Weißenfels (IPA: [ˈvaɪsənˌfɛls]; often written in English as Weissenfels) is the largest town of the Burgenlandkreis district, in southern Saxony-Anhalt, central Germany. It is situated on the river Saale, approximately 30 km (20 mi) south of Halle.
Perhaps the first mention of the area, before the town itself was founded occurred in 806 CE, when Charles the Younger (Karl der Jüngere), King of the Franks, fought and killed two West SlavicKnezy (princes) nearby: duke Miliduch of the Sorbs and Nessyta (possibly also a Sorbian leader).[3] Miliduch had led a Sorbian invasion of Austrasia.
The settlement arose around a castle on a ford 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.[4]
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 PrussianProvince of Saxony. From 1816 on it was the capital of the Weißenfels district until its dissolution in 2007.
Population
Development of the town's population (from 1960 as at 31 December):
Year
Population
1825
6,423
1875
16,921
1880
19,654
1885
21,782
1890
23,779
1900
28,201
1925
35,756
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
Year
Population
1990
37,765 ³
1995
34,676
2000
31,946
2005
29,866
2006
29,669
2007
29,569
2013
39,909
Datasource since 1990: Statistical office of Saxony-Anhalt
Since the 19th century industrialisation, 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 third largest mineral water company of Germany, has its seat in Weißenfels. Its brands include Leißlinger Mineralwasser and Saskia-Quelle.
Basketball and Unihockey are the two most popular sports in town. Mitteldeutscher Basketball Club (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.
^Hauptsatzung der Stadt Weißenfels 2017-03-28 at the Wayback Machine, June 2019.
^"Therese aus dem Winckel", Wikipedia (in German), 2021-04-13, retrieved 2021-04-26
^. weissenfels.de (in German). Weißenfels. Archived from the original on 2019-12-30. Retrieved 2021-02-17.
May 08, 2023
weißenfels, other, uses, district, saxe, weissenfels, fusine, valromana, ˈvaɪsənˌfɛls, often, written, english, weissenfels, largest, town, burgenlandkreis, district, southern, saxony, anhalt, central, germany, situated, river, saale, approximately, south, hal. For other uses see Weissenfels district Saxe Weissenfels and Fusine in Valromana Weissenfels IPA ˈvaɪsenˌfɛls often written in English as Weissenfels is the largest town of the Burgenlandkreis district in southern Saxony Anhalt central Germany It is situated on the river Saale approximately 30 km 20 mi south of Halle WeissenfelsTownFlagCoat of armsLocation of Weissenfels within Burgenlandkreis districtWeissenfelsShow map of GermanyWeissenfelsShow map of Saxony AnhaltCoordinates 51 12 N 11 58 E 51 200 N 11 967 E 51 200 11 967 Coordinates 51 12 N 11 58 E 51 200 N 11 967 E 51 200 11 967CountryGermanyStateSaxony AnhaltDistrictBurgenlandkreisGovernment Mayor 2022 29 Martin Papke 1 CDU Area Total113 51 km2 43 83 sq mi Elevation100 m 300 ft Population 2021 12 31 2 Total39 745 Density350 km2 910 sq mi Time zoneUTC 01 00 CET Summer DST UTC 02 00 CEST Postal codes06667 06688 06652Dialling codes03443 034446Vehicle registrationBLK WSFWebsitewww weissenfels de Contents 1 History 1 1 Population 1 2 Incorporations 2 Politics 3 Economy 4 Sports 5 Notable people 6 Twin towns sister cities 7 See also 8 ReferencesHistory EditHistorical affiliations Electorate of Saxony 1485 1656 Saxe Weissenfels 1656 1746 Electorate of Saxony 1746 1806 Kingdom of Saxony 1806 1815 Kingdom of Prussia 1815 1871 German Empire 1871 1918 Weimar Republic 1918 1933 Nazi Germany 1933 1945 Allied occupied Germany 1945 1949 East Germany 1949 1990 Germany 1990 present Perhaps the first mention of the area before the town itself was founded occurred in 806 CE when Charles the Younger Karl der Jungere King of the Franks fought and killed two West Slavic Knezy princes nearby duke Miliduch of the Sorbs and Nessyta possibly also a Sorbian leader 3 Miliduch had led a Sorbian invasion of Austrasia The settlement arose around a castle on a ford 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 Lutzen 4 Neu Augustusburg Palace Palace Chapel of the Holy Trinity Shortly afterwards however the town took a steep rise in importance 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 and as the capital of the duchy 4 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 onward erected the Baroque Neu Augustusburg Castle on a hill 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 1702 Johann Sebastian Bach s application for the position of the organist in Sangerhausen belonging to Weissenfels failed because the Duke of Saxe Weissenfels preferred the rediscovered in 2010 composer Johann Augustin Kobelius 5 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 ducal palace 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 Handel 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 Population Edit Development of the town s population from 1960 as at 31 December Year Population1825 6 4231875 16 9211880 19 6541885 21 7821890 23 7791900 28 2011925 35 756 Year Population1933 40 1191939 42 3871946 50 995 1950 47 967 1960 45 8561981 39 1251984 38 657 Year Population1990 37 765 1995 34 6762000 31 9462005 29 8662006 29 6692007 29 5692013 39 909Datasource since 1990 Statistical office of Saxony Anhalt1 29 October 2 31 August 3 3 October Incorporations Edit On 1 January 1995 Weissenfels absorbed the former municipality Borau 6 Since an administrative reform on 1 January 2010 Weissenfels also comprises the former municipalities of Langendorf Markwerben and Uichteritz On 1 September 2010 the former municipalities of Burgwerben Grosskorbetha Leissling Reichardtswerben Schkortleben Storkau Tagewerben and Wengelsdorf joined the town 7 These 12 former municipalities are now Ortschaften or municipal divisions of Weissenfels 8 Politics Edit Weissenfels baroque Town hall Seats in the municipal council Stadtrat as of 2014 elections Party Group SeatsChristian Democratic Union 13Citizens for Weissenfels Rural Neighborhoods 7The Left 7Social Democratic Party of Germany 6Alliance For Justice 3National Democratic Party of Germany 1Alternative for Germany 1Alliance 90 The Greens 1Free Democratic Party 1Economy EditSince the 19th century industrialisation 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 Tonnies Fleischwerk Europe s third biggest meat group runs one of its three meat processing plants in Weissenfels Mitteldeutsche Erfrischungsgetranke the third largest mineral water company of Germany has its seat in Weissenfels Its brands include Leisslinger Mineralwasser and Saskia Quelle The town has access to the A9 at the Weissenfels junction near the interchange with the A38 Weissenfels station is a stop on the Thuringian Railway line from Halle to Erfurt Jena Sports EditBasketball and Unihockey are the two most popular sports in town Mitteldeutscher Basketball Club 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 Hohenmolsen and Merseburg in January 2004 Notable people Edit Heinrich Schutz House the composer s home in Weissenfels now a museum Heinrich Schutz 1585 1672 composer and organist Gottfried Reiche 1667 1734 trumpeter Johann Adolf II Duke of Saxe Weissenfels 1685 1747 Duke of Saxe Weissenfels Anna Magdalena Bach 1701 1760 singer Joachim Wilhelm von Brawe 1738 1758 playwright Novalis pen name of poet Friedrich von Hardenberg 1772 1801 Louise von Francois 1817 1893 writer Heinrich von Gossler 1841 1927 general Willy Kukenthal 1861 1922 zoologist Georg Kukenthal 1864 1955 botanist Horst P Horst 1906 1999 photographer Benjamin Halevy 1910 1996 Israeli judge and politician Konrad Dannenberg 1912 2009 rocket scientist Johanna Elisabeth Dobricht 1692 1786 operatic soprano Hermann Eilts 1922 2006 diplomat and adviser to Kissinger on Mideast Gerard Tichy 1920 1992 Spanish actor Max Frankel born 1930 American journalist Editor in Chief of the New York Times Theresa Emilie Henriette Winkel 1784 1867 composer 9 Twin towns sister cities EditSee also List of twin towns and sister cities in Germany Weissenfels is twinned with 10 Kornwestheim Germany 1990 Komarno Slovakia 1995 See also Edit Wikimedia Commons has media related to Weissenfels Saale Unstrut wine regionReferences Edit Burgermeisterwahlen in den Gemeinden Endgultige Ergebnisse Statistisches Landesamt Sachsen Anhalt accessed 10 November 2022 Bevolkerung der Gemeinden Stand 31 Dezember 2021 PDF in German Statistisches Landesamt Sachsen Anhalt June 2022 Vickers Robert H 1894 History of Bohemia Chicago C H Sergel Company p 48 a b Chisholm Hugh ed 1911 Weissenfels Encyclopaedia Britannica Vol 28 11th ed Cambridge University Press p 500 Gerald Drebes Wiederentdeckung eines Konkurrenten von J S Bach online Gerald Drebes Wiederentdeckung des Bach Konkurrenten Kobelius Archived from the original on 2015 02 07 Retrieved 2015 03 10 Gebietsanderungen vom 01 01 bis 31 12 1995 Statistisches Bundesamt Gebietsanderungen vom 01 Januar bis 31 Dezember 2010 Statistisches Bundesamt Hauptsatzung der Stadt Weissenfels Archived 2017 03 28 at the Wayback Machine June 2019 Therese aus dem Winckel Wikipedia in German 2021 04 13 retrieved 2021 04 26 Stadtepartnerschaften der Stadt Weissenfels weissenfels de in German Weissenfels Archived from the original on 2019 12 30 Retrieved 2021 02 17 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Weissenfels amp oldid 1153069516, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
