Hofheim (; officially known as Hofheim am Taunus) is the administrative centre of Main-Taunus-Kreis district, in the south of the German state of Hesse. Its population in September 2020 was 39,946. Geography Location The town is located on the south side of the Taunus hills, 17 km west of Frankfurt and 17 km east of both Wiesbaden and Mainz; Frankfurt Airport is 12 km to the southeast. Hofheim is located in the Rhine Main Area, one of the fastest-growing regions in Germany in terms of population and also in regard to economic productivity. Unemployment is the second lowest in the state of Hesse and one of the lowest in Germany. It is mainly surrounded by forest and open country. As well as being the administrative centre of the district, Hofheim is the economic hub of the Main-Taunus-Kreis. History Early history The oldest traces of human life in the area around Hofheim date back to the Palaeolithic period, with the oldest find dating back to around 40,000 B.C. From the Neolithic period from around 5000 B.C. onwards, settlement areas on the banks of the Schwarzbach, on both sides of today's Schmelzweg and on the Kapellenberg have been identified. Especially the Michelsberg culture around 4400 to 3500 B.C. is shown by numerous traces of settlements and finds on the Kapellenberg (Ringwallanlage). Around 30/40 A.D., the area was settled by the Romans, who built the Hofheim fort here as a two-phase complex - first an earth fort and from 75 A.D. under Emperor Vespasian also a stone fort, which existed until 110 A.D. - in order to secure the Wetterau region, to protect the route between Mainz and Nida in today's Frankfurt-Heddernheim, and to protect the Limes triangle, among other things. The fort was built by the Romans as a two-phase complex. Middle ages The first documented mention was in 1254 under the name Hoveheim, but the suffix -heim indicates a much earlier Frankish foundation. Hofheim belonged to Count Philipp VI the Elder of Falkenstein, when Emperor Charles IV on 21. This document gave the lords of Hofheim the right to build walls, gates and bridges, to erect a gallows, to hold court, to conduct crafts and to hold a market. In the imperial war against Philip the Elder of Falkenstein (Falkenstein Feud), the town was conquered by the Electorate of Mainz in 1366, to which it was subject until 1418. This was