Walferdange

Geography

The commune of Walferdange is located north of Luxembourg City in the valley of the Alzette. It is part of the canton Luxembourg.

The town of Walferdange lies in the center of the commune, other towns within the commune include Helmsange and Bereldange.

History

The commune of Walferdange was formed on 1 January 1851, when it was detached from the commune of Steinsel. The law forming Walferdange was passed on 25 November 1850.

Although the commune first came into existence in 1851, there is evidence of prehistoric settlement as well as remains of a very large Roman villa. The Raschpëtzer Qanat, an underground aqueduct near Helmsange was built in the 1st century AD during the Roman occupation. It is said to be the longest qanat north of the Alps.

Walferdange church was built between 1845 and 1852; the main features of its classical facade are two large statues of Père Kolbe and Thérèse de Lisieux, added at a later date. Before official unification of the commune, and even before this church was built, it was religion that pulled the villages of Heisdorf, Helmsange, Bereldange and Walferdange together.

Recognition of Walferdange as an important town came in 1850, when Prince Henry, brother of Grand Duke William III and Regent of Luxembourg, chose Walferdange as his seat of residence. After the independence of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg in 1867, the Walferdange Castle was assigned to Grand Duke Adolphe according to the constitution. As an engaged winemaker, he enthusiastically served his guests wine from his own production. The palace was later vacated by the Grand Ducal family.

On 26 March 1943, during the German occupation of Luxembourg, Nazi authorities merged the commune of Walferdange into Luxembourg City, alongside Strassen and parts of Hesperange. This enlargement of city boundaries only lasted until the liberation of Luxembourg on 10 September 1944, when the previous boundaries were restored and Walferdange once again became a separate commune.

Population

Places of interest

Sights include the Roman villa and the underground aqueduct Raschpëtzer Qanat, as well as the Walferdange Castle. Until 2015 the residential palace housed the Faculty of Languages and Literature, Humanities, Art and Behavioral Sciences of the University of Luxembourg.

Sports

Walferdange is home for to sport clubs, including BBC Résidence (basketball), RSR Walfer (volleyball), De Renert (rugby union), FC Résidence Walferdange (football), Tennis Club Résidence Walfer (tennis) and Optimists Cricket Club (cricket).

Cricket

The Pierre Werner Cricket Ground, also known as the Walferdange Cricket Ground, is situated in Helmsange next to the Alzette river. The cricket ground is the premier cricket venue in Luxembourg, being the home ground of the country's top club, the Optimists Cricket Club (OCC). It is named after the Pierre Werner, former Prime Minister of Luxembourg (1959–74, 1979–84). Werner had fallen in love with cricket when living in London in 1930, and went on to become the Honorary President of the OCC, which had been established when he was Prime Minister. Werner opened the OCC's new ground in 1992.

Pidal

Walferdange is home to PIDAL (Piscine intercommunale de l’Alzette), a swimming pool that includes a spa area, a sauna, a fitness room and a restaurant.

The facility is managed by the communes of Lorentzweiler, Steinsel and Walferdange.

Culture

The Harmonie Grand-Ducale Marie-Adélaïde (Walfer Musek), named after Marie-Adélaïde, Grand Duchess of Luxembourg, has been founded in 1912.

Population

According to the website of the municipality, Walferdange has about 8,600 inhabitants at the beginning of 2025. More than 51% are foreigners of about 103 different nationalities.

Official statistics 1821 - 2015

Transport

The commune is served by Walferdange railway station on CFL Line 10, by the N7 national road, and several buslines, including the city of Luxembourg buslines (AVL) 11 and 10.

The commune also has its own mini-bus service known as "Walfy-Flexibus".

Twin towns — sister cities

Walferdange is twinned with:

• GER Schmitshausen, Germany
• FRA Longuyon, France
• ITA Limana, Italy

References

References

1. "WALFERDANGE - Syvicol".
2. (July 2025). "Mémorial A, 1850, No. 108". Service central de législation }}{{Dead link.
3. [http://www.romanaqueducts.info/aquasite/walferdange/index.html Roman aqueducts: Walferdange]. Retrieved 2 December 2007.
4. Beck, Simone. (2021). "Die (Nicht)- Eingemeindung von 1943".
5. "Population par canton et commune".
6. (2002). "Pierre Werner". Optimists Cricket Club.
7. "PIDAL, l'espace de bien-être".
8. "La commune". Administration communale de Walferdange.
9. Source:Statec; Publication date: 08/04/2015; Periodicity: yearly.
10. "Communes jumelées". Walferdange.