Werl pilgrimage

The Basilica of the Visitation of Our Lady (German: Basilika Mariä Heimsuchung) also called Werl Basilica is a Catholic church located in Werl, Germany which was declared a minor basilica in 1953. It is dedicated to the Visitation of Mary. The church was built in 1904-1906 according to the plans of the chief architect of the diocese of Münster, Wilhelm-Sunder Plaßmann in Neo-Romantic style. The temple houses the pious statue of the Virgin of Werle, also called “Afflictorum Consolatrix” (English: Consolation of the afflicted), dating from the twelfth century. Bishop Karl Joseph Schulte consecrated the church on 24 May 1911. Pope Pius X granted the venerated Marian image a canonical coronation on 13 August 1911, executed by Archbishop of Cologne, Cardinal Anton Hubert Fischer and Cardinal Karl Joseph Schulte von Paderborn. The reading of the Pontifical decree and sermon was assigned to the Franciscan bishop of Nepi—Sutri, Giuseppe Bernardo Doebbing. Pope Pius XII raised her sanctuary to the status of Basilica via another decree Quam Omnes Gentes and redeclared the coronation on 16 October 1953, which was notarized by the Grand Chancellor of Apostolic Briefs, Monsignor Gildo Brugnola. The Franciscans of Werl since 1848 are the guardians of the pilgrimage church and the Basilica of the Visitation. Its convent rebuilt in the 19th century is next door. The basilica has been restored several times during the twentieth century and especially in the period 2002 to 2003.

Werl (German pronunciation: [vɛʁl] ; Westphalian: Wiärl) is a town located in the district of Soest in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany.

The Battle of Werl occurred between 3–8 March 1586, during a month-long campaign in the Duchy of Westphalia by mercenaries fighting for the Protestant (Calvinist) Archbishop-Prince Elector of Cologne, Gebhard Truchsess von Waldburg. The action at Werl had been preceded by a general plundering of Vest and Recklinghausen by troops of Hermann Friedrich Cloedt and Martin Schenck which alienated the farmers and merchants of Westphalia from Gebhard's cause, although not specifically from Protestantism. Schenck used trickery to take the fortress at Werl, but was not able to completely overpower the guard. The arrival of a superior force outnumbering his by about 10 to 1, under the command of Claude de Berlaymont, cornered him in within the city's walls. In his subsequent withdrawal, he took a couple dozen civilian hostages, and escaped with his booty across the Rhine river.

Werl Prison has about 900 inmates, and is one of the largest prisons in Germany. It is located in the town of Werl in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia, east of Dortmund. In April 1945, the 95th Infantry Division (United States) "Victory" division uncovered a German prison and civilian labor camp in the town of Werl. On April 7, the unit reported discovering a camp housing some 4,500 undernourished French officers and 800 enlisted men. The 95th provided the prisoners with emergency rations from the division's own supplies.The 95th Infantry Division (United States) was recognized as a liberating unit by the United States Army Center of Military History and the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 1995. After World War II, the British military used Werl Prison to house Nazi war criminals they had convicted during the occupation. They released their last two inmates on June 24, 1957. The prisoners were Hans Kühne, a former Luftwaffe pilot who was complicit in the murders of four Royal Canadian Air Force airmen, and Wilhelm Katerndahl, a local Nazi Party leader who was complicit in the murder of an RAF airman. The British military also carried out several executions by firing squad of Nazi war criminals at Werl Prison.

Hilbeck is a village in the city of Werl, district of Soest in the German State of North Rhine-Westphalia. Hilbeck has around 1,300 inhabitants. The castle Haus Hilbeck is in Hilbeck.

Westphalia (; German: Westfalen [vɛstˈfaːlən]; Low German: Westfalen [vεs(t)ˈfɔːln]) is a region of northwestern Germany and one of the three historic parts of the state of North Rhine-Westphalia. It has an area of 20,210 square kilometres (7,800 sq mi) and 7.9 million inhabitants. The territory of the region is almost identical with the historic Province of Westphalia, which was a part of the Kingdom of Prussia from 1815 to 1918 and the Free State of Prussia from 1918 to 1946. In 1946, Westphalia merged with North Rhine, another former part of Prussia, to form the newly created state of North Rhine-Westphalia. In 1947, the state with its two historic parts was joined by a third one: Lippe, a former principality and free state.The seventeen districts and nine independent cities of Westphalia and the single district of Lippe are members of the Westphalia-Lippe Regional Association (Landschaftsverband Westfalen-Lippe).Previous to the formation of Westphalia as a province of Prussia and later state part of North Rhine-Westphalia, the term "Westphalia" was applied to different territories of different sizes such as the western part of the ancient Duchy of Saxony, the Duchy of Westphalia or the Kingdom of Westphalia. The Westphalian language, a variant of the Low German language, is spoken beyond modern Westphalia's borders in neighbouring southwestern Lower Saxony and northwestern Hesse.

Welver station is a station in Welver in the Soest district of the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia. It has been categorised as a halt (Haltepunkt) since 1991, but it was previously categorised as a station. It is located on the Hamm–Warburg railway. The Welver–Sterkrade railway, which formerly branched here, was closed in 1968 and later dismantled.

Wickede (German pronunciation: [ˈvɪkədə]), officially Wickede (Ruhr), is a municipality in the district of Soest, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Wickede lists the town of Jemielnica in Poland as its twin city and enjoys the cultural exchange and relationship.

Welver is a municipality in the district of Soest, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany.

Stakelberger Bach is a river of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It flows into the Wimberbach near Wickede.

Haßbach is a small river of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It flows into the Ruhr near Neheim.

Fürstenberg Castle (German: Burg Fürstenberg), also called the Electoral Cologne State Castle (kurkölnische Landesburg), is a ruined castle near the former site of the village Höingen, in the municipality of Ense, Soest in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia. Built on a high point above the Ruhr as a castle for the Archbishop of Cologne, who was among the prince electors of the Holy Roman Empire, the site was called the Prince's Hill (Fürstenberg), lending its name to the House of Fürstenberg (Westphalia) that started with the Imperial Knight Hermann, the Lehnsmann who held the castle for the prince when it was first built, c. 1295.