Biblis is a municipality in the Bergstraße district in southern Hessen, Germany. Geography Location The municipality lies in the Rhine rift west of the Odenwald between Darmstadt to the north and Mannheim to the south; it also lies north of Bürstadt. Biblis lies directly north of the lower reaches of the Weschnitz, which empties into the Rhine only a few kilometres northwest of the municipality. Neighbouring municipalities Biblis borders in the north on the municipalities of Groß-Rohrheim and Gernsheim, in the east on the municipality of Einhausen, in the south on the towns of Bürstadt and Lampertheim and in the west on the district-free city of Worms (Rhineland-Palatinate). Constituent communities Biblis's three Ortsteile are Biblis, Nordheim and Wattenheim. History In 836, Biblis had its first documentary mention in the Lorsch Abbey’s Codex Laureshamensis under the name Bibifloz (“settlement at the water”) when King Louis the German donated his holdings in Biblis, Wattenheim and Zullestein to his faithful vassal Wernher, who in turn bequeathed them to the Lorsch Abbey in 846. From 1461 to 1623, the area was pledged to the Palatinate, and in the Reformation’s wake it became Protestant, although after the retrocession, it became Catholic again. During the Thirty Years' War, the municipality was laid waste several times, and the populace was decimated by the Plague. With Secularization in 1803, the municipality passed to what later became the Grand Duchy of Hesse and was assigned to the district of Worms. In 1936 the German Luftwaffe built an airfield in Biblis disguised as a typical Hessian farm. The airfield was used during World War II to intercept allied bombers and is an equestrian centre and restaurant today. In 1945, Biblis was split off from Worms, which became part of the new federal state of Rhineland-Palatinate, and became part of the Bergstrasse district in the state of Hesse. The formerly self-governing municipalities of Biblis, Nordheim and Wattenheim merged in 1970 to form the greater municipality of Biblis. Population development Politics Mayor 1995–2001: Alfred Kappel (CDU) 2001–2013: Hildegard Cornelius-Gaus (independent) 2013–2019: Felix Kusicka (CDU) 2019–incumbent: Volker Scheib Municipality council The municipal election held on 26 March 2006 yielded the following results: Coat of arms The arms were bestowed upon the municipality of Biblis in 1950, and might be described thus: Azure a plough sinister argent, in the base a water lily argent. Biblis's coat of arms displays the Biblis forebears’ dogged struggle