The parish church of St. Remigius, the local coat of arms, and preserved remnants of heathland and mat-grass grassland give Retterath a range of cultural and landscape features to explore. For broader orientation, it is also helpful to distinguish clearly between them: Circular Route 9 passes through Retterath, while the History Road in the wider Hochkelberg area and the geological figures for the Volcanic Eifel provide a broader regional context.
St. Remigius and local history
The parish church of St. Remigius is a listed cultural monument. It was built between 1860 and 1863 in the neo-Gothic style from slate rubble stone. Its features include a ribbed vault, some surviving neo-Gothic furnishings, a Kleis organ from 1905, and historically reconstructed wall paintings. The church is also known as Retterath Cathedral. Its construction period, style, and individual features give the village a tangible cultural connection.
The coat of arms also tells the story of the village: it depicts a white dove in flight carrying a white oil jug. Both are attributes of Saint Remigius, the patron saint of Retterath and its parish church. The lower part of the coat of arms features Virneburg lozenges, which also appear on a Retterath court seal from the 18th century. Another historical topic is the former Virneburg high court in Retterath. It comprised three Heimburgen and seven lay judges. The coat of arms, seal, and court thus point to various aspects of local history.
Preserved remnants of heathland and mat-grass grassland
Retterath is one of the places in the Volcanic Eifel where remnants of heathland and mat-grass grassland have survived. In the Volcanic Eifel, such landscapes are protected as nature reserves and maintained as remnants of historical land use. The connection with nature therefore extends from the specific landscape remnants in Retterath to the wider natural region of the Volcanic Eifel.
The geological context also relates to the Volcanic Eifel as a whole: 77 maars have been identified there to date. In addition, 350 eruption centres have been counted, about 270 of them from the more recent phase. Ulmen Maar marks the most recent volcanic eruption in the Volcanic Eifel, which took place about 10,900 years ago. These figures provide a broader thematic context for the natural region without attributing specific geological features to Retterath.
Circular route and History Road
Circular Route 9 passes through Retterath, Holzberg, Kläppchen, Sassen, and Kolverath before returning to Retterath. This sequence provides clear route guidance. As the route may change, check local conditions before setting out.
The History Road in the wider Hochkelberg area offers a broad historical context. Its two main routes are about 54 kilometres long in total and include more than sixty stops; additional shortcuts and loops supplement the network. Topics at the stops include prehistoric burial mounds, old roads, fortifications, churches and chapels, as well as a V1 launch ramp, the 1945 air raid on Kelberg, the NĂĽrburgring, natural monuments, and traditional forms of economic activity in the Eifel. The stops are spread across the wider Hochkelberg area and are not all associated with Retterath.
The main routes include sections along the historic road from the Rhine to what is now Belgium. It is known as the Caesar Road and, since the Middle Ages, also as the Alte StraĂź. In the wider Hochkelberg area, guided history walks along the History Road take about two to four hours. Before travelling, confirm whether a guided tour is available.
Discover more destinations: Mannebach, Oberelz, Hörschhausen, Gunderath, Berenbach, Uersfeld, Mosbruch, Brücktal.
For the broader travel overview: Kelberg.
