View source for Rhenish Hesse

{{Redirect|Rheinhessen|the wine region|Rheinhessen (wine region)}}
{{Short description|Region in Germany}}
[[File:Rheinhessen.PNG|thumb|right|Rhenish Hesse (dark red), shown within Rhineland-Palatinate (pale red)]]

'''Rhenish Hesse''' or '''Rhine Hesse'''<ref>Elkins, T H (1972). ''Germany'' (3rd ed.). London: Chatto & Windus, 1972, p. 214. {{ASIN|B0011Z9KJA}}.</ref><ref>Dickinson, Robert E (1964). ''Germany: A regional and economic geography'' (2nd ed.). London: Methuen, p. 542. {{ASIN|B000IOFSEQ}}.</ref> ({{langx|de|Rheinhessen}}, {{IPA|de|ʁaɪnˈhɛsn̩|pron}}) is a region and a former government district ({{lang|de|[[Regierungsbezirk]]}}) in the [[States of Germany|German state]] of [[Rhineland-Palatinate]]. It is made up of territories west of the [[Upper Rhine]] river that were part of the [[Grand Duchy of Hesse]] and its successor in the [[Weimar Republic]], the [[People's State of Hesse]] from 1816 to 1945. The hilly countryside is largely devoted to vineyards, comprising the [[Rheinhessen (wine region)|Rheinhessen]] wine region.

==Geography==
[[File:Rheinhessen Relief Karte.png|thumb|left|Topography and administrative divisions]]

Rhine Hesse stretches from the [[Upper Rhine Plain]] on the west bank of the [[Rhine]] up to the [[Nahe (Rhine)|Nahe]] and [[Alsenz (river)|Alsenz]] rivers in the west and down to the mouth of the [[Isenach]] in the south. The region borders on the [[Rhineland]] in the northwest, on the [[Palatinate (region)|Palatinate]] in the southwest, and on South [[Hesse]] beyond the Rhine. The [[Rhenish-Hessian Hills]] along the [[Selz (river)|Selz]] river, also called the "land of the thousand hills", reach up to {{convert|358|m|ft|abbr=on}} at the summit of the [[Kappelberg (Rhenish Hesse)|Kappelberg]] and about {{convert|330|m|ft|abbr=on}} in [[Rhenish-Hessian Switzerland]].

The [[Mainz Basin]], a [[Cenozoic]] [[Oceanic basin|marine basin]], covered the area about 38 to 12 million years ago. The landscape is characterised by large [[Loess]] and [[Marl]] deposits. Due to the favourable climatic conditions of Rhenish Hesse, agriculture covers most of the region. As the [[Hunsrück]] and [[Taunus]] ranges protect it from cold winds, [[German wine|wine]] and fruit production is practised on a large scale.

The region comprises the cities of [[Mainz]] – the Rhineland-Palatinate capital – and [[Worms, Germany|Worms]], surrounded by the [[Districts of Germany|administrative districts]] of [[Mainz-Bingen]] and [[Alzey-Worms]]. Other towns include [[Bingen am Rhein|Bingen]], [[Alzey]], [[Nieder-Olm]], [[Ingelheim]], [[Nierstein]], [[Oppenheim]], and [[Osthofen]]. Many inhabitants commute to work in Mainz or [[Wiesbaden]] and [[Frankfurt]] in the neighbouring state of [[Hesse]].

==History==
The importance of the Rhine Hessian lands increased when they were allotted to King [[Louis the German]] by the 843 [[Treaty of Verdun]]. The region was part of the core territory of [[Rhenish Franconia]]. It comprised the [[Imperial Cathedrals]] of [[Worms Cathedral|Worms]] and [[Mainz Cathedral|Mainz]] which were erected in the [[High Middle Ages]]. The [[Worms Synagogue]] and the [[Jewish Cemetery, Worms|Jewish Cemetery]] count among the oldest in Europe. Devastated by the [[Thirty Years' War]], the area became a patchwork of possessions of the Catholic [[Electorate of Mainz]] and the [[Bishopric of Worms|Prince-Bishopric of Worms]] as well as of the Protestant [[Electoral Palatinate]].

Rhine Hesse was occupied by the [[French First Republic|First French Republic]] in 1792, during the [[War of the First Coalition]]. At the [[Congress of Vienna]] in 1814–15, Grand Duke [[Louis I, Grand Duke of Hesse|Louis I of Hesse]] was obliged to give up his [[Duchy of Westphalia|Westphalian]] territories. In compensation, he received the district on the left bank of the Rhine. Because of this addition, he amended his title to ''Grand Duke of Hesse and by Rhine'' and the name of the region was created. In [[Allied-occupied Germany]], the Rhine Hessian lands were incorporated as a district into the newly established state of Rhineland-Palatinate in 1946.

==Cuisine==
[[File:André Gill - Au Lapin Agile.jpg|thumb|Dibbehas, caricature by [[André Gill]]]]

Each region has developed its own [[cuisine]] dependent on geography, climate, soils, seasons and wealth. These vary from plain home cooking with simple dishes to culinary specialties for festive occasions. Rhine Hesse also has a large number of specialties, with [[Weck, Worscht un Woi]] having achieved supra-regional fame, not least through the [[Mainz carnival]].
* ''Backesbroode'' – a roast filled with potatoes and bacon
* ''[[Backesgrumbeere]]'' – spiced potato casserole with bacon, wine and sour cream
* ''[[Bremser (drink)|Bremser]]'' or Bitzler – ''[[Federweißer]]''
* ''[[Dibbehas]]'' – hare stew (''Dibbe''), with [[hare]] (wild hare, rabbit), spices and optionally with wine
* [[Asparagus]] (''Gemüsespargel'')
* ''Hackesweck'' – bread roll with highly spiced ''[[Mett]]'' (minced pork) and onions
* ''[[Handkäse|Handkäs]]'' with music – marinaded cheese, a ''Mainzer Roller'' marinaded in vinegar, oil and onions (''music'' because of the subsequent [[flatulence]])
* ''[[List of fried dough foods|Kräppel]]'', [[List of fried dough foods|fried dough]] for [[Carnival]]
* ''[[Dibbelabbes|Schales]]''
* ''[[Spundekäs]]'' – consists of fresh cheese, paprika, onions and other spices
* ''[[Weck, Worscht un Woi]]'', well known Rhine Hessian snack
* ''[[Weingelee]]'' (wine jelly)
* ''Weinsuppe'' (wine soup)
* ''[[Wingertsimbs]]'' – typical vineyard snack
* ''[[Weinknorzen|Wingertsknorze]]'' – rye bread roll with bacon and onions
* ''Woihinkelsche'', originally from the Alsace ([[coq au vin]] à l’alsacienne), but must include chicken and white wine; not to be confused with the ''[[Weinhähnchen]]'', an insect
* ''Zwiwwelkuche'' – [[Zwiebelkuchen]]

==Wine growing==
{{main|Rheinhessen (wine region)}}
[[Image:Rheinhessen vineyards.jpg|thumb|Rhine Hesse vineyards]]

Rhine Hesse is the largest of 13 regions producing [[German wine]]. Outside Germany, it is best known as the home of [[Liebfraumilch]]. Most is made from white varieties such as  [[Riesling]], [[Silvaner]], [[Müller-Thurgau]], [[Kerner (grape)|Kerner]], and [[Scheurebe]].  The best-known white wine area is the Rhine Terrace near [[Oppenheim]] and [[Nierstein]]. Some red varieties are grown, particularly around [[Ingelheim]] and [[Gundersheim]], including [[Pinot noir]], [[Blauer Portugieser]], [[Dornfelder]], and the recently established [[Regent (grape)|Regent]].

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
* [http://www.rheinhessen.de Official website of Rhine Hesse, with information about wine, tourism, and culture] (in German)
* [http://www.regionalgeschichte.net/rheinhessen/region/aktuelles.html Website on the history of Rhine Hesse] (in German)
{{Wikivoyage|Rhenish Hesse}}

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[[Category:Rhenish Hesse| ]]
[[Category:Former government regions of Germany]]
[[Category:Regions of Rhineland-Palatinate]]