Gräfenhainichen

Gräfenhainichen

Church Sankt Marien

Coat of arms
Gräfenhainichen

Coordinates: 51°43′N 12°26′E / 51.717°N 12.433°E / 51.717; 12.433Coordinates: 51°43′N 12°26′E / 51.717°N 12.433°E / 51.717; 12.433
Country Germany
State Saxony-Anhalt
District Wittenberg
Government
 • Mayor Enrico Schilling (CDU)
Area
 • Total 158.90 km2 (61.35 sq mi)
Population (2015-12-31)[1]
 • Total 11,944
 • Density 75/km2 (190/sq mi)
Time zone CET/CEST (UTC+1/+2)
Postal codes 06773
Dialling codes 034953
Vehicle registration WB, GHC, JE
Website www.graefenhainichen.de

 Gräfenhainichen  is a town in Wittenberg district in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany.

Location

The town was the seat of the offices of the administrative community (Verwaltungsgemeinschaft) of Tor zur Dübener Heide until it was disbanded in January 2011. It lies about 25 km southwest of Lutherstadt Wittenberg, southeast of Dessau and northeast of Bitterfeld on the edge of the Düben Heath.

Nearby lies the Gremminer See, a lake created as a result of the redevelopment of the former brown coal strip mine of Golpa-Nord, and on whose shore is found the Ferropolis ("Iron Town") industrial memorial, actually a museum dedicated to "industrial culture".

History

Gräfenhainichen had its first documentary mention in 1254. In 1454, Gräfenhainichen had its town rights reconfirmed after the old documents by which these were granted had been destroyed in a fire. In 1637, during the Thirty Years' War, the town was almost utterly destroyed by the Swedes. The year 1859 saw the dedication of the new railway line between Wittenberg and Bitterfeld. The town's advantageous location allowed industry to move into town. The first printing shop was set up in 1874; until 1990, there were still as many as four printing shops in Gräfenhainichen. By 1890, brown coal was being mined in Gräfenhainichen, first underground, and then in strip mines. In 1954, at which time the town was in East Germany, Gräfenhainichen became a district seat (Kreisstadt) for three towns and 27 communities. This lasted until 1994, four years after Reunification.

Coat of arms

The town's current civic arms were granted on 17 December 1993. The town's oldest known seal dates from 1477, and the current arms are based on this. The tower stands for the old fortified city and the inescutcheon with the lion rampant, being Meißen's arms, recalls that in 1377 the Counts of Meißen became the local overlords. Until 1993, Gräfenhainichen's coat of arms was of a similar design, but with the heraldic elements arranged slightly differently, and with different colours. The old arms were predominantly red.

Town partnerships

Gräfenhainichen maintains partnerships with the following towns:

Transportation

Gräfenhainichen lies on the Bundesstraße federal highway, B 107, running from Bad Düben to Coswig, on the B 100 from Wittenberg to Bitterfeld, and on the Landesstraße (state road) L136 to Zschornewitz.

The Dessau-Ost interchange with the A9 autobahn (Munich - Berlin) is about 17 km away.

Gräfenhainichen's railway station lies on the Deutsche Bahn line between Wittenberg and Bitterfeld.

Personalities

Wilhelm Ohnesorge 1937 mid, with hat in his hand

Clubs

References

  1. ↑ "Bevölkerung der Gemeinden – Stand: 31.12.2015" (PDF). Statistisches Landesamt Sachsen-Anhalt (in German).
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