The oldest finds that indicate human life in the Niedernberg area date from the Neolithic period. Radical changes in the landscape were accompanied by Roman rule around the turn of the century. In the first century AD, the Roman Empire reached as far as the Main. To secure their empire's borders, Roman troops built forts at strategically important locations.
The origins of Niedernberg go back to such a Roman fort, built between 83 and 150 AD on the so-called "wet Limes", which represented the eastern border of the empire (see Niedernberg Fort). The 144 × 135 meter fort was oriented eastwards, towards the Main. Although it was built over, the layout of today's town center still goes back to the road system of the fort; Hauptstraße and Kirchgasse coincide with the camp roads of the time. Niedernberg was the location of the approximately 500-strong cohort Cohors I Ligurum et Hispanorum, which was recruited in northern Italy and Spain.
Interesting finds such as the Marcellus Stone or a burial ground discovered in 1963 provide information about the life of the Romans stationed in Niedernberg. In 1964, a bronze fountain mask was found during construction work on the main street, which is the only original discovered north of the Alps. The mask is the showpiece of the Abbey Museum in Aschaffenburg and is often on loan at Roman exhibitions and is one of the rarest exhibits.
The first documented mention of Niedernberg dates back to 1095. At that time, "Diemar von Niderenburc" bequeathed half a Hube of land from his Pfungstadt property to the Lorsch monastery on the Bergstrasse for the maintenance of his daughter monastery Steinbach in the Odenwald.
As early as 1340, the Niedernberg chapel, from which the current parish church of St. Cyriakus emerged, was given small bequests. Both the tower and the "old choir" from 1461 have been preserved. Extensive reconstruction and expansion measures were carried out under Pastor Seubert in 1897 and 1931. The gravestone of the district alderman Michael Groß was embedded on the south side of the church tower around 1822. According to legend, his courage saved Niedernberg from destruction by the Swedes in the Thirty Years' War.
Source: Wikipedia
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