Oberharmersbach Municipality (Germany)

Gemeinde Oberharmersbach, Ortenaukreis, Baden-Württemberg

Last modified: 2020-08-29 by klaus-michael schneider
Keywords: oberharmersbach | saint | bear |
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• Oberharmersbach Municipality
• Oberharmersbach Banner
• Oberharmersbach Coat of Arms

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Oberharmersbach Municipality

Oberharmersbach Banner

It is a red-yellow vertical bicolour. The coat of arms is shifted to the top.
Source: this online catalogue
Klaus-Michael Schneider, 25 Aug 2020

Oberharmersbach Coat of Arms

Shield Or with base Gules; standing on base at sinister a saint, nimbed Or, dressed Sable holding a book Gules charged with a cross Sable upon his chest and a crozier Gules by his left hand, at dexter a bear rampant Sable shouldering a spade of the same in bend.
Meaning:
The saint is St. Gallus, the local patron saint, also founder of St.Gallen Abbey, accompanied by a black bear, probably his attribute and also be found in the arms of St. Gallen. The spade is a distinguishing mark. Oberharmersbach and Unterharmersbach and the Harmersbach valley belonged to the Free Imperial City of Zell upon Harmersbach. Zell, Offenburg and Gengenbach had been impawned to the Counts of Fürstenberg in 1330 and to the Archbishopric of Straßburg in 1367. The pawning was ended by Emperor Leopold I in 1689. Meanwhile a self-government had been established by local reeves and the claims of Zell were no longer respected by the local people. In 1718 Zell had to cede the valley, which then became the Imperial Valley of Harmersbach (German: Reichstal Harmersbach), the only one of that status in the whole Holy Roman Empire. Today Oberharmersbach is an independent municipality, while Unterharmersbach is part of the city of Zell upon Harmersbach.
Sources: Landeskundliches Informationssystem Baden-Württemberg and German WIKIPEDIA
Klaus-Michael Schneider, 25 Aug 2020

Both municipalities had identical seals. Oberharmersbach put the seal pattern into a shield in 1962. The tinctures were fixed in 1972. The banner was never approved officially.
Klaus-Michael Schneider, 25 Aug 2020

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