Kaden - History

History

Originally, Kaden consisted of several places and lay under the rule of the House of Nassau-Diez in the old Niederlahngau. Among the community's constituent centres was Meiningen, already known to history through a documentary mention in 1295, from whose name came the field names Unter Meiningen and Meininger Grub, still used today. Meiningen lay on the spot of today's constituent community of Grube Anna.

The name “Elben” or “uff der Elben”, today the Kaden Ortsteil lying on the Elbbach, was first mentioned in 1417. Kaden, first mentioned in 1559 as zur Keuthen, grew together from several farms. Field names are now all that remains of the former centres of Beilstein and Beuningen

Kaden belonged from 1564 to 1802 to the Electorate of Trier. In local speech even today, Kaden is described as being in the Trierschland. In 1802, Caden, as it was then spelt, passed to the Duchy of Nassau. When this was dissolved in the wake of the Austro-Prussian War, the Westerwald became part of Prussia.

By community council’s decision on 19 May 1936, the placename spelling Caden was changed to Kaden. The change went into force on 1 February 1937. In 1972 came the amalgamation of Kaden into the Verbandsgemeinde of Westerburg in the Westerwaldkreis. Like all other Westerwald villages, Kaden has undergone a shift over the last 50 years from a farming village to an almost purely residential community.