Rathen
Encyclopedia
Rathen is a village in the Elbe Sandstone Mountains
Elbe Sandstone Mountains
The Elbe Sandstone Mountains, also called the Elbe sandstone highlands is a mountain range straddling the border between the state of Saxony in southeastern Germany and the North Bohemian region of the Czech Republic, with about three-quarters of the area lying on the German side...

, 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....

, 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...

, about 35 km southeast of Dresden
Dresden
Dresden is the capital city of the Free State of Saxony in Germany. It is situated in a valley on the River Elbe, near the Czech border. The Dresden conurbation is part of the Saxon Triangle metropolitan area....

 on the Elbe River. Rathen has between 400 and 500 inhabitants.

Rathen is a popular tourist destination, the main sights are the Bastei
Bastei
The Bastei is a spectacular rock formation towering 194 metres above the Elbe River in the Elbe Sandstone Mountains of Germany. Reaching a height of 305 metres above sea level, the jagged rocks of the Bastei were formed by water erosion over one million years ago...

 cliffs, the Amselsee (a lake), and the outdoor theater "Felsenbühne Rathen".

The Rathen Ferry
Rathen Ferry
The Rathen Ferry is a passenger cable ferry across the Elbe river at Rathen in Saxony, Germany. It connects Niederrathen, on the east bank, to Oberrathen, on the west bank. Kurort Rathen railway station, on the Dresden S-Bahn, is about from the Oberrathen ferry terminal...

, a passenger reaction ferry
Reaction ferry
A reaction ferry is a cable ferry that uses the reaction of the current of a river against a fixed tether to propel the vessel across the river...

, connects Niederrathen, on the right bank of the Elbe river, to Oberrathen on the left bank. Kurort Rathen railway station, on the Dresden S-Bahn
Dresden S-Bahn
The Dresden S-Bahn provides commuter train services in Dresden and the surrounding area. It was established in 1973 and comprises three lines...

 and the Dresden to Prague
Prague
Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...

 railway, is adjacent to the Oberrathen ferry terminal. Rathen is also a stop for the paddle steamers operating between Dresden and the Czech border.

History

Rathen was founded in the 13th century
Century
A century is one hundred consecutive years. Centuries are numbered ordinally in English and many other languages .-Start and end in the Gregorian Calendar:...

 around 1261 as place for a castle
Castle
A castle is a type of fortified structure built in Europe and the Middle East during the Middle Ages by European nobility. Scholars debate the scope of the word castle, but usually consider it to be the private fortified residence of a lord or noble...

 fortress.

During World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

, a subcamp of Flossenburg concentration camp
Flossenbürg concentration camp
Konzentrationslager Flossenbürg was a Nazi concentration camp built in May 1938 by the Schutzstaffel Economic-Administrative Main Office at Flossenbürg, in the Oberpfalz region of Bavaria, Germany, near the border with Czechoslovakia. Until its liberation in April 1945, more than 96,000 prisoners...

 was located here.

Tourism

The state-recognised climatic spa of Rathen is not only the base for tours in the western part of Saxon Switzerland, but also for the world-famous Bastei rocks. Other popular destinations in the local Amselgrund
Amselgrund
The Amselgrund is the name given to the valley of the Grünbach stream in the heart of Saxon Switzerland in Eastern Germany. It runs from Niederrathen upstream to Rathewalde. The wild and romantic valley takes hikers through the Rathen rock basin with its bizarre rock formations...

 valley are the lake of Amselsee
Amselsee
The Amselsee is a small reservoir in the spa town of Rathen in Saxon Switzerland. It is located in the Free State of Saxony in Eastern Germany.- Reservoir :...

 and the Rathen Open Air Stage
Rathen Open Air Stage
The Rathen Open Air Stage is a natural stage in Saxon Switzerland in East Germany. It is located in a hollow at the upper end of the Wehlgrund valley between the rocks of Kleine Gans and Großer Wehrturm below the famous Bastei rocks and Neurathen Castle...

. There are a good 400 inhabitants on both sides of the Elbe
Elbe
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...

, linked by a historic reaction ferry
Reaction ferry
A reaction ferry is a cable ferry that uses the reaction of the current of a river against a fixed tether to propel the vessel across the river...

, that is a protected monument. In addition to the Old Mill of 1567, which was nearly demolished after the hundred year flood
Hundred Year Flood
Hundred Year Flood is the fourth studio album by the progressive metal/rock band Magellan.-Track listing:The first song on the album is actually split into 13 individual tracks.# "The Great Goodnight" - 34:27# "Family Jewels" - 5:53...

, there is a range of other timber-framed houses.

Duet to is proximity to the town of Wehlen
Stadt Wehlen
Stadt Wehlen is a town in the Sächsische Schweiz-Osterzgebirge district, in Saxony, Germany. It is situated on the western edge of Saxon Switzerland, on the right bank of the Elbe, 6 km east of Pirna, and 23 km southeast of Dresden .-Municipality subdivisions:Wehlen includes the...

 the following wordplay saying is given to visitors: "Sie können Rathen wählen, ich würde Ihnen auch zu Wehlen raten." ("You can choose Rathen, I would also recommend Wehlen to you.")

See also: Rock climbing in Saxon Switzerland.


Local places of interest

  • Bastei with the Schweizerhaus, Bastei bridge and Bastei lookout
  • Rathen Open Air Stage
    Rathen Open Air Stage
    The Rathen Open Air Stage is a natural stage in Saxon Switzerland in East Germany. It is located in a hollow at the upper end of the Wehlgrund valley between the rocks of Kleine Gans and Großer Wehrturm below the famous Bastei rocks and Neurathen Castle...

     in the Wehlgrund
  • Rhododendron
    Rhododendron
    Rhododendron is a genus of over 1 000 species of woody plants in the heath family, most with showy flowers...

    park on the Kleine Bastei
  • Rauenstein
  • Amselgrund
    Amselgrund
    The Amselgrund is the name given to the valley of the Grünbach stream in the heart of Saxon Switzerland in Eastern Germany. It runs from Niederrathen upstream to Rathewalde. The wild and romantic valley takes hikers through the Rathen rock basin with its bizarre rock formations...

     and Amsel Falls
    Amsel Falls
    The Amsel Falls are a waterfall in Saxon Switzerland in East Germany, roughly a kilometre north of the famous Bastei crags.As the Grünbach stream passes through a particularly narrow, gorge-like section of the Amselgrund valley it plunges over the largest step in the river bed - roughly 10 m...

  • Saxon Switzerland National Park
    Saxon Switzerland National Park
    The Saxon Switzerland National Park , is a National Park in the German Free State of Saxony near the capital city of Dresden. It covers two areas of 93.5 km² in the heart of the German part of the Elbe Sandstone Mountains which is called the Saxon Switzerland .The National Park is not far away...

  • Castles of Neurathen
    Neurathen Castle
    Neurathen Castle , which was first mentioned by this name in 1755 , is located near the famous Bastei rocks near Rathen in Saxon Switzerland in the German Free State of Saxony. This was once the largest rock castle in the region, but today only the rooms carved out of the rock, passages, the...

     and Altrathen
    Altrathen Castle
    Altrathen Castle is located on a rock outcrop near Rathen in Saxon Switzerland in the German Free State of Saxony.- History :Unlike the neighbouring Neurathen Castle very little is known about the history of this fortification. It was probably built at the same time in the 11th century. The castle...

  • Largest garden railway in the world at Eisenbahnwelten im Kurort Rathen
  • Schwedenlöcher

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
x
OK