Wesertal is a municipality in the district of Kassel, in the state of Hesse, Germany. It was created with effect from 1 January 2020 by the merger of the former municipalities of Oberweser and Wahlsburg. The name derives from the river Weser, which flows through the municipality.
Geography
Wesertal is located in the far north of Hesse along the Weser river, between the towns of Hann. Münden and Bad Karlshafen. To the north lies the Solling range, to the southeast the Bramwald, and to the west of the Weser the Reinhardswald forest. It is the only Hessian municipality with constituent villages on both sides of the river. The municipality covers an area of approximately 52.59 km² and had a population of about 5,091 as of 2023.
Constituent villages (Ortsteile)
Wesertal consists of eight villages: Arenborn, Gewissenruh, Gieselwerder, Gottstreu, Heisebeck, Lippoldsberg, Oedelsheim, and Vernawahlshausen. The municipal administration is based in Gieselwerder and Lippoldsberg.
History
On 28 October 2018, a citizen referendum was held concurrently with the Hessian state election, in which 70.26% of Oberweser residents and 74% of Wahlsburg residents voted in favor of a merger. The merger made Wesertal the second newly formed municipality in Hesse since the territorial reforms of the 1970s (after Oberzent in the Odenwald). The merger was driven by declining populations (11% in Oberweser and 15% in Wahlsburg over the preceding decade), which had led to strained municipal finances and high infrastructure costs. The merger was formalized through a boundary change agreement signed on 27 June 2019, taking effect on 1 January 2020.
Politics
The municipal council (Gemeindevertretung) initially comprised 38 members drawn from the former councils of Oberweser and Wahlsburg. Following the 2021 local elections, the council was reduced to 31 members. In the 2026 local elections, the SPD won 47.0% of the vote and 11 seats, the Freie Wählergemeinschaft Wesertal (FWG) won 23.7% and 6 seats, the CDU won 19.2% and 4 seats, and Stimme für Wesertal (SFW) won 10.1% and 2 seats.
The mayor of Wesertal is Cornelius Turrey (SPD), who was elected on 1 November 2020 with 73.62% of the vote and began his term on 1 January 2021. He had previously served as mayor of Oberweser and was appointed state commissioner to oversee the transition.
Coat of arms
Wesertal adopted the coat of arms of the former municipality of Oberweser. The blazon describes: "In blue, a lion divided nine times in silver and red, holding a golden fish in its paws."
Transport
The B80 federal highway (known locally as the Wesertalstraße) runs along the left (western) bank of the Weser, connecting Bad Karlshafen and Hann. Münden. The L561 state road runs along the right (eastern) bank between Lippoldsberg and Hann. Münden. The L763 connects Trendelburg through the Reinhardswald to Gieselwerder and Oedelsheim. The only bridge across the Weser within the municipality is the 165-meter-long Weserbrücke at Gieselwerder. Two cable ferries at Oedelsheim and Lippoldsberg provide additional river crossings. Vernawahlshausen has a stop on the Göttingen–Bodenfelde railway line.
