Editing Herborn, Hesse (section)

==History==
Herborn had its first documentary mention in 1048, and was granted the privilege of a city in 1251 by the [[House of Nassau|Counts of Nassau]].

In 1584 the [[Herborn Academy]], a Reformed (Calvinistic) institution, was founded by [[John VI of Nassau-Dillenburg]], younger brother of [[William the Silent]] and namesake of today's [[Gymnasium (school)|Gymnasium]] ''Johanneum''.

Herborn was where [[Johannes Piscator]] published the [[Reformed Church]] translation of the [[Bible]] into German, in 1602. This work has had a decisive effect in shaping church life among followers of the Reformed movement in Germany, the [[Netherlands]], Switzerland and the United States. It was printed in Herborn in the ''akademische Druckerei von Corvinus'', known today as the ''Corvinsche Druckerei'' or ''Paul's Hof'', after the Paul family who own it.

In 1626, the town lost 214 houses in a fire started by accident in soldiers' quarters. Soon after, Herborn and the surrounding area were the scene of a number of witch trials.

Towards the end of the [[Thirty Years' War]], the townsfolk were looking after 50 [[Sweden|Swedish]] soldiers, which brought them protection by the Swedish Army, and thereby also a reputation as a "[[field hospital]] town" (''"Lazarettstadt"'') that lasted until the end of the [[Second World War]].

After the [[Congress of Vienna]] Herborn was in a border area next to [[Prussia]], and its economy suffered due to import tariffs. [[Hesse-Nassau]] joined the ''[[Zollverein]]'' (Customs Union) only in 1836, and in 1866 it was completely annexed by Prussia.

In the Second World War, Herborn was mostly spared by the bombers, but its [[Jew]]ish community was obliterated in 1942, and many of the patients of the [[psychiatric clinic]] were deported and [[T-4 Euthanasia Program|murdered]].

During much of the [[Cold War]] there was a small American military garrison in the community, district Seelbach.

The town became nationally known for a truck disaster that happened on 7 July 1987. After losing control because of faulty [[brake]]s, a [[tanker truck]] carrying about 34&nbsp;000&nbsp;L of fuel ran into a house containing an ice cream parlour and a pizzeria. The escaping fuel flowed into the [[sanitary sewer|sewer]]s and exploded, setting several houses on fire. All together, six people lost their lives, and 40 were injured.