Editing Diekirch

{{Infobox settlement
<!-- See Template:Infobox settlement for additional fields and descriptions -->
| name                    = Diekirch
| native_name             = {{native name|lb|Dikrech}}
| settlement_type         = [[List of communes of Luxembourg|Commune]]
| image_skyline           = Luxembourg Diekirch 2005-03-11.jpg
| image_alt               = 
| image_caption           = 
| image_flag              = Flag of Diekirch, Luxembourg.svg
| image_shield            = ECUSSON DIEKIRCH.png
| shield_alt              = 
| shield_size             = 100x80px
| image_map               = Diekirch map.svg
| map_alt                 = 
| mapsize                 = 200px
| map_caption             = Map of Luxembourg with Diekirch highlighted in orange, and the canton in dark red
| coordinates             = {{coord|3=region:LU_type:adm3rd|display=inline,title}}
| coor_pinpoint           = 
| subdivision_type        = [[List of sovereign states|Country]]
| subdivision_name        = {{flag|Luxembourg}}
| subdivision_type1       = [[Cantons of Luxembourg|Canton]]
| subdivision_name1       = [[Diekirch (canton)|Diekirch]]
| established_title       = 
| established_date        = 
| leader_party            = 
| leader_title            = Mayor
| leader_name             = {{Luxembourg commune mayor|LAU2=0603}}
| unit_pref               = Metric<!-- or US or UK -->
| area_footnotes          = 
| area_total_km2          = {{Luxembourg commune area|LAU2=0603}}
| area_rank               = {{Luxembourg commune area rank|LAU2=0603}} of 100
| elevation_footnotes     = 
| elevation_max_m         = {{Luxembourg commune high|LAU2=0603}}
| elevation_max_rank      = {{Luxembourg commune high rank|LAU2=0603}} of 100
| elevation_min_m         = {{Luxembourg commune low|LAU2=0603}}
| elevation_min_rank      = {{Luxembourg commune low rank|LAU2=0603}} of 100
| population_footnotes    = 
| population_total        = {{Luxembourg commune population|LAU2=0603}}
| population_as_of        = {{Luxembourg communes statistics year}}
| population_rank         = {{Luxembourg commune population rank|LAU2=0603}} of 100
| population_density_km2  = auto
| population_density_rank = {{Luxembourg commune density rank|LAU2=0603}} of 100
| timezone1               = [[Central European Time|CET]]
| utc_offset1             = +1
| timezone1_DST           = [[Central European Summer Time|CEST]]
| utc_offset1_DST         = +2
| blank_name_sec1         = [[Local administrative unit|LAU 2]]
| blank_info_sec1         = LU0000603
| website                 = [http://www.diekirch.lu diekirch.lu]
| footnotes               = 
}}
'''Diekirch''' ({{IPA|fr|dikiʁʃ}}; {{IPA|de|ˈdiːkɪʁç}}; {{langx|lb|Dikrech}} {{IPA|lb|ˈdikʀəɕ||Lb-Dikrech.ogg}} or (locally) {{lang|lb|Dikrich}} {{IPA|lb|ˈdikʀiɕ|}}; from ''Diet-Kirch'', i.e. "people's church") is a [[Communes of Luxembourg|commune]] with [[List of towns in Luxembourg|town status]] in north-eastern [[Luxembourg]], in the [[Diekirch (canton)|canton of Diekirch]] and, until its abolition in 2015, the [[Diekirch (district)|district of Diekirch]]. The town is situated on the banks of the [[Sauer]] river.

The town's heraldic shield, showing a crowned lion on a castle, was granted in 1988. It is based on the town's 14th-century seal and arms.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ngw.nl/heraldrywiki/index.php?title=Diekirch|title=Diekirch|work=ngw.nl|date=9 September 2022 }}</ref>

In 1977, Diekirch became the first town in Luxembourg to have a [[pedestrian zone]].

Diekirch is home to a brewery of national importance carrying the town's name.

Three secondary schools are located in Diekirch: ''Lycée classique de Diekirch'', ''Lycée technique hôtelier Alexis Heck'' and ''Nordstadlycée''.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.nosl.lu/new/home/|title=Nordstad-Lycée Diekirch NOSL|website=NOSL}}</ref>

The town is home to the national operational headquarters of the [[Luxembourg Armed Forces|Luxembourgish Army]] at the Haerebierg Military Centre (located on the hill [[Herrenberg, Luxembourg|Herrenberg]]) and the [[National Museum of Military History (Luxembourg)|National Museum of Military History]], reflecting Diekirch's pivotal role in the [[Battle of the Bulge]], a major battle of [[World War II]]. It was here that the river Sauer was crossed on the night of January 18, 1945, by the US [[5th Infantry Division (United States)|5th Infantry division]].

The town is also the seat of one of the six regional headquarters of the [[Grand Ducal Police]] and one of Luxembourg's two judicial districts.

== History ==
The town received its name, according to old sources, when [[Charlemagne]] in the late 8th century resettled Saxons, in order to bring them under his control. One of the centres of these settlements was in the area of Diekirch. In order to convert the pagan Saxons to Christianity, a church was built, which gave the settlement its name: "Diet-Kirch" ("people's church"). In [[Old Dutch|Old Franconian]], ''thioda'' ([[Old High German]]: "diota" – the people). Þeudō is a reconstructed word from Germanic, which plays a role in the etymology of the term "Deutsch".

In the 14th century, [[John of Bohemia|John the Blind]], King of Bohemia and Count of Luxembourg, fortified it, surrounding the place with a [[Battlement|castellated]] wall and a ditch supplied by a stream. It remained more or less fortified until the beginning of the 19th century when the French, during their occupation, levelled the old walls and substituted avenues of trees.<ref name="EB1911">{{EB1911|inline=1 |wstitle=Diekirch |volume=8 |page=209}}</ref>

In the course of extensive excavation in the 1960s, it was shown that the St. Laurence church is a Roman building. In the early 20th century, wall ruins and mosaics were found north of the town center. Archaeological investigations in 1992–1993, 1999, and 2008 enabled the reconstruction of a large Roman villa, which extended over all the land of the medieval town and was abandoned in the early 5th century.

[[File:492nd Civil Affairs Battalion conducts Rising Phoenix Battalion March, Marche Internationale de Diekirch.webp|thumb|LTC Laura Miller, Commander of the 492nd Civil Affairs Battalion with Paul Binsfeld, the Luxembourg honorary Consul prior to the Marche Internationale de Diekirch event in Buckeye, Arizona 2022.]]

== Sport ==
Diekirch hosts the "International March of Diekirch", a 20&nbsp;km up to 40&nbsp;km road walking event. Held since 1968, it is open to both the military and civilians, with finishers earning the Medal of the "Marche de L’Armée", a Luxembourgish Army award. The marches of 2020 and 2021 were canceled due to the Coronavirus Pandemic, and held as a virtual event in 2022, with the distances walked in different locations across the world. The march drew significant interest from service members across NATO countries. This included the United States Army, with the 492nd Civil Affairs Battalion based out of Buckeye, Arizona hosting the largest individual marching event in the United States that year. In 2023 the march returned to being only held as a live event in Diekirch.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Winkie |first=Davis |date=2022-12-23 |title=Army reinstates foreign footmarch awards after backlash, review |url=https://www.armytimes.com/news/your-army/2022/12/23/army-reinstates-foreign-footmarch-awards-after-backlash-review/ |access-date=2023-05-20 |website=Army Times |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Marche Internationale de Diekirch |url=https://www.marche.lu/#/en/history |access-date=2023-05-20 |website=www.marche.lu}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=492nd Civil Affairs Battalion conducts Rising Phoenix Battalion March, Marche Internationale de Diekirch |url=https://www.dvidshub.net/news/429664/492nd-civil-affairs-battalion-conducts-rising-phoenix-battalion-march-marche-internationale-de-diekirch |access-date=2023-05-20 |website=DVIDS |language=en}}</ref>

Diekirch has an annual [[cross country running]] competition — the [[Eurocross]] — which is an [[IAAF]] permit meeting and attracts world-class runners, with [[Gabriela Szabo]] and [[Irina Mikitenko]] among past winners.<ref name=ARRS>{{cite web|url=https://www.arrs.run/HP_DiekirchXC.htm|title=Eurocross 10.2 km (men) + 5.3 km (women) Diekirch LUX|work=arrs.run}}</ref>

==Mascot==
The town's [[mascot]] is the [[donkey]]. There is a donkey fountain in the centre of Diekirch. The yearly cavalcade (carnival procession) is held under the sign of the donkey.

==Population==
{{Graph:Chart|width=550|height=200|type=rect|colors=#00A3E0|x=1821,1851,1900,1910,1922,1935,1947,1960,1970,1981,1990,2000,2005,2010,2015,2020,2021
|y=1793, 2846, 3838, 3777, 3590, 3842, 3809, 4397, 5059, 5585, 5549, 5786, 6268, 6390, 6728, 7042, 7047, |showValues=}}
<ref>{{Cite web|title=Population par canton et commune|url=https://statistiques.public.lu/stat/TableViewer/tableView.aspx?ReportId=12861&IF_Language=fra&MainTheme=2&FldrName=1|url-status=live|access-date=11 January 2022|website=statistiques.public.lu|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160912150215/http://www.statistiques.public.lu/stat/TableViewer/tableView.aspx?ReportId=12861&IF_Language=fra&MainTheme=2&FldrName=1 |archive-date=2016-09-12 }}</ref>

== Notable people ==
[[File:Paul Eyschen photograph by Grieser.jpg|140px|thumb|Paul Eyschen]]
* [[Paul Eyschen]] (1841–1915), a Luxembourgish politician, statesman, lawyer and diplomat. He was the 8th [[List of prime ministers of Luxembourg|Prime Minister of Luxembourg]], serving for 27 years, 1888–1915.
* [[Alphonse Munchen]] (1850–1917), a Luxembourgish engineer and politician; [[Mayor of Luxembourg City]] from 1904 to 1915.
* [[Joseph Bech]] (1887–1975), a Luxembourgish politician and lawyer. He was the 15th [[List of prime ministers of Luxembourg|Prime Minister of Luxembourg]], serving for 11 years, from 1926 to 1937.
* [[Henri Losch]] (1931–2021), a Luxembourgish actor, writer, and teacher.
* [[Ali Kaes]] (born 1955) a Luxembourgish politician, mayor of [[Tandel]]
* General [[Gaston Reinig]] (born 1956) a Luxembourgish soldier and a former [[Chief of Defence (Luxembourg)|Chief of Defence]] of the [[Luxembourg Army]]

=== Sport ===
* [[Alfred Albert Joe de Re la Gardiur]] (1881–1941), a Professional wrestler.
* [[Léon Roth (canoeist)|Léon Roth]] (born 1926) a Luxembourgish sprint canoer, competed in the [[1952 Summer Olympics]]
* [[Johnny Lucas (canoeist)|Johnny Lucas]] (1931–1993) a Luxembourgish sprint canoer, competed in the [[1952 Summer Olympics]]
* [[Michael Pinto]] (born 1993) a Portuguese footballer, played over 250 games and 31 for [[Luxembourg national football team|Luxembourg]]

==Twin towns — sister cities==
{{See also|List of twin towns and sister cities in Luxembourg}}

Diekirch is [[Twin towns and sister cities|twinned]] with:<ref>{{cite web |title=La ville|url=https://www.diekirch.lu/fr/commune-de-diekirch/la-ville/|website=diekirch.lu|publisher=Diekirch|language=fr|access-date=2019-09-03}}</ref>
{{div col|colwidth=20em}}
*{{flagicon|BEL}} [[Arlon]], [[Belgium]]
*{{flagicon|GER}} [[Bitburg]], [[Germany]] since 1962
*{{flagicon|FRA}} [[Hayange]], [[France]]
*{{flagicon|USA}} [[Liberty, Missouri|Liberty]], [[United States]]
*{{flagicon|SUI}} [[Monthey]], [[Switzerland]]
{{div col end}}

==Gallery==
<gallery mode=packed>
File:Diekirch city centre.jpg|Diekirch city centre
File:Die alte Laurentiuskirche in Diekirch.jpg|The Old Church of St Lawrence was built on a Gallo Roman base
File:Schloss Wirtgen Diekirch.jpg|The Wirtgensschlass or Schloss Wirtgen is nowadays used as one building of the conservatory of music.
File:Eselsbrunnen Esel Einzeln.jpg|Detail of one of the donkey fountains in the city centre
File:Wasserfontaene Diekirch.jpg|Fountains in the municipal park
File:Diekirch sauer.jpg|{{center|The [[Sauer]] river flows through Diekirch.}}

</gallery>

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
*{{Commons category-inline}}
* {{Official website|http://www.diekirch.lu }}
* [https://www.dvidshub.net/news/429664/492nd-civil-affairs-battalion-conducts-rising-phoenix-battalion-march-marche-internationale-de-diekirch 492nd Civil Affairs Battalion conducts Rising Phoenix Battalion March, Marche Internationale de Diekirch]

{{Geographic location
|Centre = Diekirch
|N = [[Tandel]]
|E = [[Bettendorf, Luxembourg|Bettendorf]]
|S = [[Vallée de l'Ernz]]
|W = [[Erpeldange]]
}}
{{Communes of Luxembourg}}

{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Diekirch| ]]
[[Category:Cities in Luxembourg]]
[[Category:Communes in Diekirch (canton)]]
[[Category:Towns in Luxembourg]]