Weißenfels
Encyclopedia
Weißenfels (ˈvaɪsənˌfɛls; often written in English as Weissenfels) is the largest town of the Burgenlandkreis
district, in southern Saxony-Anhalt
, Germany
. It is situated on the river Saale
, approximately 30 km (18.6 mi) south of Halle
.
crossing the Saale and received municipal rights
in 1185. During the Thirty Years' War
, the town was badly damaged and the population fell from 2200 to 960. On 7 November 1632 the body of King Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden
was first laid out at Weißenfels after he had been killed the day before at the Battle of Lützen
.
Shortly afterwards however, the town took a steep rise, when Duke Augustus, a scion of the Saxon
House of Wettin, established the Duchy of Saxe-Weissenfels
in 1656 and chose Weißenfels as his residence. Since 1638 Augustus had served as the Protestant
administrator of the Magdeburg archbishopric
, which, according to the 1648 Peace of Westphalia
would be finally secularised to Brandenburg-Prussia
upon his death.
Augustus therefore from 1660 on erected the Baroque
Neu-Augustusburg Castle in Weißenfels as the seat of his ducal successors. Completed in 1680 it became the duchy's administrative as well as cultural centre until its dissolution in 1746. Composers like Johann Philipp Krieger and Georg Philipp Telemann
worked here, the actress Friederike Caroline Neuber
made her first appearances at Weißenfels. In 1713 Johann Sebastian Bach
dedicated his cantata Was mir behagt, ist nur die muntre Jagd, BWV 208 to Duke Christian of Saxe-Weissenfels
.
The Lutheran
theologian Erdmann Neumeister
from 1704 on served as a deacon
at the castle's Trinity Chapel. Its pipe organ completed in 1673 has 22 stops
. According to John Mainwaring
, Duke Johann Adolf I of Saxe-Weissenfels
himself discovered the musical talent of George Frideric Handel
, when he heard the son of his physician Georg Händel
playing on the organ. Bach wrote the Toccata and Fugue in F major
(BWV 540) for it.
With the extinction of the Wettin Saxe-Weissenfels line in 1746, the town fell back to the Saxon Electorate and after the 1815 Congress of Vienna
to the Prussian
Province of Saxony
. From 1816 on it was the capital of the Weißenfels district
until its dissolution in 2007.
class="wikitable">
Year
Population
1933
40,119
1939
42,387
1946
50,995 ¹
1950
47,967 ²
1960
45,856
1981
39,125
1984
38,657
class="wikitable">
Year
Population
1990
37,765 ³
1995
34,676
2000
31,946
2005
29,866
2006
29,669
2007
29,569
1: 29 October
2: 31 August
3: 3 October
, Markwerben
and Uichteritz
. On 1 September 2010, the former municipalities of Burgwerben
, Großkorbetha
, Leißling
, Reichardtswerben
, Schkortleben
, Storkau
, Tagewerben
and Wengelsdorf
joined the town.
, shoe manufacture was Weißenfels' primary industry, until 1991 when the last factory shut down. Since then, the food processing industry has grown significantly. The main companies are:
The town has access to the A9 at the Weißenfels junction, near the interchange with the A38. The Weißenfels station is a stop on the Thuringian Railway line from Halle to Nebra
.
and Unihockey are the two most popular sports in town. Mitteldeutscher Basketball Club http://www.mitteldeutscherbc.de (MBC) was playing in the German national basketball league in between 1999 and 2004 and entered the league again in 2009. Unihockey Club Kreissparkasse Weißenfels won the German Unihockey championship seven times, from 2003 to 2009. The Unihockey European Cup, organized every year in order to establish the best team in Europe, was held in Weißenfels and neighbouring cities Hohenmölsen
and Merseburg
in January 2004.
with: Kornwestheim
, Germany, since 1990 Komárno
, Slovakia, since 1995
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...
district, in southern 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...
. It is situated on the river Saale
Saale
The Saale, also known as the Saxon Saale and Thuringian Saale , is a river in Germany and a left-bank tributary of the Elbe. It is not to be confused with the smaller Franconian Saale, a right-bank tributary of the Main, or the Saale in Lower Saxony, a tributary of the Leine.-Course:The Saale...
, approximately 30 km (18.6 mi) south of Halle
Halle, Saxony-Anhalt
Halle is the largest city in the German state of Saxony-Anhalt. It is also called Halle an der Saale in order to distinguish it from the town of Halle in North Rhine-Westphalia...
.
History
The settlement arose around a castle on a fordFord (crossing)
A ford is a shallow place with good footing where a river or stream may be crossed by wading or in a vehicle. A ford is mostly a natural phenomenon, in contrast to a low water crossing, which is an artificial bridge that allows crossing a river or stream when water is low.The names of many towns...
crossing the Saale and received municipal rights
German town law
German town law or German municipal concerns concerns town privileges used by many cities, towns, and villages throughout Central and Eastern Europe during the Middle Ages.- Town law in Germany :...
in 1185. During the Thirty Years' War
Thirty Years' War
The Thirty Years' War was fought primarily in what is now Germany, and at various points involved most countries in Europe. It was one of the most destructive conflicts in European history....
, the town was badly damaged and the population fell from 2200 to 960. On 7 November 1632 the body of King Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden
Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden
Gustav II Adolf has been widely known in English by his Latinized name Gustavus Adolphus Magnus and variously in historical writings also as Gustavus, or Gustavus the Great, or Gustav Adolph the Great,...
was first laid out at Weißenfels after he had been killed the day before at the Battle of Lützen
Battle of Lützen (1632)
The Battle of Lützen was one of the most decisive battles of the Thirty Years' War. It was a Protestant victory, but cost the life of one of the most important leaders of the Protestant alliance, Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden, which caused the Protestant campaign to lose direction.- Prelude to the...
.
Shortly afterwards however, the town took a steep rise, when Duke Augustus, a scion of the Saxon
Electorate of Saxony
The Electorate of Saxony , sometimes referred to as Upper Saxony, was a State of the Holy Roman Empire. It was established when Emperor Charles IV raised the Ascanian duchy of Saxe-Wittenberg to the status of an Electorate by the Golden Bull of 1356...
House of Wettin, established the Duchy of Saxe-Weissenfels
Saxe-Weissenfels
Saxe-Weissenfels was a duchy of the Holy Roman Empire from 1656/7 until 1746 with its residence at Weißenfels. Ruled by a cadet branch of the Albertine House of Wettin, the duchy passed to the Electorate of Saxony upon the extinction of the line....
in 1656 and chose Weißenfels as his residence. Since 1638 Augustus had served as the Protestant
Protestant Reformation
The Protestant Reformation was a 16th-century split within Western Christianity initiated by Martin Luther, John Calvin and other early Protestants. The efforts of the self-described "reformers", who objected to the doctrines, rituals and ecclesiastical structure of the Roman Catholic Church, led...
administrator of the Magdeburg archbishopric
Archbishopric of Magdeburg
The Archbishopric of Magdeburg was a Roman Catholic archdiocese and Prince-Bishopric of the Holy Roman Empire centered on the city of Magdeburg on the Elbe River....
, which, according to the 1648 Peace of Westphalia
Peace of Westphalia
The Peace of Westphalia was a series of peace treaties signed between May and October of 1648 in Osnabrück and Münster. These treaties ended the Thirty Years' War in the Holy Roman Empire, and the Eighty Years' War between Spain and the Dutch Republic, with Spain formally recognizing the...
would be finally secularised to Brandenburg-Prussia
Brandenburg-Prussia
Brandenburg-Prussia is the historiographic denomination for the Early Modern realm of the Brandenburgian Hohenzollerns between 1618 and 1701. Based in the Electorate of Brandenburg, the main branch of the Hohenzollern intermarried with the branch ruling the Duchy of Prussia, and secured succession...
upon his death.
Augustus therefore from 1660 on erected the Baroque
Baroque architecture
Baroque architecture is a term used to describe the building style of the Baroque era, begun in late sixteenth century Italy, that took the Roman vocabulary of Renaissance architecture and used it in a new rhetorical and theatrical fashion, often to express the triumph of the Catholic Church and...
Neu-Augustusburg Castle in Weißenfels as the seat of his ducal successors. Completed in 1680 it became the duchy's administrative as well as cultural centre until its dissolution in 1746. Composers like Johann Philipp Krieger and Georg Philipp Telemann
Georg Philipp Telemann
Georg Philipp Telemann was a German Baroque composer and multi-instrumentalist. Almost completely self-taught in music, he became a composer against his family's wishes. After studying in Magdeburg, Zellerfeld, and Hildesheim, Telemann entered the University of Leipzig to study law, but eventually...
worked here, the actress Friederike Caroline Neuber
Friederike Caroline Neuber
Friederike Caroline Neuber, also called Die Neuberin, , was a German actor and theatre director. She is one of the most famous artists in the history of the German theater....
made her first appearances at Weißenfels. In 1713 Johann Sebastian Bach
Johann Sebastian Bach
Johann Sebastian Bach was a German composer, organist, harpsichordist, violist, and violinist whose sacred and secular works for choir, orchestra, and solo instruments drew together the strands of the Baroque period and brought it to its ultimate maturity...
dedicated his cantata Was mir behagt, ist nur die muntre Jagd, BWV 208 to Duke Christian of Saxe-Weissenfels
Christian, Duke of Saxe-Weissenfels
Christian, Duke of Saxe-Weissenfels , was a duke of Saxe-Weissenfels-Querfurt and member of the House of Wettin....
.
The Lutheran
Lutheranism
Lutheranism is a major branch of Western Christianity that identifies with the theology of Martin Luther, a German reformer. Luther's efforts to reform the theology and practice of the church launched the Protestant Reformation...
theologian Erdmann Neumeister
Erdmann Neumeister
Erdmann Neumeister was a German Lutheran theologian and hymnologist.He was born at Uichteritz near Weißenfels in the province Saxonia of Germany. As a 15 years old boy he started his studies in Schulpforta - an old humanistic gymnasium. He becomes a student of poetology and theology in the...
from 1704 on served as a deacon
Deacon
Deacon is a ministry in the Christian Church that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions...
at the castle's Trinity Chapel. Its pipe organ completed in 1673 has 22 stops
Organ stop
An organ stop is a component of a pipe organ that admits pressurized air to a set of organ pipes. Its name comes from the fact that stops can be used selectively by the organist; some can be "on" , while others can be "off" .The term can also refer...
. According to John Mainwaring
John Mainwaring
John Mainwaring was an English theologian and the first biographer of the composer Georg Friedrich Händel in any language. He was a Fellow of St. John's College, Cambridge, and became rector of the parish of Church Stretton, Shropshire, and, later professor of Divinity at Cambridge...
, Duke Johann Adolf I of Saxe-Weissenfels
Johann Adolf I, Duke of Saxe-Weissenfels
Johann Adolf I, Duke of Saxe-Weissenfels , was a duke of Saxe-Weissenfels-Querfurt and member of the House of Wettin....
himself discovered the musical talent of George Frideric Handel
George Frideric Handel
George Frideric Handel was a German-British Baroque composer, famous for his operas, oratorios, anthems and organ concertos. Handel was born in 1685, in a family indifferent to music...
, when he heard the son of his physician Georg Händel
Georg Händel
Georg Händel was a barber-surgeon and the father of Georg Frideric Handel. As a young man he had to stop attending grammar school when his father Valentin died and had to give up his aspirations to become a lawyer...
playing on the organ. Bach wrote the Toccata and Fugue in F major
Toccata and Fugue in F major, BWV 540
The Toccata and Fugue in F Major, BWV 540 is an organ work written by Johann Sebastian Bach. The toccata is thought to be written after 1714, and the fugue before 1731...
(BWV 540) for it.
With the extinction of the Wettin Saxe-Weissenfels line in 1746, the town fell back to the Saxon Electorate and after the 1815 Congress of Vienna
Congress of Vienna
The Congress of Vienna was a conference of ambassadors of European states chaired by Klemens Wenzel von Metternich, and held in Vienna from September, 1814 to June, 1815. The objective of the Congress was to settle the many issues arising from the French Revolutionary Wars, the Napoleonic Wars,...
to the Prussian
Kingdom of Prussia
The Kingdom of Prussia was a German kingdom from 1701 to 1918. Until the defeat of Germany in World War I, it comprised almost two-thirds of the area of the German Empire...
Province of Saxony
Province of Saxony
The Province of Saxony was a province of the Kingdom of Prussia and later the Free State of Prussia from 1816 until 1945. Its capital was Magdeburg.-History:The province was created in 1816 out of the following territories:...
. From 1816 on it was the capital of the Weißenfels district
Weißenfels (district)
Weißenfels was a district in the south of Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Neighboring districts were Burgenlandkreis, Merseburg-Querfurt and the Saxon district Leipziger Land.- History :...
until its dissolution in 2007.
Population
Development of the town's population (from 1960 as at 31 December):| class="wikitable"> | Year | Population |
|---|---|
| 1825 | 6,423 |
| 1875 | 16,921 |
| 1880 | 19,654 |
| 1885 | 21,782 |
| 1890 | 23,779 |
| 1900 | 28,201 |
| 1925 | 35,756 |
- Datasource since 1990: Statistical office of Saxony-Anhalt
1: 29 October
2: 31 August
3: 3 October
Incorporations
Since an administrative reform on 1 January 2010, Weißenfels also comprises the former municipalities of LangendorfLangendorf, Saxony-Anhalt
Langendorf is a village and a former municipality in the Burgenlandkreis district, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Since 1 January 2010, it is part of the town Weißenfels....
, Markwerben
Markwerben
Markwerben is a village and a former municipality in the Burgenlandkreis district, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Since 1 January 2010, it is part of the town Weißenfels....
and Uichteritz
Uichteritz
Uichteritz is a village and a former municipality in the Burgenlandkreis district, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Since 1 January 2010, it is part of the town Weißenfels.- Geography :...
. On 1 September 2010, the former municipalities of Burgwerben
Burgwerben
Burgwerben is a village and a former municipality in the Burgenlandkreis district, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Since 1 September 2010, it is part of the town Weißenfels....
, Großkorbetha
Großkorbetha
Großkorbetha is a village and a former municipality in the Burgenlandkreis district, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Since 1 September 2010, it is part of the town Weißenfels....
, Leißling
Leißling
Leißling is a village and a former municipality in the Burgenlandkreis district, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Since September 1, 2010, it is part of the town Weißenfels.- History :...
, Reichardtswerben
Reichardtswerben
Reichardtswerben is a village and a former municipality in the Burgenlandkreis district, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Since 1 September 2010, it is part of the town Weißenfels....
, Schkortleben
Schkortleben
Schkortleben is a village and a former municipality in the Burgenlandkreis district, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Since 1 September 2010, it is part of the town of Weißenfels. Until then, the village of Kriechau used to be part of Schkortleben....
, Storkau
Storkau
Storkau is a village and a former municipality in the Burgenlandkreis district, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Since 1 September 2010, it is part of the town Weißenfels....
, Tagewerben
Tagewerben
Tagewerben is a village and a former municipality in the Burgenlandkreis district, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Since 1 September 2010, it is part of the town Weißenfels....
and Wengelsdorf
Wengelsdorf
Wengelsdorf is a village and a former municipality in the Burgenlandkreis district, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Since 1 September 2010, it is part of the town Weißenfels....
joined the town.
Politics
Seats in the municipal assembly (Stadtrat) as of 2009 elections:- Christian Democratic UnionChristian Democratic Union (Germany)The Christian Democratic Union of Germany is a Christian democratic and conservative political party in Germany. It is regarded as on the centre-right of the German political spectrum...
(CDU): 13 - The LeftThe Left (Germany)The Left , also commonly referred to as the Left Party , is a democratic socialist political party in Germany. The Left is the most left-wing party of the five represented in the Bundestag....
: 8 - Bürger für Weißenfels ("Citizens for Weißenfels"): 6
- Social Democratic Party of GermanySocial Democratic Party of GermanyThe Social Democratic Party of Germany is a social-democratic political party in Germany...
(SPD): 5 - Free Democratic PartyFree Democratic Party (Germany)The Free Democratic Party , abbreviated to FDP, is a centre-right classical liberal political party in Germany. It is led by Philipp Rösler and currently serves as the junior coalition partner to the Union in the German federal government...
(FDP) / Free VotersFree VotersFree Voters is a German concept in which an association of persons participates in an election without having the status of a registered political party. Usually it is a locally organized group of voters in the form of a registered association . In most cases, Free Voters are active only at the...
: 3 - National Democratic Party of GermanyNational Democratic Party of GermanyThe National Democratic Party of Germany – The People's Union , is a far right German nationalist party. It was founded in 1964 a successor to the German Reich Party . Party statements self-identify as Germany's "only significant patriotic force"...
(NPD): 1
Economy
Since the 19th century industrialisationIndustrialisation
Industrialization is the process of social and economic change that transforms a human group from an agrarian society into an industrial one...
, shoe manufacture was Weißenfels' primary industry, until 1991 when the last factory shut down. Since then, the food processing industry has grown significantly. The main companies are:
- Frischli dairy
- Tönnies Fleischwerk, Europe's third biggest meat group, runs one of its three meat-processing plants in Weißenfels
- Mitteldeutsche Erfrischungsgetränke, the thirdlargest mineral water company of Germany, has its seat in Weißenfels. Its brands include LeißlingLeißlingLeißling is a village and a former municipality in the Burgenlandkreis district, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Since September 1, 2010, it is part of the town Weißenfels.- History :...
er Mineralwasser and Saskia-Quelle.
The town has access to the A9 at the Weißenfels junction, near the interchange with the A38. The Weißenfels station is a stop on the Thuringian Railway line from Halle to Nebra
Nebra
Nebra is a town in the district of Burgenlandkreis of Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. It is situated on the river Unstrut....
.
Sports
BasketballBasketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
and Unihockey are the two most popular sports in town. Mitteldeutscher Basketball Club http://www.mitteldeutscherbc.de (MBC) was playing in the German national basketball league in between 1999 and 2004 and entered the league again in 2009. Unihockey Club Kreissparkasse Weißenfels won the German Unihockey championship seven times, from 2003 to 2009. The Unihockey European Cup, organized every year in order to establish the best team in Europe, was held in Weißenfels and neighbouring cities Hohenmölsen
Hohenmölsen
' is a town in the Burgenlandkreis district, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. It is situated approx. 10 km southeast of Weißenfels, and 27 km southwest of Leipzig....
and Merseburg
Merseburg
Merseburg is a town in the south of the German state of Saxony-Anhalt on the river Saale, approx. 14 km south of Halle . It is the capital of the Saalekreis district. It had a diocese founded by Archbishop Adalbert of Magdeburg....
in January 2004.
Notable citizens
- Joachim Wilhelm von BraweJoachim Wilhelm von BraweJoachim Wilhelm von Brawe was a German poet from Weißenfels.- Biography :From 1755 to 1758, Brawe studied law at the University of Leipzig...
(1738–1758), playwright - Konrad DannenbergKonrad DannenbergKonrad Dannenberg was a German-American rocket pioneer and member of the German rocket team brought to the United States after World War II.-Early years:...
(1912–2009), rocket scientist - Hermann EiltsHermann EiltsHermann Frederick Eilts was a United States Foreign Service Officer and diplomat. He served as an American ambassador to Saudi Arabia and Egypt, assisted Henry Kissinger's Mideast shuttle diplomacy effort, worked with Egyptian President Anwar el-Sadat throughout the Camp David Accords, and dodged...
(1922–2006), diplomat and adviser to Kissinger on Mideast - Louise von FrançoisLouise von FrançoisLouise von François was a German writer, best known for her historical novel Die letzte Reckenburgerin . She was a friend and correspondent of Marie von Ebner-Eschenbach and C. F...
(1817–1893), writer - Horst P. HorstHorst P. HorstHorst Paul Albert Bohrmann who chose to be known as Horst P. Horst was a German-American fashion photographer.-Early life:...
(1906–1999), photographer - Georg KükenthalGeorg KükenthalGeorg Kükenthal was a German pastor and botanist who specialized in the field of caricology.He worked as a pastor in Grub am Forst, and later in Coburg. In 1913 he received an honorary degree from the University of Breslau....
(1864–1955), botanist - Willy KükenthalWilly KükenthalWilly Georg Kükenthal was a German zoologist who was a native of Weißenfels.He was a student at the Universities of Munich and Jena, earning his doctorate at the latter institution in 1884...
(1861–1922), zoologist - NovalisNovalisNovalis was the pseudonym of Georg Philipp Friedrich Freiherr von Hardenberg , an author and philosopher of early German Romanticism.-Biography:...
, pen name of poet Friedrich von Hardenberg (1772–1801) - Gottfried ReicheGottfried ReicheGottfried Reiche was a German trumpet player and composer of the Baroque era. He is best known for having been Johann Sebastian Bach's chief trumpeter at Leipzig from Bach's arrival there in 1723 until Reiche's death....
(1667–1734), trumpeter - Heinrich SchützHeinrich SchützHeinrich Schütz was a German composer and organist, generally regarded as the most important German composer before Johann Sebastian Bach and often considered to be one of the most important composers of the 17th century along with Claudio Monteverdi...
(1585–1672), composer and organist - Benjamin HalevyBenjamin Halevy-Biography:Halevy was born Ernst Levi in Weissenfels, Germany and educated at the Universities of Freiburg, Göttingen and Berlin. He immigrated to what was then the British Mandate of Palestine in 1933 after Adolf Hitler became Chancellor of Germany, and studied at the Hebrew University of...
(1910–1996), Israeli judge and politician - Gerard TichyGerard TichyGérard Tichy was a Spanish actor of German descent, who appeared in numerous movies, including several international productions. He was born in Weißenfels, Germany, on March 11, 1920, and died in Madrid, Spain, on April 11, 1992.Tichy participated in World War II and held the rank of a...
(1920–1992), actor
International relations
Weißenfels is twinnedTown twinning
Twin towns and sister cities are two of many terms used to describe the cooperative agreements between towns, cities, and even counties in geographically and politically distinct areas to promote cultural and commercial ties.- Terminology :...
with: Kornwestheim
Kornwestheim
Kornwestheim is a town in the district of Ludwigsburg, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is situated about 10 km north of Stuttgart, and 5 km south of Ludwigsburg.-Entertainment:...
, Germany, since 1990 Komárno
Komárno
Komárno is a town in Slovakia at the confluence of the Danube and the Váh rivers. Komárno was formed from part of a historical town in Hungary situated on both banks of the Danube. Following World War I, the border of the newly created Czechoslovakia cut the historical, unified town in half,...
, Slovakia, since 1995
See also
- Saale-UnstrutSaale-UnstrutSaale-Unstrut is a region for quality wine in Germany, and takes its name from the rivers Saale and Unstrut. The region is located on various hill slopes around these rivers...
wine region