. Its first exploitation campaign finishes in 1933. The second starts in 1942, finishing with the final adoption of the mine in 1952. During the two programs of extraction, it produced 2.693.153 tons of raw salt for a capacity of extraction of 550 tons per day.
Thanks to Potash, the station of Richwiller became the first goods station of Alsace.

Administration

Demography

provisional population for 2004: 3.351

Places and monuments

the carrot
May 28th, 1955, at the entry of the city Amélie II is inaugurated a monument set up to commemorate the fiftieth birthday of discovered potash by Amélie Zurcher, Joseph Vogt and Jean-Baptiste Grisey. This monument represents a " carotte" (cylindrical sample of rocks taken in the basement by coring to know its composition of it). This place is only symbolic system. In fact, the potash was discovered, more in the south, towards the mine Joseph Else in Wittelsheim.

Personalities related to the commune

Eugene Wacker (1878-1943)
Fils of Meinrad Wacker and Francoise Sturchler, born with Knoeringue on October 23rd, 1878, died in Richwiller on December 31st, 1942. It raises an large family of eight children, his Joseph son is blind. Eugene Wacker is very active in Richwiller. Impassioned history, member of the Company of History of Sundgau, vice-president of the Company of Sundgauvienne History, he writes many articles in the directory of the latter like in various regional reviews and writes with Paul Stintzi the " Sundgoviennes" pages; in two volumes. It devotes a booklet to the Lords of Richwiller.
La common of Richwiller honoured its memory in 1988 (at the time of the 110e birthday of its birth) by baptizing with its name the school complex of the center.

Denise Ferrier (- 1945)
L' candidate Denise Ferrier was ambulancière of the 2nd Company of collecting of the 25e medical Bataillon (battalion which had already been done noticed in the isle of Elba for its cold blood). Since the beginning of the countryside of France, it was voluntary for all the missions and evacuated many casualties. It took part with the regiment of colonial infantry of Morocco in the opening on Mulhouse.
Elle was killed by a shell on January 24th, 1945 with Richwiller, at 7 o'clock in the morning, in front of a rescue station of the battalion of shock.

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