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{{Infobox German location
|name = Diefflen
|type = Stadtteil
|Town=[[Dillingen, Saarland|Dillingen/Saar]]
|image_photo = DiefflenZipp2016L1050069 (2).jpg|
|image_coa =
|coordinates = {{coord|49|21|N|6|45|E|format=dms|display=inline,title}}
|state = Saarland
|district = Saarlouis
|elevation = 185-250
|area = 5.04
|population = 4656
|Stand = 2016-12-31
|postal_code = 66744–66763
|area_code = 06831
|divisions =
|website =
}}
'''Diefflen''' (pronounced: Dieflen, in the local, Moselle-Franconian dialect Dejfeln) is a district of [[Dillingen, Saarland|Dillingen/Saar]] in the [[Saarlouis (district)|district of Saarlouis]] ([[Saarland]]) and has about 4700 inhabitants. It is located on the lower [[Prims]], a tributary of the [[Saar (river)|Saar]].<ref>Martin Born: Geographische Landeskunde des Saarlands, Saarbrücken 1980, S. 14, 24–30, 38–39.</ref> Since its foundation in the [[High Middle Ages]] Diefflen was historically linked to the villages of the former "[[Nalbach|Hochgericht Nalbacher Tal]]". This association was broken when Diefflen was incorporated into the city of Dillingen/Saar in 1969.<ref>Georg Colesie: Geschichte des Nalbacher Tales, Eine saarländische Heimatgeschichte, 2. Auflage, Nalbach 1990, S. 245.</ref>
==Geography==
[[File:PanoramakarteDieDeutscheSaarL1060719 (2).jpg|thumb|Panoramic map of the surroundings of Diefflen]]
[[File:DiefflenLuftbildB0015P 0009.jpg|thumb|Diefflen, Aerial view from the southeast towards the forest of Dillingen]]
[[File:DiefflenLuftbildB0015P 0018.jpg|thumb|Diefflen, Aerial view from the southwest]]
===Physical-geographic classification===
Diefflen is assigned to the foreland of [[Hunsrück]] and thus to the [[Saar-Nahe Hills]] and the [[Lorraine]]-[[Cuesta]], the easternmost limb of the [[Paris Basin]].
===Geological-geomorphological situation===
[[File:FlussterrassenMündungsgebietPrimsL1080067 (2).jpg|thumb|River terraces in the estuary of the [[Prims]] in the [[Saar (river)|Saar]]; Dil = [[Dillingen/Saar]], Di = Diefflen, Na = [[Nalbach]], Pi = [[Piesbach]], Bettstadt, Bi = [[Bilsdorf (Nalbach)|Bilsdorf]], Kö = [[Körprich]]; I = Sole terrace, II = Lower terrace, III = Lower main terrace, IV = Upper main terrace, V = Middle terrace, VI = High terrace, VII = Trough terrace (Geographical division: Johann Jakob Reichrath)]]
The geological underground of Diefflen is the middle [[Buntsandstein]]. The Buntsandstein, is the oldest stone package of the [[Triassic]] and the outermost edge of the [[Paris basin]]. The petrographic nature of the Buntsandstein in Diefflen is medium to sandy to ensure a free circulation of [[groundwater]]. The Buntsandstein is therefore an important groundwater carrier, which has high storage capacity for water like a giant sponge. He is reddish colored and [[fossil]]-free. This indicates that it originated under continental conditions as a deposit in shallow river valleys or in shallow lakes. The climatic conditions of its formation time about 220 million years ago are comparable to today's dry-subtropical climate.<ref>Heinz Quasten: Naturräumlicher Abriß (sic), in: Fred Oberhauser: Das Saarland, Kunst, Kultur und Geschichte im Dreiländereck zwischen Blies, Saar und Mosel (Dumont-Kunstreiseführer), Köln 1992, S. 340–353, hier S. 345.</ref>
The Buntsandstein weathered to nutrient-poor, light sandy soils, which are not favorably for an agricultural use and remained largely forested in the history. In contrast to the forest stands on the [[Base (chemistry)|basic]] soils of [[Muschelkalk]] ([[Saargau]]), the soils of the Buntsandstein are rather acidic, so that [[hornbeam]]s and noble [[deciduous]] trees settle less strongly. Instead, [[birch]]es and [[pine]]s also appear. Characteristic of the lower forest layers is an [[oak]] mixed forest with [[Fagus sylvatica|beech]], with the beech gaining the upper hand in increasing altitude. The closeness of the forest was broken up there by man, where the Buntsandstein stain-like younger, [[tertiary]] [[sediment]]s, such as the flooded clay were stored. This happened down to the geological present on either side of the lower valley of the [[Prims]].<ref>Heinz Quasten: Naturräumlicher Abriß (sic), in: Fred Oberhauser: Das Saarland, Kunst, Kultur und Geschichte im Dreiländereck zwischen Blies, Saar und Mosel (Dumont-Kunstreiseführer), Köln 1992, S. 340–353, hier S. 346–347.</ref>
To a lesser extent the Buntsandstein is openly visible in Diefflen; to a much greater extent it is covered by the [[Pleistocene]] and [[Holocene]] deposits of Saar and Prims, which originally flowed here. These deposits belong to a large area of sedimentation, which is triangular in plan. The key points can be described for example by the location of the places [[Saarlouis]], [[Beckingen]] and [[Nalbach|Bilsdorf]]. Diefflen as part of the Saarland was never [[Glacier|glaciated]] during the [[ice age]]s. However, Saar and Prims were only able to transport their material for removal, which fell in large quantities under the climatic conditions of the cold ages, so that it was accumulated on wide valley floors. During the intermediate warm periods, Saar and Prims each cut back into their old valley floors.<ref>Heinz Quasten: Naturräumlicher Abriß (sic), in: Fred Oberhauser: Das Saarland, Kunst, Kultur und Geschichte im Dreiländereck zwischen Blies, Saar und Mosel (Dumont-Kunstreiseführer), Köln 1992, S. 340–353, hier S. 352–353.</ref>
The sedimentation area and the underlying subsoil have been altered during the [[Quaternary]] by the forces of [[weathering]] and [[erosion]]. This ultimately led to the area being characterized on the one hand by horizontal surfaces and on the other by slopes. The areas are represented as the banks of the river terraces dated from the Pre-[[Mindel glaciation]] to the [[Würm glaciation]], and as the leveling of the floodplain of the Prims. The slopes include the flanks of larger and smaller valleys and the walls of young erosion gorges ("Gräthen"). The areas are proportionally the dominant spatial element; their share amounts to about four-fifths. Diefflen is divided into three zones: the floodplain as part of the lower valley of the Prims, the hillside- and gorges-zone and the plateau of the "Dieffler Terrassenplatten".
=== Neighboring communities ===
The municipality of Diefflen adjoins the following municipalities:<ref>Kurt Hoppstädter: Die Wappen des Saarlandes, Teil 1, hrsg. v. Historischer Verein für das Saarland e. V. in Zusammenarbeit mit dem Archiv der Regierung des Saarlandes, Saarbrücken, 1953/1954, S. 99 (Anhang Verwaltungskarte des Saarlandes, Regierung des Saarlandes, Ministerium für Finanzen und Forsten, Abt. Kataster- und Vermessungswesen, Ausgabe 1954).</ref>
* North = Municipality of [[Beckingen]] (Part of town: Beckingen)
* Northwest = City of Dillingen/Saar (Part of town: [[Pachten]], Part of town: Pachtener Heide)
* Northeast = Municipality of [[Nalbach]] (Part of town: Bierbach/Ziegelei)
* East = Municipality of Nalbach (Part of town: Nalbach)
* Southeast = Municipality of [[Saarwellingen]] (Part of town: Saarwellingen)
* Southwest = City of [[Dillingen/Saar]] (Part of town: Dillingen-City centre)
* South = City of [[Saarlouis]] (Part of town: [[Roden (Saar)]])
Diefflen is about 10&nbsp;km from the French border. It is located about 65&nbsp;km from [[Luxembourg City]], 55&nbsp;km from [[Metz]] and [[Trier]] and 30&nbsp;km from [[Saarbrücken]] and it is directly adjacent to the urban area of [[Saarlouis]].
== Mayors ==
Mayors of the municipality of Diefflen until the incorporation to Dillingen:<ref>Scherer, Alois: Dieffler Geschichten, Diefflen, wie es einmal war in Dokumenten, Berichten, Erzählungen, Bildern, Dillingen/Saar 2009, S. 90.</ref>
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|- class="hintergrundfarbe5"
! In office!!Mayors
|-
|1845–1859||style="text-align:left"|Johann Reuter
|-
|1859–1867||style="text-align:left"|Johann Jakob Schamper
|-
|1867–1870||style="text-align:left"|Bernhard Scherer
|-
|1871–1872||style="text-align:left"|Peter Reuter-Scherer
|-
|1873–1879||style="text-align:left"|Nikolaus Weyand
|-
|1880–1886||style="text-align:left"|Peter Scherer-Marx
|-
|1887–1893||style="text-align:left"|Peter Bach-Senzig
|-
|1894–1899||style="text-align:left"|Nikolaus Scherer
|-
|1900 (Resignation from the mayoralty Fraulautern on 1 January 1900; Foundation of mayoralty Nalbach)<ref>Johann Spurk: »Diefflen – Die Entwicklung einer kleinen dörflichen Siedlung zu einer großen Arbeiter-Wohnsitzgemeinde«, A. Krüger, Dillingen-Saar, 1964, S. 67.</ref> –1918 ||style="text-align:left"|Johann Scherer-Schamper (until March 1918)
|-
|1918–1918||style="text-align:left"|Johann Bellmann-Zenner (until December 1918)
|-
|1919–1920||style="text-align:left"|Johann Scherer-Schamper
|-
|1920–1922||style="text-align:left"|Johann Albert Brutty ([[Social Democratic Party of Germany]])
|-
|1922–1926||style="text-align:left"|Jakob Wagner-Bach (SPD)
|-
|1926–1930||style="text-align:left"|Johann Dittgen-Kunz ([[Centre Party (Germany)|Zentrum]])
|-
|1930–1935||style="text-align:left"|Peter Reiter-Scholer (Zentrum)
|-
|1935–1940||style="text-align:left"|Hermann Greilach (installed as mayor without prior election by the [[Nazi Party|NSDAP]])
|-
|1940–1945||style="text-align:left"|Johann Feld (installed as mayor without prior election by the Nazi Party; already since September 1938 entrusted as the first alderman with the management of the official duties)<ref>Spurk, Johann: »Diefflen – Die Entwicklung einer kleinen dörflichen Siedlung zu einer großen Arbeiter-Wohnsitzgemeinde«, A. Krüger, Dillingen-Saar, 1964, S. 102.</ref>
|-
|1945–1946||style="text-align:left"|Peter Baumann (installed as mayor without prior election by the [[United States Army]])<ref>Spurk, Johann: »Diefflen – Die Entwicklung einer kleinen dörflichen Siedlung zu einer großen Arbeiter-Wohnsitzgemeinde«, A. Krüger, Dillingen-Saar, 1964, S. 1117–1118.</ref>
|-
|1946–1949||style="text-align:left"|Johann Scholer-Diwo
|-
|1949–1950||style="text-align:left"|Jakob Lorang-Bach
|-
|1950–1953||style="text-align:left"|Jakob Jost-Kunz ([[Christliche Volkspartei des Saarlandes]])
|-
|1953–1956||style="text-align:left"|Josef Spurk (Christliche Volkspartei des Saarlandes)
|-
|1956–1960||style="text-align:left"|Willi Dräger
|-
|1961–1965||style="text-align:left"|Hans Meiers
|-
|1965–1968||style="text-align:left"|Nikolaus Friedolin Domma
|-
|1968–1969||style="text-align:left"|Hans Ring
|}
== Demographics ==
From 1802 until its incorporation into the city of Dillingen/Saar in 1969, the population of Diefflen developed as follows:<ref>Josef Jost: Diefflen, der Raum und seine anthropogene Nutzung zwischen 1858 und 1969, Wissenschaftliche Zulassungsarbeit im Fach Geographie an der Universität des Saarlandes, Dillingen 1984, S. 23–28, 48–54, 100–106, 148–155, 209–214.</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.dillingen-saar.de/rathaus/dillinger-steckbrief/statistik/abgerufen|title=am 6. Januar 2018.}}{{Dead link|date=July 2019 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref>
{|
| valign="top" |
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! style="background:#EFEFEF;"| Year
! style="background:#EFEFEF;"| Number of Residents
|-----
| 1802 || align="right" | 348
|-----
| 1820 || align="right" | 408
|-----
| 1832 || align="right" | 613
|-----
| 1837 || align="right" | 644
|-----
| 1841 || align="right" | 663
|-----
| 1855 || align="right" | 829
|-----
| 1860 || align="right" | 874
|-----
| 1861 || align="right" | 965
|-----
| 1867 || align="right" | 1.005
|-----
| 1869 || align="right" | 1.105
|-----
| 1871 || align="right" | 1.041
|-----
| 1873 || align="right" | 1.054
|-----
| 1875 || align="right" | 982
|-----
| 1877 || align="right" | 980
|-----
| 1885 || align="right" | 1.247
|-----
| 1890 || align="right" | 1.542
|-----
|}
| valign="top" |
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! style="background:#EFEFEF;"| Year
! style="background:#EFEFEF;"| Number of Residents
|-----
| 1895 || align="right" | 1.696
|-----
| 1897 || align="right" | 1.802
|-----
| 1900 || align="right" | 1.868
|-----
| 1903 || align="right" | 2.133
|-----
| 1905 || align="right" | 2.279
|-----
| 1910 || align="right" | 2.663
|-----
| 1912 || align="right" | 2.840
|-----
| 1914 || align="right" | 3.122
|-----
| 1920 || align="right" | 3.435
|-----
| 1925 || align="right" | 3.397
|-----
| 1927 || align="right" | 3.574
|-----
| 1930 || align="right" | 3.570
|-----
| 1931 || align="right" | 3.559
|-----
| 1935 || align="right" | 3.652
|-----
| 1939 || align="right" | 3.759
|-----
| 1941 || align="right" | 3.465
|-----
|}
| valign="top" |
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! style="background:#EFEFEF;"| Year
! style="background:#EFEFEF;"| Number of Residents
|-----
| 1945 || align="right" | 3.580
|-----
| 1946 || align="right" | 3.585
|-----
| 1949 || align="right" | 3.797
|-----
| 1950 || align="right" | 3.811
|-----
| 1951 || align="right" | 3.829
|-----
| 1952 || align="right" | 3.929
|-----
| 1953 || align="right" | 3.965
|-----
| 1954 || align="right" | 4.062
|-----
| 1955 || align="right" | 4.053
|-----
| 1956 || align="right" | 4.059
|-----
| 1957 || align="right" | 4.055
|-----
| 1958 || align="right" | 4.075
|-----
| 1959 || align="right" | 4.016
|-----
| 1960 || align="right" | 4.045
|-----
| 1961 || align="right" | 4.067
|-----
| 1962 || align="right" | 4.112
|}
| valign="top" |
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! style="background:#EFEFEF;"| Year
! style="background:#EFEFEF;"| Number of Residents
|-----
| 1963 || align="right" | 4.146
|-----
| 1964 || align="right" | 4.213
|-----
| 1965 || align="right" | 4.299
|-----
| 1966 || align="right" | 4.320
|-----
| 1967 || align="right" | 4.348
|-----
| 1968 || align="right" | 4.266
|-----
| 1969 || align="right" | 4.298
|-----
| 1986 || align="right" | 4.465
|-----
| 1987 || align="right" | 4.458
|-----
| 1988 || align="right" | 4.503
|-----
| 1989 || align="right" | 4.526
|-----
| 1990 || align="right" | 4.478
|-----
| 1991 || align="right" | 4.509
|-----
| 1992 || align="right" | 4.589
|-----
| 1993 || align="right" | 4.624
|-----
| 1994 || align="right" | 4.665
|}
| valign="top" |
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! style="background:#EFEFEF;"| Year
! style="background:#EFEFEF;"| Number of Residents
|-----
| 1995 || align="right" | 4.671
|-----
| 1996 || align="right" | 4.748
|-----
| 1997 || align="right" | 4.741
|-----
| 1998 || align="right" | 4.695
|-----
| 1999 || align="right" | 4.696
|-----
| 2000 || align="right" | 4.722
|-----
| 2001 || align="right" | 4.742
|-----
| 2002 || align="right" | 4.749
|-----
| 2003 || align="right" | 4.706
|-----
| 2004 || align="right" | 4.684
|-----
| 2005 || align="right" | 4.749
|-----
| 2006 || align="right" | 4.709
|-----
| 2007 || align="right" | 4.707
|-----
| 2008 || align="right" | 4.665
|-----
| 2009 || align="right" | 4.662
|-----
| 2010 || align="right" | 4.666
|}
| valign="top" |
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! style="background:#EFEFEF;"| Year
! style="background:#EFEFEF;"| Number of Residents
|-----
| 2011 || align="right" | 4.659
|-----
| 2012 || align="right" | 4.675
|-----
| 2013 || align="right" | 4.671
|-----
| 2015 || align="right" | 4.643
|-----
| 2016 || align="right" | 4.656
|-----
|}
|}
== Economy ==
[[File:DillingerHütteLitermontL1040823 (2).JPG|thumb|Diefflen with the [[Dillinger Hütte]] in the background seen from the Litermont]]
The most important employers in the immediate vicinity of Diefflen are the steel industry and metalworking companies and the craft assigned. Examples include the Dillinger Hütte, the Bartz-Werke, the Dillinger factory of perforated sheets and the NEMAK aluminum foundry. The automotive industry is represented by [[Ford Germany|Ford]] on the Röderberg. In the luxury food industry the works of {{ill|Trumpf Schokolade|de}} in Fraulautern and [[Saarwellingen]] have to be mentioned. Many jobs are also offered by various retailers. The unemployment rate of the district of Saarlouis was 5.4% in April 2016.<ref>[https://statistik.arbeitsagentur.de/Navigation/Statistik/Statistik-nach-Regionen/Politische-Gebietsstruktur/Saarland/Saarlouis-Nav.html, retrieved 17 May 2016.]</ref> The unemployment rate in the district reduced to 4.8% by November 2017.<ref>[https://statistik.arbeitsagentur.de/Navigation/Statistik/Statistik-nach-Regionen/Politische-Gebietsstruktur/Saarland/Saarlouis-Nav.html, retrieved 30 November 2017.]</ref> In May 2018, the unemployment rate in the district was 4.6%.<ref>Saarbrücker Zeitung, C 2, Lokales, Freitag, 1 June 2018, Artikel "Gute Bedingungen für den Arbeitsmarkt"</ref>
==Transport==
In the year 1913 in the district of Saarlouis seven electrically operated [[Tram]]-lines were built. One of these tram lines led from Saarlouis to Dillingen and a second from Dillingen via Diefflen to Nalbach. The municipal council had decided in 1907, the construction of the tram, as Diefflen had not been included in the construction of the railway line. The official commissioning took place on 1913.<ref>Lehnert, Aloys: Geschichte der Stadt Dillingen Saar, Druckerei Krüger, Dillingen 1968, S. 554–556.</ref><ref name="auto">Georg Colesie: Geschichte des Nalbacher Tales, Eine saarländische Heimatgeschichte, 2. Auflage, Nalbach 1990, S. 196–198.</ref> Since 1928 there is a bus line from Diefflen to Düppenweiler. In the period from 1953 to 1963 there was a conversion from tram to bus operation. The entire municipality (with Dillingen and Pachten) is now connected by thirteen bus lines.
===Autobahn===
Diefflen is connected to the national and international highway network via several motorway interchanges: the Dillingen-Mitte (No. 8) and Dillingen-Süd (No. 10) junctions are on the [[Bundesautobahn 8]], that runs 497&nbsp;km (309&nbsp;mi) from the [[Luxembourg]] [[A13 motorway (Luxembourg)|A13 motorway]] at [[Schengen, Luxembourg|Schengen]] via [[Neunkirchen, Saarland|Neunkirchen]], [[Pirmasens]], [[Karlsruhe]], [[Stuttgart]], [[Ulm]], [[Augsburg]] and [[Munich]] to the [[Austria]]n [[West Autobahn]] near [[Salzburg]]. In addition, Diefflen is connected via the Saarlouis interchange (No. 9 ) to the [[Bundesautobahn 620]], connecting [[Saarlouis]] with [[Saarbrücken]]. From here, there is a connection to [[Bundesautobahn 1]], that runs from Saarbrücken to [[Heiligenhafen]] in [[Schleswig-Holstein]].
===Rail===
[[File:Dillingen Bahnhof 01.JPG|thumb|[[Dillingen (Saar) station]]]]
The nearest passenger and freight station is [[Dillingen (Saar) station]], which opened in 1858. It is a railway junction on the Saar route of the German course ([[Saarbrücken]]-[[Trier]]-[[Koblenz]]) with branch of the Niedtalbahn into the French [[Thionville]] and [[Metz]] as well as the Primstalbahn. The railway line Dillingen-Primsweiler was originally planned to run on the right bank of the [[Prims]] via Diefflen. It should connect the railway line Trier-[[Hermeskeil]]-[[Merchweiler|Wemmetsweiler]] and Trier-Saarbrücken by a cross-link. However, the railway administration decided on a route on the left side of the Prims. The construction work was begun in 1897 and completed until 1901. The Diefflen nearest train station was [[Nalbach]]. At the same time the Dillingen (Saar) station was extended, provided with a railway underpass and promoted from rank class II to rank class I, since Dillingen was now the most important node of the route Saarbrücken-Trier. In June 1980, the passenger traffic was set on the route through the Primstal. Freight continues to cross the line as needed.<ref name="auto"/> On the part of the premises of the Dillinger Hütte, which lies on the left side of the Dieffler district, there are six tracks that serve rolling mill 2.
The neighboring stations of Dillingen are [[Saarlouis Hauptbahnhof]] and [[Beckingen]].
===Airports in the vicinity===
[[File:DiefflenSegelflugplatzL1030037 (2).JPG|thumb|left|Diefflen, Glider-Flight-Area, plane in the landing process]]
[[File:DiefflenSegelflugplatzL1030044 (2).JPG|thumb|Diefflen, Glider-Flight-Area, Landed aircraft in front of the hangar]]
Within a radius of 100&nbsp;km around Diefflen there are several airports:
* [[Saarbrücken Airport]]
* [[Luxembourg Airport]]
* [[Frankfurt–Hahn Airport|Hahn Airport]] in Hunsrück
* Saarlouis-Düren as a traffic landing place for private machines
* Glider area and airfield for powered flight in Diefflen
The Luftsportclub Dillingen/Saar e.V. was founded in 1965. In 1971, the construction of today's airfield and aircraft hangar in Diefflen began. For the planning of the area a former sand and gravel mining area with 360.000 m³ filling material was filled. The resulting airfield has a length of 800 m and a width of 120 m. The runway has been extended for gliders in the direction of East in 2003. From 1988, the hangar was extended to include a training building.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.lsc-dillingen.de/startseite.html;|title=June 30, 2018}}</ref>
==Education==
[[File:DiefflenKindergartenL1050095 (2).jpg|thumb|Diefflen, Kindergarten St. Joseph]]
[[File:DiefflenPrimsschuleL1050096 (2).jpg|thumb|Diefflen, Primary School "Primsschule", Richard-Wagner-Straße]]
===Kindergarten===
There are two facilities available in Diefflen for the care of infants:
* "Kinderinsel Diefflen" (Kindergarten, day care and crèche)
* Catholic Kindergarten St. Joseph (Kindergarten and day care)
===Primary school===
In the years 1962/1963 the municipality of Diefflen built according to the plans of the architect Konrad Schmitz (Dillingen) a large new school building with two classroom wings, an administration building with student toilets, a covered break hall, a gymnasium with outdoor sports facilities and a courtyard with an [[Arboretum]] in Richard-Wagner-Straße.<ref>Georg Colesie: Geschichte des Nalbacher Tales, Eine saarländische Heimatgeschichte, 2. Auflage, Nalbach 1990, S. 239.</ref> The school was given the name "Primsschule". Until 1983, the building was supplemented by a second, larger sports hall with auditorium.<ref>Scherer, Alois: Dieffler Geschichten, Diefflen, wie es einmal war in Dokumenten, Berichten, Erzählungen, Bildern, Dillingen/Saar 2009, S. 206–207.</ref>
In 1970 the Dieffler Hauptschule was disbanded and classes 5-9 were separated into the Odilienschule in Dillingen.<ref>Scherer, Alois: Dieffler Geschichten, Diefflen, wie es einmal war in Dokumenten, Berichten, Erzählungen, Bildern, Dillingen/Saar 2009, S. 225.</ref>  The vacated rooms were immediately reused for a new purpose: Due to the strong increase in the number of students of Dillingen-[[Gymnasium (school)|Gymnasium]] (in 1973 to over 2100 students, thus one of the numerically strongest high schools in Germany) were the entire tract II of the new school building in the Richard-Wagner-Straße and the entire old building of the former elementary school in the Dillinger Straße on Babelsberg used as a [[Secondary school]]-Building.
Only with the construction of a branch building of the Gymnasium in Karcherstraße in Dillinger (and the acquisition of a wing of the former Protestant elementary school also in Karcherstraße), which was completed in 1982/1983, relocated the secondary school back to Dillingen.<ref>Hundert Jahre Gymnasium Dillingen, 1902–2002, Festschrift des Albert-Schweitzer-Gymnasiums – Gymnasium des Landkreises Saarlouis, Saarbrücken 2002, S. 53–54.</ref> The school building on Babelsberg was demolished in the 1980s and The school building on Babelsberg was demolished in the 1980s and replaced by an extensive residential- and hotel-complex.<ref>Alois Scherer:  Dieffler Geschichten, Diefflen, wie es einmal war in Dokumenten, Berichten, Erzählungen, Bildern, Dillingen/Saar 2009, S. 225.</ref>
== Jewish cemetery ==
<gallery perrow="5" caption="Jewish cemetery in Diefflen">
DiefflenJüdischerFriedhofL1010384.JPG|
DiefflenJüdischerFriedhofL1010385.JPG|
DiefflenJüdischerFriedhofL1010388.JPG|
DiefflenJüdischerFriedhofL1010390.JPG|
DiefflenJüdischerFriedhofL1010389.JPG|
DiefflenJüdischerFriedhofL1010391.JPG|
DiefflenJüdischerFriedhofL1010393.JPG|
DiefflenJüdischerFriedhofL1010394.JPG|
DiefflenJüdischerFriedhofL1010395.JPG|
DiefflenJüdischerFriedhofL1010386.JPG|Nazi forced labor cemetery on the grounds of the Jewish cemetery
</gallery>
The Jewish cemetery, the largest Jewish cemetery in Saarland,<ref>[http://www.uni-heidelberg.de/institute/sonst/aj/FRIEDHOF/Saarland/f-saar.htm#Dillingen Dillingen in der Übersicht über alle Projekte zur Dokumentation jüdischer Grabinschriften auf dem Gebiet der Bundesrepublik Deutschland/Saarland, alphabetische Liste], retrieved  22 January 2010.</ref> lies on the edge of the Dillinger Hüttenwald, at the entrance to Diefflen. The cemetery is connected to the entrance of Diefflen, but is located entirely on the district of Dillingen, as the sidewalk edge of the street "Am Babelsberg" of Dieffler already belongs to the area of Dillingen whose residential development begins only about 2&nbsp;km further west.
There are about 470 tombstones in the cemetery. In 1746, the Duchy-Lorraine official Charles Francois Dieudonné de Tailfumyr, Seigneur de Cussigny et Président à Mortier, had bought the domain of Dillingen.<ref>Ludwig Petry (Hrsg.): Handbuch der historischen Stätten Deutschlands. Band 5: Rheinland-Pfalz und Saarland, Stuttgart 1959, S. 77.</ref> He was a baptized Jew and showed his Jewel-friendly policy by the 1755 granted permission to create a Jewish cemetery on the edge of the Dillinger Wald on the bann border of Diefflen. The initiative was based on the Jews Hayem, Zerf of Worms and Elias Reutlinger, citizens of Saarlouis, who had to pay an annual interest of 25 Lorraine Francs. In the same year 1755 the first deceased ones were buried.
In 1852 the cemetery was enlarged. In the Nazi era, it was destroyed in 1938. A restoration took place in 1946.
In 1964, a burial ground for more than 50 Polish and Russian forced laborers of the Nazi era was created in the back of the Jewish cemetery. The memorial stone bears the inscription "Homeless and abandoned, they found their last resting place in foreign soil."<ref>Aloys Lehnert: ''Geschichte der Stadt Dillingen/Saar'', Dillingen 1968, S. 640–643.</ref>
==Sports facilities==
<gallery>
DiefflenSportplatzL1100258 (4).jpg|Diefflen, Sports ground
DiefflenBlickvonderZippL1010908.JPG|Diefflen, Primary School, Day-nursery, Sports halls
DiefflenAuenzoneL1020946 (2).JPG|One of several fishing lakes
GemeindehausDiefflenBrunnenL1010173.JPG|Gemeindehaus Diefflen
</gallery>
* several fishing ponds
* Bowling alleys in the town hall Diefflen
* Shooting range in the sports hall Diefflen
* Sports hall Diefflen
* Stadium Babelsberg
* Tennis court Diefflen
* Primary school Primsschule
* Glider area and airfield for powered flight
In the surroundings of Diefflen there are several swimming pools:
* Indoor swimming pool Dillingen (Distance: 3.8&nbsp;km)
* Outdoor swimming pool Dillingen (Distance: 3,8&nbsp;km)
* Outdoor swimming pool Saarwellingen (Distance: 6,3&nbsp;km)
* Indoor swimming pool Saarlouis (Distance: 7,6&nbsp;km)
* Outdoor swimming pool Saarlouis-Steinrausch (Distance: 7,8&nbsp;km)
* Indoor swimming pool Beckingen (Distance: 7.9&nbsp;km)
* Outdoor swimming pool Wallerfangen (Distance: 8,1&nbsp;km)
* Outdoor swimming pool Schmelz (Distance: 11.7&nbsp;km)
* Indoor swimming pool Lebach (Distance: 14.4&nbsp;km)
== Associations ==
More than 100 clubs are currently active in the city of Dillingen. At traditional clubs in Diefflen are the men's choir Diefflen (founded in 1874), the musical association "Piano-Forte" (founded in 1908), the church choir St. Cäcilia Diefflen (founded in 1900), the gymnastics club Diefflen (founded in 1891), the football club [[FV Diefflen|FV 07 Diefflen]] (founded in 1907) as well as the local association of the [[German Red Cross]] (founded in 1925) to call.
==Religion==
Diefflen has a [[Catholic Church|catholic]] [[parish church]]: [[Saint Joseph]] and [[Wendelin of Trier|St. Wendelin]]. The first [[Gothic Revival architecture|neo-gothic]] church of the architect Wilhelm Hector (1855–1918) was built in the years 1899-1900. After severe damage in [[World War II]], the building was extensively extended in the years 1948-1950 according to the plans of the architects Alois Havener (Saarlouis) and Rudolf Güthler (Saarbrücken) and redesigned in the [[Romanesque art|romanizing]] or [[Late antiquity|late-antiquing]] [[Historicism (art)|abstraction-historicism]].<ref>Institut für aktuelle Kunst im Saarland, Archiv, Bestand Dillingen-Diefflen, St. Josef (Dossier K 47)</ref><ref>Katholische Kirchengemeinde St. Josef Diefflen (Hrsg.): 100 Jahre Pfarrkirche St. Josef Diefflen 1900–2000, Dillingen 2000.</ref><ref>Johann Spurk: Pfarrchronik St. Josef Diefflen 1900–1975, Saarlouis 1975.</ref>
<gallery>
Pfarrkirche St. Josef, Diefflen, Außenansicht L1010120.JPG|St. Joseph and St. Wendelin, around 1900
StJosefStWendelinL1120376 (3).jpg|St. Joseph and St. Wendelin, Interior before the Second World War
StJosefStWendelinAnsichtZippL1050071 (2).jpg|St. Joseph and St. Wendelin, after the reconstruction of the post-war period
St. Josef und St. Wendelin,L1010172.JPG|St. Joseph and St. Wendelin, Interior today
</gallery>
Diefflen belongs to the [[Roman Catholic Diocese of Trier]] ([[Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Cologne|Ecclesiastical province of Cologne]]) and to the [[Evangelical Church in the Rhineland|Protestant Church in the Rhineland]]. The assignment to the Catholic province of Trier is still based on the Roman province division of Emperor [[Diocletian]].<ref>Josef Niessen: Zur Kirchengeschichte an der mittleren Saar, in: Saar-Atlas, im Auftrage der Saar-Forschungsgemeinschaft bearbeitet und herausgegeben von Hermann Overbeck und Georg Wilhelm Sante, in Verbindung mit Hermann Aubin, Otto Maull und Franz Steinbach, Gotha 1934, S. 49–54, hier S. 49.</ref> In 1891, when the old Romanesque church of Pachten was demolished to build a neo-Gothic one, the late antique so-called "Ursusstein" with a [[Christogram]] ☧ was found. This proves that already in the 3rd or 4th century AD, people of Christian faith lived in the immediate vicinity of Diefflen.<ref>Manfred Kostka: Geschichte der Pfarrei Dillingen von ihren Anfängen bis zur Teilung 1935, in: Katholisches Bildungswerk Dillingen-Nalbach e.V. (Hrsg.): 100 Jahre Saardom, Heilig Sakrament Dillingen, 1000 Jahre Pfarrei Dillingen, Festschrift zum Jubiläum der Kirchenkonsekration am 25. April 2013, Dillingen 2012. S. 17–65, hier S. 21.</ref> Whether Christianity perished completely during the turmoil of [[Migration Period]] in the surrounding area remains unclear. The episcopal centers [[Trier]] and [[Metz]] survived the Germanic conquests. From here, in the early Franconian period, the [[Christianization]] of the [[Paganism|pagan population]] was tackled.
Of particular importance for the Christianization of the Nalbach-Valley with Diefflen is certainly the foundation of the Franconian nobles and deacon of the [[Verdun Cathedral]], [[Adalgisel Grimo]]. He determined on December 30, 634 in his will that his possessions in the place [[Tholey]] together with the built there by him "loca sanctorum" to the [[Roman Catholic Diocese of Verdun]], which at the time was headed by Bishop Paul, should fall. This foundation became the focal point of a busy missionary activity in the area.<ref>Josef Niessen: Zur Kirchengeschichte an der mittleren Saar, in: Saar-Atlas, im Auftrage der Saar-Forschungsgemeinschaft bearbeitet und herausgegeben von Hermann Overbeck und Georg Wilhelm Sante, in Verbindung mit Hermann Aubin, Otto Maull und Franz Steinbach, Gotha 1934, S. 49–54, hier S. 50.</ref>
Since its medieval founding Diefflen formed with the neighboring village of Nalbach until 1858 not only a political, but also until 1919 a church unity. The parish church St. Peter and Paul in Nalbach is the mother church of the surrounding six villages of the Nalbach-Valley: Diefflen, Piesbach, Bettstadt, Bilsdorf and Körprich.
Nalbach, which was mentioned as a parish for the first time in the 11th century, belonged in the Middle Ages to the [[archdeacon]]ry [[Tholey Abbey|St. Mauritius Tholey]] and the [[deanery]] and land chapter [[Merzig]] in the then Archdiocese of Trier. The archdeaconry Tholey existed until the abolition of the abbey by the troops of the [[French Revolution]] in 1793.
By a gift of the Archbishop of Trier Eberhard from 1048, a letter of protection of [[Henry III, Holy Roman Emperor|Henry III]] from 1098 and a letter of protection of [[Pope Adrian IV]] of 1154 and by acquiring the rights of the knights of Nalbach in 1331 the [[Simeonstift of Trier]] had in the Nalbach-Valley the basic jurisdiction, the tax collection law and the right to fill the vicarages.<ref>Johann Spurk: Pfarrchronik St. Josef Diefflen 1900–1975, Saarlouis 1975, S. 23–24 und 351.</ref> The ancestral parish of the Nalbach-Valley, St. Peter and Paul, whose patronal feast presumably refers to the local fishermen at the [[Prims]] ([[Saint Peter]] as a fishing patron), is mentioned in the list of parishes from the middle of the 12th century committed to the pilgrimage to the abbey of [[Mettlach]].
The [[Reformation]] could not be spread by the catholic rule of the [[Electorate of Trier]] and the [[Duchy of Lorraine]]. In the neighbor-village Diefflen, [[Saarwellingen]], which was under the sovereignty of the Lords of Kriechingen, the Reformation was enforced. However, with the [[War of the Reunions|reunification policy]] of King [[Louis XIV of France]] and the construction of the fortress of [[Saarlouis]], here too, as well as in [[Schwalbach, Saarland|Schwalbach]], Reisweiler, [[Heusweiler|Eiweiler]] and [[Überherrn]], the only superficially Protestantised church ended.<ref>Josef Niessen: Zur Kirchengeschichte an der mittleren Saar, in: Saar-Atlas, im Auftrage der Saar-Forschungsgemeinschaft bearbeitet und herausgegeben von Hermann Overbeck und Georg Wilhelm Sante, in Verbindung mit Hermann Aubin, Otto Maull und Franz Steinbach, Gotha 1934, S. 49–54, hier S. 51–52.</ref>
Until [[Industrial Revolution]] in the 19th century, there were hardly any people of Protestant denomination in the immediate vicinity of Diefflen.<ref>Hans-Walter Herrmann: Geschichtliche Landeskunde des Saarlandes, Band 1, Saarbrücken 1960, S. 297.</ref> Only with the construction of a Protestant church in Dillingen in the years 1902-1903 exists in today's urban area of Dillingen a Protestant church.
==Further reading==
* Katharina Best: Die Geschichte der ehemaligen Synagogen-Gemeinden Dillingen und Nalbach, in: Unsere Heimat, Mitteilungsblatt des Landkreises Saarlouis für Kultur und Landschaft, 13. Jahrgang, Doppelheft Nr. 3/4, Saarlouis 1988, S. 95–114.
* Georg Colesie: Geschichte des Nalbacher Tales, Eine saarländische Heimatgeschichte, 2. Auflage, Nalbach 1990.
* Das katholische Saarland, Heimat und Kirche, Hrsg.: L. Sudbrack und A. Jakob, Band II/III, Saarbrücken 1954, S. 30.
* Johannes Dräger/Stefan Reuter: »Der Westwall im Raum Dillingen von 1936 bis heute«, Geschichtswerkstatt Dillingen/Saar e.V., Dillingen 2006.
* Anton Edel: Die Einwohner des Nalbacher Tales 1800–1902 – Bettstadt, Bilsdorf, Diefflen, Körprich, Nalbach, Piesbach, hrsg. von Gernot Karge im Auftrag der Vereinigung für die Heimatkunde im Landkreis Saarlouis, Quellen zur Genealogie im Landkreis Saarlouis und angrenzenden Gebieten, Bd. 30, 2 Bände, Saarlouis 2004.
* Freiwillige Feuerwehr Dillingen/Saar (Hrsg.): »125 Jahre Freiwillige Feuerwehr Dillingen. 1864–1989«, Geschichte der Feuerwehr Dillingen/Saar anläßlich ihres 125-jährigen Bestehens 1864–1989 auch unter Berücksichtigung der Vergangenheit der Feuerwehr Pachten, Feuerwehr Diefflen und der Werkfeuerwehr der Dillinger Hüttenwerke, Dillingen 1989.
* Armin Jost/Reuter Stefan: »Dillingen im Zweiten Weltkrieg«, Geschichtswerkstatt Dillingen/Saar, Dillingen 2002.
* Katholische Kirchengemeinde St. Josef Diefflen (Hrsg.): 100 Jahre Pfarrkirche St. Josef Diefflen 1900–2000, Dillingen 2000.
* Walter Kiefer: »Dillingen (Saar), Fotos von Gestern und Heute (1890–1980)«, Saarbrücker Druckerei und Verlag, 1983.
* Walter Kiefer: »Pachten – Dillingen – Diefflen, Bilder von Gestern und Heute (1885–1985)«, Selbstverlag, o. J.
* Hans Peter Klauck: Die Einwohner des Nalbacher Tales vor 1803, Bettstadt, Bilsdorf, Diefflen, Körprich, Nalbach, Piesbach, Mitteilungen der Arbeitsgemeinschaft für saarländische Familienkunde e.V., 26. Sonderband, hrsg. von [[Werner Habicht]], Saarbrücken 1989.
* Peter Kreis: De,iffler Stickelcher (sic), hrsg. von der Stadt Dillingen/Saar, Dillingen 1972.
* Kristine Marschall: Sakralbauwerke des Klassizismus und des Historismus im Saarland, (Veröffentlichungen des Instituts für Landeskunde im Saarland, Bd. 40), Saarbrücken 2002, S. 215 und S. 442–443.
* Aloys Lehnert: »Geschichte der Stadt Dillingen Saar«, Druckerei Krüger, Dillingen 1968.
* Aloys Lehnert: Heimatkundliches Jahrbuch des Kreises Saarlouis, Saarlouis 1960.
* Hermann Maisant: Der Kreis Saarlouis in vor- und frühgeschichtlicher Zeit, Saarlouis 1971.
* Ulrich Meisser: »Dillingen – Gesicht einer Stadt«, Krüger Druck + Verlag GmbH, Dillingen 1987.
* Johann Jakob Reichrath: Beiträge zur Morphologie und Morphogenese des Flußgebietes der mittleren und unteren Saar, Inaugural-Dissertation zur Erlangung der Doktorwürde genehmigt von der Philosophischen Fakultät der Ernst Moritz Arndt-Universität zu Greifswald, Bonn 1936.
* Saarforschungsgemeinschaft (Hrsg.): Die Kunstdenkmäler der Kreise Ottweiler und Saarlouis, bearbeitet von Walter Zimmermann, 2., unveränderte Auflage von 1934, Saarbrücken 1976, S. 176.
* Alois Scherer: »Straßen und Plätze in Dillingen, Pachten, Diefflen – Ursache und Bedeutung ihrer Benennung«, herausgegeben von der Realschule Dillingen und der Stadt Dillingen, Nalbach 1990.
* Alois Scherer: Dieffler Geschichten, Diefflen, wie es einmal war in Dokumenten, Berichten, Erzählungen, Bildern, Dillingen/Saar 2009.
* Johann Spurk: »Diefflen – Die Entwicklung einer kleinen dörflichen Siedlung zu einer großen Arbeiter-Wohnsitzgemeinde«, A. Krüger, Dillingen-Saar, 1964.
* Johann Spurk: 75 Jahre Pfarrgemeinde St. Josef Diefflen, Saarlouis 1975.
* Stadtwerke Dillingen/Saar GmbH (Hrsg.): »Chronik Stadtwerke Dillingen/Saar GmbH«, Dillingen 1993.
* Ludwig Zöller: Das Quartär-Profil von Dillingen-Diefflen (Saarland), Jahresberichte und Mitteilungen des Oberrheinischen Geologischen Vereins, Neue Folge, Band 66, Stuttgart 1984, S. 351–355.
== References ==
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[[Category:Dillingen (district)]]