The Saxon Elbeland is a term used in more recent times which describes a region along 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...

, whose boundaries are not clearly defined, but which extends roughly from 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...

 to Torgau

Torgau

Torgau is a town on the banks of the Elbe in northwestern Saxony, Germany. It is the capital of the district Nordsachsen.Outside Germany, the town is most well known as the place where during the Second World War, United States Army forces coming from the west met with forces of the Soviet Union...

. The best-known cities and town in this area are 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....

, Meißen, Riesa

Riesa

Riesa is a town in the district of Meißen in the Free State of Saxony, Germany. It is located at the river Elbe, approx. 40 km northwest of Dresden.The world's first 110 kV power line was inaugurated between Riesa and Lauchhammer in 1912....

 and Torgau

Torgau

Torgau is a town on the banks of the Elbe in northwestern Saxony, Germany. It is the capital of the district Nordsachsen.Outside Germany, the town is most well known as the place where during the Second World War, United States Army forces coming from the west met with forces of the Soviet Union...

. The term is largely synonymous with the region along the river known as the Upper Elbe (Oberelbe), i.e. the German section of the Elbe River nearest its source region.

The tourist association of the same name encompasses the city of Dresden, the northern part of the district of Sächsische Schweiz-Osterzgebirge including Freital

Freital

Freital is the biggest town in the Sächsische Schweiz-Osterzgebirge district, in the Free State of Saxony, Germany. It is situated on the small river Weißeritz, 8 km southwest of Dresden.- Geography :...

 and Tharandt

Tharandt

Tharandt is a municipality in Saxony, Germany, situated on the Weißeritz, 9 miles southwest of Dresden, on the Dresden-Reichenbach railway.It has a Protestant Church, a hydropathic establishment, and the oldest academy of forestry in Germany, founded by Heinrich Cotta in 1811 together with its...

, the district of Meißen including Nossen

Nossen

Nossen is a town in the district of Meißen, in the Free State of Saxony, Germany. It is part of the Dresden region, and located 80 km southeast of Leipzig. The town is dominated by a large Renaissance castle.- History :...

, Lommatzsch

Lommatzsch

Lommatzsch is a municipality located in the district of Meißen in the Free State of Saxony, Germany.- Geography :Lommatzsch lies amidst the so called Lommatzscher Pflege, an area of land that is featuring high quality loessic soil and therefore is mainly used agriculturally.-...

, Coswig, Radebeul

Radebeul

Radebeul is a town in the Elbe valley in the district of Meißen in Saxony, Germany, a suburb of Dresden. It is well-known for its viticulture, a museum dedicated to writer Karl May and a narrow gauge railway connecting Radebeul with the castle of Moritzburg and the town of Radeburg...

, Weinböhla

Weinböhla

Weinböhla is a municipality in the district of Meißen, in the Free State of Saxony, Germany. It is situated 7 km east of Meißen, and 17 km northwest of Dresden.The municipality can be reached from Dresden by Dresdner Verkehrsbetriebe tram route 4....

, Moritzburg, Riesa

Riesa

Riesa is a town in the district of Meißen in the Free State of Saxony, Germany. It is located at the river Elbe, approx. 40 km northwest of Dresden.The world's first 110 kV power line was inaugurated between Riesa and Lauchhammer in 1912....

, Großenhain

Großenhain

Großenhain is a Große Kreisstadt in the district of Meißen, Saxony, Germany.-History:...

 and Radeburg

Radeburg

Radeburg is a town in the district of Meißen, in the Free State of Saxony, Germany. It is situated 19 km east of Meißen, and 18 km north of Dresden. The main tourist attraction is the narrow-gauge Radebeul-Radeburg railway line that connects Radeburg and Radebeul via Moritzburg. The...

, the western part of Bautzen District including Radeberg

Radeberg

Radeberg is a small town located approximately 20 kilometres north-east of Dresden in Saxony, Germany. The company Elektronik Radeberg GmbH, formerly well known in East Germany for the production of portable television sets, is located there....

 and Ottendorf-Okrilla

Ottendorf-Okrilla

Ottendorf-Okrilla is a municipality in the Bautzen district, Free State of Saxony, Germany. It is located 20 km northeast of Dresden.-Coat of arms:...

 and a narrow, strip of land along the river including Torgau

Torgau

Torgau is a town on the banks of the Elbe in northwestern Saxony, Germany. It is the capital of the district Nordsachsen.Outside Germany, the town is most well known as the place where during the Second World War, United States Army forces coming from the west met with forces of the Soviet Union...

, Strehla

Strehla

Strehla is a place in the district of Meißen, Saxony, Germany. It is located at the Elbe north of Riesa. This place name means arrow in Sorbian.-History:...

 and Belgern

Belgern

Belgern is a town in the district Nordsachsen, in the Free State of Saxony, Germany. It is located on the left bank of the Elbe, 12 km southeast of Torgau and 55 km east of Leipzig....

.

The landscape is home to one of the most northerly wine-growing areas in Europe. Here, Saxon wine is produced on the south-facing slopes on the right-hand bank of the Elbe near Dresden-Pillnitz

Pillnitz

Pillnitz is a city quarter in the east of Dresden, Germany. The quarter is situated in the east of Dresden. It can be reached by bus, ship, walking along the river or by bicycle...

 and between Radebeul and the Elbe wine villages around Diesbar-Seußlitz. The vineyards produce just 1% of Germany's total volume of wine.

The Saxon Elbeland also forms the northern part of the Upper Elbe Valley - Eastern Ore Mountains (Oberes Elbtal - Osterzgebirge) regional planning region. This incorporates the districts of Sächsische Schweiz, Meißen and Riesa-Großenhain. As a result the landscape is also an important part of the Elbe-Labe Euroregion

Euroregion

In European politics, the term Euroregion usually refers to a transnational co-operation structure between two contiguous territories located in different European countries. Euroregions represent a specific type of cross-border region.-Scope:...

The philharmonic orchestra, the New Elbeland Philharmonia, is named after the region.

Source

• Matthias Donath: Sächsisches Elbland. Edition Leipzig, Leipzig 2009, ISBN 978-3-361-00639-3 (Kulturlandschaften Sachsens 1).

External links

• Tourist Association of Saxon Elbeland (Tourismusverband Sächsisches Elbland)
• Saxon Wine Road
• Saxon Switzerland region
• Upper Elbe Transport Assocation (Verkehrsverbund Oberelbe)
• Regional Planning Region
• Elbe-Labe Euroregion
• Neue Elbland Philharmonie
• Sächsische Binnenhäfen Oberelbe GmbH
• Elbe Sandstone Mountains Tourist Association (Tourismusverein Elbsandsteingebirge)

See also:

• Portal:Saxony