St Albans, England and Worms, Germany, twinned 1957
Worms lies on the Rhine, an hour south of Frankfurt, and is one of the oldest cities in Germany. With a population now of some 80,000, it has a Celtic and Roman heritage, but takes special pride in its medieval history, having been the location for much of the anonymous saga of the Nibelungenlied; and a statue of the legendary Hagen stands on the banks of the Rhine, holding the treasure high above his head before he hurls it into the river. Worms was also the location of the famous Diet (assembly) of 1521 where Martin Luther defended his doctrines, and has a great number of historical sites: a fine cathedral, numerous churches, some surviving city walls, a rebuilt Synagogue with an original mikvah (ritual bath), a restored Jewish Quarter, and the world’s largest Reformation memorial (Lutherdenkmal), to name only a few.
The twinning link was forged in the post-war spirit of reconciliation by Hertfordshire Education chief John H Newsom, and signed by the then Mayor of St Albans, the Fifth Earl Verulam in 1957. Celebrations for the Golden Jubilee of the twining in 2007 included reciprocal visits by civic delegations, and a Kaiserlinden tree was planted in Clarence Park, St Albans, to mark the continuing and growing links between the two cities. There is a wide range of connections made over the last half century; the oldest and most active link is the friendship between the St Albans Chamber Choir and the Wormser Kantorei, which started in 1969.
For more information on Worms: www.worms.de/englisch/tourismus/index.php
If you are interested in becoming involved in twinning activities, please contact the St Albans – Worms Partnership – E-mail: michael.waddilove@ntlworld.com