Beilstein (Greifenstein)

Heraldry of the World
Civic heraldry of Germany - Deutsche Wappen (Gemeindewappen/Kreiswappen)

BEILSTEIN

State : Hessen
District (Kreis) : Lahn-Dill Kreis (until 1976 Dillkreis)
Additions : 1971 Rodenroth; 1972 Rodenberg
Incorporated into : 1977 Greifenstein

Origin/meaning

I have no information whether these arms were actually granted.

The arms are a variation on the arms of the Counts of Nassau, as the village was the seat of the Counta of Nassau-Beilstein and part of the Nassau region until 1803. The Counts of Nassau also granted city rights on February 18, 1321, but the village did not develop into a proper city. The arms of Nassau already appear on the seals of the village/city in the late 15th and early 16th century. In the 19th century the village used a seal with a shield showing the local castle ruin with a unknown figure; later in the 19th century the seals showed a complete city view, again with a sitting unknown figure.