to gain rights for self-rule, tax politics, etc., but Duke Ernst decided arbitrarily in too many cases. The general public became more and more dissatisfied, resulting in uprisings. During the liberal movements resulting from the Hambacher Fest in 1832, the uprisings escalated. The revolts were put down with the help of Prussian troops from Saarlouis. In 1834 the duke sold the land to the Kingdom of Prussia and St. Wendel became a chief town of the administrative district of Trier. The Prussian state stationed a garrison in St. Wendel. Economically the St. Wendel area was poor until the middle of the 19th century, which is why so many people emigrated to America. Even today, there are towns in Brazil where the local German dialect of St. Wendel or even the surrounding villages is still spoken. In the middle of the 19th century, the town of St. Wendel and the nearby villages Alsfassen and Breiten slowly grew together. Today's Bahnhofstrasse, which leads to Niederweiler (the area of today's train station), was built, as well as the Brühlstrasse and the Kelsweilerstrasse, which also lead to Breiten and Alsfassen. In 1859, St. Wendel, Breiten and Alsfassen were finally united into the new town of St. Wendel. Other urban building actions: street lights, a hospital, an evangelical church (1841). The economic situation of St. Wendel changed in 1860 with the opening of the railroad between Bingen and Saarbrücken, with St. Wendel profiting as a train station and the building of a train maintenance company. The train maintenance company was first situated opposite the station on the Tholeyerberg; between 1913 and 1915 it was moved to the (today Werkstrasse). Today the area is used by the Bundeswehr as an army maintenance logistic center. In 1898 the Divine Word Missionaries built a huge mission in St. Wendel. Also, as a reaction to the changes in economic and social structures, a major town expansion began, causing the inhabited area to double in size between 1910 and 1937. During the Third Reich, a huge military base was built near the western town border beside Highway B269 to Winterbach. The town was captured by the US 7th Army in March 1945, the US 10th Armored Division briefly establishing its command post there on 19 March. After the World War II another big expansion of the town came during the Wirtschaftswunder. Saarland remained a French protectorate independent from Germany until