“Did you know that Urbich was once so small it barely registered on the map?” I ask my captivated audience. We stand before Urbich’s modest charm a testament to centuries of history. Urbich a village nestled near Erfurt has a story richer than its size suggests.
First mentioned in 1232 Urbich belonged to the County of Vieselbach. The Counts of Gleichen sold it to Erfurt in 1343. This made Urbich an Erfurt kitchen garden and part of the Archbishopric of Mainz. Secularization in 1802 transferred Urbich to Prussian ownership. It remained Prussian until 1945 with a brief French occupation from 1806 to 1813 under Napoleon’s “Principality of Erfurt”.
Imagine the villagers’ lives during this period. The French occupation must have been a disruptive force. Imagine the fear of soldiers the burden of extra taxes and the uncertainty of the times. The village had no brewery nor the right to bake bread or even to sell beer openly. Beer was enjoyed but only in private homes.
Urbich was home to the noble family Von Urbich. One notable member was Johann Christoph von Urbich a minister in Vienna. Descendants of this family still exist using variations of the name.
Urbich’s population fluctuated dramatically throughout history. A plague in 1597 to 1611 decimated its people. The Thirty Years’ War brought further devastation. Waves of soldiers from different armies pillaged the land. The war’s impact on Urbich is evidenced by a grim rhyme: “One soldier needed three farmers one to feed him one to provide his wife and one to accompany him to hell.”
After the war’s end and a final plague in 1683 Urbich struggled. By 1701 only 42 inhabitants survived. The village nearly perished. Yet Urbich persevered. Slowly it grew. Even the Seven Years’ War (1756-1763) spared Urbich from widespread destruction though the village still contributed labor and supplies.
In the late 1800s while Erfurt industrialized many Urbich residents worked in factories. Yet they still cultivated their fields supporting their families. World War I brought losses. The post-war period was marked by famine and unemployment. The Nazi era provided temporary prosperity followed by the horrors of World War II and another period of hardship.
A post-war land reform led to the establishment of a large machinery lending station. This aided the small farms. Urbich and Büßleben merged in 1952. Infrastructure improvements followed. The fall of the Berlin Wall allowed Urbich to flourish anew. New housing developments sprang up attracting city dwellers. Despite its incorporation into Erfurt in 1994 against the will of its residents Urbich remains a distinct and thriving community. A village that once struggled now stands tall a symbol of resilience and enduring spirit. And that is the story of Urbich.