Bergisch Gladbach

Bergisch Gladbach is a city in the Cologne/Bonn Region of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, and capital of the Rheinisch-Bergischer Kreis (district).
Geography
Bergisch Gladbach is east of the Rhine and about 10 km east of Cologne.
Neighbouring municipalities
Beginning in the north, the neighbouring municipalities and neighbouring towns are clockwise Odenthal, Kürten, Overath, Rösrath, Cologne and Leverkusen.
History
Early settlements existed in the 13th century, but the town was officially founded in 1856.
The word Bergisch in the name does not originate from its location in the county of Berg, and it was not added to distinguish it from Mönchengladbach, as is believed by many people, but from the counts who gave their name to the region.
In the early 12th century, the counts of Berg settled in the area, which later became the Duchy of Berg (under Napoleon, it became a grand duchy). That is where the first part of the name (Bergisch) comes from, the town being located in the former County of Berg. The town is the administrative headquarters ('Kreisstadt') of the Rheinish-Bergisch district (or 'Kreis').
The second part of the name, Gladbach (cognate with English Ladbrooke), originates from Low Rhenish (Bergisches Platt) and means canalised stream in reference to the small river (the Strunde) that was artificially canalised (laid) in early medieval times. In Bergisch Platt, the regional dialect, laid is pronounced gelaat, which eventually evolved to glad (in this case, the 'd' is pronounced as a 't'). The second part of the word, bach, is the Standard German word for a small stream and refers in this case to the Strunde.
In 1975, the town incorporated the neighbouring Bensberg, and when it reached a population of 100,000 in 1977 it was given city status.
Economy
Paper manufacturing, printing, glass wool manufacturing, chocolate and high-tech industries are a large part of Bergisch Gladbach's economy.
Politics
Mayor
The current mayor of Bergisch Gladbach is Frank Stein of the Social Democratic Party (SPD). The most recent mayoral election was held on 13 September 2020, and the results were as follows:
! colspan=2| Candidate
! Party
! Votes
! %
|-
| bgcolor=|
| align=left| Frank Stein
| align=left| Social Democratic Party
| 25,321
| 52.3
|-
| bgcolor=|
| align=left| Christian Buchen
| align=left| Christian Democratic Union
| 18,973
| 39.2
|-
|
| align=left| Iro Herrmann
| align=left| Citizens' Party GL
| 2,093
| 4.3
|-
| bgcolor=|
| align=left| Günther Schöpf
| align=left| Alternative for Germany
| 2,014
| 4.2
|-
! colspan=3| Valid votes
! 48,401
! 99.3
|-
! colspan=3| Invalid votes
! 358
! 0.7
|-
! colspan=3| Total
! 48,759
! 100.0
|-
! colspan=3| Electorate/voter turnout
! 89,995
! 54.2
|-
| colspan=7| Source: City of Bergisch Gladbach
|}
City council
The Bergisch Gladbach city council governs the city alongside the Mayor. The most recent city council election was held on 13 September 2020, and the results were as follows:
! colspan=2| Party
! Votes
! %
! +/-
! Seats
! +/-
|-
| bgcolor=|
| align=left| Christian Democratic Union (CDU)
| 17,463
| 36.2
| 5.7
| 20
| 6
|-
| bgcolor=|
| align=left| Alliance 90/The Greens (Grüne)
| 13,858
| 28.7
| 12.8
| 16
| 6
|-
| bgcolor=|
| align=left| Social Democratic Party (SPD)
| 9,209
| 19.1
| 5.0
| 10
| 5
|-
| bgcolor=|
| align=left| Free Democratic Party (FDP)
| 2,438
| 5.1
| 0.5
| 3
| ±0
|-
| bgcolor=|
| align=left| Alternative for Germany (AfD)
| 2,213
| 4.6
| 0.2
| 3
| ±0
|-
|
| align=left| Citizens' Party GL (BGL)
| 1,398
| 2.9
| 1.2
| 2
| 1
|-
|
| align=left| Free Voters' Association Bergisch Gladbach (FWG)
| 1,645
| 3.4
| New
| 2
| New
|-
! colspan=2| Valid votes
! 48,224
! 98.8
!
!
!
|-
! colspan=2| Invalid votes
! 597
! 1.2
!
!
!
|-
! colspan=2| Total
! 48,821
! 100.0
!
! 56
! 6
|-
! colspan=2| Electorate/voter turnout
! 89,995
! 52.3
! 0.1
!
!
|-
| colspan=7| Source: City of Bergisch Gladbach
|}
Twin towns – sister cities
Bergisch Gladbach is twinned with:
Beit Jala, Palestine (2010)
Bourgoin-Jallieu, France (1956)
Bucha, Ukraine (2022)
Ganei Tikva, Israel (2012)
Joinville-le-Pont, France (1960)
Limassol, Cyprus (1991)
Luton, England (1956)
Marijampolė, Lithuania (1989)
Pszczyna, Poland (1993)
Runnymede, England (1995)
Velsen, Netherlands (1956)
Notable people
Markus von Ahlen (born 1971), footballer and coach
Rüdiger Baldauf (born 1961), jazz musician
Astrid Benöhr (born 1957), endurance athlete
Sebastian Blomberg (born 1972), actor
Wolfgang Bosbach (born 1952), politician (CDU)
Karl Budde (1850–1935), Protestant theologian
Armin Falk (born 1968), economist
Markus Feldenkirchen (born 1975), journalist
Vanessa Fuchs (born 1996), Germany's Next Topmodel winner of the season 2015
Kerstin Gier (born 1966), author
Volker Goetze (born 1972), German born, New York based musician composer and filmmaker
Fabian Hambüchen (born 1987), artistic gymnast
Götz Heidelberg (1923–2017), physicist, constructor and entrepreneur
Waldemar Henrici (1878–1950), general and Reichsarbeitsdienstführer
Mats Hummels (born 1988), footballer
Hubert Käppel (born 1951), guitarist and music pedagogue
Brigitte Kraus (born 1956), middle distance runner
Georg Koch (born 1972), football goalkeeper
Heidi Klum (born 1973), model and presenter
Carolin Kebekus (born 1980), comedian, singer and actress
Theo Koll (born 1958), journalist
German Mäurer (1811–1885), Prussian writer
Veronika Moos-Brochhagen (born 1961), textile artist
Benyamin Nuss (born 1989), pianist
Bastian Oczipka (born 1989), footballer
Uwe Ommer (born 1943), act, fashion and advertising photos
Monika Piel (born 1951), journalist and presenter
Tibor Pleiß (born 1989), basketball player
Karin Sander (born 1957), artist
David Schnell (born 1971), painter
Tim Wiese (born 1981), German football goalkeeper and wrestler
Secondary schools in Bergisch Gladbach
Albertus-Magnus-Gymnasium Bensberg/Bergisch Gladbach
Gymnasium Herkenrath/Bergisch Gladbach
Nicolaus-Cusanus-Gymnasium Bergisch Gladbach
Otto-Hahn-Gymnasium Bensberg/Bergisch Gladbach
Dietrich-Bonhoeffer-Gymnasium Bergisch Gladbach
Integrierte-Gesamtschule-Paffrath Bergisch Gladbach
See also
Gustav Stresemann Institute
References
External links
Fire Department Bergisch Gladbach
Cities in North Rhine-Westphalia
Districts of the Rhine Province