Altenburger Land
Encyclopedia
Altenburger Land is a district in Thuringia
, Germany
. It is bounded by (from the west and clockwise) the district of Greiz
, the Burgenlandkreis
(Saxony-Anhalt
), and the districts Leipziger Land
, Mittweida
, Chemnitzer Land
, Zwickauer Land
in Saxony
.
. The castle of Altenburg already existed in the 10th century. In the following centuries German settlers occupied the region. It was part of the margravate of Meißen in the 14th century. At this time most of the forests were cleared.
The city of Altenburg and the surrounding lands were the tiny duchy of Saxe-Altenburg
from 1826 to 1918; afterwards it was a state within the Weimar Republic
for a short time, before it was dissolved in 1922 in order to join the state of Thuringia.
The district in its present borders was established in 1922 under the name "Altenburg". In 1952 there was an administrative reform splitting the districts into two smaller units, called Altenburg and Schmölln. They were merged again in 1994, but now under the name "Altenburger Land".
, an affluent of the Weiße Elster
, crossing the district from south to north. The hilly Osterland
constituting the northernmost foothills of the Ore Mountains slopes gently away to the plains of eastern Saxony-Anhalt.
Thuringia
The Free State of Thuringia is a state of Germany, located in the central part of the country.It has an area of and 2.29 million inhabitants, making it the sixth smallest by area and the fifth smallest by population of Germany's sixteen states....
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
. It is bounded by (from the west and clockwise) the district of Greiz
Greiz (district)
Greiz is a Kreis in the east of Thuringia, Germany. Neighboring districts are Saale-Holzland, Saale-Orla,district-free city Gera, the Burgenlandkreis in Saxony-Anhalt, Altenburger Land, and the two Saxon districts Zwickauer Land and Vogtlandkreis.- History :Historically the area of the district...
, the Burgenlandkreis
Burgenlandkreis
The Burgenlandkreis was a district in the south of Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Neighboring districts are Merseburg-Querfurt, Weißenfels, Leipziger Land, Aschersleben-Staßfurt, Altenburger Land, Greiz, district-free Gera, Saale-Holzland, Weimarer Land, Sömmerda and the Kyffhäuserkreis.- History :The...
(Saxony-Anhalt
Saxony-Anhalt
Saxony-Anhalt is a landlocked state of Germany. Its capital is Magdeburg and it is surrounded by the German states of Lower Saxony, Brandenburg, Saxony, and Thuringia.Saxony-Anhalt covers an area of...
), and the districts Leipziger Land
Leipziger Land
Leipziger Land is a former district in the Free State of Saxony, Germany. It was bounded by the districts of Delitzsch, the district-free city Leipzig, Muldentalkreis, Mittweida, the district Altenburger Land in Thuringia, and the districts Burgenlandkreis, Saalekreis in Saxony-Anhalt.- History...
, Mittweida
Mittweida (district)
Mittweida is a former district in the Free State of Saxony, Germany. It was bounded by the districts Muldentalkreis, Döbeln, Freiberg, the district-free city Chemnitz and the district Chemnitzer Land, the district Altenburger Land in Thuringia and the district Leipziger Land.- History :In 1994...
, Chemnitzer Land
Chemnitzer Land
Chemnitzer Land is a former district in the Free State of Saxony, Germany. It was bounded by the district of Mittweida, the city of Chemnitz, the districts of Stollberg and Zwickauer Land and the state of Thuringia .- History :The history of the region is largely influenced by the neighbouring...
, Zwickauer Land
Zwickauer Land
Zwickauer Land is a former Kreis in the south-west of the Free State of Saxony, Germany. Neighboring districts were Chemnitzer Land, Stollberg, Aue-Schwarzenberg, Vogtlandkreis, and the districts Greiz and Altenburger Land in Thuringia...
in Saxony
Saxony
The Free State of Saxony is a landlocked state of Germany, contingent with Brandenburg, Saxony Anhalt, Thuringia, Bavaria, the Czech Republic and Poland. It is the tenth-largest German state in area, with of Germany's sixteen states....
.
History
The region on the Pleiße River was part of a huge forest, which was settled by Slavic peoplesSlavic peoples
The Slavic people are an Indo-European panethnicity living in Eastern Europe, Southeast Europe, North Asia and Central Asia. The term Slavic represents a broad ethno-linguistic group of people, who speak languages belonging to the Slavic language family and share, to varying degrees, certain...
. The castle of Altenburg already existed in the 10th century. In the following centuries German settlers occupied the region. It was part of the margravate of Meißen in the 14th century. At this time most of the forests were cleared.
The city of Altenburg and the surrounding lands were the tiny duchy of Saxe-Altenburg
Saxe-Altenburg
Saxe-Altenburg was one of the Saxon duchies held by the Ernestine branch of the Wettin dynasty in present-day Thuringia.-History:The duchy originated from the medieval Burgraviate of Altenburg in the Imperial Pleissnerland , a possession of the Wettin Margraves of Meissen since 1243...
from 1826 to 1918; afterwards it was a state within the Weimar Republic
Weimar Republic
The Weimar Republic is the name given by historians to the parliamentary republic established in 1919 in Germany to replace the imperial form of government...
for a short time, before it was dissolved in 1922 in order to join the state of Thuringia.
The district in its present borders was established in 1922 under the name "Altenburg". In 1952 there was an administrative reform splitting the districts into two smaller units, called Altenburg and Schmölln. They were merged again in 1994, but now under the name "Altenburger Land".
Geography
Altenburger Land is the easternmost district of Thuringia. It is a mainly agricultural region. The main river is the PleißePleiße
The Pleiße is a right tributary of the Weiße Elster in Saxony, Germany. It has its source southwest of Zwickau at Ebersbrunn, then flows through Werdau, Crimmitschau, Altenburg, and other cities in Saxony and Thuringia, before meeting the Weiße Elster in Leipzig.The river naturally had a length of...
, an affluent of the Weiße Elster
Weiße Elster
The White Elster or Weisse Elster is a long river in central Europe, right tributary of the Saale. Its source is in the westernmost part of the Czech Republic, near Aš. After a few kilometres, it flows into eastern Germany...
, crossing the district from south to north. The hilly Osterland
Osterland
Osterland is a historical region in Germany. It was situated between the Elbe and Saale rivers to the north of Pleissnerland which it later absorbed and it included the city of Leipzig...
constituting the northernmost foothills of the Ore Mountains slopes gently away to the plains of eastern Saxony-Anhalt.
Coat of arms
The coat of arms displays:
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Towns and municipalities
Verwaltungsgemeinschaft-free towns | and municipalities |
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Heyersdorf -Geography:Heyersdorf is located near the municipalities of Ponitz, the city of Schmölln, and Thonhausen in the district of Altenburger Land; as well as near the city of Crimmitschau in the Saxon district of Zwickauer Land.-References:... Nobitz Nobitz is a municipality in the district Altenburger Land, in Thuringia, Germany.... Ponitz Ponitz is a municipality in the district Altenburger Land, in Thuringia, Germany.It is particularly famous for its Baroque organ by Gottfried Silbermann and for its spectacularly-eccentric Renaissance manor house... Saara Saara is a German municipality in the Thuringian district of Altenburger Land.-History:The municipality of Saara was established on January 1, 1996, through the consolidation of Lehndorf, Mockern, Podelwitz, Taupadel, and Zehma.-References:... |
Verwaltungsgemeinschaften | ||
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Altkirchen Altkirchen is a German municipality in the Thuringian district of Altenburger Land and belongs to the Verwaltungsgemeinschaft of the same name.-Neighboring municipalities:... Dobitschen Dobitschen is a municipality in the Altenburger Land district, in the far eastern part of Thuringia, Germany.-Geography:The bounding municipalities are Altkirchen, Drogen, Göllnitz, Lumpzig, Mehna und Naundorf in Altenberger Land.-Historical population:... Drogen Drogen is a municipality in the Thuringian landkreis of Altenburger Land and belongs to the Verwaltungsgemeinschaft of the same name.-Neighboring municipalities:... Göhren, Thuringia Göhren is a municipality in the district Altenburger Land, in Thuringia, Germany.... Göllnitz Göllnitz is a municipality in the district Altenburger Land, in Thuringia, Germany.... Großröda Großröda is a municipality in the district Altenburger Land, in Thuringia, Germany.... Lumpzig Lumpzig is a municipality in the district Altenburger Land, in Thuringia, Germany.... Mehna Mehna is a municipality in the district Altenburger Land, in Thuringia, Germany.... 1 Starkenberg Starkenberg is a municipality in the district Altenburger Land, in Thuringia, Germany. On 1 December 2008, it incorporated the former municipalities Naundorf and Tegkwitz.... |
Heukewalde Heukewalde is a German municipality in the Thuringian Landkreis of Altenburger Land. It belongs to the Verwaltungsgemeinschaft of Oberes Sprottental.-Neighboring Municipalities:... Jonaswalde Jonaswalde is a municipality in the Thuringian district of Altenburger Land. It belongs to the Verwaltungsgemeinschaft of Oberes Sprottental.-Neighboring municipalities:... Löbichau Löbichau is a municipality in the district Altenburger Land, in Thuringia, Germany.... Nöbdenitz Nöbdenitz is a German municipality in the Thuringian district of Altenburger Land.-Neighboring municipalities:Municipalities near Nöbdenitz are Drogen, Löbichau, Posterstein, the City of Schmölln, Vollmershain, and Wildenbörten.-Municipal arrangement:... 1 Posterstein Posterstein is a German municipality in the Thuringian Landkreis of Altenburger Land.-Neighboring municipalities:Municipalities near Posterstein are Heukewalde, Löbichau, Nöbdenitz, and Vollmershain in the district of Altenburger Land; as well as Paitzdorf and the city of Ronneburg in the district... Thonhausen Thonhausen is a German municipality in the Thuringian district of Altenburger Land. It belongs to the Verwaltungsgemeinschaft of Oberes Sprottental.-Neighboring municipalities:... Vollmershain Vollmershain is a town in the Verwaltungsgemeinschaft of Oberes Sprottental in the Thuringian landkreis of Altenburger Land in Germany.-The town's site:The village of Vollmershain is located along 4 km of the Sprotte... Wildenbörten Wildenbörten a German municipality in the Thuringian district of Altenburger Land. It belongs to the Verwaltungsgemeinschaft of Oberes Sprottental.-Neighboring municipalities:...
Fockendorf Fockendorf is a municipality in the district Altenburger Land, in Thuringia, Germany.... Gerstenberg Gerstenberg is a municipality in the district Altenburger Land, in Thuringia, Germany.... Haselbach, Thuringia Haselbach is a municipality in the district Altenburger Land, in Thuringia, Germany.... Treben Treben is a municipality in the district Altenburger Land, in Thuringia, Germany.... 1 Windischleuba Windischleuba is a municipality in the district Altenburger Land, in Thuringia, Germany.... |
Kriebitzsch Kriebitzsch is a municipality in the district Altenburger Land, in Thuringia, Germany.... Lödla Lödla is a municipality in the district Altenburger Land, in Thuringia, Germany.... Monstab Monstab is a municipality in the district Altenburger Land, in Thuringia, Germany.... Rositz Rositz is a municipality in the district Altenburger Land, in Thuringia, Germany. An RAF raid bombed the oil refinery in Rositz on February 14/15, 1945 as part of Operation Thunderclap.... 1
Frohnsdorf Frohnsdorf is a municipality in the district Altenburger Land, in Thuringia, Germany.... Göpfersdorf Göpfersdorf is a municipality in the district Altenburger Land, in Thuringia, Germany.... Jückelberg Jückelberg is a municipality in the district Altenburger Land, in Thuringia, Germany.... Langenleuba-Niederhain Langenleuba-Niederhain is a municipality in the district Altenburger Land, in Thuringia, Germany.... 1 Ziegelheim Ziegelheim is a municipality in the district Altenburger Land, in Thuringia, Germany.... |
1seat of the Verwaltungsgemeinschaft |
External links
- Official website (German, English, French)