Frechen

Frechen is a town in the Rhein-Erft-Kreis, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Frechen was first mentioned in 877. It is situated at the western Cologne city border.It is the site of the 1257 Battle of Frechen between Conrad von Hochstaden, Archbishop of Cologne and the people of the town. In the 16th century it acquired a name for its terra cotta artifacts, especially the "Bartmannskrug" (beardman jug). In the late 18th century lignite was industrially mined. Digging for lignite dominated the city's economy until the end of the 20th century. In 1891 the first briquette factory was opened. On 2 September 1951 Frechen received its city-rights including the villages of Bachem, Hücheln and Buschbell. On 1 January 1975 the nearby villages of Grefrath, Habbelrath, Königsdorf and Neufreimersdorf were also incorporated. From the 1980s onwards an increasing number of industrial, commercial and service enterprises choose Frechen as their location, so that the town changed its features consirebaly.PopulationAs of December 31, 2015 there were 51,999 inhabitants registered.Local council (Stadtrat)Elections were held in May 2014. CDU: 20 seats SPD: 14 seats Alliance 90/The Greens: 6 seats FDP: 2 seats The Left: 2 seats Perspektive für Frechen: 2 seatsSons and daughters of the city Kirsten Bolm (born 1975), athlete Wayne Carpendale (born 1977), actor and presenter Pierre Vogel (born 1978), Islamist preacher Ayọ (born 1980, Joy Olasunmibo Ogunmakin ), soul singer Sonja Bertram (born 1984), actress Marcel Heller (born 1986), footballer Lennart Thy (born 1992), footballer