Flechtingen Hills
Encyclopedia
The Flechtingen Hills are a wooded, hilly upland
area up to 179 m high in the northwestern part of the German state of Saxony-Anhalt
, named after the town of Flechtingen
.
to the west, the Spetze, a right-hand tributary
of the Aller, to the north, the valley of the Ohre
to the northeast, through which the Mittelland Canal also runs, and by the Beber
, a tributary of the Ohre, to the south.
One of the highest elevations in the Flechtingen Hills is the Butterberg near Ivenrode
at .
period. The ridge is mostly composed of volcanic rock and sedimentary rock
s of the Carboniferous
and Permian
periods. In places these are mined in large quarries
.
Regionally the ridge is part of the Flechtingen-Roßlau Scholle, that runs in the northwest from the depression of the Drömling
towards the southeast to Magdeburg
and the river Roßlau. Another well-known ridge in this Scholle is the Magdeburg Domfelsen, which acts as a sill to the Elbe
and markedly raises its water velocity.
Highland (geography)
The term highland or upland is used to denote any mountainous region or elevated mountainous plateau. Generally speaking, the term upland tends to be used for ranges of hills, typically up to 500-600m, and highland for ranges of low mountains.The Scottish Highlands refers to the mountainous...
area up to 179 m high in the northwestern part of the German state of 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...
, named after the town of Flechtingen
Flechtingen
Flechtingen is a municipality in the Börde district in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. It is situated approx. 35 km northwest of Magdeburg.Flechtingen is the seat of the Verbandsgemeinde Flechtingen....
.
Location
The Flechtingen Hills are bordered by the River AllerAller
The Aller is a river, long, in the states of Saxony-Anhalt and Lower Saxony in Germany. It is a right-hand, and hence eastern, tributary of the River Weser and is also its largest tributary. Its last form the Lower Aller federal waterway...
to the west, the Spetze, a right-hand tributary
Tributary
A tributary or affluent is a stream or river that flows into a main stem river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean...
of the Aller, to the north, the valley of the Ohre
Ohre
The Ohře is a 316 km long river in Germany and the Czech Republic , left tributary of the Elbe. The basin area of the river has a size of 6,255 km², of which 5,614 km² are in the Czech Republic and 641 km² in Germany...
to the northeast, through which the Mittelland Canal also runs, and by the Beber
Beber (Ohre)
Beber is a river of Saxony-Anhalt, Germany....
, a tributary of the Ohre, to the south.
One of the highest elevations in the Flechtingen Hills is the Butterberg near Ivenrode
Ivenrode
Ivenrode is a village and a former municipality in the Börde district in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Since 1 January 2010, it is part of the municipality Altenhausen....
at .
Geology
Unlike the surrounding region, geologically old rocks reach the surface of the Flechtingen Hills. It thus forms the northernmost region of bedrock in Germany, because North Germany is almost completely covered by unconsolidated rocks of the QuaternaryQuaternary
The Quaternary Period is the most recent of the three periods of the Cenozoic Era in the geologic time scale of the ICS. It follows the Neogene Period, spanning 2.588 ± 0.005 million years ago to the present...
period. The ridge is mostly composed of volcanic rock and sedimentary rock
Sedimentary rock
Sedimentary rock are types of rock that are formed by the deposition of material at the Earth's surface and within bodies of water. Sedimentation is the collective name for processes that cause mineral and/or organic particles to settle and accumulate or minerals to precipitate from a solution....
s of the Carboniferous
Carboniferous
The Carboniferous is a geologic period and system that extends from the end of the Devonian Period, about 359.2 ± 2.5 Mya , to the beginning of the Permian Period, about 299.0 ± 0.8 Mya . The name is derived from the Latin word for coal, carbo. Carboniferous means "coal-bearing"...
and Permian
Permian
The PermianThe term "Permian" was introduced into geology in 1841 by Sir Sir R. I. Murchison, president of the Geological Society of London, who identified typical strata in extensive Russian explorations undertaken with Edouard de Verneuil; Murchison asserted in 1841 that he named his "Permian...
periods. In places these are mined in large quarries
Quarries
Quarries - The "Royal Quarries" — not found in Scripture — is the namegiven to the vast caverns stretching far underneath the northern hill, Bezetha, on which Jerusalem is built. Out of these mammoth caverns stones, a hard limestone, have been quarried in ancient times for the buildings in the...
.
Regionally the ridge is part of the Flechtingen-Roßlau Scholle, that runs in the northwest from the depression of the Drömling
Drömling
The Drömling is a sparsely populated depression on the border of Lower Saxony and Saxony-Anhalt in Germany with an area of about . The larger part belonging to Saxony-Anhalt in the east has been a nature park since 1990. The former swampland was transformed by drainaged from a natural into a...
towards the southeast to Magdeburg
Magdeburg
Magdeburg , is the largest city and the capital city of the Bundesland of Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Magdeburg is situated on the Elbe River and was one of the most important medieval cities of Europe....
and the river Roßlau. Another well-known ridge in this Scholle is the Magdeburg Domfelsen, which acts as a sill to 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...
and markedly raises its water velocity.