 It has to thank for its founding – as does the main town – a dispute over sovereignty in the area between the Archbishops of Cologne and the Bishops of Paderborn in the 13th century.The Archbishops of Cologne were trying to hem the Bishops' domain in with a ring of towns and castles.The order to fortify the village high over the Jordan Valley was issued by Bishop Otto of Paderborn in 1290.