Capellen
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[[Image:Capellen centre.JPG|300px|right|thumb|Capellen, Luxembourg: Road through the centre]]
'''Capellen''' ({{lang-lb|Kapellen: Kap/Kapellen}}, {{lang-de|Kapellen}}) is a town in the [[Communes of Luxembourg|commune]] of [[Mamer]], in south-western [[Luxembourg]], 12 km west of [[Luxembourg City]]. [[As of 2006]], the town has a population of 1,336. Despite not having a commune named after it, Capellen lends its name to the [[Capellen (canton)|canton of Capellen]], and is the only town in Luxembourg to bear the latter distinction but not the former.
Capellen is home of the [[NATO]] [[NATO Maintenance and Supply Agency|Maintenance and Supply Agency]] (NAMSA), which is the alliance's principal [[logistics]] agency, in charge of contracting out logistics work. NAMSA's headquarters occupy most of the town south of the ''route d'Arlon''. To the west of the NAMSA complex is [[Capellen railway station]], which lies on [[Chemins de Fer Luxembourgeois]]' [[Line 50]].
The town is the site of one of the six regional headquarters of the [[Grand Ducal Police]]. A [[museum]] dedicated to police [[uniform]]s and accessories, both national and international, was opened in the town on [[21 June]] [[2007]].
==History==
Capellen lies on the old [[Roman road]], today's ''Kiemwee'', from [[Trier]] in [[Germany]] to [[Reims]] and [[Paris]]<ref>[http://www.gka.lu/GKA.lu/Ausgrabungen/capellen_hiereknapp/handelsstrasse.htm Nadège Anen: Wiederentdeckung der bedeutenden römischen Fernstrasse Reims-Trier zwischen Mamer und Capellen]. Retrieved 12 November 2007.</ref>. Some years ago, a Roman milestone was found on the ''Kiem'' in the direction of [[Windhof]] to the west of Capellen.<ref>[http://www.proarchaeologia.org/OnlinePaper/RSMeilen/Capellen.html Rol Schockweiler: Der Meilenstein von Cap - Capellen]. Retrieved 16 November 2007.</ref>
Furthermore, in [[2002]], beside the Roman road to the east, the remains of several Roman buildings and brick kilns (see below) were uncovered. These appear to date back to the [[4th century]].
The first reference to Capellen is to be found in the [[Koerich]] parish records from [[1718]] which state that five households reside in ''Auf der Kappe'', soon to be known as Cap. In [[1722]], a new weekly [[stagecoach]] service from Luxembourg to Brussels passed through Cap. The road linking Luxembourg City to [[Brussels]], passing through Capellen, was built in [[1790]]. From [[1796]], Cap and Capellen came under the jurisdiction of Mamer.
When Luxembourg was divided into cantons in 1840, as a result of disputes between Mamer and Koerich, it was decided that the canton should be named Capellen and that Capellen should become its seat.
In [[1859]], the railway from Luxembourg to Brussels was opened, with a [[Capellen railway station|station]] in Capellen. American troops, liberating Luxembourg in September [[1944]], proceeded through Capellen towards Arlon along what became known as the [[Voie de la Liberté]]. In [[1951]], barracks for the Luxembourg army including the main vehicle depot were built to the south of the town. After the national draft was lifted in [[1967]], these facilities were taken over by [[Namsa|NAMSA]] as a major [[NATO]] supply centre. Since the 1970s, Capellen has expanded rapidly, both as a residential town and, increasingly, a business and financial development area<ref>[http://www.mamer.lu/index.php?page=11.22&filter=&what= Histoire de la localité de Capellen from the Commune of Mamer official site.] Retrieved 13 November 2007.</ref>.
[[Image:Roman brick oven.JPG|300px|right|thumb|The Roman brick kiln in Capellen, Luxembourg]]
===The Roman brick kiln===
In [[2002]], while excavation work was in progress at the Parc d'Activités site to the east of Capellen, the remains of a [[Roman brick|Roman brick factory]] were discovered. With assistance from the [[National Museum of History and Art]], archeologists from [[Nospelt]] belonging to the Georges Kayser Altertumsfuerscher uncovered a number of Roman buildings and kilns. One of the kilns was in remarkably good condition. As it was not possible to keep it in its original location, the Ministry of Culture and the [[Mamer|Commune of Mamer]] decided it should be transferred to the centre of Capellen. After long and careful preparations, the kiln was moved to its new position in April [[2003]]<ref> [http://www.industrie.lu/zillenuewenkap.html Réimeschen Zillenuewen, i.e. Roman brick oven, from the Industriegeschicht vu Lëtzebuerg site]. Retrieved 12 November 2007.</ref>.
The brick kiln is of great historical interest as it shows that in the 4th century, the Romans were undertaking a considerable amount of construction work, probably under the direction of [[Emperor Constantine|Constantine the Great]] who frequently resided in nearby [[Trier]] from 306 to 316. The site of the brick factory was on the ''Kiem'' (Latin ''caminus'', road) or Roman road linking [[Trier]] to [[Reims]] only 4 km from the [[vicus]] of Mamer.
The kiln's new site, opposite the church on ''Route d'Arlon'' in the centre of Capellen, is open to the public.
==Capellen today==
Capellen has prospered over the past 40 years, first as a result of the establishment of NAMSA with personnel from all the NATO countries, then as a residential area for those working in Luxembourg City. With the recent development of the Parc d'Activités, many financial and technology companies now have offices in Capellen. This has all led to the opening of a large supermarket, a new post office, a pharmacy and several restaurants in the locality. There is also a large community centre next to the church and primary school.
Capellen also hosts the Centre de Réadaptation HMC, an innovative vocational training centre for mentally and physically handicapped teenagers.<ref>[http://www.restena.lu/centre_readaptation/homeUK.html Centre de Réadaptation Ligue HMC], retrieved 12 June 2008.</ref>
There are frequent bus services to Luxembourg and to various locations to the west. The [[A6 road (Luxembourg)|A6 motorway]] or [[European route E25]] from Luxembourg to [[Brussels]] runs through Capellen.
==Economy==
Capellen's largest employeur by far is [[Namsa|NAMSA]] with some 1000 employees. There are however well over 30 smaller companies providing some 1,200 jobs in a wide variety of areas including financial and techology services, pharmaceuticals, engineering, food and insurance.<ref>[http://www.index.paperjam.lu/index.html Information from Business Guide Luxmebourg] on 14 November 2007</ref>
== Famous people ==
* Paul Faber, born 1888 in Capellen: [[human rights]] advocate, member of the Permanent Arbitration Court in The Hague.<ref> Yearbook of the European Convention on Human Rights Vol 3 1960, p. 105, Council of Europe, 1962</ref>
* Albert Steffen (1884-1962): Luxembourg historian and court cleric<ref>[http://webplaza.pt.lu/paddy/rues_page/steffen_albert.htm Rue Albert Steffen from ''Ons Stad'' n° 12, 1983]. Retrieved 13 November 2007 </ref>.
* [[Géza Wertheim]] (born 1910 in Capellen, date of death unknown): [[tennis player]] and [[bobsleigh|bobsledder]].
* Nicolas Stoffel (1900-1988) founder of the Ligue HMC and Capellen's Centre de Réadaptation for training handicapped children.
==External links==
* {{fr icon}} [http://www.mamer.lu/ Commune of Mamer official website]
* [http://maps.google.com/?ie=UTF8&z=12&ll=49.624834,6.036987&spn=0.088516,0.228653&om=1 Road map from Google maps]
==Footnotes==
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[[Category:Towns in Luxembourg]]
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