Remscheid

Remscheid developed on a wooded ridge between the streams of the Eschbach and Morsbach in the wooded lands of Berg. First recorded in the late twelfth century, it belonged to the counts and later dukes of Berg. The Reformation took hold here around 1550, although the spread of Lutheran worship through the parish took several decades. Nearby Lennep, an older fortified town, was an important commercial centre and a member of the Hanseatic League.

Under Napoleon, Remscheid became part of the Grand Duchy of Berg and received town rights in 1808. It passed to Prussia in 1815 and became a separate mayoralty within the district centred on Lennep. Metalworking and toolmaking grew in importance as the settlement expanded, building on the crafts of the Bergisches Land.