Bismark is a town in the Stendal district

Stendal (district)

Stendal is a district in the north-east of Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Neighboring districts are Jerichower Land, Börde, Altmarkkreis Salzwedel, the district Lüchow-Dannenberg in Lower Saxony, and the districts Prignitz, Ostprignitz-Ruppin and Havelland in Brandenburg.- History :In the...

, in the historic Altmark

Altmark

The Altmark is a historic region in Germany, comprising the northern third of Saxony-Anhalt. As the initial territory of the Brandenburg margraves, it is sometimes referred to as the "Cradle of Prussia", as by Otto von Bismarck, a native from Schönhausen near Stendal.- Geography :The Altmark is...

 region of northern 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 approx. 22 km (13.7 mi) west of Stendal

Stendal

Stendal is a town in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. It is the capital of Stendal District and unofficial capital of the Altmark. Its population in 2001 was 38,900. It is located some west of Berlin and around east of Hanover...

.
In the early 12th century the area then under the rule of Albert the Bear was settled with peasants descending from the Low Countries

Low Countries

The Low Countries are the historical lands around the low-lying delta of the Rhine, Scheldt, and Meuse rivers, including the modern countries of Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg and parts of northern France and western Germany....

. The town's name is derived from the nearby Biese creek (after meaning rush

Juncaceae

Juncaceae, the rush family, are a monocotyledonous family of flowering plants. There are eight genera and about 400 species. Members of the Juncaceae are slow-growing, rhizomatous, herbaceous plants, and they may superficially resemble grasses. They often grow on infertile soils in a wide range...

 plants), a tributary of the Aland; though it may also refer to the bishop's march, a possession of the Havelberg bishops

Bishopric of Havelberg

The Bishopric of Havelberg was a Roman Catholic diocese founded by King Otto I, King of the Germans, in 946. The diocese was suffragan to the Archbishopric of Magdeburg. Its most famous bishop was Anselm of Havelberg. Its seat was in Havelberg in the Northern March and it roughly covered the...

 mentioned in a 1209 deed issued by the Ascanian margrave Albert II. With the Altmark, Bismark was part of the Margraviate of Brandenburg

Margraviate of Brandenburg

The Margraviate of Brandenburg was a major principality of the Holy Roman Empire from 1157 to 1806. Also known as the March of Brandenburg , it played a pivotal role in the history of Germany and Central Europe....

 until it was adjudicated to the Prussian 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:...

 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,...

.

One Herbordus of Bismarck was mentioned holding the office of a Schultheiß

Schultheiß

In medieval Germany, the Schultheiß was the head of a municipality , a Vogt or an executive official of the ruler.As official it was...

in Stendal about 1270. His descendant Otto von Bismarck

Otto von Bismarck

Otto Eduard Leopold, Prince of Bismarck, Duke of Lauenburg , simply known as Otto von Bismarck, was a Prussian-German statesman whose actions unified Germany, made it a major player in world affairs, and created a balance of power that kept Europe at peace after 1871.As Minister President of...

 received the honorary citizenship of Bismark in 1895.

Upon an administrative reform effective from 1 January 2010, the town of Bismark comprises the former municipalities of Badingen

Badingen

Badingen is a village and a former municipality in the district of Stendal, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Since 1 January 2010, it is part of the town Bismark....

, Berkau

Berkau

Berkau is a village and a former municipality in the district of Stendal, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Since 1 January 2010, it is part of the town Bismark....

, Büste

Büste

Büste is a village and a former municipality in the district of Stendal, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Since 1 January 2010, it is part of the town Bismark....

, Dobberkau

Dobberkau

Dobberkau is a village and a former municipality in the district of Stendal, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Since 1 January 2010, it is part of the town Bismark....

, Garlipp

Garlipp

Garlipp is a village and a former municipality in the district of Stendal, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Since 1 January 2010, it is part of the town Bismark....

, Grassau

Grassau, Saxony-Anhalt

Grassau is a village and a former municipality in the district of Stendal, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Since 1 January 2010, it is part of the town Bismark....

, Hohenwulsch

Hohenwulsch

Hohenwulsch is a village and a former municipality in the district of Stendal, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Since 1 January 2010, it has been part of the town of Bismark....

, Holzhausen

Holzhausen

Holzhausen may refer to:Places*in Germany:**Holzhausen, Saxony-Anhalt, a municipality in the district of Stendal, Saxony-Anhalt**Holzhausen an der Haide, a municipality in the Rhein-Lahn district, Rhineland-Palatinate...

, Käthen

Käthen

Käthen is a village and a former municipality in the district of Stendal, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Since 1 January 2010, it is part of the town Bismark....

, Kläden

Kläden

Kläden is a village and a former municipality in the district Altmarkkreis Salzwedel, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Since 1 January 2010, it is part of the town Arendsee....

, Könnigde

Könnigde

Könnigde is a village and a former municipality in the district of Stendal, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Since 1 January 2010, it is part of the town Bismark....

, Kremkau

Kremkau

Kremkau is a village and a former municipality in the district of Stendal, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Since 1 January 2010, it is part of the town Bismark....

, Meßdorf

Meßdorf

Meßdorf is a village and a former municipality in the district of Stendal, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Since 1 January 2010, it is part of the town Bismark....

, Querstedt

Querstedt

Querstedt is a village and a former municipality in the district of Stendal, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Since 1 January 2010, it is part of the town Bismark....

, Schäplitz

Schäplitz

Schäplitz is a village and a former municipality in the district of Stendal, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Since 1 January 2010, it is part of the town Bismark....

, Schernikau

Schernikau

Schernikau is a village and a former municipality in the district of Stendal, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Since 1 January 2010, it is part of the town Bismark....

, Schorstedt

Schorstedt

Schorstedt is a village and a former municipality in the district of Stendal, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Since 1 January 2010, it is part of the town Bismark....

 and Steinfeld

Steinfeld, Saxony-Anhalt

Steinfeld is a village and a former municipality in the district of Stendal, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Since 1 January 2010, it is part of the town Bismark....