History
There were speculations that the name Siegen came from the Celtic river Sieg. Documented mention of a similar sounding word called Sigena goes back til 1079.
There is one common factor that goes through Siegen's history and these are the mines. Mining and metallurgical industries are the foundations and backbone of the city's history and economy, with many mines being located within city limits.
1224-- Siegen was considered a newly built town owned by the Count of Nassau (Heinrich the Rich) and Engelbert II of Berg, the then Archbishop of Cologne. One of the historical monuments in Siegen, the Oberos Schloss, was said to be built during that time. In 1303, the town was granted Soest town rights, and its ownership was fully transferred to the Nassau gentry.
16th century – Siegen sported a defensive theme for its infrastructure, with large might walls, 16 towers, 3 town gates and a wondrous castle. Despite these however, it was noted the Siegen had been sieged by several townwide fires from 1592 to 1695. It was also during the 16th century where several institutional buildings were built. These include a Franciscan monastery, a Gymnasium, and a Knightly war school. It was in this century when the Roman Catholic Church was introduced and forced into the townsfolk. It was met with plenty of resistance, which resulted to a rift in the Siegerland along two denominational groups.
In 1743 Willhelm Hyacinth, last in the line of Nassaue-Siegen's Catholic rulers died. After this, power was transferred to the Prince of Orange and the Prince of Nassaue-Diez. The town's economy prospered under their leadership, with mining becoming more lucrative, along with agriculture and silviculture.
In 1813, after Napoleon's downfall, William I received his German inheritance, though he eventually ceded them to the Kingdom of Prussia for Luxembourg's Grand Duchy. The town Siegen was then given to the Siegen district within the Prussian province of Westphalia.
Siegen is the South Westphalian center that it is today due to their time under Prussian rule. On 1923, Siegan was distinguished from its district, albeit also having its name, and thus became a district-free town.
During the second world war, it should be noted that Siegen was also bombed repeatedly by the Allies because of a very important railroad that passed through the town.