An association which began in 2016 with a friendship agreement has now been formally cemented with the official twinning of Malmesbury with the German town of Bad Hersfeld.
An official signing took place during a visit to the spa town, with representatives of Malmesbury Town Council and Malmesbury Twinning Association.
Malmesbury Mayor Cllr Phil Exton signed the formal twinning agreement, along with his Mayoral equivalent in Bad Hersfeld, Burgermeisterin Anke Hofmann.
“It’s a real honour to be here in Bad Hersfeld to cement our friendship with an official twinning,” said Cllr Exton. “We have a long association with the town and are looking forward to building on that and forging even stronger links.”
Anke Hofmann commented: “The rapprochement between Malmesbury and Bad Hersfeld is a success story that I am very pleased about. The right time has come to take another important step together in the connection between our two towns – towards a lasting English-German town twinning in a common Europe!”
The links between Malmesbury and Bad Hersfeld date back to the early 8th century. Saint Lull, a companion of Saint Boniface who was educated in Malmesbury, founded a Benedictine monastery in Bad Hersfeld in 756, from which the introduction of the Saxons to Christianity was centred.
The visit and twinning were timed to coincide with the annual Lullusfest, Germany’s oldest folk festival. The dignitaries also had the opportunity to visit a red telephone box, located in Malmesbury Place in the town.
Bad Hersfeld is the third town to twin with Malmesbury. Neibull in Germany and Gien in France are the other two, and the town also has strong links with Malmesbury in South Africa. Recently, Malmesbury signed an official Friendship Agreement with the Ukrainian city of Cherkasy, recognising the support and respect between the two.