Schengen

The village is located in the southeastern part of Luxembourg on the left bank of the Moselle River near the Mount St. Mark near the convergence point of the borders of Luxembourg, Germany and France . On the opposite bank of the Moselle is the German commune of Perl ( Saarland ), close to the French commune of Apache ( Moselle department , Lorraine region). The population is 872 inhabitants according to 2011 data . The main articles of the economy are winemaking and the sale of gasoline for German motorists at lower prices than in Germany ( German: Tanktourismus ).

Archaeological finds of the Bronze Age show that the territory of Schengen was already inhabited at that time. The first written mention of the village dates back to 877 .

In 1909, a bridge was built across the Moselle leading to the Schengen village, replacing the ferry crossing that had existed since 1451 . In 1939, after the declaration of war by Germany by France and Great Britain , the bridge was destroyed. In 1959, a new bridge was built. Since 2003, a new automobile bridge has been operating, located a little north.

Schengen Agreement

On June 14, 1985, on the pleasure boat Princess Maria Astrid on the Moselle River near the Schengen village, the Schengen Agreement “On the gradual cancellation of inspections at common borders” was signed, and then the Convention of June 19, 1990 on the application of the 1985 Agreement. Contrary to the names, the main of the mentioned documents is the second (Schengen Convention of 1990), while the basic agreement was preliminary. The place was chosen due to the fact that in 1985 Luxembourg presided over the Council of the European Union and in the context of the abolition of border control it was symbolic due to the proximity to the place of convergence of the three borders.

As a result, the name of the village has gained global significance; Schengen often means the agreement itself or a group of countries in which it is implemented. The word Schengen is also used as a household word in the meaning of "space without internal border control."

Among the attractions of the village are the Schengen castle , the remains of a fortress with a moat of the XIII century , the house of Koch, the Schengen area.

Schengen Castle

Built in 1390 . In 1812 the castle was destroyed, with the exception of the tower, which until today has been preserved in its original form. Subsequently, the castle was rebuilt, mainly from the materials of the original castle. September 13, 1871 the castle was visited by French writer Victor Hugo . The State Museum of Luxembourg stores a drawing of the castle made by the writer. In 1939, the castle was taken into the care of the nuns of the monastery of St. Elizabeth, currently it is used for congresses and seminars.

Koch House and Schengen Area

Not far from the Schengen castle is the house of Koch ( Kochhaus ), built in 1779 . Currently there is an exhibition dedicated to Europe and European integration. Nearby, on the Schengen Agreement Square, a monument was erected in memory of the agreement. The monument consists of three adjacent steles with stars and informational materials; a flowerbed has been grown in front of the steles (by curious coincidence in the form of the Cyrillic letter Ш - the first letter in the word Schengen , although in fact in the form of the letter E - Europe ).

• Schengen is a village where euros fall from the sky. Photoreport