Bergisch Gladbach


Bergisch Gladbach is a city in the Cologne/Bonn Region of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, and capital of the Rheinisch-Bergischer Kreis.

Geography

Bergisch Gladbach is east of the Rhine and about 10 km east of Cologne.

City structure

The urban area of Bergisch Gladbach is not divided into city districts with their own district representation. For statistical purposes, there are six statistical districts, which are numbered consecutively and are divided into several districts with their own names. These are mainly name of former smaller settlements from which today's urban area developed, or new development areas whose names have been memorized over time for better orientation. Bensberg was an independent town until 1975. Before 1975, Schildgen belonged to the municipality of Odenthal.
  • Statistical District 1: Schildgen, Katterbach, Nussbaum, Paffrath, Hand
  • Statistical District 2: City Center, Hebborn, Heidkamp, Gronau
  • Statistical District 3: Romaney, Herrenstrunden, Sand
  • Statistical District 4: Herkenrath, Asselborn, Bärbroich
  • Statistical District 5: Lückerath, Bensberg, Bockenberg, Kaule, Moitzfeld
  • Statistical District 6: Refrath, Alt Refrath, Kippekausen, Frankenforst, Lustheide

    Neighbouring municipalities

Beginning in the north, the neighbouring municipalities and neighbouring towns are clockwise Odenthal, Kürten, Overath, Rösrath, Cologne and Leverkusen.

History

Early settlements existed in the 13th century, but the town was officially founded only in 1856.
The word Bergisch in the name does not originate from its location in the county of Berg, and it was not added to distinguish it from Mönchengladbach, as is believed by many people, but from the counts who gave their name to the region.
In the early 12th century, the counts of Berg settled in the area, which later became the Duchy of Berg. That is where the first part of the name comes from, the town being located in the former County of Berg. The town is the administrative headquarters of the Rheinish-Bergisch district.
The second part of the name, Gladbach, originates from Low Rhenish and means canalised stream in reference to the small river that was artificially canalised in early medieval times. In Bergisch Platt, the regional dialect, gelaat eventually evolved to glad. The second part of the word, Bach, is the Standard German word for a small stream and refers to the Strunde.
In 1975, the town incorporated the neighbouring Bensberg, and when it reached a population of 100,000 in 1977 it was given city status.
NationalityPopulation
Turkey

Economy

Paper manufacturing, printing, glass wool manufacturing, chocolate and high-tech industries are a large part of Bergisch Gladbach's economy.

Transport

The city is served by Cologne Bonn Airport, which is located south of Bergisch Gladbach. Other nearest airports are Düsseldorf Airport, located north west and Frankfurt Airport, located south east of Bergisch Gladbach.

Politics

Mayor

The current mayor of Bergisch Gladbach is Marcel Kreuz of the Social Democratic Party, who was elected in 2025.
Previous mayoral election was held on 13 September 2020, and the results were as follows:
! colspan=2| Candidate
! Party
! Votes
! %
! colspan=3| Valid votes
! 48,401
! 99.3
! colspan=3| Invalid votes
! 358
! 0.7
! colspan=3| Total
! 48,759
! 100.0
! colspan=3| Electorate/voter turnout
! 89,995
! 54.2

City council

The Bergisch Gladbach city council governs the city alongside the Mayor. The most recent city council election was held on 14 September 2025, and the results were as follows:
! colspan=2| Party
! Votes
! %
! ±
! Seats
! ±
! colspan=2| Valid votes
! 51,995
! 99.2
!
!
!
! colspan=2| Invalid votes
! 401
! 0.8
!
!
!
! colspan=2| Total
! 52,396
! 100.0
!
! 72
! 16
! colspan=2| Electorate/voter turnout
! 88,431
! 59,3
! 7.0
!
!

Twin towns – sister cities

Bergisch Gladbach is twinned with: