Klöden
Encyclopedia
Klöden is a village and a former municipality in Wittenberg
district in Saxony-Anhalt
, Germany
. Since 1 January 2011, it is part of the town Jessen (Elster)
.
about 12 km southwest of Jessen
and in eastern Saxony-Anhalt.
Klöden lies in the middle of the Elbaue, a kind of natural polder
, and one of the biggest woodland
and meadow
land areas in the region. Much of it is still wild, harbouring a great many wild animals such as roe deer
, wild boar, fallow deer
, Elbe beaver
s, and many others. The plant life is also quite diverse.
origin. In 1935, the name's spelling was changed from "Clöden" to "Klöden".
The earliest document that is available was drawn up on 12 April 965, but it constitutes a clever forgery (ie it is authentically mediaeval, but its original purpose was fraudulent). It contains, among the 17 placenames that it mentions, one called "Clotna".
What follows is a summary of what it says:
The document, originally written in Latin
, nowadays hangs in the vicarage in Klöden. The document's legal validity only bears on the granting of honey tithe
s at the aforesaid point in time.
The mention of the place Clotna in the year 965 allows the conclusion that Klöden is more than 1000 years old, as the document is witness to a fraudulent acquisition of a honey tithe, not to a founding date.
Source: Extracts from the Klödener Chronik by Mr. Schepeler Kurt.
.
There is, however, no railway connection. Jessen station is not far away, though, and Klöden may be reached from there by bus
.
The Elbradweg R2 bicycle trail also serves Klöden.
Wittenberg (district)
Wittenberg is a district in the east of Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Neighboring districts are Anhalt-Bitterfeld, the district-free city of Dessau-Roßlau, the districts of Potsdam-Mittelmark, Teltow-Fläming and Elbe-Elster in Brandenburg, and the district of Nordsachsen in the Free State of Saxony.-...
district in 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...
, 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...
. Since 1 January 2011, it is part of the town Jessen (Elster)
Jessen (Elster)
Jessen is a municipality on the Schwarze Elster and lies in the eastern part of Saxony-Anhalt in the district of Wittenberg.-Geography:Jessen is an amalgamated municipality, and has the following subdivisions:-History:...
.
Geography
Klöden lies on the ElbeElbe
The Elbe is one of the major rivers of Central Europe. It rises in the Krkonoše Mountains of the northwestern Czech Republic before traversing much of Bohemia , then Germany and flowing into the North Sea at Cuxhaven, 110 km northwest of Hamburg...
about 12 km southwest of Jessen
Jessen (Elster)
Jessen is a municipality on the Schwarze Elster and lies in the eastern part of Saxony-Anhalt in the district of Wittenberg.-Geography:Jessen is an amalgamated municipality, and has the following subdivisions:-History:...
and in eastern Saxony-Anhalt.
Klöden lies in the middle of the Elbaue, a kind of natural polder
Polder
A polder is a low-lying tract of land enclosed by embankments known as dikes, that forms an artificial hydrological entity, meaning it has no connection with outside water other than through manually-operated devices...
, and one of the biggest woodland
Woodland
Ecologically, a woodland is a low-density forest forming open habitats with plenty of sunlight and limited shade. Woodlands may support an understory of shrubs and herbaceous plants including grasses. Woodland may form a transition to shrubland under drier conditions or during early stages of...
and meadow
Meadow
A meadow is a field vegetated primarily by grass and other non-woody plants . The term is from Old English mædwe. In agriculture a meadow is grassland which is not grazed by domestic livestock but rather allowed to grow unchecked in order to make hay...
land areas in the region. Much of it is still wild, harbouring a great many wild animals such as roe deer
Roe Deer
The European Roe Deer , also known as the Western Roe Deer, chevreuil or just Roe Deer, is a Eurasian species of deer. It is relatively small, reddish and grey-brown, and well-adapted to cold environments. Roe Deer are widespread in Western Europe, from the Mediterranean to Scandinavia, and from...
, wild boar, fallow deer
Fallow Deer
The Fallow Deer is a ruminant mammal belonging to the family Cervidae. This common species is native to western Eurasia, but has been introduced widely elsewhere. It often includes the rarer Persian Fallow Deer as a subspecies , while others treat it as an entirely different species The Fallow...
, Elbe beaver
Beaver
The beaver is a primarily nocturnal, large, semi-aquatic rodent. Castor includes two extant species, North American Beaver and Eurasian Beaver . Beavers are known for building dams, canals, and lodges . They are the second-largest rodent in the world...
s, and many others. The plant life is also quite diverse.
History
Klöden's history is the subject of very divergent points of view. This even goes for the origin of the community's name, as well as for just when Klöden had its first documentary mention. The most up-to-date research says that the name is of SlavicSlavic languages
The Slavic languages , a group of closely related languages of the Slavic peoples and a subgroup of Indo-European languages, have speakers in most of Eastern Europe, in much of the Balkans, in parts of Central Europe, and in the northern part of Asia.-Branches:Scholars traditionally divide Slavic...
origin. In 1935, the name's spelling was changed from "Clöden" to "Klöden".
The earliest document that is available was drawn up on 12 April 965, but it constitutes a clever forgery (ie it is authentically mediaeval, but its original purpose was fraudulent). It contains, among the 17 placenames that it mentions, one called "Clotna".
What follows is a summary of what it says:
- "On 12 April 965, Kaiser Otto I of Nordhausen granted from Saint John's Monastery to Magdeburg the honey tithe from the Slavic province of Nizzi lying in his faithful Hodo's county."
The document, originally written in Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
, nowadays hangs in the vicarage in Klöden. The document's legal validity only bears on the granting of honey tithe
Tithe
A tithe is a one-tenth part of something, paid as a contribution to a religious organization or compulsory tax to government. Today, tithes are normally voluntary and paid in cash, cheques, or stocks, whereas historically tithes were required and paid in kind, such as agricultural products...
s at the aforesaid point in time.
The mention of the place Clotna in the year 965 allows the conclusion that Klöden is more than 1000 years old, as the document is witness to a fraudulent acquisition of a honey tithe, not to a founding date.
Source: Extracts from the Klödener Chronik by Mr. Schepeler Kurt.
Economy and transportation
Klöden is connected to Federal Highway (Bundesstraße) B 187, which lies 12 km north of the community, and joins Jessen and WittenbergWittenberg
Wittenberg, officially Lutherstadt Wittenberg, is a city in Germany in the Bundesland Saxony-Anhalt, on the river Elbe. It has a population of about 50,000....
.
There is, however, no railway connection. Jessen station is not far away, though, and Klöden may be reached from there by bus
Bus
A bus is a road vehicle designed to carry passengers. Buses can have a capacity as high as 300 passengers. The most common type of bus is the single-decker bus, with larger loads carried by double-decker buses and articulated buses, and smaller loads carried by midibuses and minibuses; coaches are...
.
The Elbradweg R2 bicycle trail also serves Klöden.