Kaufungen
Kaufungen is a small town in the
Federal state of
Hesse in central
Germany. Lying approximately ten kilometres east of
Kassel, it has a population of around 13,000. It nestles in the narrow valley of the river
Losse, surrounded by the steep, wooded hills of the
Kaufunger Wald.
The town is centred upon the historic villages of
Oberkaufungen and
Niederkaufungen, which are joined by modern housing developments to form a significant conurbation. The municipality (
Gemeinde) of Kaufungen also includes
Kaufungen-Papierfabrik - a largely industrial area on the eastern fringes of Kassel.
The first historical reference to
Coufunga is in the year
1011, when it was in use as a royal court. However, the extant
St. Georgskapelle (St George's Chapel) is believed to be rather older, probably dating from the
10th century.
In
1017 Henry II, Holy Roman Emperor and his queen
Cunigunde of Luxemburg founded a
Benedictine convent, perched on the steep edge of the Losse valley above what is now the centre of Oberkaufungen. Upon the death of her husband, Cunigunde entered the convent, and lived there until her death in
1033 or
1039. The
Reformation brought the closure of the convent in
1527, but the large church (the
Stiftskirche) is still standing and in use as a parish church today. At various points in its history, Kaufungen has been a local centre for mining, glass-making, charcoal burning, forestry and paper manufacture.
The farming settlement of Niederkaufungen, situated slightly downriver where the narrow Losse valley begins to open out into the wide, flat plain of the
Fulda, is of more recent origin. In
1970 the villages of Nieder- and Oberkaufungen formally merged to form the present municipality. Since
1974, the Stiftskirche has played host to the
Kaufunger Konzerte series of classical music concerts.
The town established twinning arrangements with
Ale in
Sweden in
1992, with
Bertinoro in
Italy in
1997 and with
Budesti in
Moldova in
2004.
Both Nieder- and Oberkaufungen have historic village centres, with well-preserved half-timbered houses (
Fachwerkhäuse). The main attraction in Oberkaufungen is the early
eleventh century Stiftskirche church which hosts regular classical music concerts. Just behind it lies in the smaller but older St George's Chapel, which is believed to date from the
tenth century. Oberkaufungen also has two museums: the
Alte Schule (Old School) museum documents the history of the town from the middle ages until the present day, while the
Roßgang mining museum features reconstructions of historical mining scenes.
The
A7 Autobahn forms the border between Kaufungen-Papierfabrik and the city of Kassel. The B7 trunk road skirts the town on its way to
Eisenach, and provides easy access to Nieder- and Oberkaufungen.
Kaufungen no longer has a passenger railway service, but instead is connected to Kassel's
tram network. The frequent number 4 service runs directly to the city centre and onwards to the mainline railway station at
Wilhelmshöhe. In the other direction, the tram line continues up the Losse valley through
Helsa to its end in
Hessisch Lichtenau.Through the centre of Niederkaufungen the railway and tram lines run together in an unusual six-raIl
dual gauge configuration, which can carry two trams or one goods train.
Kaufungen also lies on the
Märchenlandweg (fairy tale way) long distance footpath and riding and cycle way.
*
Gemeinde Kaufungen (municipal website in
German)
